Shin Megami Tensei: Strange Journey

2009

role-playing (rpg)
adventure
science fiction
single player

The story

In the near future, a mysterious, growing, black void appears at the Earth's southern pole. Unable to determine its cause and powerless to stop its deadly encroachment, humanity sends an elite team of explorers into the heart of the phenomenon, just as Strange Journey's look and feel represent a return to the heart of Shin Megami Tensei, bringing to mind the all-time classic Nocturne. With over 300 demons to bribe, coerce, and negotiate with to gain assistance in battle, Strange Journey is every bit the deep, rewarding RPG experience fans have come to expect from the SMT franchise, yet delivered with a fresh new sci-fi story that taps into mature themes of morality and introspection.

What it’s like

Cold, clinical blue-white light bleeds across the Nintendo DS's small screen as you descend through a black void, with first-person dungeon corridors built from grey metal and dim emergency lamps that flicker against a hum of machinery. The art direction leans on stark, dark-tinted environments broken by sudden flashes of demonic color, and the demon designs, drawn in a sharp anime style, stand out against the sterile sci-fi interiors. The soundtrack is a moody blend of synth pulses and ambient electronic textures, punctuated by ominous silence during exploration and driving battle themes once fights begin. Turn-based combat unfolds in tense, deliberate rounds, and the hand-held nature suits short bursts on a commute or a long rainy evening alone with the screen. Its pacing is slow and methodical, rewarding patience and careful planning, with an emotional register of bleak unease and quiet dread rather than shock. Violence is frequent and stylised, with demon battles and bloody but largely bloodless enemy defeats, and some mature themes of mortality and moral compromise run beneath the surface. It suits players who want a cerebral, uncompromising dungeon-crawler and enjoy collecting and negotiating with monsters.

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