Shin Megami Tensei 5 trailer shows off the main character's half-demon form and more fabulous hair

Shin Megami Tensei 5's latest trailer is all about the half-demon Nahobino form of our main character, the main perk of which still seems to be fabulous hair. 

Sure, bonding with a demon ends up saving our male lead from getting his soul devoured, but you can't argue with those locks. Becoming a Nahobino also puts him at the intersection of light and dark in the ravaged world of Da'at, developer Atlus explains. Neither demon nor deity, and equally not quite human, our lead "must forge his own path in a battle between light and dark to dictate the fate of the world," which may well imply more decision-driven storytelling than previous SMT games – perhaps not quite on par with the sister Persona series, but closer than before. 

Longtime Shin Megami Tensei fans – or folks who picked up a recent Switch re-release – may recognize that thus far, this is almost a shot-for-shot retelling of the third game in the series, Nocturne. From the world getting gobbled up by demons, our lead becoming a not-demon being, right down to the female lead opposite our main character, Shin Megami Tensei 5 couldn't be more Nocturne if it tried. There's a reason Atlus re-released Nocturne on the Switch – it's a wonderfully weird JRPG that still deserves to be played. If the fifth game in the series, which is coming exclusively to Switch on November 12, can match or somehow surpass Nocturne's chaotic ideas while refining the series' classic combat and demon fusion, it's sure to be a memorable spectacle. 

Here are the biggest upcoming Switch games of 2021 and beyond. 

Austin Wood
Senior writer

Austin has been a game journalist for 12 years, having freelanced for the likes of PC Gamer, Eurogamer, IGN, Sports Illustrated, and more while finishing his journalism degree. He's been with 12DOVE since 2019. They've yet to realize his position is a cover for his career-spanning Destiny column, and he's kept the ruse going with a lot of news and the occasional feature, all while playing as many roguelikes as possible.

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