#Soul hackers 2 rs series

That's not to say there's no strategy involved, however. It's clear that the goal of Soul Hackers 2 is to forge a new SMT subseries with a distinct approach to gameplay-a goal which it largely succeeds at. The series' staple gameplay element of demon negotiation has been moved outside of battle, and there's even a single-button shortcut to attack an enemy's known weakness to really streamline things. While this new system does temper strategy somewhat compared to other SMT titles (there's no disadvantage to your party's weaknesses being hit beyond suffering extra damage), it does make combat move a lot more quickly. Rather than stunning or gaining extra turns when an enemy weakness is hit, you instead put one of your demons in the 'stack.' At the end of the player turn, the stacked demons perform a mass attack called a sabbath, doing additional damage and potentially activating other effects against all of the enemies on the field. Each character equips a summoned demon onto their COMP weapon, which determines their combat skillset and resistance/weakness array, similar to how the titular Personas work in that series. The slick feel of the visual design carries over into the fast and intuitive turn-based combat. The main characters and primary NPCs are designed by famed Japanese manga artist and illustrator Shirow Miwa, who imbues the designs with a strikingly sharp, colorful style and grace that feels right at home in the neon-lit underground cyberpunk city they inhabit. Ringo and her three primary companions-diligent and devoted Yatagarasu agent Arrow, Phantom Society femme fatale Milady, and the old-fashioned mob gangster-inspired freelance Devil Summoner Saizo-have striking character designs and personalities that make them immediately memorable and endearing. Soul Hackers 2, despite its name and numbering, bears only a few elements in common with the original Shin Megami Tensei: Soul Hackers, namely a cyberpunk-influenced worldview, a villainous group called the Phantom Society, a character belonging to the Kuzunoha family, and the concept of interacting with the souls of the dead through 'hacking.' Ringo and Fugue are dismayed to immediately discover that most of the folks Aion has tasked them with protecting are recently deceased, and so Ringo re-imbues them with life through the 'Soul Hack.' This intertwines their souls with her digital lifeforce and bonds her to them for the course of the game, both story- and gameplay-wise.įrom the outset, Soul Hackers 2 oozes style. Now Playing: Soul Hackers 2 - Twisted Fates Trailer In the middle of this conflict, Aion-a sentient AI born from the collective of networked digital knowledge-gives form to two physical 'agents,' Ringo and Fugue, sending them on a mission to rescue the world from certain destruction.īy clicking 'enter', you agree to GameSpot's

Beneath the outer fabric of society, however, groups of gifted humans who can communicate with the supernatural world work underground as 'Devil Summoners.' Some, like the Yatagarasu organization, aim to use their powers to protect humanity, while the nefarious Phantom Society aims for global destruction. In the future, mankind is stuck in a rut: Technological and social progress has stalled, and the human race faces a sort of global ennui. It's clear, then, that the goal of Soul Hackers 2 is to forge a new SMT subseries with a distinct approach to gameplay-a goal which it largely succeeds at.

#Soul hackers 2 rs series

It's a refreshing and stark contrast to the 'slow-burn' kind of gameplay JRPGs are known for, and a very different approach than fans of the larger Shin Megami Tensei series might be used to. Within the first two hours of starting up Atlus's latest JRPG, you'll have all of your main party members, know the focal points of the story, and have a grasp on almost all of the primary gameplay mechanics. From the very beginning, Soul Hackers 2 makes it clear that it's not interested in wasting time.