In truth, Étrange Overlord has a bit more in common with Niikawa's lesser-known Rhapsody: A Musical Adventure games. Protagonist Étrange Rosenburg is the heiress of the esteemed Rosenburg family (not to be confused with the Rosenqueen family). Angelina, her step-sister, gets her executed in a bid to take over the family name and steal away Étrange's fiancé. Meanwhile, Étrange uses all of her wit and cunning to build herself back up in Hell, collecting the materiel and personnel needed to guarantee her "happy life." Also, Étrange will occasionally break into song during cutscenes, complete with stage lights and cute (albeit stiff) choreography from her henchmen. There's plenty of Rhapsody's DNA in here. Even Angelina gets in on the musical action with her own dark reprisals regarding her own underhanded attempts at a "happy life."

When not singing, Étrange and her allies will fight waves of enemies in action-RPG arenas. Each character has their own abilities and stats, like Sweetia the maid and her close-range glove-slaps and healing moves, or Schwartz and his wide-range machine gun. You bring up to four characters to a stage, swapping between them at a moment's notice while mowing down waves of enemies. Your "x-factor" is the Lanes, conceptualized as conveyor belt sushi lines that run through the battlefield: players can customize their own Lanes outside of battle for their own strategic purposes, emphasizing certain power-ups for certain moments. Perhaps you want to focus on Attack buffs and Specials. Or maybe you want a constant supply of throwable Bombs to keep enemies on the back foot. Between your characters and your Lanes, you accomplish whatever it is the map asks of you in exchange for upgrade materials, cooking ingredients, or Experience that counts towards Étrange's "Happy Life Level." Repeat as necessary until the credits roll.

If it sounds simple, that's because it unfortunately is. At first, I expected the Lanes to be more of a randomized element, forcing players to work with what chance gave them. And the Lanes were fairly generous before unlocking the option to customize them, being that it would offer you all of the possible power-ups. For example, one battle required us to throw bombs at a giant robot's ankles at the right moment to stagger it. But the depth behind the system mostly ends with trying to allocate power-ups within your chosen Lane without overcoming the Lane's point cap (think Final Fantasy VII's Materia). You can improve specific power-ups in Lanes, upgrading their potency or their duration, and this requires materials earned from fights. But past that, most battles outside of bosses are a matter of running in and wreaking havoc fast and hard.

That leaves Étrange Overlord to live or die off of its presentation. The good news is that the cast is appealing and cute; Shinichirō Ōtsuka, best known for their work on Re:Zero and the Conception games, did good work with Étrange and her gang of unhinged demonic followers. Étrange has all the makings of a protagonist from a "Villainess" story: wit, charm, and a delightful, silly streak (her withered expression when she hungers for sweets never failed to make me chuckle). Even Angelina and her devious expression won me over. There's plenty of humor to be found, and even the composed Étrange can't help but be a bit silly. As is Niikawa's wont, characters also have plenty of drama to them; the sad tale of recruit Ignacio and his abuse at the hands of adults stuck out. It's up in the air whether the pathos will land true for players amidst Étrange's adventures in eating spicy food or the waves of demons ending up literally buried head-first in the ground after her rampages; anyone who's played a Disgaea game knows what kind of tonal shifts are in store, but newcomers might be a bit disarmed when the butler Jewel makes his misanthropic utterings under his breath at the injustice of his lady's unrighteous execution. And it needs to be said: while the background music is fairly competent for an RPG, the musical numbers are guaranteed to make you smile. God only knows why we haven't seen more RPGs with musical numbers.

Truly, Étrange Overlord has no greater failing than being a bit unassuming. The necessary parts for a fun game are present, and even at their worst, the flaws are inoffensive. The highs are definitely high, but Étrange Overlord definitely leaves me wanting. At worst, this is a game you should absolutely nab on sale; the writing, songs, and general experience of it all are pleasant enough. It's enough for Étrange Overlord to be charming. But some players might want something a bit more substantial to come with the sugar rush.