If there’s a retro game you want to play, then going back to it can be startling. The graphics often look worse than you remember, and the gameplay might feel weaker too. Memory and nostalgia are a crazy thing when it comes to games. Unfortunately, we’re seeing what happens if you play a dated, buggy game without nostalgia in the experience of Disaster Report 4.

Disaster Report 4 Overview

Disaster Report games are much bigger in Japan than the United States, dating back to 2003. The concept for Disaster Report 4 dates back quite a bit as well to 2011. Development might have started at that point too, which is unfortunately noticeable in every aspect of the title. In the game, you play as a protagonist surviving and investigating a major disaster. Given your options in the game for things to do and say the information you collect plays out differently.

The beginning of the game is a great set-up. You’re on your way to a job interview when disaster strikes, and a world you’ve barely spent time in still feels changed. The human element to the game is its strongest point. In a weird parallel to what we’re seeing with COVID-19, people and their stories resonate greatly with chaotic situations. Unfortunately, the concept that plays out smoothly ends up being a huge letdown.

Why Disaster Report 4 Disappoints

The graphics alone are worth scrutiny, but why dwell on that for too long? Overall, the frame rate drops upset me much more than the poor textures and visuals. It felt like at times the frames were literally dropping down to single digits. It’s a distraction that takes you out of any connection you might feel to the game. Likewise, the gameplay is seemingly open-world but feels very confined. The entire experience of Disaster Report 4 is misleading in this way. What should be a great, heartfelt experience ends up being one that feels like a struggle to complete.

What gets in the way of the game most towards the end, is the fact that your decision-making doesn’t seem to matter. From what I can tell, no decision I made ended up really having an effect on the outcome. The choices didn’t even seem to have any impact on the final moments of the game, which really seems like a misstep. The entire process of making choices with your character is relatively boring, but it’s even worse knowing it has no impact in the end at all.

Is Disaster Report 4 Worth Playing?

Unless you enjoy the series and have a history with it, I’d say Disaster Report 4 is a game you can miss. There aren’t many moments I enjoyed, and I think there are several concerns in the experience that make it more like a chore than entertainment. For the most part, its concept is wasted on poor graphics, gameplay, and execution.

A Nintendo Switch review copy of Disaster Report 4 was provided by NIS America for this review.

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Disaster Report 4

$59.99 USD

4

Score

4.0/10

Pros

• Great concept for an open-world game

Cons

• Terrible frame rate issues
• Bad graphics, nearly seem PS2-esque
• Decisions made in game have no real impact