RAIDOU Remastered: The Mystery of the Soulless Army

To say I am a fan of the Shin Megami Tensei series is an egregious understatement; whether journeying back to the surreal NES dungeon crawling days of the original Digital Devil Saga: Megami Tensei (itself based on a 1986 book trilogy of the same name), exploring the neon-soaked streets of Soul Hackers 2, or enduring the ultimate teen angst in the now beloved Persona series, I could spend hundreds of hours living in these worlds and soaking up their stories. But it was an unusual PS2 prequel that launched these games into the western spotlight, starting with Devil Summoner.

It would take thousands of words to discuss the history of this series in a way that makes sense, but to summarise: Devil Summoner, originally released in 1995 for the Sega Saturn, was itself a spin-off of another Shin Megami Tensei spin-off known as ‘If…’ – it’s turtles all the way down from there, but in essence this Japan-exclusive title and its sequel Soul Hackers became the basis for an incredibly popular variation on the series staples, focused more on investigative gameplay.

Over a decade after the release of the original, the popularity of the series led Atlus to explore a prequel; set in the early 1930s during Japan’s Taishō Period, the game looks back at the history of the titular Devil Summoners themselves – focusing on the eponymous budding summoner Raidou Kuzunoha as he investigates demon-centric cases throughout Tokyo and becomes embroiled in a case that could decide the fate of the world (as these things often tend to).

Receiving fairly favourable reviews on release, Devil Summoner: Raidou Kuzunoha vs. the Soulless Army was a marvel in many ways, but most notably for how it introduced the series as a whole to the West – it garnered a strong (albeit niche) appeal at the time and was subsequently popular enough to bring a world of beloved Atlus-developed JRPGs to the fore, so much so that nearly two decades later, this landmark classic has been remastered and reworked for a modern audience.

The first thing many people will notice is a slight change in the title – despite its recognisability, Atlus has slowly dropped the branding of Digital Devil Saga and the wider world of Devil Summoner, Devil Children and Devil Survivor (presumably to remove any outward references to Christianity and make the series less sinister to an outside observer), instead naming this refreshed entry RAIDOU Remastered: The Mystery of the Soulless Army.

Name change aside, RAIDOU employs a number of vital quality-of-life changes and mechanical overhauls that drastically change the way the game can be approached, without impacting the experience of the original. This largely pays off, with any number of snags from the PS2 classic being removed or reduced in favour of a more sleek and satisfying gameplay experience.

Gameplay itself is centred around two distinct styles that are blended together to create a satisfying story interspersed with challenging combat – players will spend a significant portion of the game exploring the world and interrogating people (and demons) to gather information about a current case. You will be assisted along the way by demons with various abilities, ranging from revealing previously hidden items to reading the minds of those around you, bettered only by the fact that they are invisible to most humans, leaving them able to explore areas you may otherwise be unable to reach.

As cases progress, the game evolves into the Devil Summoner’s renowned dungeon crawling formula – complete with a signature overworld map – allowing Raidou to access demon-infested areas to advance the story and provide extra fodder for your experience grinding allies. Featuring real-time combat, the fighting segments rely on a combination of fancy footwork to dodge, slice and jump around the field, as well as a complex system of resistances and weaknesses to manage, ensuring your demon companions are never caught out.

There’s a tactical element to both gameplay and combat too; not only will you be managing and assessing the various weaknesses in your team, but you are also responsible for ordering demons to swap out, withdraw and attack throughout the battle, reducing damage from major attacks and ensuring snap changes are accounted for in the heat of the moment. Additionally, you can’t build a team of heavy hitters, as healing, buffs and even abilities outside of combat need to be balanced to help you push forward in an investigation.

In spite of everything, RAIDOU Remastered tragically falls foul of the same issues that seem to plague remakes and remasters from the PS1 and PS2 eras – with the introduction of new textures, voice acting, models and overall visual upgrades, it also brings with it a change of style; unlike many remasters, the game manages to retain its signature designs, with demons and humans alike continuing to feel unique, but the introduction of camera controls means pre-rendered backgrounds are a thing of the past – as many people, including YouTuber rubyfallz, will attest, this change means some of the substance of the original gets lost in translation.

This doesn’t mean the game has lost its direction by any means, with the pop-in style of conversation being given an upgrade, instead bringing character models into view via a slide-in motion to complement their text boxes. In both the UI and story, RAIDOU manages to keep the goofy, overtly comical aspects of its otherwise sinister story front and centre, relying on more intimate, human moments to balance out the adventures through demonic realms.

Additionally, despite my personal reservations about the change to free motion camera controls (excluding certain areas), it is undeniably better in combat, ensuring you can see the battlefield in its entirety and not risk your enemy getting the upper hand simply because you can’t see them correctly – in fact, visibility has played a major part in this upgrade, with demons now showing in the dungeons themselves, rather than being brought in as random encounters, meaning you can more meticulously plan each combat encounter or avoid them entirely when saving resources.

RAIDOU Remastered is a hopeful step towards lesser-known or even untranslated titles in the wider Shin Megami Tensei series being given their time in the spotlight, with hidden gems like DemiKids, the first two Persona games and even the often disregarded If… finally having a chance to be seen by a wider Western audience.

If nothing else, here’s hoping they remaster Shin Megami Tensei 4; that game is an absolute corker.