Devil Survivor was offputting to me. I found the weird anime style an affront to the aesthetic of Kazuma Kaneko. I didn't have much experience with tactics games and didn't have faith in how this game could be exciting for someone with no interest in that genre. However, once I delved into the game it really extruded style in a way I hadnt thought possible for Megaten.
Plot
The game has an amazing narrative structure that is bound to it's ludo narrative. I love using ludo narrative in game design so this game marrying it's restrictions this way was a stroke of genius. I think this shonen battle structure was good as an easy to digest plot and the mixing with SOME mythology (mostly religious) was nice. The cast are recruitable and they are all mostly compelling and I like that some are just made to be unlikeable in ways that are realistic like Midori or Kaido or some are just intensely likeable like Gin, Atsuro, Yuzu and Haru.
Gameplay
The game has a weird hybrid of tactics and turn based battle BUT the game has the worst balance, If you know a handful of useful skills the game is ball achingly easy.
I do love the system of auctioning for demons and the ability to replay areas. I found that the game grew more complex over time but in a way that was a compelling balance.
Music
I have to say this is the weakest ost for me, I like a couple tracks a lot but it isn't interesting for the genre of jrpg nor does it truly stand out which is unfortunate because the music was composed by a legendary musician.
Overall Thoughts
This is one of the weirdest games to talk about because overall it's wonderful and the additions for Overclocked are great. I also think the box art goes hard.
Plot
The game has an amazing narrative structure that is bound to it's ludo narrative. I love using ludo narrative in game design so this game marrying it's restrictions this way was a stroke of genius. I think this shonen battle structure was good as an easy to digest plot and the mixing with SOME mythology (mostly religious) was nice. The cast are recruitable and they are all mostly compelling and I like that some are just made to be unlikeable in ways that are realistic like Midori or Kaido or some are just intensely likeable like Gin, Atsuro, Yuzu and Haru.
Gameplay
The game has a weird hybrid of tactics and turn based battle BUT the game has the worst balance, If you know a handful of useful skills the game is ball achingly easy.
I do love the system of auctioning for demons and the ability to replay areas. I found that the game grew more complex over time but in a way that was a compelling balance.
Music
I have to say this is the weakest ost for me, I like a couple tracks a lot but it isn't interesting for the genre of jrpg nor does it truly stand out which is unfortunate because the music was composed by a legendary musician.
Overall Thoughts
This is one of the weirdest games to talk about because overall it's wonderful and the additions for Overclocked are great. I also think the box art goes hard.