The Megami Tensei series is vast, to say the least. Over the years, dozens upon dozens of titles have been released, multiple spin-off series have been established, and the series went from a cult following status to breaking out into the mainstream thanks to titles such as Persona 5. Nowadays, you would be hard pressed to find a gamer who hasn't at least heard the name of one of the entries, and it is thanks to that popularity that SEGA and ATLUS have now begun doubling down on the series. With this new direction, not only have we seen remakes of classics such as Shin Megami Tensei III: Nocturne, but now a remake of one of the most unique entries as well—Devil Summoner: Raidou Kuzunoha vs. the Soulless Army.
Now simply titled Raidou Remastered: The Mystery of the Soulless Army, the game is the third entry in the detective and mystery-focused Devil Summoner series, which is a spin off series from Shin Megami Tensei if. While the first two entries, Devil Summoner and Soul Hackers, were first-person dungeon crawlers in the vein of standard Shin Megami Tensei—Raidou took the formula and flipped it on its head, blending the classic gameplay style with a 3D world and real-time combat instead. This style would further be expanded upon in Raidou's sequel Devil Summoner 2: Raidou Kuzunoha vs. King Abaddon, with this new updated combat system now serving as the base for Raidou Remastered.
With all of that being said, despite being a part of a series, Raidou Remastered is a stand-alone title, and the beginning of Raidou Kuzunoha's story. Raidou himself has appeared in multiple Shin Megami Tensei titles following his original conception, so this is the game to play if you are one of the people wanting to learn more about him. The Kuzunoha family itself also has ties to a greater overall series and timeline, which includes the likes of Persona, Persona 2 Innocent Sin and Persona 2 Eternal Punishment as well.
But what is Raidou Remastered really? How does it blend the series' iconic gameplay with that of an action RPG? And is this a SMT title that is worth your time? Well, grab your demon-capturing tubes and get ready to jump into the Taishō era—this is Raidou Remastered: The Mystery of the Soulless Army.
The Story of Raidou Kuzunoha:
Raidou Remastered begins by introducing the player to an unnamed main character, whom you have the pleasure of giving one to. He is the next in line of the demon-fighting Kuzunoha clan to take on a test and become the next Raidou—a name originally belonging to one of the clan's founders.
Upon fighting his way through a demon-infested trial, Raidou successfully becomes a Demon Summoner as the Raidou Kuzunoha XIV, and is assigned a talking cat named Gouto as his partner. Together, the two are then sent to the capital to watch over the region, where they begin working part-time at the Narumi Detective Agency to hide their true purpose—to protect the land and purge it of monsters.
The real story begins when a young girl named Kaya approaches the Narumi Detective Agency and asks them for help. She is about to turn sixteen years old, and according to her family history, she is to be turned into a demon. Being afraid of what she might do once her transformation is complete, Kaya would rather die than accept her fate, and she wants the Narumi Detective Agency to help her. Unfortunately, before they have a chance to act, Kaya is kidnapped by unknown demons in red, and the search is on to get to the bottom of things. It is this initial mystery that will eventually lead Raidou to learn the surprising truth of the Daidouji family Kaya belongs to, as well as other secret dealings going on in the capital.
It is this overarching story that slowly plays out chapter by chapter, but it is just one of the main plotlines that forms an overall connected tale. As a detective, Raidou takes on multiple clients and investigates many different situations, with most of them having ties to the supernatural. From ghost cars out for revenge to mysterious sightings—Raidou covers it all. This is thanks to his ability to capture and control the many supernatural forces in the world, beings that have been dubbed "demons."
The Gameplay:
Raidou Remastered's core gameplay is broken into multiple sections, and it follows an episodic format. While some episodes are longer than others, the game sticks to the same structural format from beginning to end.Town Exploration -
Each chapter in the game opens with Raidou at the Narumi Detective Agency, and typically, he is given some sort of task. The initial job does, in fact, revolve around Kaya, but moving forward, each episode presents either a new case or offers a new lead in the overall mystery. After this initial setup, however, Raidou is then free to explore the city and the surrounding areas.
In true SMT fashion, the game features a "world map" with an icon that represents Raidou, and moving to key points on the map will transition into a full 3D area. While the game does feature fixed camera angles outside of battle, the camera is dynamic and pans at just the right moments to make navigation a breeze. Towns themselves are filled with NPCs to talk to, which are also noted by a speech bubble when they have something new to say, shops to visit, and side cases to take on. Rifts also pop up from time to time, allowing Raidou to fight demons for extra experience and cash, but the main combat is mostly reserved for the game's dungeons.
Outside of town areas, there are also maze-like locations to get lost in and discover secrets, with some key areas also being hidden on the world map itself. Initially, the game does limit where you can or cannot go, but more traversal options do open up as things progress, and a (paid) fast travel option becomes available as well. This helps speed navigation along, and helpful quest markers almost always denote where you need to be—with a few exceptions.
While this type of exploration and town navigation isn't anything new for the series, Raidou does put a spin on things thanks to his status as a Devil Summoner.
Making Use of Raidou's Devil Summoner Abilities -
By recruiting demons to his side, Raidou can gain the upper hand in battle, but he can also make use of them during his investigations as well.
Every single demon in the game has multiple non-battle abilities assigned to them. This includes mind-reading abilities, demons that can fly, ones that can get others "fired up," those that can calm them down, and, of course, we have demons that are good at investigating the area and finding lost items. Need superhuman strength to move something? There's a demon for that as well.
With all of these possible abilities under his belt—or rather locked away in tubes in a pouch strapped to his chest—Raidou can overcome multiple challenges and discover information or access areas that normal detectives could never obtain or reach. Mind reading lets Raidou see the true thoughts of the very NPCs he can converse with; sending a flying demon to pick up items that are out of reach is usually more than worth the effort; and object-based puzzles do require the use of something a bit stronger than Raidou himself.
Additionally, demons can also be taken control of directly, which locks Raidou in place, and they can then be used to access areas humans cannot and be used to solve puzzles. Need two people to stand on switches? Not a problem for Raidou.
These uses for demons carry over into the game's many dungeons as well, with most of them actually being Dark Realm versions of the city itself.
The Dark Realm -
Throughout the story, Raidou will have to access the Dark Realm, an alternate dimension to the "real world," and one where demons roam freely. These act as the game's main dungeons and sometimes have puzzles to solve as well. The Dark Realm is often used for investigating the multiple cases Raidou can take on, as many of them are related to the supernatural and the Dark Realm itself.
While Raidou must enlist the help of the Herald of Yatagarasu to arrive at these locations, he can freely return to the real world by stepping through portals. This is helpful when needing to return to town to report a completed case or if you simply want to escape to safety. This isn't too much of a concern, however, as all of the main shops can be accessed within the Dark Realm, and healing spots are provided as well. In short, once you go in, you can typically stick it out until the end.
Combat -
Getting touched by an enemy demon or attacking the demon itself will initiate combat. This is where Raidou differs from the rest of Shin Megami Tensei, as it is, in fact, a real-time combat system and not turn-based. Gone is the classic Press Turn system and freely commanding party members, but new systems have been put in place to make up for it.
In battle, players control Raidou himself and can use a series of basic actions: Normal Attack, Heavy Attack, Dodge, Jump, Block, and Shoot. While this never evolves too much throughout the game, different weapons Raidou obtains will provide him with different attack combos and elemental properties. He also unlocks a special attack that can be pulled off when meeting specific conditions in battle (i.e., perfect dodging), and a Spirit Slash which is unleashed once a meter at the bottom right of the screen fills. Raidou can also equip three attack skills which require MP to use, and can use any available open party slots to capture demons around his level or weaker than him.
By leveling up Raidou, additional detective titles will be unlocked for him, which will also open up additional tube slots for more party members. This is the game's way to initially make you decide which demons to capture and take with you and which ones to pass up on, but eventually, this limitation becomes less of an issue.
As for the demons themselves, they will act on their own and fight enemies as you command. This provides a little control over what they do, but it isn't directly fighting with them. You can, however, freely swap between demons in battle, of which you are only allowed to have two out at a time, and you can turn them "invisible" to allow them to avoid attacks. Raidou getting hit himself will undo this state, however, so getting blasted by a giant enemy area-of-effect (AoE) attack can result in the death of the demons instead—even if Raidou himself is fine.
When it comes to the replacement of the Press Turn system, Raidou still rewards those who hit enemy weaknesses, which does, in fact, stun the enemy for a limited amount of time. These openings allow you to dish out additional damage, and possibly even finish off the demon before it is given time to act again. This system cannot be fully abused, as the game still expects you to rely on your own skill for dodging and blocking attacks, but for later fights, it can become key for even basic survival. As the bosses ramp up and the challenges get harder, the game expects you to understand the mechanics and make the most out of them... Or simply lower the difficulty... Your choice.
Demons and Customization:
Raidou Remastered wouldn't be a Shin Megami Tensei title without a wide range of customization and ways to build up your demon party.
As previously mentioned, demons are captured and become party members, and they initially begin with a set number of skills and abilities. Once they level up, additional attacks and abilities are unlocked, but there are a limited number of slots to actually allow said demon to learn them. This means players have to actively consider what is useful and think about what type of build they would like that specific demon to pursue. Ideally, you want to mix it up as much as possible, but sometimes they benefit more from focusing on a specific element and buffs or debuffs that provide additional support. Moving from there, however, these very same demons can be used in demon fusion, which creates new demons with skills passed down by those used to create them.
Demons used in fusion can be returned thanks to a Compendium that records all obtained demons throughout the game. Players have to choose to overwrite the entry on the list if the demon levels up or learns new abilities, but those familiar with the series will already have made a habit of doing so. What is different in Raidou, however, is the fact that multiple versions of demons can be registered, allowing players to make multiple builds out of the same base demon. This comes with an extra added fee, but it is a fine trade-off for what it offers.
Moving past the demons, Raidou himself can create multiple weapons to equip and unlock additional abilities by doing so. These weapons require resources and plenty of cash, but the game does a good job of providing you with the materials you need for the current part of the story. Grinding is needed to obtain all weapon branches, however, but the game itself expects this to be done on following playthroughs. Raidou also has the series' classic stat allocation attached to him, allowing players to focus on key stats as he levels up, but there are some stats that are clearly better than others here. You can also obtain stat-increasing items as well, so maxing out key stats and having extra points to use should be expected. Of course, these items can be used on demons themselves as well for some added boosts, but that is up to you to decide if that is something you're willing to do.
Should you play it?
Raidou Remastered: The Mystery of the Soulless Army isn't the longest RPG in the world, but it is a game that stays consistent with its pacing and offers plenty of side activities for players to take on. It is a very focused core experience, and those wanting more out of its combat system can increase the difficulty and double down on demon fusion and customization. Although using demons during exploration is a unique feature that helps Raidou stand out from others, there are times where this actually slows down the pace of the game, as it forces you to watch the animations and read the same text boxes over and over again. By the time you've reached the twenty-plus hour mark, you've already become more than used to it, but a skip option would have been nice.
Outside of these minor gripes, however, Raidou Remastered is an extremely solid entry in the series and an overall great twist on the standard Shin Megami Tensei gameplay.
The story itself grips you from the start, and there are plenty of twists and turns throughout the entire adventure. The supernatural cases Raidou takes on are a nice twist on the standard detective story, and even the side cases can offer some surprising moments. The addition of voice acting also helps the story come to life, and characters such as Narumi are extremely memorable—and of course, that includes Raidou's talking cat, Gouto, as well.
When it comes to the combat, there is no denying that things do turn a bit button-mashy by the end, but there is still plenty of strategy involved when it comes to fighting the harder opponents. The extra dungeons also provide additional locations for players to challenge themselves, and the countless hidden secrets and items also encourage players to search every nook and cranny across the entire world map. There is a lot to love with this one, and the multiple quality-of-life updates added to the remake make it well worth revisiting—and the perfect place to start as well.
Being the earliest point in the timeline, previous knowledge of this series is not required, and Raidou itself does set up a lot of future events and connections. (The Kuzunoha name itself is something fans will become quite familiar with moving forward.)
Overall, Raidou Remastered: The Mystery of the Soulless Army is a fun action take on the classic Shin Megami Tensei series. It draws players in with its initial mystery and keeps them coming back for more as they dive deeper into this rabbit hole. It might have some rough edges, but it is still an unforgettable journey.
VERDICT: Recommended
Reviewed on PlayStation 5
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