Game Info: Shin Megami Tensei 2

Developed By: Atlus Co., Ltd.

Published By: Atlus Co., Ltd.

Released: Apr 18, 1994

Available On: SNES

Genre: Turn-based Role Playing Game

ESRB Rating: None specified (would be rated Mature by contemporary ERSB standards)

Number of Players: Singleplayer

Price: $100.00+ (new) $11.00+ (used) Note: Only the SNES version is covered since it can be played legally in English, provided you legitimately own a copy of the original Japanese ROM and patch it manually into English via a fan translation. All other versions and ports like the PSX and GBA ports will not be addressed in this review.

When Atlus released the first Shin Megami Tensei, they had every intention of following its events up with a sequel. Given the first game had three endings, they had to pick one and build on it. In terms of gameplay, they also had to take what was good about the first and make it even better. Whether they succeeded or not will be the topic of this review. The story follows from the Neutral ending of the first SMT, where the hero defeated the faction leaders of both Law (Messian) and Chaos (Gaian). The survivors of both factions, now forced to live in the Great Cathedral, one of the few places that survived the flood that overwhelmed Tokyo towards the close of the first game, initially attempted to make the most of their situation. As the water receded, they continued to build upon the foundations of the Great Cathedral, turning it into a massive towering arcology that became known as the Tokyo Millenium. In the process, the Messians seized power, forced the Gaians underground, and established a theocratic regime under the rule of God, controlled by a council of elders at the apex of the Tokyo Millienum called "The Center". The Center prophesied a Messiah would come to deliver them all to a better world, one where, despite their efforts, attacks by demons were a constant threat. However, God seemingly proved silent on what to do next, so the Elders decided to take matters into their own hands. Not long after, an amnesiac gladiator fighter named Hawk soon discovers he was the result of this plan, a plan to provide the Messiah God had promised. He soon discovers not only his true name and past but also that the Center is riddled with corruption. As he is forced to take a stand against that corruption, he also discovers both Lucifer and God are manipulating events in the background, and soon the man created as the Messiah must choose to either follow the will of God, Lucifer, or neither to save humanity from a fate even worse than the nuclear fires that had ushered about the apocalypse in the previous game. The gameplay is essentially identical to the original game, with first-person 3D dungeons and a top-down overworld map. However, it has undergone several improvements, such as simplified menus, a much more accessible minimap feature to avoid getting lost (and that has been improved to show the direction you are facing to make navigation less painful). Demon negotiations and summoning return, as do sword fusions. There is now a new feature called "fusion accidents" where you can get a random demon as opposed to the one you expected to get at random intervals, which is affected by the moon phase mechanic that also returns from the previous game (which again affects certain treasures and demon negotiation success). Demons can now "inherit" skills from prior fusions, which provides more flexibility for retaining effective teams with well-rounded abilities.

Highlights: Strong Points: Improved storyline from predecessor; refined gameplay mechanics

Weak Points: Some game-breaking bugs

Moral Warnings: RPG level violence; Some adult language and some crude sexual dialogue; some highly sexualized monster designs; blatant occult references and multiple mythological references alongside explicit Christian ones (some presented in a very negative way); negative portrayals of what amounts to Christians and God, with unavoidable opposition to both (including rampant blasphemy depending on player choices); references to gambling and alcohol, with player ability to do both activities if they choose Graphics retain many of the samey dungeon designs, but there is now a more colorful and vibrant look to offset the dreary and sterile post-apocalypse/cyberpunk motif. Demons have much more detail in this game and even some decent degree of animation. Monochrome colors are still quite prevalent in 3-D dungeon areas, but at least they have more texturing and details. By 1994 standards, it was a decent improvement on the first game, though it still may seem dated to modern players in terms of area palettes. Sound is somewhat improved, with many cyberpunk and techno themes like in the first game alongside many themes appropriate to the factions. Sound effects are slightly more varied than the previous title, not to mention sound more crisp and distinct. Controls are largely the same as in the preceding game save some ergonomic improvements like easier to navigate menus. Stability is both better and worse than in SMT I. While it's somewhat harder to trigger game-breaking bugs that can mess up character alignment so you are locked into one alignment on another path, it's still possible to do so via some sequence breaking glitches. Some other bugs are somewhat beneficial, like random drops from certain early game enemies giving you powerful end game level equipment, though purposely trying to trigger them can corrupt save files as well.

On the moral side of things, while inheriting many of the moral problems that plagued its preceding game it also has it's own specific moral concerns. Violence is of the RPG level and language is no worse than a movie fit for nighttime viewing most of the time, and while there is some mild sexual innuendo (you have some female party members who will get sexually proposed in a mild fashion that is played for laughs in some demon negotiations), the game is otherwise no worse than it's predecessor in this regard. There are some references to gambling and getting drunk scattered about, but they are pretty minor in the grand scheme of things, but common enough early on to be worth noting as a concern. However, in terms of sexual depiction, the game does feature some more sexually detailed demons. One looks like a talking green male private part riding a golden chariot (meant to partially embody the Buddhist take on the sin of lust, and partially based on a Japanese wordplay pun). Some demons have exposed female breasts (mostly those based on mythological beings associated with fertility, though in one bizarre example a male being is depicted with these as part of their incredibly off-putting design which looks freakish in general). This aside, there are no other serious red flags save one demon based on Aleister Crowley who makes references to wanting to perform an orgy (a reference to the real Crowley and his own historically infamous hedonism). As for the occult and supernatural, Chaos returns in all its pagan trappings, complete with hexagrams and occult imagery, though Law is not much better. While they aren't prone towards such evil imagery, some of the more depraved representatives of Law are not above using demons to do their dirty work or act not much better or even worse than said demons despite their alleged alignment to the Will of God. There is also the standard demon negotiation and summoning, though given the player is supposed to basically be a serial numbers filed off Jesus clone, the fact you can convince demons to be subject to your orders makes a bizarre sort of biblical sense. Regardless, the circumstances and depiction are still quite morally dark grey at absolute best. It's on this note we need to address a major concern, one the developers had to make clear in interviews: While God (aka YHVH) is the final boss (even in the Law ending), he is NOT the actual God. He's more a corrupt parody based on a warped perception of his true nature since human belief influences how the supernatural manifests in the SMT universe. For Christians worried they are committing the ultimate blasphemy, despite all the trappings of the Abrahamic deity YHVH is styled after, he's a twisted (and mortal) avatar borne of human misinterpretation of his true nature. For all in-universe intents and purposes, he's regarded as the real deal by his subordinates and enemies because they too have been altered by human perception to see YHVH as the true face of God, not the demented parody he is.