Shin Megami Tensei (SMT) is a name you can trust. Atlus’s flagship conglomerate of JRPGs featuring teens, demons, and a heavy dose of philosophy has a reputation for being some of the genre’s best. So it seems odd that other than the main games in the series, they seem to be dropping SMT from most of the series’ spin-offs. Enter Soul Hackers 2, a game that begs the question; what if AI developed a will and a soul, and why would a creature born from the depths of the web be a teenage girl in fishnets and a mink coat?
In true JRPG tradition, Soul Hackers 2 starts with a big old exposition dump ( seriously, get some snacks, hit auto-forward and settle in).
Players take on the role of Ringo, one of two androids created by a sentient AI called Aion to help stop the apocalypse. Using her ability to Soul Hack – Ringo can bring the dead back to life by saving a portion of their soul. The only problem; doing this too much frays the fabric of reality.
Soul Hackers 2 takes a little while to get going. New characters and party members are added at a quick pace as you learn about the world, its major players, and the stakes if you fail your mission. Spoilers; it ceases to exist.
The mix of occult and cyberpunk themes and aesthetics works well. Although Soul Hackers 2 covers some heavy philosophical themes at times, it helps that the main characters do not take themselves too seriously.
The likeable cast’s interpersonal struggles are brought to life by brilliant voice acting in Japanese and English and balance out the game’s more overwrought scenes nicely.
The neon-soaked streets of totally not Tokyo look lush and characterful. The bustling city is full of the usual assortment of bars, shops, and otherworldly vendors SMT is known for and expands at a steady pace as the plot escalates in scale and stakes.
Aside from the main narrative, there are plenty of side quests to do. Most of these involve returning to previous dungeons to grab an item or kill a demon. They are not that enthralling but are generally worth the rewards and a decent alternative to grinding for extra levels.
The dungeons are enclosed areas that reveal themselves as you wander around them. There’s not much to them other than finding the gate to the next section, fighting monsters, or going down this dead end to pick up an item.
Dungeons have a horrible habit of blending together too. Although this isn’t a problem unique to Soul Hackers 2 by any means, but when you start seeing the same areas over and over makes exploration less of a joy and more of a slog at times.
The worst offenders of this are the ‘Soul Matrix’ dungeons that let you learn more about your party members by delving into their psyches at various points during the game. Each of these dungeons looks pretty much the same, but they reward you with new abilities and some well-earned character moments.
Each dungeon has several fast travel waypoints and a spell you can use to run from an area if you need to. None of them is too challenging, and you can change the difficulty at any time if they are, but they are time-consuming.
One fun aspect of the dungeons is Demon Recon. On entering a new area, Ringo sends the party’s demons out to scavenge for supplies. Later on, you’ll come across them in your travels, and the critters will have found something useful like some healing items or a new demon that wants to join your party. It mixes things up a little, and new demons are always helpful.
Like other Shin Megami Tensei games, the battles in Soul Hackers 2 are traditional turn-based affairs. Each side waits to take shots at each other, with characters able to get an advantage by using attacks which target a foe’s weaknesses. Doing this stops them from attacking your party and unleashes a demon for use during the Sabbath. A big attack at the end of your turn that causes loads of damage if you can successfully chain four weakening attacks together.
It also helps to pay attention to what each of your characters has equipped and ensure to keep it up to date, or you will soon get your arse handed to you. You should also switch out your equipped demons as soon as they are maxed out and try another.
The usual SMT demon fusing shenanigans return that helps boost your attack damage and unlocks powerful new ones.
Eventually, Ringo can perform commander abilities – super attacks that affect the entire party. All of Soul Hackers 2’s disparate systems interconnect to form an entertaining gameplay loop as you battle through a dungeon, raise and merge your demons, and then move on.
There is some subtle but worthwhile quality of life improvements too. You can save anywhere, and ‘easy’ mode makes it impossible to die, so even if you fall in battle – your party gets back up again.
If you are a fan of Shin Megami Tensei or are just in the market for a decent turn-based JRPG, Soul Hackers 2 is another quality outing from Atlus. Featuring a loveable cast of characters, an intriguing story and engaging gameplay, it is hard not to get sucked into its world. While the dungeon crawling can feel a little samey at times, the solid battle mechanics and twists to the SMT formula make it more than worth your while.
