Shin Megami Tensei: Nocturne is a for the. It was developed by, published by Atlus in Japan and North America, and by in Europe. It is the third entry in the Shin Megami Tensei series, the central series in the franchise. Multiple versions of the game have been published: the original version was published in Japan by Atlus in 2003, while a was released in 2004 in Japan. The director's cut was localized and released in North America and Europe in 2004 and 2005 respectively.Nocturne follows the, a high school student in modern-day Tokyo, as he is transformed into a half-demon after the world undergoes Conception, an apocalyptic event triggered by a sinister cult to trigger the world's rebirth in a new form.

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With Tokyo transformed into a Vortex World filled with demons, the Protagonist becomes instrumental to the schemes of the Reasons, beings who seek to remake the world in their image, and Lucifer, the lord of demons. The gameplay uses a turn-based battle system based on exploiting weaknesses, and a Demon recruitment system allowing the player to recruit demons found in the Vortex World to fight alongside them.The game was conceived after the completion of and, but was delayed as the team worked out what they wanted for the game, including making it appeal to a wider audience than previous Megami Tensei games. Unlike the science fiction setting of Shin Megami Tensei II, Nocturne returned to a contemporary setting similar to the original game. The setting and characters were inspired by multiple elements, including, and modern popular culture.

Among the things the team changed from previous entries were the camera perspective, which was switched from a first- to a third-person camera perspective, and using a cel-shaded art style to distinguish it from other games of the time. The music, primarily composed by, paid homage to earlier Megami Tensei titles while drawing on music styles from the 1980s.The original edition of Nocturne released in Japan to strong sales and a positive critical reception, and the limited director's cut proved so popular that Atlus made a second print in response to fan demand. It also inspired a and in Japan. The director's cut was the version chosen for localization, making Nocturne the first mainline Shin Megami Tensei game to be released in the west. The game was well received by video game publications, who praised its gameplay and atmosphere while its challenging difficulty was often a subject of criticism.

It was also announced to have been a commercial success in the West. Shin Megami Tensei: Nocturne is set in a post-apocalyptic version of modern-day: aside from the opening segment, post-apocalyptic Tokyo, also known as the Vortex World, is the main setting. From the outset, the player can select two difficulty settings: Normal and Hard. The player controls a who is given a name during the opening.

The player navigates the Vortex World through both a 2D world map, and to-scale 3D environments used in dungeons. While navigating the world map, the Protagonist's party and other non-player characters (NPCs), interactive objects and landmarks are represented by symbols: these objects and NPCs include containers holding items, spirits that will heal the party, and a globe in the bottom left-hand corner of the screen showing the party's approximate location on the world map. During dungeon navigation, the Protagonist navigates grid-based, multi-leveled areas. Different areas are accessed via doors, and as the Protagonist progresses the area is automatically mapped. While exploring dungeons, the in-game camera can be freely rotated, and a 'Look' action allows the player to see environments in first-person. The game world can be navigated either on foot or by using a fast travel system unlocked at a certain point in the game.Multiple important locations are located within the world: these include Terminals that give access to a fast travel system; the Junk Shop, which acts as a vendor for buying and selling items; Rag's Jewelry, where gems collected during gameplay can be traded for rare items and unique demons; and the Fountain of Life, where the Protagonist and other party members can receive treatment for ailments, heal them of damage, or revive characters knocked out in battle. An optional location separate from the Vortex World is the Amala Labyrinth, accessed after the Protagonist has reached a certain point in the story.

The Labyrinth is a dungeon divided into multiple floors or Kalpa, each housing both demon enemies and brokers who sell demons to the Protagonist. Each Kalpa is connected by a Warp Zone, in which the Protagonist can collect currency and items while avoiding or destroying obstacles. Proceeding through the levels of the Labyrinth requires the protagonist to find and fight Fiends carrying Candelabra, which unlock barriers.

The Candelabra also act as a means of locating and either engaging or avoiding Fiends. Battle system. A battle in Shin Megami Tensei: Nocturne where the player is using the main character (now under control) and a party of three demons. The blue icons from the top right indicate how many turns the players have leftDuring navigation, an indicator in the bottom right-hand corner of the screen indicates the presence of enemies and the likelihood of a battle being triggered. An indicator in the top left-hand corner also shows the current 'phase' of Kagutsuchi, a moon-like object hovering in the sky of the Vortex World which shifts its phase as the Protagonist explores.

Standard battles are initiated through random encounters, which trigger a transition into a dedicated battle arena. The player party is composed of the Protagonist and three demons: only eight demons can be carried by the Protagonist at the game's opening, but more can be added as the game progresses. At the end of battles, the party gains and Macca, the in-game currency. Party members will level up when enough experience points have been gathered. Upon leveling up, the statistics of allied demons are randomly raised, while the Protagonist's stats can be customized by the player.

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The Protagonist's abilities and resistances are also influenced by equipping one of 24 different Magatama found in-game. The Protagonist can learn new skills from equipped Magatama when he levels up, and is also granted passive buffs and debuffs which take effect in battle. Magatama will sometimes act violently within the Protagonist, creating different effects depending on the Magatama equipped.Battles are governed by a turn-based mechanic called the 'Press Turn' system. Each character participating in combat, friend and foe alike, provides one or more Press Turns represented in the upper right-hand corner of the screen as icons. The rule behind this system is that any action (attacking, using skills, items, contacting demons, summoning commands) will normally cost one full turn. If a combatant scores a critical hit, exploits their opponent's weakness, or passes on making an action, they gain an additional turn marked by a pulsating icon. These added turns allow characters to perform all actions available within normal turns.

If the player chooses to pass on an additional turn, that turn is lost. If an attack fails through missing or blocking, then multiple turns are lost: how many depends on how many combatants avoided or blocked it. If an attack heals an enemy, all remaining turns are lost. An auto-attack option is available, where party members can use standard physical attacks or repeat their actions from the previous turn. Characters can escape from normal battles, with failure forfeiting a player turn. If the main character loses all health, the game ends, regardless of the status of his demons.

Demon negotiation and fusionA key element related to battles is demon negotiation, the process by which new demons are invited to join the Protagonist and can fight alongside them. The majority of demons can be talked to in battle by the Protagonist, and some allied demons. After selecting the option to talk, the player selects a demon, which initiates a negotiation. For those demons who can talk, the responses vary by both situation and a demon's temperament: some demons can be bribed with Macca and items, some will ask questions related to subjects like philosophy, while others can be influenced by the Protagonist's skills of flattery or eloquence. A negotiation can fail if the wrong responses are chosen, if the Protagonist's demon roster is full, or if another enemy demon interrupts. When in the party, demons can be summoned or dismissed from battle. The level of assigned Magatama can also affect how negotiation goes.In addition to recruiting in battle, new demons are acquired through fusion at a location called the Cathedral of Shadows.

Normally only two demons can be fused at once, but under certain conditions more demons can be fused together. Fusions can produce a variety of results based on various circumstances, such as the current phase of Kagutsuchi and the addition of items called Deathstones. When in the Cathedral of Shadows, the Protagonist can select two demons, viewing a preview of the resultant demon, then initiate a fusion. The resultant demon will both possess its own skills and inherit skills from its two parents: skill inheritance is randomized.

Higher-level demons produce more powerful fusions. Demons gained through negotiation or fusion are automatically stored in the Demon Compendium, a record kept within the Cathedral of Shadows. The Protagonist can also pay to summon a demon from the Compendium, returning it to his ranks. Setting and charactersThe setting and events of Shin Megami Tensei: Nocturne take place in a separate continuity to the rest of the Megami Tensei series. Nocturne is set in modern-day Tokyo before and after an event called the Conception, in which the normal world is destroyed through the actions of a cult to prevent the world's stagnation and ultimate demise, as dictated by the governing existence. Tokyo is transformed into a wasteland on the inside of a sphere inhabited by the spirits of humans who died in the Conception; demons who wage war with each other; and Reasons, deity-like beings formed from the gathering of Magatsuhi by people with a deity or demon sponsor. Those who possess Reasons seek to remake the world in their image by presenting themselves to Kagutsuchi, a semi-sentient manifestation of the Great Will's power which exists to perpetuate the destruction and rebirth of worlds through Conception, and proving their worth.

Another realm mentioned in the story is the Shadow Vortex, a limbo where dead worlds and the beings who created them linger.The nameless main Protagonist is the player character: generally dubbed the Demi-fiend, he is an 'everyday man' who represents the player. Several other characters survive the opening events of the game alongside him, many of them representing the various routes the player can choose to take. They are Yuko Takao, his teacher and a key figure in future events; his classmates Chiaki Hayasaka and Isamu Nitta; and Hikawa, leader of the Cult of Gaea and later the Assembly of Nihilo. Other characters include Jyoji Hijiri, a journalist the Protagonist meets with prior to the Conception; and Futomimi, a powerful Manikin seeking to create his own Reason. All the game's events are watched over by, ruler of the demons and the Great Will's sworn enemy, who takes on multiple forms during the story.

PlotThe game begins with the Protagonist arriving in Tokyo to meet up with Chiaki and Isamu to visit Takao in a hospital. While in the city, the player learns of a confrontation between two cults which resulted in several deaths, and learns details of it from Hijiri when he meets them in the park where the event took place.

Finding the hospital deserted apart from Chiaki and Isamu, the Protagonist searches it, is briefly accosted by Lucifer in his child form, and is almost killed by Hikawa. Saved from Hikawa by Takao, the Protagonist is taken by her to the hospital roof and witnesses the Conception, with Takao saying the resulting Vortex World will remain until the next creation is triggered. In the immediate aftermath, Lucifer contacts the Protagonist again and infuses him with a Magatama, wishing to see whether he can lead his armies against the Great Will.

This turns the Protagonist into the Demi-fiend, a being with the powers of a demon and the heart of a human. After escaping from the hospital, the Demi-fiend begins exploring the Vortex World with help from Hijiri. He learns of two cults who seek to remake the world in their image: Hikawa's Assembly of Nihilo, and a separate organization called the Mantra Army. Hikawa manages to destroy the Mantra Army, with Takao acting as his assistant.The Demi-fiend goes in search for his friends and faces these groups. Both Chiaki and Isamu are distraught by the Vortex World and decide to move on their own rather than relying on their friend's power, while Takao realizes she is being used by Hikawa and decides to go on her own quest to create her desired world. To do this, she allies with Aradia, a former deity from the Shadow Vortex. After this point, all the supporting characters are seeking to ally with a powerful entity from the Shadow Vortex and create their own Reason, a powerful inner philosophy of life that can be used to mold the new world.

To do this, a large quantity of an energy called Magatsuhi is needed, which each character begins hoarding. Hikawa's Shijima Reason wants a world of stillness and conformity in the service of a peaceful world; Chiaki's Yosuga Reason seeks a world where the strong rule supreme and destroy the weak; and Isamu's Musubi Reason wishes for a world where everyone is an individual who can live without reliance on others. Others also attempt to form a Reason, including Futomimi, who wishes to free the world's Manikins from their servitude, and Takao, who wants a world where people value life and have freedom. Both die before they can realize their wishes, and Takao gives the Demi-fiend an artifact that will enable him to remake the world.

Hijiri, revealed to be a manikin doomed to reborn and suffer repeatedly for an unspecified 'sin' against the Great Will, also attempts to gather enough Magatsuhi to remake the world, but is thwarted and sacrificed by Isamu to create his own Reason. Additionally, the Demi-fiend can fulfill a request from Lucifer to collect eight Candelabra from Fiends.Choosing to support a Reason will result in a different ending depending on who is chosen, but in each the world is reborn in the image of the chosen Reason after the Demi-fiend fights Kagutsuchi to prove his resolve. Chiaki and Isamu die before the Demi-fiend begins and give him their blessing in spirit form, while Hikawa accompanies the Demi-fiend into their new world. If Takao's wishes are followed, the Demi-fiend fights Kagutsuchi and the world is returned to its pre-Conception state, resurrecting and restoring all the main characters.

If the Demi-fiend rejects Takao's wishes, Kagutsuchi curses him for allowing the world to die and departs, leaving the Demi-fiend as the only survivor in a barren world of demons, trapped as it is until another Conception can happen. If the Demi-fiend fulfills Lucifer's request of collecting the Candelabra from the Fiends, Kagutsuchi attacks him and is destroyed, breaking the Great Will's control over the worlds. After this, Lucifer fights the Demi-fiend to test his strength, then declares him to be the ultimate weapon in the upcoming war against the Great Will. The concept for a third Shin Megami Tensei title was originally proposed by and others after the completion of the previous two installments,. There were originally no plans to continue the Shin Megami Tensei series beyond If., with there instead being plans for an original project.

Shin Megami Tensei Nocturne Dante

Despite the release of the and consoles, the team took a while to decide what they wanted for the game, the team spent time deciding to create a different kind of game that would appeal to a wider audience than its prequels. Eventually, the team decided that they needed to develop for the to realize their vision. Because of this delay, shifted development focus onto.

During this early concept stage, many of the staff felt lost as to where they could go with the new project. As part of the research, the team created a 3D test demo featuring the demon Cerberus to test the PlayStation 2 hardware.

Shin Megami Tensei Nocturne Magatama

The demo was created before Nocturne 's contents had been decided upon, as a test on modelling and animating demons. Nocturne was among the first Megami Tensei titles to use 3D graphics, alongside. Development on Nocturne began in 2000, with the creation of the first Alpha builds to determine how the main character would move around environments. To finalized their desired aesthetic look, the team created internal tech demos using 3D models of characters from previous Megami Tensei games. When their vision for the game had been finalized, full development began in 2002, taking approximately one year.Along with Kaneko, series co-creator produced the title. The game was directed by Katsura Hashino, his first time in such a position within the Megami Tensei series.

While the option of making a direct sequel to Shin Megami Tensei II was considered, Kaneko wanted to return to the contemporary setting of the original Shin Megami Tensei as opposed to the science fiction aesthetic of its sequel. As it was felt that the game was more than just the third numeric installment, a subtitle was added. Before the final subtitle, ' Nocturne' was added, other subtitles were considered. An early subtitle was Vortex. The game uses a third-person camera perspective rather than the first-person dungeon crawling of earlier installments.

One of the reasons for this change was that the developers wanted to focus on the protagonist, who would stand out for being a half-demon. Another factor was many reports of people suffering from a condition similar to car sickness called '3D sickness' with first person shooters in Japan: the developers wanted players to have something to focus their eyes on. Despite setting the game in contemporary Tokyo, the team chose a cel-shaded art style as they wanted their game to stand out and enable Kaneko to bring the game as close as possible to his original vision.The desired feel of the game design was defined by Okada as 'simple yet profound'. One of the earlier ideas was to make the Vortex World a vast battlefield where players could see distant scenery on the horizon and in the sky, but performance issues meant the idea had to be scrapped.

The Press Turn system was created so battles would feel less sedated than the pure turn-based battle systems of earlier titles. The initial concept was a kind of meter where players and characters were given turns which were extended if a character's weak spot was exposed.

To ensure this did not lead to repetition in battle, a second meter was implemented so enemy characters would become acclimated with an attack that was used too often. As the displays needed for this cluttered up the screen, the concept was revised so a single gauge represented a party's number of turns, with a side's turn being extended if a weakness was exposed or a critical strike happened. As they settled on the rule of one action to one unit, the gauge was replaced with the current icon display.

One of the requests given by Okada was to simplify the gameplay, especially aspects such as demon fusion, which had become fairly convoluted by Shin Megami Tensei II. The equipment system was also redesigned to better fit the setting, and adjusting aspects of demon interaction. A major area within the city of and one of the settings of NocturneNocturne expanded on the general Megami Tensei theme of people lacking excitement in their everyday lives, with Nocturne focusing on the extraordinary events people could not experience in real life. The team wanted Nocturne to feel like a 'journey into hell' comparable with 's and 's 1979 film. Kaneko was mainly responsible for creating the inverted bubble structure of the Vortex World. This design choice was primarily inspired by similar ideas in, early science fiction, and the, an important scripture within. In contrast to previous games which offered three routes for the cast, Chaos was the only affiliation of the characters.

This was due to the fact the staff saw the Chaos route offered more to the player, and that it would be boring to have the same designs as previous games. It also gave the team more development freedom. Another reason was that Shin Megami Tensei II had already explored a world governed by Law, so it seemed natural to swing the other way and depict a world ruled by Chaos. In addition, Kaneko stated that Nocturne was part of a movement to create a single unified mythos for the Megami Tensei series.

One of the main aspects of incorporating this theme were discussions about the nature of chaos.Okada's main wish for the title was it to 'go back to the Creation'. The initial concept of a triggered rebirth to prevent stagnation was suggested by Kaneko upon seeing a change in fashion: after a period of flashy or gaudy clothing tastes, people had begun wearing plain suits. Using this, he thought up the concept of this signalling a stagnation in the world's life energy, necessitating a drastic change. The game's main setting of in in ruins came from Okada, who visualized areas like and as good settings. The Reasons were inspired by the team's want to show several styles for living. The Manikins were created as a representation of the Vortex World and the war between the Reasons, acting as a mass pressuring for the birth of a new world. They mirrored the mechanisms of a country with a high population, and were based on the idea of people being overwhelmed by numbers and acting in accordance with a common norm.

The scenario was written by Shogo Isogai, whose main task was to take Okada and Kaneko's vision and turn it into a story that would fit into the framework of a traditional Megami Tensei game. The overall concept was so grand that it seemed at times too ambitious, and involved the layering of multiple interactions between different factions and ideals, alongside incorporating the common Megami Tensei narrative features such as multiple endings and the modern-day setting. The story had multiple possible routes and endings to emphasize the importance of the player's decisions. One of the early concepts that needed to be cut was giant demons battling each other in Tokyo.In keeping with previous entries, the story focused on a single protagonist rather than a group as in other role-playing games of the time to promote full player immersion. The main protagonist was the first character to be created, being featured in the first Alpha build. So as to include a feeling of 'digitality' in the game, the main character was designed as something akin to a human computer.

This approach was inspired by the special make-up used in 's 1983 horror film. While the protagonist was originally designed with keyboards growing from inside him, Kaneko felt uncomfortable with that and instead redesigned him with full-body tattoos. The tattoos were intended to convey the character's demon powers, act as an obvious stigma in place of wings or horns, and be a reference to real-world shamans who commonly made themselves stand out using tattoos. Kaneko's inspiration for the main character's design was the American rock band: according to Kaneko, he 'imagined the main character running around the desert naked'. The main character was initially going to use one of the series' recurring arm-mounted COMP computers, but as he had already become a demon hybrid, it did not make sense to include it. As he was the character controlled by the player, more focus was given to embodying and reflecting his world view than to developing a personality. In keeping with the game's theme of energy remaking reality, Kaneko dressed his character in comfortable shorts to balance against his tattoos.

The spike growing from the main character's neck, the Magatama fused with him at the beginning of the game, was inspired by the theory that a person's aura appears as a shark fin sticking out of the back of their neck when viewed from the side.The number of supporting characters was kept low to emphasize their individuality, and their personalities were left ambiguous to reinforce the desire for player immersion. The heroine Yuko Takao was intended to be a different type of character to previous main heroines, being a non-playable character from the beginning of story development. She was the only major non-playable character not to have her own Reason.

The character of Lucifer designed was not a standard villain, but rather as a gentlemanly observer who sets tests for the player. To reflect his omnipotent status as God's opposite, he is portrayed in a number of forms, including a child and an old man. Alongside this, the staff wanted to portray demons not only as enemies but as characters the player could relate to and grow attached to when inviting them to their party. One of the key elements for demon designs recycled from earlier games was bringing them into the game and making them as true as possible to the original design while fitting into the game's art style. The music for Nocturne was composed by, with additional work by Kenichi Tsuchiya and Toshiko Tasaki. Mixing was done by Meguro, Tsuchiya, and Tasaki. The soundtrack included tunes from previous Shin Megami Tensei titles composed by Tsukasa Masuko.

While composing the music, Meguro attempted to express his feelings when he saw the world while remaining true to the styles established by the original Megami Tensei games. Taking inspiration from the game's dungeon-battle transitions, and the cut-scenes' combination of current graphics with classic use of subtitles for storytelling, Meguro created modulating tunes which included elements from 1980s music. Meguro also introduced orchestral elements which were absent from previous Megami Tensei scores, using it to emphasize the gameplay's constant shifts between movement and stillness.

Meguro generally worked solo on the original version, but for the director's cut, he had help composing new tracks.The majority of tracks from the game were released in an album, Shin Megami Tensei III: Nocturne Original Soundtrack, on March 5, 2003. The album, published by under the catalog number SVWC-71734, contained 49 tracks and was 1:55:16. A second album containing the tracks composed for the director's cut, Shin Megami Tensei III: Nocturne Original Soundtrack extra version, was released on October 26, 2005. Again published by SME Visual Works under the catalog number SVWC-7308, it contained 21 tracks and was 39:04. In North America, selected tracks from the game were released on a promotional CD exclusive to the game's Limited Edition. Versions and merchandise.

The game was first hinted by an Atlus spokesperson in November 1999, who stated that Atlus was planning an entry in the Megami Tensei franchise for the platform. The game was eventually announced in September 2002 by the gaming magazine, where it was clarified it was a sequel to previous Shin Megami Tensei games rather than an entry in the spin-off series.

Atlus had high hopes for Nocturne 's success, preparing estimated shipments totaling 500,000 units. The game launched on February 20, 2003. It came in a standard edition, and a limited special edition containing the game's soundtrack and an insence burner modeled after an in-game story component. In addition, a version exclusive to Japanese media retail shop with a unique cover was released. It was later re-released as part of Sony's on August 5, 2004.An expanded of the game, titled Shin Megami Tensei III: Nocturne Maniax, was released approximately one year after the original version on January 29, 2004 as a limited edition.

It was later given a second print run in February that year due to fan demand. The original release in Japan had to have some planned features cut out, so the staff created Maniax, which included both the cut content and additional features.

Among the additional features is an optional dungeon that leads to a sixth ending. The main character from 's series, appears as a guest character. His inclusion in the game was suggested by a member of the Atlus staff who was a fan of the Devil May Cry series. This idea was approved due to how Dante's job as a demon hunter would fit the setting of Nocturne and thus Atlus created a movie where Dante confronted the game's hero. Capcom was satisfied with this video and allowed Atlus to use the character. A second version of Maniax, Shin Megami Tensei III: Nocturne Maniax Chronicle Edition, was released on October 23, 2008 as part of a Japanese limited edition of: in this version, Dante is replaced by Raidou Kuzunoha, the protagonist of the and fourth Devil Summoner title.To commemorate the release of Maniax, a PlayStation 2 memory card decorated with the main protagonist's tattoos was released. A novelization of the game written by Boogey Toumon, Shin Megami Tensei III: Nocturne Chaos, was released on August 20, 2003.

A CD Drama based on the game was released on April 23, 2003. A comic anthology adaptation was released by Enterbrain in June 2004. LocalizationThe localization of Nocturne was handled by, the North American branch of Atlus.

The original Maniax is the version that was translated and released overseas, as the main director Kazuyuki Yamai believed the enhanced difficulty and the other new features would appeal to the western audience. In addition, the team were encouraged to release it by the success of mature titles in the west such as Grand Theft Auto, and the Maniax edition would give western players the most complete version of the game. The localization was announced in February 2004.

This made Nocturne the first main Shin Megami Tensei title to be released outside Japan. It was speculated that this was the reason the numeral III was dropped from the title.

Rather than altering the script, Atlus translated it all faithfully from the original Japanese, preserving the original experience as far as possible. For their work on the game's translation, the localization team were given access to the source files and Japanese strategy guide, which enabled them to avoid mistaking the genders of Kaneko's often highly androgynous designs. According to a later interview, it was said that Atlus had high confidence in the title's overseas release. The later popularity and recognition of the game would result in Atlus attaching the ' Shin Megami Tensei' moniker to later Western releases of Megami Tensei titles to aid in identification and marketing.For its release in North America, it was given an 'M for Mature' rating by the.

In response to this, Atlus' western branch issued a statement saying that they were ensuring that the localized version of the game was true to the Japanese version, including its mature themes and content, as toning anything down 'would have been a disservice to the gaming public'. It was the first Atlus title to receive this rating. To promote the game, Atlus USA created a sweepstakes that ran between May and September 2004: the winner received a laptop decorated with the main protagonist's tattoo design, along with a free copy of the game. Due to backlogs at Sony Disc Manufacturing, Atlus delayed the release of the game by over three weeks to October 12. In compensation, DoubleJump Books offered free priority shipping worldwide for their Nocturne guidebook.

The publishing rights in Europe were picked up by, who published the game through their then-newly formed subsidiary under the title Shin Megami Tensei: Lucifer's Call. It released on July 1, 2005. Nocturne was the first Megami Tensei title to be released in Europe. It re-released for the as a PlayStation 2 Classic in both North America and Europe: it released on May 6, 2014 for North America and May 20, 2015 for Europe. Critical reception to the game has been positive. The average score in is of 82 out of 100.

The Japanese video game magazine gave it a score of 36/40, earning the magazine's Platinum award and becoming the highest-ranking review score that week. Lady in Black: Kagutsuchi. It is the light whose sole purpose is to empower the one who will oversee creation. Creation is the act of bringing a new world into existence, made possible by the annihilation of the old world. Kagutsuchi will allow a life form of its choosing to determine the course of the new world. There must be those in Tokyo who yearn to be chosen by Kagutsuchi, in order to realize their vision. The shape of the world to come depends on who is chosen.and what their Reason is.

In the vast Amala Universe, this Vortex World is not the only place where creation occurs. Kagutsuchi rises, matures, and falls in countless other places. There are millions-no, billions of worlds that you are unaware of, and they all experience the cycle of death and rebirth.

That is the way of Amala, as determined by the Great Will. Yuko: You heard what Hikawa said, right? The world is about to be engulfed by chaos. It's called the Conception. The rebirth of the world, an event which no human has ever witnessed. Everyone outside of this hospital will perish.

I doubt anyone would approve of such a terrible thing. But, even if we let this old world continue to exist, it would eventually lose all of its power. The world must first die, for it to be born again.

And I alone will carry the burden of its sin.No, I don't have any regrets. Woman in Black: It is my honor to tell you that my little master has shown an interest in you. Poor human, he wants to give you a special gift. It is vital that you receive this gift.Please do not move.It will only hurt for an instant.This will make you a demon. Magatama, the essence of demonic power. You have now joined the ranks of demons.

Hijiri: Hey, wanna work together? If we're gonna have any hope of getting out of this mess, then we've got to find Hikawa. I heard there's a group in Ginza that's vying for control of shaping this infant world, and its leader is a human. That leader's gotta be Hikawa. Hikawa: Mantra believes they've destroyed this base, but as you can see, the core is fully functional. Nothing more needs to be done. The targeted amount of Magatsuhi will be reached shortly.

However, they deserve to be punished. We'll use them as an example.of what happens to those who oppose the Assembly of Nihilo. This is a good opportunity. Witness what is about to take place. Using the Magatsuhi stored here, I will call on my new strength. The time has come. Activate the Nightmare System.

Hikawa.Oh, I forgot to mention. Yuko Takao plays a key role in this system. She's been a great help to me. Her abilities as the Maiden have been invaluable. Yuko: I just do Hikawa's bidding. 'I would like you to become the pillar of the new world.' That's what he told me.

In the end, I was nothing but a tool for collecting Magatsuhi. It's true that the Conception did take place, and I assisted in making it happen. The world is about to be reborn, but as it stands now, the new world is going to be a far cry from what I had hoped for. I dreamed of an ideal world where people were grateful to be alive. Hijiri: To create a new world, you must have a strong idea of what kind of world you want to create. This idea is commonly referred to as a Reason.

Now, to acquire a Reason, you must receive divine protection from a god, and this is where the Magatsuhi comes into play. You need a large quantity of Magatsuhi in order to summon a god. That's why Hikawa, a human, was collecting Magatsuhi. Takao: All possibility has dried up in this world. But, there must be a world out there where freedom prevails.

I wasn't strong enough, but. It seems your will is greater.Use this and create the world that you want. To Amala Temple. This will show you the way to Kagutsuchi. Lady in Black: The man I am referring to was known as Hijiri in your previous world. He died, but as fate would have it, he carried on in the Vortex World.

Think back to when you first met him, to when the Conception occurred.Yes, he did lose his life like all the others. As he was heading to the hospital where you already were, the Conception began and his life ended.

Did it not seem odd to you, that he was in the Vortex World unaffected, unchanged? It was all because of the mortal sin which he committed. He was a being toyed with by fate, condemned to carry the burden of atonement forever. Isamu: See that? The Magatsuhi he's gathering will give power to my Reason. To be honest with you, player, I'm not the one who came up with this brilliant idea. Of course, he planned to use the Matatsuhi himself.

And it would have been you or me hanging up there!!. Matador.Only one of us will escape this domain alive. The victor shall claim the loser's candelabrum, and return in triumph. You hold a candelabrum.Then, like me, you must be seeking supreme power. Lucifer: A demon born in exchange for the world. There's no other quite like you.

Kagutsuchi may have cursed you, but I give you my blessing. Light no longer shines upon you. But, you can do without it, can't you? Darkness is the source of your power now. I'm afraid I have to go now. I won't forget you, though. We'll definitely meet again.

You should get going, too. Chaos will reign, as you desired, since no new world was forged. Indeed, it shall be the millennial kingdom of demons. Lucifer: All of you who have lurked in darkness and waited faithfully for this day, hear me. A new demon of darkness has been born.The time has come.

Together, let us march onward! To the final battle. Where our true enemy awaits!

/ Great Will: You have created a new demon in your heart's likeness, fallen angel? Then, doom shall set us apart.

Now and forevermore.Translations.

.: December 5, 2002Mode(s)Shin Megami Tensei: Nine is a developed by and for the, and published by Atlus on December 5, 2002.Forming part of the series, Nine takes place in the period of time between and its, with the survivors of Tokyo's destruction sheltering in underground bunkers. Taking on the role of a debugger, the player navigates the Idea Space virtual world set up by the survivors of Tokyo's destruction, which has come under attack by demonic beings called 'noise'. The gameplay has the player navigating a customized avatar in third-person through the virtual world of Tokyo, battling enemies using a real-time command-based battle system.

The game's title refers to the number of possible moral alignments available to players.Shin Megami Tensei: Nine began development in 2001, following staff discussions about how to make an online Shin Megami Tensei game. It was the first Megami Tensei title for Xbox, and the first to fully utilize 3D graphics. Established Megami Tensei staff worked on the project, such as producer Kouji Okada and demon designer. Newcomers to the project included character designer, and composers Masaki Kurokawa and Takahiro Ogata. While Nine was originally planned as an online game, it was split into single-player and online versions; the latter was cancelled following development difficulties. The single-player release met with mixed reception from critics, and sold below Atlus' estimates; its commercial failure coupled with development costs contributed to a financial loss. Development of the online version continued as a port for, which would eventually become.

A battle in Shin Megami Tensei: Nine: the player (left, wearing green) and their demons face an enemy demon (top-middle).Shin Megami Tensei: Nine is a primarily set in a cyberspace version of 1990s, with players taking control of the silent main protagonist to explore various environments within Tokyo's districts, along with switching between different districts with a dedicated fast-travel menu. The player can adjust the protagonist's name, gender, hair and skin color. Navigation through environments is presented through a third-person perspective, with the player character being followed by one assigned demon.

While navigating safe areas, players can enter shops to buy new equipment and items such as healing potions, and change their character's clothing and hairstyle.Combat is triggered through in environments such as. Combat in Nine plays out as a real-time combat in an enclosed battle arena: while the battle continues automatically without direct interaction from the player, commands can be issued to party members to perform actions when their turn comes. In addition to specific commands, general offensive or defensive stances can be issued.

Battles do not reward as in other games: instead, equipped jewels affect the protagonist's strengths and stats. As with previous Megami Tensei games, players can negotiate with demons and get them to join their party.

Shin Megami Tensei Nocturne Maniax Chronicle Edition Nathan Full

Demons can also be fused together to create more powerful demons. The attitudes of demons towards the player changes depending on the current moon phase. The number of demons the player can summon depends on the player's and the demon's 'kilodevil' values: a player with 100 kilodevil can summon two 50-kilodevil demons.

The player can compress their demons by visiting the Cathedral of Shadows, halving the demons' kilodevil values and allowing the player to summon more demons.At certain points in the game, the player also enters a 'hacking' mode, which players out in a simulation: the protagonist and their companions navigate within closed arenas along pre-set pathways, knocking out nodes blocking the path, and defending against protection bots attempting to stop them. As the player progresses through the game, the character makes dialogue choices that are mapped across a three-by-three alignment matrix: three 'down' (Law, Neutral and Chaos), and three 'across' (Light, Neutral and Dark). The protagonist's current alignment not only influences the story, but also the loyalty and responsiveness of demon party members. Synopsis Nine is set in the year '202X', taking place during the latter half of and in the time leading up to its sequel.

In the wake of the attack on Tokyo, communities of survivors now live in underground cities. In the face of their predicament, the underground inhabitants create 'Idea Space', a virtual world based on Tokyo from the 1990s. The protagonist, named Kei Azuma by default, is exploring the virtual world when 'Noise', digitized demons hostile to humans, appear and begin attacking Idea Space players through their avatars. After fending off an attack, Azuma is employed by the Central Administration Bureau as a Debugger, a player who traverses Idea Space and repels Noise invasions. During their missions through Idea Space, Azuma meets with multiple characters: Baraki/Sumire, a childhood friend who represents 'Chaos', Mubiora/Miranda, a representative from the Central Administration Bureau who represents 'Law'.

While going through their duty as a Debugger, the events of the latter half of Shin Megami Tensei take place, which culminate in all parts of Tokyo being destroyed in a triggered by the God-worshipping Order of Messiah: Azuma survives due to their body being in cold storage, meaning that their mind becomes linked to Idea Space along with their Law and Chaos allies.During a mission into the virtual against the Noise demon Abaddon, the true origins of Idea Space are revealed. Idea Space was created by humans tired of awaiting the arrival of their 'Messiah' in the real world: hoping to bring about salvation through technology, the humans created the Idea Space, and generated Maria as its goddess and administrator to further the creation of Millennial Kingdom by manipulating its users. On their mission into Shibuya 109, Azuma retrieves a Desire Disc, an artifact containing the saved desires of humanity that is the key to both sides' plans. Azuma is faced with choices about which faction to support.

The Law faction, supported by Maria, wishes to bring peace to humanity along with releasing the Idea Space's inhabitants. The Chaos faction, which can be led by Lucifer if he is freed from his prison within a metaphysical plain called the Expanse, intends to destroy the inhabitants of Idea Space and start anew with the chosen Adam and Eve: Azuma and the Chaos companion. To fulfill any of their chosen roles, Azuma must defeat, the controller of Idea Space who is keeping the system going and will not allow either Maria or Lucifer to carry out their plans.In both the Law and Chaos routes, with the defeat of the Yaldabaoth, the entire Idea Space is emptied of avatars besides Azuma. Upon returning to the real world, they are on the surface with either their Law or Chaos companion, with the Messian-built Tokyo Millennium in the background: depending on the alignment, Azuma either goes to reinforce the Law-based regime, or to begin a new Chaos-based humanity outside it. In the 'Neutral' routes, Azuma performs tasks for a mysterious woman minding a store in Idea Space: the woman is the goddess, who was forced to reincarnate as a human for the sin of birthing Yaldabaoth: she has been helping Azuma towards defeating Yaldabaoth to atone for her sin and ascend. Azuma defeats both Yaldabaoth and Maria, allowing Sophia to become her true self and ascend, leaving the fate of those within Idea Space ambiguous.Development Shin Megami Tensei: Nine was primarily developed by, the main developer for the Megami Tensei series. The game received additional development help from NexTech, a company that would later be rebranded as and work on games such as.

The game's were developed with help from Frameworks Entertainment. Nine was produced by long-time Megami Tensei producer Kouji Okada, directed by Kazunori Sakai, and written by Nobutaka Shimizu., a regular designer for the series, returned to design new demons for the title. Many of them, such as the character Maria, proved challenging for him due to his past work mainly involving creating depictions of God and Lucifer as opposed to goddess-like figures. He also found making them move convincingly in the new 3D environment problematic. Kaneko suggested that a new artist be brought on as a collaborator on the project, so was hired to design the game's main characters. This was part of an attempt to distinguish Nine from previous Megami Tensei games.The concept for Nine originated during staff discussions about how Shin Megami Tensei would work as an online title. Development started at some point in 2001, and was still in its early stages of development in October of that year.

During its early stages, the game was known as Shin Megami Tensei Online. Although the team had the option of making NINE an online-exclusive title, Okada wanted a single-player mode to introduce players to the workings and world of the game. A part of the planned online component was teaming up with or fighting different players depending on their alignment. Nine is not the ninth game in Shin Megami Tensei series; the title refers to the number of moral alignments that are available in the Shin Megami Tensei games.

The decision to create a nine-tiered alignment system was because Okada wanted to explore the original game's moral alignments in more detail. This was also the reason why the game was set between Shin Megami Tensei and its sequel.

The setting was directly based on Tokyo's Shinjuku, Shibuya and Ikebukuro districts. The game was the first Megami Tensei title developed for the; the first to switch over to a third-person camera perspective from the first-person perspectives of earlier Megami Tensei titles; the first to feature a customizable player avatar; and the first Megami Tensei game to feature fully 3D graphics, something previously accomplished with, a 1999 standalone game for the. Okada described the development process as 'challenging', with developing the new real-time battle system being a large part of that challenge. Two prevalent issues were adjusting the balance of the battle system, and incorporating the second tactical system for the hacking segments.The game's sound and music were handled by Takahiro Ogata, Masaki Kurokawa and Kenichi Tsuchiya: Ogata acted as sound director. To accurately create the sound of modern-day Tokyo within Nine, Ogata and Kurokawa went to districts such as and to make recordings of ambient sounds at different times of day. While there was a general theme for various city districts, the music subtly changed depending on the player's overall alignment: for instance, to represent the Law and Chaos alignments in the game, piano was used for the former and guitar for the latter.

Battle music also featured randomly-generated soundtrack variations, with Ogata estimating somewhere over three hundred possible variants on battle themes. A major improvement enabled by the Xbox was the use of, which could enable richer use of both music and in-game sound effects. According to Okada, this additional sound capacity would compensate for what could not be managed at a visual level.

Maken X had already given the team a chance to use 3D sound, but Nine was the first title to make major use of 5.1, and implementing it alongside all the other features proved a challenge for the team. Release Nine was originally announced in August 2001 under the title Shin Megami Tensei Online.

Originally rumored to be for the PS2, its announced features included use of voice recognition and online broadband services. These features would later be clarified as being planned for online implementation rather than in development. After a long period of media silence, its official title was announced in February 2002.

Nine was heavily promoted at multiple Japanese gaming events throughout 2002. The game released on December 5, 2002: it was celebrated with an official launch event attended by Okada and Kaneko.

A Deluxe Edition released simultaneously with the standard edition, containing a figurine of Maria and a keycard related to accessing online content. The game was later re-released as part of Microsoft's Platinum Collection budget collection on October 23, 2003.

A, written by Takumi Miyajima and with a cover illustration by Kaneko, was published by on March 25, 2003. A was released by on March 24.After the 2002 (E3), it was stated by Atlus that while the small size of the game's online component did not rule out a Western release, Atlus themselves were unable to finance a dedicated server and other companies such as Microsoft were unlikely to provide such funding. The following year at E3 2003, Atlus responded with 'no comment' when asked whether Nine would see a Western release. In 2006, Atlus stated that there were no plans to bring Nine overseas, with their focus being on newer Megami Tensei titles.The online functions planned for Nine were intended to be incorporated from release, but in August 2002, Atlus announced that they would divide the game in two parts: one stand-alone offline version, and one online version. The reason given for this was that the development team did not have enough time to integrate all online functions they wanted to include in the game, and that Atlus did not want to delay the game's release. Atlus planned to release the online version in 2002, but put development on hold due to the high costs of developing an online game, and postponed the release until 2003. In August 2003, they announced that they no longer had any plans to publish the online version for Xbox, due to problems relating to network-based development and the profitability of online games.

With the cancellation of the Xbox Live version, development continued on a version of Nine for (PCs). This version formed the base for what would become, a for PCs developed by and released in Japan and Western regions across 2007 and 2009.

Reception Despite the heavy promotion it received, upon release the game only reached #18 in the Dengeki charts with initial sales of 14,000 units. Its sales continued to fall and within three weeks the game had dropped out of the Dengeki Top 50. By the end of the year, Nine had sold just over 30,000. According to Atlus, the game's sales by the end of the 2002-2003 fiscal year had reached 45,000 units: this fell below their planned sales number of 67,000 units.

In May, Atlus announced that the development costs and poor sales of Xbox games, including Nine, had resulted in a financial loss for that year.The four reviewers for Famitsu gave it respective scores of 9, 8, 7 and 7. On the positive side, demon fusion and negotiation being cited as 'addictive', and two of the reviewers lauded the shift into 3D graphics.

On the negative side, aspects of the battle system was seen as convoluted or confusing, while other elements such as a confusing interface and the conspicuous lack of online functions brought the experience down. One reviewer also noted that the game was geared towards those who had already played Shin Megami Tensei. RPGFan's John McCarrol was positive in his early preview despite not knowing much about the promised online functions, saying that despite some bland visuals Nine promised to be 'one of the best Xbox games released in Japan and possibly North America'. Kurt Kalata and Christopher J. Snelgrove, writing for gaming website Hardcore Gaming 101, had mixed feelings about the title, finding its visuals dull and gameplay system unimpressive. Due to the ultimate lack of online functionality, they also commented that Nine felt 'weirdly incomplete', saying that it was 'not really worth tracking down' for series fans.

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