Devil Summoner

• Shin Megami Tensei: Devil Summoner is the first entry in the series, and was released in Japan for the Sega Saturn in 1995.^[2] The game was later ported to the PlayStation Portable, released in Japan in 2005.^[3] It remains exclusive to Japan.^[4] Set in the coastal city of Hirasaki, the game follows a silent protagonist brought back from death into the body of detective Kyouji Kuzunoha as he investigates supernatural activities.^[5]
• Devil Summoner: Soul Hackers is the second entry in the series, released in Japan for the Sega Saturn in 1997.^[6] An expanded PlayStation port was released in Japan in 1999.^[7] Another port for Nintendo 3DS was released in 2012 in Japan, and in the West in 2013.^[8][9][10] Set in Amami City, a coastal city created and run by the tech company Algon Soft, the game follows a member of the Spookies hacker group investigating unusual events surrounding Algon's virtual city.^[11]
• Devil Summoner: Raidou Kuzunoha vs. the Soulless Army is the third entry in the series, and was released for the PlayStation 2 (PS2) in 2006 in Japan and North America, and 2007 in Europe.^[12][13] The story follows Raidou Kuzunoha XIV's investigation of the Soulless Army, which is threatening Tokyo.^[14] A remaster, Raidou Remastered: The Mystery of the Soulless Army, was released in 2025.
• Devil Summoner 2: Raidou Kuzunoha vs. King Abaddon is the fourth game in the series, and was released for PS2 in 2008 in Japan and 2009 in North America as a limited release.^[15][16] Continuing the story of Raidou Kuzunoha XIV, the storyline follows an investigation into the titular antagonist King Abbadon.^[15]
• Soul Hackers 2 is the fifth game and a sequel to Soul Hackers, released worldwide in 2022 for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S. Set in the middle of the 21st century, the plot follows Ringo, an agent of the digital being Aion as she gathers summoners from rival clans to face a world-ending threat.^[17][18]

The characters and art of the original Devil Summoner were used for the mobile pinball game Shin Megami Tensei Pinball: Judgment, released in Japan in 2006 through EZweb.^[19][20] Soul Hackers saw two mobile follow-ups: Devil Summoner: Soul Hackers – Intruder, a 2007 tactical role-playing game with adventure game elements; and Devil Summoner: Soul Hackers – New Generation, a 2008 turn-based game set in a virtual world.^{[21][22][23][24]}

Devil Summoner was adapted into a live-action television series in 1997, with its popularity prompting a second series in 1998.^[25] Two novels based on the series written by Ryo Suzukaze were published by the Aspect Books imprint of Media Works in 1996.^[26][27] Soul Hackers received two novel spin-offs; Devil Summoner Soul Hackers: Death City Korin by Osamu Makino in April 1998 from Aspect Books, and Devil Summoner Soul Hackers: Nightmare of the Butterfly by Shinya Kasai in May 1999 from Famitsu Bunko.^[28][29] A manga adaptation, written by Fumio Sasahara and illustrated by Kazumi Takasawa, was released in two volumes in March and August 1999 by Kadokawa Shoten.^[30][31]

The Raidou Kuzunoha duology saw multiple media expansions. A spin-off novel called Devil Summoner: Raidou Kuzunoha vs. the Dead Messengers, written by Boogey Toumon and illustrated by Kazuma Kaneko, was released by Kadokawa Shoten in 2006.^[32] A spin-off manga Devil Summoner: Raidou Kuzunoha vs. Kodoku no Marebito, began serialization through the online Famitsu Comic Clear in 2009, being released in six volumes between 2010 and 2012. The manga was written by Kirihito Ayamura based on a story draft by Kaneko, and supervised by Atlus's Kazuyuki Yamai.^[33][34][35] A two-part CD drama, Devil Summoner: Raidou Kuzunoha vs. the One-Eyed God, was released by Frontier Works during 2009.^[36][37]

Rather than the post-apocalyptic setting of the main Megami Tensei series, Devil Summoner takes place in an alternate modern Earth where people known as devil summoners form contracts with demons using devices called COMPs.^[4][17] The protagonists, devil summoners often associated with the Kuzunoha family, investigate misuse of demons.^[4][38] A recurring element is two rival summoner clans, the benevolent Yatagarasu and the malevolent Phantom Society.^[17][39] The Raidou Kuzunoha duology take place in a fictionalized version of Japan's Taishō period. The storylines follow the fourteenth trained devil summoner to take on the title of Raidou Kuzunoha, facing supernatural threats in Tokyo while working at the Narumi Detective Agency.^[15][40]

The first two titles use a traditional turn-based battle system taken from the main Megami Tensei series, with the player character and a team of up to five demons taking part in battles from a first-person perspective while navigating both an overworld map and dungeons.^[5][41] Soul Hackers 2 again uses a turn-based battle system, taking elements of exploiting enemy weaknesses for extra turns from the main Shin Megami Tensei series.^[42] The Raidou Kuzunoha duology shifts to an action-based battle system, navigating pre-rendered town and dungeon environments.^[43][44] The protagonist fights in separate battle arenas with two assigned demons through random encounters, with Kuzuhona capturing demons during battles in the first game, and persuading them to join him through a conversation system in the second. An assigned demon can also be used to solve environmental puzzles.^[43][45]

A recurring element is the player's relationship with their demons. While demons are acquired in different ways across the games, a demon's alignment and actions in battle are all play a role in how they respond to commands. If a demon uses a skill they have low affinity for too many times, they will not respond as well to commands. Recruited demons can also be fused into new demons, carrying over particular traits from their predecessors.^[5][41][43] A resource called Magnatite or its equivalent is needed to keep demons summoned or powers different elements of attacks appears in multiple entries.^[5][41][45] A recurring character throughout the series is Dr Victor, a person who takes charge of demon fusion and takes on different appearances throughout the series.^[46]