If you didn’t know/forgot about the time Atlus made a Shin Megami Tensei spinoff about a detective who uses demons to help him solve crimes, you would be in the majority. If you knew this series even existed, you’re in the minority! Consider me part of the majority with you, as Raidou completely skipped me when I was a kid. You can click on my name and read through all my reviews; you’ll see that I have often praised Atlus and their games. While Raidou Remastered: The Mystery of the Soulless Army doesn’t sit anywhere near Persona 5 and Metaphor: ReFantazio in terms of greatness, it definitely deserves a spot on your radar.
In Raidou Remastered: The Mystery of the Soulless Army, you play as Raidou Kuzunoha XIV, the mysterious and silent protagonist. You are newly dubbed a Devil Summoner. Not only are you summoning demons, but you’re also an apprentice working as a detective for hire through the Narumi Detective Agency. Your agency only helps solve “special” cases. These cases deal with the occult and killing demons, naturally. Right as the game gets started, you’re called by a girl who ultimately asks you to kill her. Then, without any warning, she is kidnapped by some mysterious entities, and it’s up to you to figure out what happened, who’s behind the kidnapping, and to save her life. This marks the start of the game’s first major case, which spans over 20 hours. I was hooked from the get-go.
The story is told exceptionally through voice-acted NPCs, which is a new feature in this remaster. I played the first few hours in English to get a sense of what the cast was bringing, and I was mostly impressed. Gouto, your talking cat, is a major standout. Every time he would chime in, I got excited to hear what he had to say. He’s kind of like that cool friend who always seems like he’s annoyed about something, and he probably is. I found a few characters, specifically the older crowd, a little bland. Most of the older men that you meet on your journey have that super gravelly voice that has become a trope in anime. I much preferred the Japanese takes on characters of that age, often softer and sometimes eerier in tone. But whether it was the English dub or the Japanese dub, the main cast is mostly excellent. However, I found that playing in Japanese really immersed me in the plot and the world. The game takes place in an alternate version of 1930s Tokyo, and I just don’t think the story can be taken seriously in any other language.
You will jump between the human realm as well as the Dark realm, which is very similar to the human one, except it’s overrun by aggressive demons. When in the human realm, you can pick up many smaller jobs like helping somebody’s cat who is stuck on the top of a shrine’s gate. You can also visit the local store to pick up supplies, and you can also pick up major cases. When you enter the Dark realm, which you can do very easily by visiting a shrine that acts as your gateway, you’ll come across many demons that want to see you dead. But you are a Devil Summoner! And as Raidou’s job title suggests, you will be summoning a lot of demons in this game. But in order to do that, you first have to get into combat and catch them. During combat, you can recruit demons to join you. You have a small conversation with them and usually answer a question or two. After a usually humorous exchange, they’ll agree to join your party.
Unlike most other Atlus games, Raidou Remastered: The Mystery of the Soulless Army is an action-RPG. You can fight with a sword, spear or an axe, whatever fits your style. You also have access to a gun in combat, but I found it more aesthetically pleasing than useful. With your melee weapons, you have your typical light and heavy attacks, as well as the ability to cast spells and use items on the fly. When attacking enemies with your light attack, you build MAG (mana) to fuel your spells. When attacking with your heavy attacks, your combos are much slower, but are way deadlier. You don’t get MAG when using your heavy attacks, so you’ll want to cycle between both attacks to balance damage and resources. This is where you can really summon some demons! In combat, you can have up to two demon partners fight alongside you.
Each demon has its own strengths and weaknesses, as well as different abilities. Typically, I would run a demon who specifically was there to support me with heals and buffs, and I’d get a second demon who wasn’t afraid to get up close and personal and dish out some magic. If you or your demon hits an enemy with something they’re weak to enough, they will get stunned and get opened up for some free damage. Using two demons at a time is a huge detriment to your MAG bar, so it’s always a great time to recharge it by light attacking the stunned foe. Both your light and heavy attacks do bonus damage when an enemy is downed, so it’s really up to you in that moment. Do you need more magic? Use your light attack. If you’re really just looking to get some damage in, beat the shit out of them with some heavy attacks! As you and your demons level up, you’ll be able to delegate where your attributes go, and the demons will learn new abilities. It’s really satisfying when you get a demon with the right loadout to be a proper all-rounder.
Demons are useful in combat, sure, but they also have many uses in the human realm. Want to save that cat stuck up on a shrine like I mentioned earlier? Use a demon who has the ability to fly. Somebody not telling you the full truth? Use a demon who can read minds so you can get every last detail out of them. Each demon can be used in the human realm in some way; you just need to figure out what is useful in each situation. Sometimes you can even find hidden items or dialogues if you get creative with your demon’s abilities.
Much like every other game birthed from Shin Megami Tensei, Raidou Remastered: The Mystery of the Soulless Army has demon fusion! This is where you take two demons you’ve previously caught and fuse them together – crazy, I know. If you’ve out-levelled the demons in your squad, you can simply fuse them to make a new demon who is a higher level, and often has something new to bring to the table. What’s cool is that you can take abilities from the demons you’ve fused and attach them to the product of the fusion you just made. You can make a physical attacker who has heals, if you really want to. But you should probably try to pay attention to the stats of each demon to see where they thrive. Some might be better magic users, while some might be physical attackers. But really, you can mix and match their skills however the hell you please.
You can also register your demons, so that you can summon them later without having to find them in the wild. Some demons can only be acquired through fusion, but most of them can be found in the dark realm. Fusion exists so you can do some team building, but your favourite demon will likely fall off at some point, and continuing to use them will be an active detriment to you. I suggest not getting too attached to any one demon, as you will need to constantly be fusing in order to keep up with the tougher enemies in the mid-to-late game. But still, I found that the default demons you come across later on are kind of built exactly how their stats want them to be built. Eventually, fusion becomes less and less important as the game goes on. I found that this issue is fixed in a lot of the more recent Atlus games, and fusion is something that is relevant right until the end. In Raidou Remastered: The Mystery of the Soulless Army, however, fusion is necessary until it isn’t, which sucks.
There’s also an intricate crafting mechanic that lets you create a pretty staggering amount of weapons. You can cater a build to any element of your choosing, so long as you’ve got the proper materials. You can unlock new melee skills as well as general buffs to your weapon type. Choosing how you want your Raidou to fight while also strategizing with your demons alongside you is a pretty rewarding experience that helps keep combat fresh and engaging.
Much like every other Atlus game, Raidou Remastered: The Mystery of the Soulless Army shines in its presentation. Moving through the interconnected world is extremely easy and intuitive. There are various streetcars, and you can select where on the map you would like them to take you. Each exit you take from each district will bring you back to the map on a different stretch of road. Sometimes, while moving around the map, you can find items or talk to various NPCs about what’s going on in the story. I was highly impressed with the amount of detail and personality that even the smaller things, like fast travelling, have. The UI is snappy, it’s got the typical Atlus sheen to it, and menus are easy to navigate while simultaneously looking stylish as hell. Somehow, all of the game’s mechanics and compendiums are flawlessly integrated into the menus and are easy to access.
Honestly, I was pretty shocked by this one! While I’m not yet finished the game, I have found myself thinking about Raidou Remastered: The Mystery of the Soulless Army way more than I was expecting to. I didn’t even mention the game’s killer soundtrack, or its picture-perfect performance on the Nintendo Switch 2! If you’re into true-crime, 1930s-era Japan, and action JRPGs that aren’t afraid of flipping real-world issues on their head, then Raidou Remastered: The Mystery of the Soulless Army is for you! As somebody who has never played this game in its original state, I highly recommend this to anybody who is even a little curious. From what I’ve read, it basically fixes all the frustrating mechanics in the original game and provides quality-of-life changes all over the place. I think it’s pretty safe to say that I think anybody, new or returning fans alike, will find this to be a very satisfying experience!
