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The very foundation of what I understand to be a video game has been shaky lately.  Titles like Knights in the Nightmare and Cross Edge took such a huge step away from the familiar that I was left reeling a bit.  Then, Atlus’ Devil Survivor appeared – a game which manages to remain simple and familiar.  How does it fare in a world where up is down and Michael Jackson is still alive?  Read on to find out.

Story – In a Blockaded Shibuya Tokyo

Ah, the age-old story of adolescents somehow acquiring control of demons which must be utilized to save the world.  I don’t know how I am not sick of this old yarn…  Anyway, Devil Survivor definitely doesn’t stray far from this formula.  Perhaps the game’s setting is a better focal point when discussing the story.

The game takes place in modern day Tokyo, which suddenly comes under martial law and all paths in and out of the city are blocked off.  The protagonist and his friends are among those trapped inside.  To make matters worse, a series of bizarre deaths begin to occur within the blockade.

The only help the player is given is a strange device called a COMP, a little computer-like gizmo which resembles a Nintendo DS.  With it, the protagonist can contend with demons and see an estimate of everyone’s life expectancy (in days) – including his own.  Naturally, the goal is to use these demon allies to keep this number as high as possible amidst all the chaos happening in the city.

I like the intensity of trying to survive in an enclosed, chaotic environment.  I think this is a really unique basis for a game and the added tension of the life expectancy aspect makes it feel that much more tense.  Oh, and demons, those are kinda creepy too.

System – You can’t catch ‘em all

When I first started Devil Survivor, I groaned a little at how linear it felt.  I would often be given the “option” of looking around Tokyo only to see that there was no point in going anywhere but the area which would progress the story.  As I played, I became aware that my actions actually had more bearing on what was happening than I thought.

There is a basic time system since the game takes place over the course of seven days.  Anytime a dialog scene occurs, time will pass.  Occasionally, there will be two events occurring simultaneously, for the same duration of time.  Obviously you can’t go to both.  This is one way in where some non-linear aspects begin to appear.

Does my answer really matter?  Sometimes…	The clock icon means this event will cause time to pass

One cool element which will reflect how the player interacts is that not every ally can be recruited in a single play-through, no matter how much you run around.  I like this feature since it makes the time constraints feel a bit more real.  I also imagine this will entice some players into a second play-through.

Battle System – You got your strategy in my tactics!

There is a lot of room for tactics and strategy in Devil Survivor – more than I have seen in a lot of tactical RPGs.  A huge part of this comes from the variety of elements that come standard in MegaTen games.  Each unit you assemble is made up of one human ally and two demons.  Humans lack elemental weaknesses/resistances, but their supporting demons don’t.  Taking advantage of a weakness grants the player or opponent an extra turn, which can really turn the tide of battle.

There is a map mode as part of each battle where allies can be arranged and moved to encounter enemies.  A variety of spells and abilities can also be utilized in this mode, adding another layer of strategy to combat.  These abilities include stat boosts, healing spells, etc.  With all these variables coming to a head, you’ll probably never have the same battle twice.

This video shows the transition from map-mode to the battle screen:

Most tactical RPGs fall into a rut when it comes to battling.  This rut is characterized by the simple and repetitive conditions for clearing a map or battle.  I hate when an ally is like “Hey look, some monsters!  Let’s show them what’s what!  Derp!”  Condition for victory:  Defeat all monsters.  It get’s old.  Really old.

Devil Survivor manages to avoid this very nicely.  There was one map where my 3 units had to do the following for victory:

• defeat 6 monster units
• protect 4 bystanders (each unit consisting of 3 bystanders, so a total of 12)
• Prevent monsters from passing a certain point on the map.

Needless to say, it was an intense battle.  There are quite a few maps with multiple conditions for victory/failure, which really makes you flex your tactical muscles.

Demon Maintenance – The kagatsuchi glows bright

The system which allows the player to manage their demons is a very important element in most MegaTen games.  Devil Survivor introduces an auction system when it comes to acquiring demons.  Basically, the player can spend “macca,” the currency of the Underworld, to recruit demons via contracts.

The demons you enlist in auctions may be of the same race (i.e., Jack Frost) but there are varying calibers rated from 1-5 stars.  A demon with 5 stars as opposed to 1 will have higher stats and may know more skills.  Obviously, the cost and competition in the auction house will reflect the value of the demon in question.  I like this feature since purchasing a certain demon with a higher ranking will increase the amount of time it takes for the demon to become obsolete.

Demon fusion is infinitely easier than it’s been in past MegaTen games.  I used to spend hours  re-rolling trying to get the perfect combination of skills on a fused demon.  Now, you can just select what spells to add from the two fused demon’s move-pools.  How civilized…

I found that I was earning macca way faster than I was spending it.  I think this is to allow the player to experiment with fusion as much as possible.  There is also a search option which can tell you how to fuse for certain demons that you have already made or seen.  This combination had me really cranking out the demons and customizing my skills.

Conclusions:

As I said earlier, Devil Survivor isn’t earth-shattering when it comes to gaming.  I think most people would be able to pick it up and, with minimal effort, hit the ground running.  It does pick up in difficulty pretty quickly though, which may deter some.

While it may not change the way we think about gaming, I think it has taken an already established genre and really refined it into an enjoyable and challenging portable title.