The narrative dives into life and death, the human condition, commercialism, and religious overtones. It touches on similar themes of the Shin Megami Tensei and Persona series from the perspective of gods in a technology-driven future. The demon roster is very familiar but in this story they have more in common with the main characters than their human counterparts. Although it’s tangled with anime tropes, this is a fascinating take on common ideas discussed from a new angle.

Two divine newborns can somehow bring back the dead, demons are seemingly everywhere in the city’s Realms, there’s a rapping gangster, and plenty of mystery to uncover. There’s heaps of story to digest in the first few hours and it doesn’t pick up pace until five hours in. As such, the game starts slowly, which isn’t surprising for fans of the Shin Megami Tensei series. It’s needed—especially for how otherworldly Soul Hackers 2 is.

In saying that, the storytelling matches the beats of Persona 5 without the filler content. It may start just as slow, but this game is a much tighter package. Most players will complete the main story in roughly 35 hours. Additional requests, Demonic Compendium, and unlocks may push playtime close to 60 hours. Atlus has listened to its fans and made sure the story is fun and engaging the whole way through.

Party members have a weapon called a COMP that is upgraded at the aptly named COMP SMITH. Upgrades include attack bonuses, element proficiencies, and Mistiques that grant special effects. With many options, players can build a party however they want. Characters don’t need permanent support or an offensive role in the party, easily swapping demons and equipment to try different strategies. In fact, it’s encouraged to make sure the team is versatile enough against unknown foes.

Unavoidable enemy encounters are made less frustrating with Ringo’s slash. By walking into demons, combat is initiated with stylish animation. Though, if Ringo can sneak up and hit them at the right moment, the ghostly data figure is knocked onto their backside and averted entirely or attacked with an advantage. It’s relieving when recounting low-level areas for requests or if short on health and in need of an escape.

The music is composed by Japanese sound studio MoNACA. The 74-track listing is filled to the brim with upbeat J-pop tunes and fantastic vocals on a handful of the main themes. While the Japanese voices of the game are phenomenal and express tone and character superbly, switching to the English voice acting doesn’t have quite the same consistency. Occasionally delivery of battle lines is flat, characters will talk over one another, and it can sometimes be hard to distinguish between Arrow and Saizo’s voices. The translation may be okay, yet the English sound design and performance are a letdown.

Soul Hackers 2 has lots of dialogue and pop-up boxes explaining the mechanics and story. The information is excellent and can be reviewed in the in-game menu. However, closing a box opens a “yes” or “no” prompt to confirm, which adds an unnecessary step for what should be a single action to dismiss. After eating a meal or using an item buff, the game sometimes doesn’t specify how much a stat raises for the individual character. There are certainly a handful of quality-of-life improvements that need attention.