Now that interest in Atlus RPGs has been heightened so much,Soul Hackers 2seems like a great move, even if it’s a somewhat surprising one. Not only hasPersona 5greatly expanded interest in thePersonaseries, butShin Megami Tensei 5andShin Megami Tensei 3: Nocturne HD Remasterhave brought more fans to Atlus' coreShin Megami Tenseiline of games. As aMegami Tenseioffshoot,Soul Hackers 2will likely share a lot of design elements with the demon-centricShin Megami Tenseiseries, but Atlus has confirmed that there are some notablePersonamechanics in the new game, incluiding social sim elements.
In thePersonagames, spending time with friends and strengthening bonds is a key way of making the protagonist more powerful.Soul Hackers 2will reportedly include something similar; the protagonist Ringo can spend time with her fellow devil summoner to improve her relationships with them. However,the premise ofSoul Hackers 2implies that its social sim elements will look very different fromPersona’s Social Links and Confidants. As a speaking character with a fleshed out personality, Ringo might have far more to say to her friends and allies than aPersonaprotagonist, which opens the door for some mechanical nuance.
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Ringo’s Impact on Soul Hackers 2’s Social Sim Elements
Personaprotagonists are generally silent, which results in them having very limited impact on all kinds of cutscenes. Whether it’s part of the central plot or a Social Link interaction, the protagonist generally sits and listens until there’s something minor that they can contribute that changes the conversation’s direction. When interacting with Confidants and Social Links, these choices do matter, since saying the right thing will expedite the rate at which the protagonist and the NPC bond. Overall, though, these silent protagonists say little no matter who they’re talking to.
Soul Hackers 2, on the other hand, has a named protagonist with a lot of dialogue: Ringo. Because Ringo clearly has a lot of dialogue during theSoul Hackers 2narrative, it stands to reason that she’ll speak up during any social sim elements. Players might find themselves choosing a ton of different dialogue options during each social sim interaction, rather than only picking three or four dialogue choices like inPersona.While this means social sim elements will require significantly more work to navigate, it would open up a lot of interesting mechanical differences thatsetSoul Hackers 2apart fromPersona.
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How Soul Hackers 2 Can Use Social Links
Social elements inSoul Hackers 2could have a lot more choice and nuance thanPersona’s Social Links and Confidantswith the help of Ringo’s dialogue. If players get to choose a dozen or more dialogue options during social scenes, then Ringo could rack up points in different ways. Players might earn extra credit toward a friendship by choosing several of the right responses in a row, while choosing a response that a character dislikes could subtract points. What’s more, additional dialogue options could open the door to branching paths for each ally’s character arc. Depending on what Ringo says over time, she might lead aSoul Hackerscharacter’s life in a certain direction, resulting in unique scenes and mechanical benefits.
It’s possible that Ringo will also be mostly quiet during social sim moments for simplicity’s sake, or that only a bit of her dialogue will be choice-driven, but that’d be a shame. Ringo’s place as an independent character enables her to interact with a social sim system in entirely different ways fromthe variousPersonaprotagonists.Soul Hackers 2borrowing mechanics fromPersonais a good call, since it’ll attractPersonaplayers, but it can’t simply copy those mechanics. They need to get adjusted in meaningful ways that make them feel at home inSoul Hackers 2’s world. The more Ringo has to say to the people around her, the better.
Soul Hackers 2releases July 04, 2025 for PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.
