Parents' Guide to Soul Hackers 2

It's taken two and a half decades after Soul Hackers first launched in Japan and a decade after hitting the global market for the Megami Tensei spin-off to finally get a sequel. Thankfully, Soul Hackers 2 is more of a reboot than a sequel, not bogged down by too many ties to the original. It also borrows heavily from other games in the Megami Tensei franchise. On the one hand, this makes it feel more familiar to fans of those titles. On the other hand, it also holds Soul Hackers 2 back from developing much of its own identity. Recruiting and collecting demons. Fusing them together into other creations. Pitting certain elemental traits against others to gain an advantage. It all feels like just about any other Megami Tensei game that's come before, which, it has to be said, winds up feeling much like a mature-themed Pokémon game.

The gameplay of Soul Hackers 2 is pretty much left to a cycle of exploring dungeons to encounter demons, contracting those demons to either fight for you or be sacrificed for better demons via ritual, triggering a bit of plot advancement, then heading back to another dungeon. Wash, rinse, and repeat. Still, in spite of the overall monotony, it's fun to sway a particularly powerful creature to your side. And even when you fail to, the sometimes snarky letdowns are worth a chuckle. Finally, the biggest draw for Soul Hackers 2 has to be in its character development. You meet most of your team relatively early on and forge bonds with them throughout the game. Each also has special personal revelations that not only unlock new skills, but also give deeper insight into their former lives. This brings a surprising level of humanity to a game loaded with inhuman forces, giving you incentive to keep playing so you can learn more about your crew.