Showing posts with label Kuzunoha Raidou vs. The King of Abbadon. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Kuzunoha Raidou vs. The King of Abbadon. Show all posts

Friday, January 23, 2009

Oh Atlus, You're Such a Tease!

I'm just going to leave this with you for the weekend.

Atlus just sent me this picture. It's got some weird silhouette over the Shin Megami Tensei logo.

Curiously, it reminds me of this next picture.

Which is a photo of the limited Raidou Kuzunoha Jack Frost doll that came with pre-orders in Japan for the latest Devil Summoner title on PS2.

Coincidence?

Friday, September 19, 2008

Wanna Watch a New Devil Summoner Trailer?

Well, if you do, Atlus has graciously provided one. I've embedded it below (courtesy of Gamekyo) for interested parties.



Looks like Devil Summoner, right? That was my first impression. Though I'm sure the game will be fun, it doesn't look like it will be changing anyone's opinion of Devil Summoner anytime soon.

Maybe that's alright though.

Devil Summoner: Kuzunoha Raidou vs. The King of Abbadon will be available in Japan for PlayStation 2 on October 23, 2008. Currently there is no word of a North American or European release.

Monday, August 4, 2008

New Devil Summoner Website Launches

The new game website for the upcoming PS2 RPG from Atlus, Devil Summoner: Kuzunoha Raidou vs. The King of Abbadon has just launched this Friday.

The current website has information on the characters Kuzunoha Raidou, the blonde young man, the Black Masks, and the Red Mask. It also confirms the Japanese release date of October 23, 2008, as well as a special edition that will include a re-release of Shin Megami Tensei III: Nocturne Maniacs Chronicle Edition.

You can check out the site here.

Thursday, July 31, 2008

Summoning Devils to Save the World: Totally Not a Paradox

So by now you all know that Atlus' teased game is a PS2 action-RPG, Devil Summoner: Kuzunoha Raidou vs. The King of Abbadon. You also know that the game is the direct sequel to 2006's Devil Summoner: Kuzunoha Raidou vs. The Soulless Army. Well, I've taken upon myself the daunting task of translating the entire 6 page behemoth of an article, and am bringing you the details of the game right here.

First off, as any avid MegaTen fan will have already noticed, is the return of Kazuma Kaneko as the game's character designer and art director. Having been MIA on Atlus' two previous MegaTen games (Persona 3 and Persona 4), we now know what he's been up to (or at least some of what he's been up to). He takes a moment in the article to emphasize the inclusion of more demons to befriend and talk about a much bigger game world for Raidou to explore this time around, with an ever-deepening plot that will take him to various places outside of the Capital.

Next, the game's director, Kazuyuki Yamai, chimes in to assure players that DS2 (as I will call the game from here on out) will feature a darker world than its predecessor, and more depth in the story and gameplay. He mentions, however, that the game is still very accessible to newcomers, so no one should feel left out.

DS2 features many of the same characters from the previous game, including Raidou Kuzunoha the Fourteenth as the game's silent protagonist. It also heralds the return of his familiar Gouto, his "boss" at the detective agency, Shouhei Narumi, and the slightly ditzy, but ever resourceful "ace" reporter, Kichou "Tae" Asakura.

Set during the 20th year of the Taishou era (which doesn't actually exist, in case you wanted to know. The Taishou era lasted only 14 years. If it did, that would make it roughly 1931.) in a small, behind-the-times kind of backwater village called Kanson (also likely a fictitious place). The Narumi Detective Agency (which Raidou works for) receives a missing persons case, and Raidou, Narumi, Tae, and Gouto all make the trip to investigate. During the investigation, Raidou learns of a new disaster threatening to befall the Capital...

Battles in DS2 will work similarly to Soulless Army, functioning completely in real time. However, some changes over DS1 include the ability to summon two demons at once, the ability to steal MAG (the substance used to summon) from enemies when their weakness is exploited, and the return of the much-clamored- or Demon Negotiation (where the player is forced to convince the demon to help him or her out). Additionally, Raidou will himself be able to make use of special moves in coordination with his summoned demons (which is a nice addition considering how little Raidou could do in DS1). Finally, the player will be able to tweak his or her demon's AI, telling them when they should heal, how they should attack, and so on (which really should have been a standard feature in DS1, imo).

There will also be a few extra additions to the battle system, including the ability to spam your special skills after continually exploiting an enemy's weakness. This suggests that the combat will be much more challenging in DS2. (This is probably a good thing, as most fans agree that DS1 was just too damn easy.)

Demon Negotiation is back in full swing, and looks very much like Demon Negotiation in many of the other MegaTen iterations: answer questions or make comments, and based on each demon's personality, they may agree to help you out in some way (joining you being only one of many possibilities), they may get scared and run away, or you might piss them off, making them attack you (usually stronger than they would have been normally).

In terms of non-battle gameplay, Raidou will be expected to find clues and solve puzzles just as before. Cases will be solved through listening to information provided by townsfolk and demons alike, searching for clues, and sending your demons out to investigate areas Raidou cannot access. This sounds all very Soulless Army-ish, so here's hoping there aren't as many pointless fetch quests...


The game promises to feature many new characters that will take an active role in the ever deepening mystery. Of particular mention in this article are three people who are apparently foreigners to Japan. One, a strange woman with pale blue eyes, encounters Raidou and Narumi just outside of a deep forest, telling them that she has been waiting for them in order to offer a warning... Another is an old man with long white hair who speaks with English mixed into his Japanese. The third is a young man with blonde hair who continually crosses paths with Raidou, offering mysterious and deep words for our heroes.

For those who played DS1, you will probably remember the "dark" version of many of the places you visited. These were basically the same locales, but full of demons instead of people. In DS2, instead of visiting this Dark Realm, you will be exploring demon-filled dungeons.

Another interesting point about DS2 is the existance of different endings. Depending on your actions throughout the game, your route to the ending, and indeed what ending you get, will change. This is fairly common in most MegaTen games (like Chaos vs. Law in Nocturne), but was not present in DS1. It is unclear at this time exactly what choices you will make that will affect the outcome, but rest assured that they are in there.

Finally, the article shows off the Black Masks. Wearing black masks (duh), carrying strange lanterns, and wielding katanas, the Black Masks are somehow involved in the mystery surrounding Kanson. We don't yet know what their objective is, but we do know that they are very keen on preventing Raidou from advancing in his investigation. Possibly acting as their leader, there is one man among them who wears a red mask and keeps a pet(?) bug, also wearing a mask. Oooo.

(Phew) Long article was long. You can check out the scans throughout the article courtesy of Gamekyo.

Devil Summoner: Kuzunoha Raidou vs. The King of Abbadon will be available on PlayStation 2 in Japan on October 23, 2008. No word yet on a North American version.

Wednesday, July 30, 2008

MegaTen Announcement Comes Early, Is Another PS2 Game

Continued proof that countdowns to game announcements lead to disappointement, word broke this morning via some scans from the latest Weekly Famitsu that Atlus' mystery game is in fact another Kuzunoha Raidou game for the PlayStation 2. This isn't that big of a shocker, as many MegaTen fans predicted a new Kuzunoha Raidou game, due to the cat on the teaser's bright green eyes (a trademark of Raidou's "sidekick" familiar, Gouto). What is disappointing to me, is the target platform. More on that in a bit, but first, the release details are below:

Shin Megami Tensei: Devil Summoner: Kuzunoha Raidou vs. The King of Abbadon is the latest game in the Shin Megami Tensei overarching series, the fifth game in the "Devil Summoner" subseries (I think), and the direct sequel to 2006's Shin Megami Tensei: Devil Summoner: Kuzunoha Raidou vs. The Soulless Army. The game will retail for PlayStation 2 in Japan on October 23, 2009 (just in time for Halloween).

Now, don't get me wrong here, I love my PS2, and games like P4 and AT2 are proof that there are still titles to be excited for on that platform. But frankly, I'm a little disappointed. I enjoy my HD gaming so much more these days, and I have less and less faith that PS2 games are going to make the jump to North America, that it's hard for me to really get worked up for this game. Especially since I consider the previous Kuzunoha Raidou game the weakest MegaTen game of the previous generation. Sure, it's a good game by its own standards, but compared to Nocturne, Digital Devil Saga, and Persona 3, it is noticibly lacking in many areas.

Now, I suppose, I should address the inevitable questions regarding this game:

Will it be good?
Of course. Not as good as P4 imo, but good nonetheless.

Will it make it to North America?
Most likely.

When?
My guess would be Q1 2009 (February-ish).

How will it play?
Just like Kuzunoha Raidou vs. The Soulless Army. It is clearly running on the exact same engine as its predecessor (which is probably a big reason it is on PS2).

Will I buy it?
You bet your ass I will.

Will I be happy about it?
Yes and no. Happy for more MegaTen, unhappy for no 7th gen.

Is this the game we expected?
No, the help-wanted ad specifically mentions development on hardware like Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 (doesn't necessarily mean it will be on one or both of those platforms, just that programming is for those kind of engines. It could be an HD PC game. We just don't know). That announcement is apparently further off.

When will that game be announced?
I have no idea. Atlus seems to like to announce their games fairly close to the release dates (a smart tactic, in my opinion). My guess is the game will come out sometime mid to late 2009, so don't hold your breath for an announcement any time before May. (But, of course, anything could happen, and we could get an announcement at TGS. Just don't expect one.)

Remember that the above are nothing more than my opinions on the game based on my own experience, and my predictions should be taken as educated speculation, not fact.

Now, perhaps you think that Kuzunoha Raidou vs. The Soulless Army was the best MegaTen iteration of this or any other generation, and there can never be enough Kuzunoha Raidou. I can respect that opinion. And if that's the case, then I hope Kuzunoha Raidou vs. The King of Abaddon is everything you hope it to be. I'm not trying to hate on this game or its announcement in any way. I'm just a little disappointed.

There were, of course, scans provided with this announcement, and I will include them and a translated summary in a subsequent post (probably later today).