RAIDOU Remastered: The Mystery of the Soulless Army – Review

A trifle, I've haunted them.

I had some expectations for the Nintendo presentation on 27 March, as not many releases were announced for 2025 from the Kyoto giant. I didn't expect the next main Persona game to be revealed, but I hoped to see either a new remaster, a new Shin Megami Tensei spin-off, or an official announcement about Persona 5 – The Phantom X being ported to the West. However, the announcement for RAIDOU Remastered: The Mystery of the Soulless Army took me completely by surprise, as many fans were expecting a refresh of Digital Devil Saga 1 or 2 instead. I won't rehash the entire Megami Tensei history, but it's important to know that it's one of ATLUS's most important franchises, with no fewer than seven spin-offs, each with a significant number of titles.

If I were to compare this legendary series to another game, it would be Pokémon. Both are based on the same mechanic of “capturing” assistants and using them in battles. The essential differences between the two lie in complexity, as Megami Tensei has more complex systems and tackles mature, often dark themes, such as the influence of absolute power. As you've come to expect, we'll start with the story!

The Wizard Detective

The narrative thread is relatively simple: a young shaman of the Kuzunoha clan is sent by the great Yataragasu cabal to Tokyo to defend the capital from supernatural dangers! Of course, he is delegated to the capital undercover and is offered a detective position at the Narumi Agency. Under the pretext of his job description, the protagonist solves various cases and confronts mysterious creatures or agents serving foreign interests. The story follows the same path as most games in the Shin Megami Tensei series, and what begins as a mundane investigation quickly turns into a conspiracy that threatens reality itself, only to end in a confrontation with a god.

The game is divided into 12 major “cases”, each with an episodic structure. It all starts with a phone call from a potential client, who asks Raidou and his superior, Shouhei Narumi, to come to a specific location to solve a problem they have. Once there, they discover that the person they spoke to is a teenager who asks them to kill her to escape a family curse. Before they can get explanations, they are interrupted by masked soldiers, dressed in red, who kidnap her. From here, everything becomes complicated and turns into a large-scale conspiracy, at the centre of which is none other than Grigori Efimovich Rasputin (Russia’s greatest love machine), the most famous Russian mystic.

As a remaster, this creation largely respects the narrative thread of the original game, with minor changes to reflect modern sensibilities. The big difference from the original 2006 release is the title, which has been changed from Devil Summoner: Raidou Kuzunoha vs. the Soulless Army to Raidou Remastered: The Mystery of the Soulless Army. Otherwise, the story and characters have remained the same, and the original developers worked hard to create a believable world. Taishō-era Tokyo is carefully recreated, perfectly capturing the conflict between Japanese tradition and modernity from the West.

The Mystic Policeman

Moving on to gameplay, Raidou Remastered represents a major shift for the franchise, moving from turn-based combat to real-time action, like Final Fantasy VII: Remake. The protagonist has a sword, a revolver, a few “spells” and the demons he can control at his disposal. The game has two main gameplay sections: exploration and battles.

In the first phase, we will investigate various locations, talking to locals, clients, suspects, fantastic creatures and soldiers, to solve the different cases assigned to us. This section also has some supernatural elements, which go beyond these very informal “hearings” that do not respect the right to defence of the person being questioned. Spirits can help us by calming nervous NPCs or can interact with the environment to gather evidence.

In battles, demons become active teammates. We can set two creatures as helpers, and survival requires tactical thinking, necessitating careful selection of these, depending on the enemies' weaknesses. If the enemy is vulnerable to fire and uses ice attacks, then it is imperative to have a demon resistant to cold and capable of spitting fire alongside us! Of course, these fantastic creatures are not the only ones doing the work, like Ash's Pokémon. Unlike the protagonist of the famous GameFreak franchise, Raidou gets directly involved in combat with his limited arsenal. He has a simple, 3-attack combo at his disposal, which can be easily changed by alternating between light and heavy attacks. If an enemy is destabilised by the protagonist, he can use an execution to defeat the enemy. All actions charge a special attack, which eliminates all enemies in a single move.

Besides these two broad sections I described above, there's another essential mechanic from the Shin Megami Tensei franchise. This is “fusion”, where the protagonist combines 2 demons to create a relatively better one. The process itself will result in the death of the 2 spirits sacrificed on the altar of evolution, and the final result depends on a combination of factors, such as the level of the spirits we are about to fuse, their class, and their loyalty to the protagonist. I mentioned in previous paragraphs that demons are important for conducting investigations. There were many situations where I didn't have the right spirit with me because I had just fused it with another. The developers foresaw this problem, so in the immediate vicinity of locations where we are to gather evidence, we can find the spirits we need. However, these will not help the protagonist on their own initiative and must be caught like Pokémon.

The capture system is quite simple. If the detective is at the same level as the creature he wants to catch, or a superior one, we can take part in a mini-game. This consists of pressing a button until a green bar fills up. If it passes a certain point, we will also get useful items, such as money or materials for weapon upgrades.

The Shaman Constable

Graphically, it looks excellent for a remaster. The models have been subtly redone, the lighting adapted for modern screens, and interwar Tokyo looks authentic. The levels offer a window into a long-gone era of Japanese history, when the balance of power was being rewritten by various groups involved in the country's politics. Noble families like the Daidōji slowly lose their influence and financial power, while ambitious people without noble lineage manage to obtain key positions – through force or diplomacy. The fixed camera angles, themselves a relic of 2006's technological limitations, are used with cinematic effect, guiding players' eyes and building a believable atmosphere.

The biggest artistic difference from the original is the inclusion of voice acting. Although Devil Summoner: Raidou Kuzunoha vs. the Soulless Army had an excellent script, the lack of voice acting was a major drawback for the overall experience. Now, in 2025, we have the opportunity to witness a complete remaster, which includes English and Japanese voice acting. The performances are remarkable, and the actors have done an excellent job, managing to bring the characters to life.

The only “mute” character is the protagonist. He “responds” through the dialogue options we choose, but he is not voiced. This device of a silent protagonist has its merits and works wonderfully thanks to the excellent supporting dialogue and incredible direction.

Comrade Shaman

Despite frustrations related to the relatively simple combat and exploration system, Raidou Remastered: The Mystery of the Soulless Army is an excellent game that fully deserved to be ported to modern systems. Shin Megami Tensei fans will feel right at home, and newcomers have an accessible entry point. I hope that, in the near future, we will see other spin-offs restored with the same care by ATLUS, or at least an announcement regarding Persona 6.

Thanks to CD Media S.E. for the review code and for the opportunity to play RAIDOU Remastered: The Mystery of the Soulless Army before release, so we could publish this review in time for our readers.

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Played on: Nintendo Switch
Release date: 19 June 2025
Developer:  Atlus
Publisher: Sega, CD Media S.E. (Romania)