Review cover Trillion: God of Destruction (PlayStation Vita)
Official GBAtemp Review

Product Information:

  • Release Date (NA): March 29, 2016
  • Release Date (EU): April 1, 2016
  • Release Date (JP): July 23, 2015
  • Publisher: Idea Factory
  • Developer: Compile Heart/Idea factory
  • Genres: Tactical JRPG

Game Features:

Single player
Local Multiplayer
Online Multiplayer
Co-operative
Trillion. That’s one followed by twelve zeros. It’s also the nickname of the God of Destruction, the game’s antagonist. Oh, and it’s also equal to his life points. One trillion HP boss. You ready for this challenge?

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Trillion: God of Destruction is the latest PSVita JRPG from Compile Heart/Idea Factory released last year in Japan and coming to the west this week. It’s development team includes a lot of ex-Disgaea staff and this is reflected in the general tone and art style of the game.

Descent to Hell

The game starts off with the God of Destruction appearing literally just outside the Gate of Hell, threatening to destroy the Underworld, where you reign as Zeabolos, the Great Overlord and Satan’s heir. Your loyal brother, Astaroth, shows up to take the task of facing Trillion but in so doing loses his life on the battlefield. As the strongest fighter of the Underworld, you decide to put an end to Trillion’s rampage but even for you he is no match… And so you perish…

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… Only to be revived after making a pact with a girl aptly named Faust. But your new body is weak and makes you unable to face Trillion in battle. The latter went in a dormant state after his rampage which gives you time to gather your subordinates, the Overlords, and devise a strategy to defeat Trillion...

It all comes down to this: the Overlord who manages to defeat Trillion will be throned as the new Great Overlord and will rule the Underworld in Zeabolos’ place. Now it’s up to you to choose an Overlord to manage, train and buff to face Trillion when he wakes up!

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Underworld not Netherworld, Trillion not Baal

While going through the prologue, you can’t help but notice the similarities with Disgaea. The art style, the music, some recurring themes, light dialogues and a serious plot are all features shared by both titles. But that’s where the similarities end. With the combat system, I was even expecting one similar to Disgaea. However, I was surprised to come across a quite original one. It is turn-based and your actions function on a grid system (the controls are not intuitive and require some time to get used to them). However, unlike traditional JRPGs, you face the same opponent every time. That doesn't make the fight boring but the boss is strong. One trillion HP strong. And to face such an opponent, rigorous training is required! 

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Training to Trillion

During the time Trillion is in his dormant state, you have a set number of cycles before he wakes up. Each cycle is made up of 7 days during which you have to plan how to train and level up your Overlord. Training is mostly passive, and in the long run repetitive, where you select the training which will increase your desired parameter but from time to time you’ll be challenged by other Overlords for real combat. As you train, you amass experience points which can be used to strategically level up the Overlord’s stats and/or active and passive skills. There’s also the "Valley of Swords" which is a randomized mini-dungeon where you can collect items and defeat opponents similar to Trillion’s underlings. At the end of each cycle, you can test your skills against Mokujin, a huge training dummy. Should you fail to defeat Trillion when you face him, your chosen Overlord will die and you have to start training another one from the beginning. Harsh, I know but the fallen Overlord will execute a final attack on Trillion which will help you when you face him next time and also any damaged Trillion sustained in the previous battle is carried in the next as well.

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However,  while training you have to look out for the “Fatigue meter”. Your fatigue level determines how well you fare at the training and if you’re too tired, injury may ensue and you’ll be blocked from training!

That’s where the “Rest” option comes into play. Under this option you can choose to either Rest to relieve your fatigue, Interact to increase your bond with the Great Overlord, Order to increase your funds from civilians or  try your luck at the Underworld Prize to get items. Using some specific items with specific Overlords will trigger some additional cut-scenes which can help in gaining some otherwise unavailable skills. 

Preparing to face a powerful boss as Trillion sure is no easy task! 

One Hell of a Plot

Like any JRPG, Trillion: God of Destruction relies on the plot and character development as much as the battles. 

This one relies heavily on  written conversations, sometimes a bit too much. For instance going through the prologue itself can take up to 10 minutes and it’s all text-based storytelling. Not that we don’t appreciate a good story background but with little animation to depict action, the whole storytelling part feels bland in the long-run. However the voice acting is varied and professionally done, as well as the background music. A nice additional feature is the ability to play the game in the original Japanese audio with English subtitles.

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During your training, you get to interact with the other characters as well which moves the storyline forward and helps in character development. Your choices during certain dialogues can also determine your Overlord’s fate by triggering certain events, allowing the storyline to branch into different endings based on your actions (although some of the scenes tend to repeat). In this way, you get to know your chosen Overlord better and you can even feel some sort of bonding with her. I even had a feeling of helplessness whenever I brought my Overlord to her demise and unfortunately this is sometimes inevitable! 

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Verdict

What We Liked ...
  • Prospect of facing a boss with a trillion HP
  • Interesting plot and character development
  • Original boss and fighting system
  • Multiple endings possible
What We Didn't Like ...
  • Repetitive training and side stories
  • Long dialogues with few animations
  • Controls not intuitive
7
Gameplay
The battle controls are not the best and require some time to grasp. The trainings could also be more animated and involve first hand action.
8
Presentation
The game makes a dashing presentation from its very own title and has a simple premise: Train to beat a trillion HP boss. The hard work given in preparing to face the opponent and the actual battle easily allow you to overlook some of the game's more bland features.
8
Lasting Appeal
Since your choices influence the storyline, there is a variety of endings possible. This way you can replay the game to win with your favorite Overlord.
8
out of 10

Overall

The prospect of facing a trillion HP opponent should be enough to entice you to play the game. After all, who is not hyped to face such an opponent?
1 Trillion HP?

(Nippon Ichi fans laughing their asses off in the distance)

This game is more like Compile Heart: God of Fanservice
 
I don't really see how the end boss having 1 trillion health is a pro. It's all relative. 1 trillion hp means nothing if each attack deals 10 billion. Exactly how many attacks are we talking about here? 10 at 100 billion each? 1,000 at 1 billion each? 1,000,000 at 1 million each? 1,000,000,000 at 1,000 each? If anything, the end boss having 1 trillion health makes me not want to play it. It sounds tedious.
 
I don't really see how the end boss having 1 trillion health is a pro. It's all relative. 1 trillion hp means nothing if each attack deals 10 billion. Exactly how many attacks are we talking about here? 10 at 100 billion each? 1,000 at 1 billion each? 1,000,000 at 1 million each? 1,000,000,000 at 1,000 each? If anything, the end boss having 1 trillion health makes me not want to play it. It sounds tedious.
The attacks vary in the tens of thousands and hundreds of thousands, depending on the type of attack you use. This makes it impossible to win at the first encounter, thus you'll need to manage your time and training efficiently with any subsequent Overlords you select and that's what makes it a challenge which many would be interested to tackle.
 
The attacks vary in the tens of thousands and hundreds of thousands, depending on the type of attack you use. This makes it impossible to win at the first encounter, thus you'll need to manage your time and training efficiently with any subsequent Overlords you select and that's what makes it a challenge which many would be interested to tackle.
That would mean you'd have to attack the boss somewhere between 1,000,000 and 100,000,000 times (using your 10,000 lower limit and 999,999.99 upper limit). I'm getting tired just thinking about it.

And... I just looked at the text at the bottom of the screenshots... IF trademarked the number 1,000,000,000,000? God damn.
 
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Hope this gets ported to Steam. 'Cause I don't have a Vita. And anime tiddies. That is all.
Idea Factory's been porting a lot of their games to Steam recently, even spinoffs like Hyperdimension Neptunia U. It wouldn't surprise me if they ported this too (although that'd ultimately depend on how well it's received).
 
Idea Factory's been porting a lot of their games to Steam recently, even spinoffs like Hyperdimension Neptunia U. It wouldn't surprise me if they ported this too (although that'd ultimately depend on how well it's received).

Well, the first three Rebirth games sell well, so here's hoping that's encouragement enough.
 
At first I was hyped as I instantly thought of the Metroidvania Trillion on the Sega Master System.
But alas, I see cutesy, pastel, figures with little cute fangs, and outfits, and ugh, well...
...what the fuck man?!
 
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At first I was hyped as I instantly thought of the Metroidvania Trillion on the Sega Master System.
But alas, I see cutesy, pastel, figures with little cute fangs, and outfits, and ugh, well...
...what the fuck man?!
Except for the fact that there is no SMS game called "Trillion." You're thinking of "Zillion."
 
Had pre-ordered the Limited Edition of the game, should have arrived today, curse you GLS for stopping in Germany for too long. >.>
Well, I wouldn't be able to study for the Japanese exam if the game had arrived today though, so that's something good at least. x'D
 
Don't buy this game, worst waste of 40 euros I have even done. It would be better to call it a pure exercise in frustation..
 
Review cover
Product Information:
  • Release Date (NA): March 29, 2016
  • Release Date (EU): April 1, 2016
  • Release Date (JP): July 23, 2015
  • Publisher: Idea Factory
  • Developer: Compile Heart/Idea factory
  • Genres: Tactical JRPG
Game Features:
Single player
Local Multiplayer
Online Multiplayer
Co-operative

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  • K3Nv2 @ K3Nv2:
    From what people say pvp isn't even worth it
  • BigOnYa @ BigOnYa:
    I just been playing offline, and they give you a few bots here n there on your team to help battle. I don't think it's as funny as the other games tho, more battle oriented than humor, which kinda sucks, but I'm still early in it
  • Xdqwerty @ Xdqwerty:
    @BigOnYa, doesnt the game have a campaign mode?
  • BigOnYa @ BigOnYa:
    Yea, and co-op, but you can also start a pvp session and battle just with friends. You get special skill cards (powers) the more you play. And higher value cards, but you can only enable so many cards at a time.
  • K3Nv2 @ K3Nv2:
    If you can find enough for it
  • BigOnYa @ BigOnYa:
    Toilet paper is considered the money, you collect and buy stuff with TP, kinda funny. Graphics are def better than the other games tho, I think they used Unity 5 engine.
  • Psionic Roshambo @ Psionic Roshambo:
    Look if I zoom in enough I can see the herpes!!!
    +1
  • BigOnYa @ BigOnYa:
    In fact I'm gonna go make a drink, roll a fatty n play some, good night to all!
    +2
  • Xdqwerty @ Xdqwerty:
    I bet most people at the time still watched it in black and white
  • SylverReZ @ SylverReZ:
    @Xdqwerty, Many of them did before colour television was common.
  • SylverReZ @ SylverReZ:
    Likely because black and white TV was in-expensive.
    +1
  • K3Nv2 @ K3Nv2:
    It certainly wasn't inexpensive it cost the same as a new car back then
  • K3Nv2 @ K3Nv2:
    How much did a 1965 color TV cost?

    For example, a 21-inch (diagonal) GE color television in 1965 had an advertised price of $499, which is equal to $4,724 in today's dollars, according to the federal government's inflation calculator.
    +1
  • Xdqwerty @ Xdqwerty:
    @K3Nv2, take into consideration how economy was back then
  • K3Nv2 @ K3Nv2:
    Yeah that's why they listed inflation rates
  • Xdqwerty @ Xdqwerty:
    Sorry didnt read that part
  • BakerMan @ BakerMan:
    @LeoTCK don't worry i knew he was joking
    +1
  • Psionic Roshambo @ Psionic Roshambo:
    My first color TV was like 1984 or something lol
  • Psionic Roshambo @ Psionic Roshambo:
    19 inches it was glorious lol
  • SylverReZ @ SylverReZ:
    @Psionic Roshambo, If it doesn't fit, you should've gotten one smaller lol
    +1
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    If a racoon can fit up to 8-inches then so be it
    SylverReZ @ SylverReZ: If a racoon can fit up to 8-inches then so be it