Soul Hackers 2
MSRP $59.99
“Soul Hackers 2 innovates when it comes to RPG gameplay, but its story is a step down compared to Atlus’ recent hits.”
Avg
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Innovation on the SMT formula
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Satisfying economy and strategy
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Easy to recruit demons
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The progression makes the battles worthwhile
Against
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The story moves too fast
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Superficial hangout interactions
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Emotional beats fall into the water
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Forgettable sideuests
I found my third dead body about five hours into Soul Hackers 2. After 30 hours, I’ll learn that corpses and plots are nothing to be surprised about.
Aion, a supercomputer version of God, predicts the end of the world. He creates Ringo and Figue, two humanoid representations of his consciousness, to stop this impending apocalypse. Unfortunately, they arrive too late to save their targets: genius scientist Ichiro Ondo and demon summoner Arrow. That’s where the titular Soul Hacking game comes in. Bring back the soul and apparently the body will come alive with it. Ringo eventually revives three people who agree to fight together for their own goals. Who will really win in the end?
Soul Hackers 2 it seems to have what it takes to succeed as a JRPG full of sci-fi intrigue. However, he rushes across stakes and signs in the service of an anticlimactic race to the finish line. Fortunately, its finely crafted back and forth combat and progression make an otherwise stale story easily digestible.
Same but different formula
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Like other Atlus JRPGs, Soul Hackers 2 duplicates the Shin Megami Tensei formula while meaningfully building on it. Recruit demons, fight them and combine them into stronger allies. When entering battle, players must carefully use type advantages and turn the economy around to wipe out enemies as quickly as possible or survive the brutal battle. One misstep can be the difference between getting bodied by an entire team of demons or knocking them all out with a multi-hit finishing move.
Soul Hackers 2 it makes sense to make every action seem worthwhile.
Soul Hackers 2 uses that same formula to some extent with noticeable repetition. It brings back the Shin Megami Tensei mechanic where demons can fuse together to create ones with higher characteristics compared to those pulled straight from the Compendium. It also lets you progress at a reasonable pace so you don’t have to grind forever, with enough new abilities and demons to keep you going.
Another perk? Fighting demons helps you level up and collect rewards to exchange. You can significantly upgrade your COMP with stat boosts and passive perks (aka your weapons) using enemy drops or items your demons find while exploring. Some drops are also meant to be exchanged for healing items and power-ups, so gathering resources is a very rewarding multi-purpose experience.
Soul Hackers 2 it makes sense to make every action seem worthwhile. Shin Megami Tensei spinoffs usually involve exploiting enemy weaknesses to appeal to the transition economy. In this case, you get “Sets” every time you hit an enemy’s weakness. Ringo unleashes those stacks in “Sabbath” at the end of each turn for extra damage. Some demons even have their own “bonuses” that are activated during these Saturdays. One could poison all enemies, while the other could give the group some health. It’s easy to stack the lines in your favor, like you’re playing the RPG equivalent of coupon collecting, and have a consistently satisfying time building the perfect lineup for the party.
Now, if only the story impressed me as much as the gameplay.
More showing, less talking
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My English teachers used to emphasize “show, don’t tell”. Unfortunately, Soul Hackers 2 talks a lot and shows little. I stand by my review, where I wrote that the story quickly lost its shock value after the first three deaths. I understand. Aion beings can bring people back to life with soul hacking superpowers and everyone has a problem with their ex.
Soul Hackers 2 moves quickly. He dives into the memories and regrets of Arrow, Milady and Saiz at the beginning of the plot. To some extent, Soul Hackers 2 tells the story of three Demon Summoners who came back to life to deal with their regrets and save the world. But it doesn’t connect the threads together meaningfully. The three heroes end up believably reacting to their enemies, but the build-up to that moment is missing. In fact, some of their motives are hidden behind the plot later in the story. The reasons for keeping these intimate moments out of the main plot make sense in context, but it means you’ll have to be engaged for a long time as you wade through the lackluster plot and character development.
I always felt like an observer rather than someone who was in the moment myself.
Some of it could also be due to Ringo as the protagonist. To be clear, I like Ringo as a hero. Her courage and sense of humor carried otherwise stale conversations. However, she is also essentially a newborn.
Soul Hackers 2 deals with what it means to be human and what Ringo and Figue learn from their passionate allies. Ringo as a protagonist just feels like a waste when Arrow, Milady and Saizo have such complex backstories that we only feel in third person. I always felt like an observer rather than someone who was in the moment myself.
A technical afterthought
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Soul Hackers 2 he directs his combat perfectly, even if it moves too fast to enjoy the story. However, there are other moving parts that needed some work.
Areas like Axis and Club Courteous offer side quests to complete, but they’re never more than fetch quests, which feel like a waste of time. Some of them have valuable items that make it worth it, but most of the time it’s easier to pretend they don’t exist. I also find it easy to ignore the Soul Matrix, which the game reminds you to visit every other time you visit the Safehouse. Researching it will give your party members valuable passive perks the more you strengthen your social bond with them, but you’ll have to return to a bland, repetitive dungeon again and again to do so.
Most of the controls work well enough, but there are some flaws that bothered me. It’s a bit of a hassle to adjust the camera while running, and it tends to follow Ringo too closely. I also noticed a lag with Ringo’s kick, an attack that can be used during exploration to stun enemies before a random encounter. Sometimes you’ll get caught in combat even if you technically “hit” an enemy because the game registers that you’ve walked into them and starts the fight. I found myself having to time my slash early in order to hit it when I wanted to, which made the game feel a bit unnatural at times.
This is not a deal breaker compared to the bigger picture. However, they start to add up when the only positives are gameplay and progression.
Our opinion
Soul Hackers 2 is like the middle brother of the Shin Megami Tensei family. It doesn’t have the dark fantasy legacy of the series it came from or the same high school pranks as the Persona series. Instead, it’s a perfectly entertaining, if inoffensive, comeback game for a long-dormant IP. However, it doesn’t look like it will have the same staying power as some of Atlus’ recent hits. Its emotional moments didn’t fall as hard due to the lack of a narrative that says more than it shows. It innovates some parts of the SMT formula with strong RPG systems and progression, but it’s not enough to make it another must-have game.
Is there a better alternative?
Persona 5 Royal is a longer and more fun game with similar RPG systems. If you’ve already played it, there’s also Persona 4, Shin Megami Tensei 5 or the recently remastered Shin Megami Tensei Nocturne. Better to scratch the itch looking for a compelling story.
How long will it take?
Soul Hackers 2 is relatively short compared to Atlus’ other works. It took me between 30 and 40 hours to complete.
Should you buy it?
That. It’s a light recommendation for fans of Shin Megami Tensei, but if you’re new to Atlus games, it’s not a good place to start.
Soul Hackers 2 was reviewed on PlayStation 4.
Editor’s recommendations
Categories: GAMING
Source: newstars.edu.vn