Shin Megami Tensei: Digital Devil
Saga 2 is the sequel to the highly praised and gloomy Digital Devil Saga 1 that
released earlier this year in April. The Shin Megami series isn’t exactly
new as it has been around for what seems like ages. With the series (DDS)
coming to a close, would the sequel top the predecessor or fail to live up to
expectations?
The story picks up directly after the first one ended. If you don’t know
how the first one ended, you don’t have to fret for that long – it was merely a
cliffhanger. Now if you have never played the original, you’ll be able to
follow the plot of the story through flashbacks. That’s correct; the only
way they intend on keeping you up to date on the story from the first is through
flashbacks. Hardly courageous on their part due to the majority that will
be picking up this title will have already played the first. They could
have used a different storytelling device but opted for the easier choice of
using flashbacks.
I won’t spoil the original game but
Serph and the Embryons finally arrive in Nirvana, the place they were expecting
eternal paradise. Serph and the gang show up in Nirvana to people hunting
down Serph already titling him as “the Avatar Tuner”. What’s even weirder
is that they too carry the same ability to transform themselves into demons.
This story is about to escalate into a whole new direction if you ask me.
I won’t dwell too much into the story as it will have me revealing too many
spoilers that would ruin the ending. Speaking of the ending, I can’t say I
am too pleased but I can say that I am not the least bit of being upset.
Some will love it or hate it; I fall right in the middle as I have enjoyed this
roller coaster ride the DDS has provided me.
New to the DDS series is Karma Rings, Hard Mode (accompanied by a secret boss
too), new monster properties, new berserk forms, locales to visit, a Mantra
Grid, even higher prices for mantras and much more. Is any of it a big
improvement over the original though? Not from my perspective. The berserk
form is when your character is trapped between his human and demon form.
The berserk form provides you with a better chance to perform critical hits but
at the sacrifice of defense. The Mantra Grid replaces the flowchart from
the original and is a nice advancement but not something that is worth hyping
for. The customization for sure has improved but it still is light years
behind Shin Megami Tensei: Nocturne.
DDS2 still uses the unique battle
system called the ‘Press Turn System’. The battles are turn-based (don’t
freak out yet, it’s actually revitalizing to see in an RPG) and each side takes
turns of course until the other one is defeated. When battling, you’ll
notice hexagonal shaped icons in the upper right hand corner of your screen.
These icons represent the actions you can do when battling and will either
decrease (for bad moves) or increase (for of course fantastic attacks).
You’ll want more hexagonal shapes to have more actions throughout your
encounter. To increase your shapes there are other methods to gaining them
like hitting the weakness area of your enemy or executing a Critical hit.
The cinemas and art have the same
salient traits but are even more attracting then ever before. There aren’t
many games out there on the market right now that could rival the unique artwork
in either the Digital Devil Saga series or even the entire Shin Megami series.
All the characters look to be possessed by demon entities (in reality they
actually are) and have that depressing outlook to them. The characters fit
perfectly in the world they inhabit. The only other video game that I have
seen lately with a similar look to the world would have to be Microsoft Japan’s
Phantom Dust. Is the future this dark and moody for humanity? Let’s
hope not.
Just like the original, I have fallen in love all over again with the soundtrack
and voice acting. With the voice acting, the actors were given exquisite
dialogue to work with. Not only do they provide emotion to the story but
the voices channel the internal struggle the characters are going through
impressively. The writers must have put a lot of time and effort into
creating some of the best writing I have heard all year from an RPG. Not
only is it clever but it at times provides dry humor. The soundtrack is
hands down better then the original and that is saying a lot. I am going
to recommend that you find a copy of the soundtrack (and there are some that you
can get from pre-ordering the game) since you should easily enjoy this perfect
soundtrack as much as I have.
Shin Megami Tensei: Digital Devil
Saga 2 isn’t leaps and bounds ahead of the first but sure does compliment the
series nicely. To fully enjoy DDS2 though, you’ll first want to proceed
ahead and play the first. Playing through the original will not only save
yourself from asking questions about the story but will have you attached to the
characters until you finally play through the second, and receive the nihilistic
ending. Like I stated earlier, the ending isn’t really a surprise but
rather has you asking “why”. Overall, pick this up, as the RPG scene right
now on the PS2 is in a dry spell with ones that actually attain great quality.
Scoring Details Shin Megami Tensei: Digital Devil Saga 2 Review |
Gameplay: 8.4
What is there left to say about the gameplay? It really hasn’t improved
that much to easily notice. It has one of the better battle systems in an
RPG but could have used some revisions to spice up the gameplay a little.
Still nothing better then transforming into a demon.
Graphics: 8.5
Not the best looking game on the PS2 but the artwork and designs outshine many
in the same genre (RPG). I must admit that their bosses and monsters are
intriguing to actually confront.
Sound: 9.2
The soundtrack helped me push through this game at a fast pace. When video
games have this great of a soundtrack that influences how you play and how long
you play, that truly is saying something. Earlier I stated that the
dialogue and voice acting is superb and I stand by that claim. Nothing
better then Japanese RPG’s voice acting that is really BRILLIANT rather then the
lame child like voices we hear in every other RPG nowadays.
Difficulty: Easy/Medium
For those who have played any game in the Shin Megami series (including DDS1)
you’ll play this comfortably without any complications. If you are new to
DDS and SMT, you may have a little difficulty adjusting.
Concept: 8.9
Eating your enemies? Great concept is it not? What the DDS series
could have used was more length to it. The series may have run dry with
the concept of transforming into demons and eating your enemies, but still will
be memorable to me for sometime to come.
Overall: 8.6
The sequel is a little more edgy then the first and gives you a conclusion to
the cliffhanger ending. Only advice I have for you is to pick up the
original and start off there if you haven’t already. Playing through the
second before the first isn’t a smart idea since you’ll be stuck with a lot of
questions about the series afterwards.
