Shin Megami Tensei: Deep Strange Journey will launch in Japan this fall, and while a North American release has not yet been announced, Atlus will likely address the game’s localization status following next month’s launch of Persona 5.
Originally released for the Nintendo DS, Shin Megami Tensei: Strange Journey is a first-person dungeon crawler with turn-based combat mechanics. Like previous games in the Shin Megami Tensei series, Strange Journey features character recruitment mechanics, allowing players to forge alliances with demons and monsters encountered throughout the quest.
Recalling the first-person dungeon exploration sequences that defined earlier Shin Megami Tensei games, Strange Journey uses the same gameplay engine as Atlus’ Etrian Odyssey games. As players explore the game’s massive labyrinths, an automapping feature tracks progress on the portable’s bottom screen, making careful cartography a part of the core gameplay experience.
Strange Journey is part of the same series as Atlus’ Persona games, and many Persona fans have explored the franchise’s origins in the years following the launch of Persona 3 and Persona 4. In general, the dungeon-crawling entries in the Shin Megami Tensei series are more complex and difficult than the Persona games, and players braving Strange Journey‘s mazes should expect a steep challenge.
Shin Megami Tensei: Deep Strange Journey will feature all content from its DS predecessor while adding voice acting for all major story sequences. Deep Strange Journey also expands its character roster to over 350 recruitable creatures, and added story sequences will give new insight into the game’s narrative.
Shin Megami Tensei: Deep Strange Journey launches this fall for the Nintendo 3DS in Japan. Localizations for North America and Europe have not yet been announced.
