Firstly, Innocents can now grow by sending them off to what’s known as the “Innocent Farm.” Much like similar systems such as the Pokemon series’ Daycare, Innocents that are at the Innocent Farm will grow stronger as players go off and engage in fights. Additionally, depositing two or more Innocents can result in another one being spawned on occasion. Innocents born under such circumstances are special in that their overall growth potential is greater than standard ones, making them especially ideal candidates to become strong over time. Farm capabilities can also be upgraded by bolstering the Innocent Caretaker Squad; such upgrades include additional room to deposit more Innocents, increased overall growth rates, etc.
Also new to the game is the Refinery, which is a facility where rare items can be forged. These items can include consumables, as well as items that can be used in the War Room (Disgaea 5‘s incarnation of the series mainstay Dark Assembly) and in Item Worlds. Essentially, after picking an item from the list, it’ll be forged after going into battle a certain number of times. Items can be forged multiple times over the course of the game, should players come upon something that they find particularly useful.
Beyond that, players can now customize the placement of NPCs and facilities in their headquarters, which is known in-game as the “Mini-Netherworld.” Exterior portions of the Mini-Netherworld can also be customized with a variety of parts, with players able to save multiple loadouts and put them on a favorites list for easy access. This exterior customization comes into play in that the Mini-Netherworld can be summoned into battles, imposing special effects across the entirety of the map such as reduced accuracy and bolstered fire resistance. Mini-Netherworlds can also be uploaded and shared online, appearing in other players’ games as part of things like Item Worlds and Research Teams.
In terms of additional online functionality beyond that, Disgaea 5 also takes advantage of streaming functionality. Earned experience points, for instance, can increase depending on the number of viewers a given stream has, where high comment numbers can yield extra items. Players can also gift items to one another, which will appear in their headquarters as treasure chests. Records of each players’ gameplay stats are additionally viewable, providing insight into how different people play the game. Finally, players can also send custom news bulletins that others can read in their own feeds.