Devil Summoner is back with the announcement of Raidou Remastered. Atlus, the gaming developers behind the popular Shin Megami Tensei series, the Persona Franchise, and 2024 Game of the Year nominee Metaphor: Refantasio, made a surprising reveal on the Thursday, March 27th Nintendo Direct presentation. Devil Summoner: Raidou Kuzunoha vs. The Soulless Army is getting a new life as RAIDOU Remastered: The Mystery of the Soulless Army. The 2006 game was fairly unknown outside of the Japanese market, but that will be changing soon.
It seems Atlus is looking to capitalize on its newfound popularity from the Persona series and other newly released JRPG games. Gaining more critical acclaim with Metaphor: Refantazio helped to further the studio’s validity. With the games finally taking off in the North American market, they hope to ride the wave with some of their other franchises, including Devil Summoner, a branch of the Megami Tensei series.
What Is Devil Summoner: Raidou Kuzunoha vs. The Soulless Army?
The game was the first in the series to be set in past years, going back to the Taisho period in Japan. The game also makes sure to use accurate, real-life historical events and context to fully honor Japan’s history. It also takes a page from the Shin Megami Tensei series, utilizing references to Japanese mythology. It uses action-based combat for the first time in the series. There is also a monster-catching mechanic, similar to Pokemon. Players can summon the monsters they catch to help them in battle.
The game received generally positive reviews and ultimately did well enough to earn a direct sequel two years later. The most common critique was the lack of content in the game. The plot utilizes detective-based gameplay and is considered solid, although not deep. The game did not gain a ton of traction outside of the Japanese markets due to a lack of familiarity for many JRPG franchises at the time. Still, the game seems to be considered positive enough to earn itself a remaster.
What Will Be New In Raidou Remastered?
Based on what we have seen from Atlus so far, both in the trailer and on their website, it seems the main change in Raidou Remastered: The Mystery of the Soulless Army will be modernization. For one, the visuals will be updated to 3D to be crisper and cleaner for modern consoles. The game will also receive updated voiceovers and other quality-of-life improvements, hopefully making the game more straightforward to play. The name change also seems aimed at attracting a more diverse pool of gamers.
Perhaps the biggest change announced will be the combat overhaul in Raidou Remastered. Although Atlus remains committed to action-based combat, they tease enhancements to the overall battle system to make it smoother and more compelling. Otherwise, Atlus claims that Raidou Remastered is faithful to the original in gameplay and storyline and will be enjoyed by both old-time fans and new gamers alike.
The trailer released during the most recent Nintendo Direct indicates that all the information Atlus provided will be correct. While we do not get a full view of everything in combat, it seems the mechanics are similar but have been freshened up. Players get to see combat in action, the monster-catching mechanic, the detective-based storyline, and the updated visuals and sound. It is enough of a tease to get people excited, and with the growth of the JRPG genre as a whole, hopefully, more players will be drawn to another Atlus hidden gem.
RAIDOU Remastered: The Mystery of the Soulless Army will be released on June 18th, 2025, for PS5, PS4, Xbox Series, Nintendo Switch, and PC.
