Devil Summoner 2: Raidou Kuzunoha vs. King Abaddon
Fourth Devil Summoner title, direct sequel to Raidou Kuzunoha vs. the Soulless Army.
Devil Summoner 2: Raidou Kuzunoha vs. King Abaddon is an action role-playing game from 2008, developed and published by Atlus for the PlayStation 2. It marks the fourth installment in the Devil Summoner series, which belongs to the larger Megami Tensei franchise, and is a direct follow-up to *Devil Summoner: Raidou Kuzunoha vs. the Soulless Army*. The game was first released in Japan in October 2008, with a North American launch following in May 2009.
The gameplay builds on the foundation of the earlier Raidou Kuzunoha title, with several expansions and refinements. Players control Raidou as he explores Tsukudo-Cho and nearby towns, investigating cases by talking to civilians and hunting for clues or items. The Konnou-Ya shop and the Gouma-Den fusion facility both return. When entering the Dark Realm or other hostile areas, Raidou encounters random battles with demonic enemies. In combat, he can use a sword for stronger, combo-based damage or a gun for weaker attacks that stun foes. He can also block with his sword to reduce damage or dodge roll to avoid hits entirely. The core of the battle system revolves around demons, many of which come from earlier Shin Megami Tensei games. Unlike the previous game’s Pokémon-style capture mechanic, Raidou now negotiates with enemy demons, persuading or bribing them to join his side. He can summon up to two demons at once to fight alongside him, using offensive, support, or healing spells to speed up battles. Both Raidou and his demons gain levels through victories, and enemies may drop Yen or items. A key strategic element is managing MAG (Magnetite), which fuels demon spells; more powerful spells consume more MAG. Killing enemies yields little MAG, but exploiting elemental weaknesses and then physically attacking stunned foes provides a much larger return. This creates a cycle where Raidou spends MAG to gain more MAG, aiming to absorb more than he uses. Outside combat, demons assist investigations with skills like mind-reading or transforming Raidou into key individuals to trick shady characters into revealing information. To acquire stronger or more varied demons, Raidou can use Dr. Victor’s Gouma-Den to fuse monsters together, provided he has the capacity to control them. Other upgrades include synthesizing better swords and sacrificing demons to boost the strength of standard ones.
The player character is Raidou K
- Developer
- Atlus
- Publisher
- Atlus
- Platform
- PlayStation 2
- Release Date (Japan)
- October 2008
- Release Date (North America)
- May 2009
- Genre
- Action role-playing game
- Series
- Devil Summoner (Megami Tensei)
Lore & Background
The game is set after its predecessor, with Raidou Kuzunoha the 14th again summoned by the Yatagarasu to protect the Capital of Japan. The Taishō period has been fictionally extended into its 20th year, placing events in the early 1930s but with a 1920s-influenced setting. Raidou and his mentor, the talking cat Gouto, work undercover at the Narumi Detective Agency while battling demonic foes. The story begins when a young woman asks for help locating a man named Dahn.
Gameplay is similar to the previous Raidou Kuzunoha game with expansions and refinements. The Pokémon-styled capturing mechanism is replaced by a negotiation system where Raidou can persuade or bribe enemy demons to join his side. Raidou can summon two demons to fight alongside him, and must strategically balance MAG (Magnetite) across fights. Outside battle, demons assist investigations via skills such as mind-reading and transformation.
Development was led by the same staff as the previous game: producer and character designer Kazuma Kaneko, director Kazuyuki Yamai, and composer Shoji Meguro. The team used the systems of the predecessor as a base but pushed towards an altered gameplay pace, expanding content and increasing Raidou's movement speed. The game was first announced in August 2008 for release on October 23 in Japan, and later in North America on May 12, 2009. A limited special edition included a copy of Shin Megami Tensei: Nocturne Maniax with Raidou Kuzunoha replacing Dante.
Reader's Guide
Devil Summoner 2: Raidou Kuzunoha vs. King Abaddon received generally positive reception according to review aggregator Metacritic. The game is notable for refining the gameplay of its predecessor, replacing the previous capture mechanic with a demon negotiation system that harkens back to earlier Megami Tensei titles. Its setting—a fictional extension of the Taishō period—continues the series' departure from the post-apocalyptic themes common in other Megami Tensei games, instead embracing a detective story aesthetic.
The game's development saw the return of key staff including Kazuma Kaneko, Kazuyuki Yamai, and Shoji Meguro, with Meguro adjusting his jazzy brass-based musical style to sound grander. The team increased the number of demons displayed on-screen and improved allied demon AI. The game was released in Japan in October 2008 and in North America in May 2009, but was not released in Europe. It received limited reprints in 2012 to commemorate the 3DS port of Devil Summoner: Soul Hackers, and was later released on the North American PlayStation Store on June 24, 2014. Its legacy lies in being a direct sequel that evolved the Raidou Kuzunoha subseries while remaining accessible to newcomers.
Did You Know?
- The game replaces the Pokémon-styled capturing mechanism of its predecessor with a negotiation system where Raidou can persuade or bribe enemy demons.
- A limited special edition included a copy of Shin Megami Tensei: Nocturne Maniax with Raidou Kuzunoha replacing guest character Dante from Devil May Cry.
- The game was not released in Europe; Tecmo Koei, which handled European publishing for the previous game, stated there were no plans for a European release.
- First print editions in North America came with a Jack Frost plush toy styled after Raidou Kuzunoha.
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