Shin Megami Tensei: Devil Summoner: Soul Hackers is one of the many Shin Megami Tensei spin-offs that takes the series in a different direction. While the Persona games put the SMT formula into a contemporary school setting, Soul Hackers 2 takes place in a more technological era. The original Soul Hackers put technology, the occult, cyberpunk, and The Goonies into a mixing pot full of demon essence and birthed a loving cult following.
Despite its cult-classic status, the Soul Hackers sub-subseries (confusing, I know) didn’t get anything more than a 2012 3DS remake until now with Soul Hackers 2. Much like the recent Shin Megami Tensei V, Soul Hackers 2 aims to sustain what longtime series fans love while making the experience welcoming to come newcomers with a revamped art style and accessibility features. In an interview with Digital Trends, Soul Hackers 2 directors Eiji Ishida and Mitsuru Hirata highlighted how the game caters to fans of the old while it brings in the new.
The Shin Megami Tensei series is plagued with the conception that its barriers to entry are too large for newcomers to enjoy it. Many missed great games like Shin Megami Tensei 3 due to constant talk of how difficult strategies are to form and how unfairly tough bosses can be. Atlus’ recent RPGs are more cognisant of these issues and take steps to rectify them and remove barriers to entry. As a result, Persona and Shin Megami Tensei are more popular than ever. The developers of Soul Hackers 2 want to continue the momentum of this innovative era of SMT.
“This was an important concept from the beginning, but we really wanted to make this game accessible to those who didn’t have prior knowledge or familiarity with the original game system, setting, and
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