Shin Megami Tensei Nine

General Information
Title System & Dates
 * Shin Megami Tensei NINE
 * Xbox - 02.12.05
 * Xbox - 02.12.05 - Deluxe Pack
 * Xbox - 03.10.23 - Xbox Collection

About
An online game that never made it online. The "nine" in the title refers to the nine alignments in the game. Unlike most SMT games, Kazuma Kaneko only did the demon designs; character designs were handled by Yasuomi Umetsu.

Story
Taking place during the brief period that the Hero of Shin Megami Tensei is in another world, Shin Megami Tensei NINE focuses on the survivors of the apocalyptic war of 199x as they attempt to rebuild society. The first project is a digital world meant to recreate Tokyo before it was destroyed by ICBMs: Idea Space.

However, Idea Space experiences glitches known as "Noise" that manifest as demonic entities. Because of the way the Idea Space works, damage inflicted inside will also afflict the user in the real world, so the Noise must be eliminated as a matter of public safety. The Central Administration Bureau has assembled a team of warriors, known as "Debuggers" to fight the Noise.

One day, the protagonist is visiting Idea Space's recreation of Shibuya when a Legion attacks. A mysterious woman appears and saves the protagonist from the Legion, and introduces herself as a Debugger...

Gameplay
Battle System

NINE uses a fully automatic real time system. The player designates tactics for allies to use, and they fight automatically and in real time. The player can also manually give a specific order to be performed one turn before the ally resumes its actions based on its preset tactics. The player can also call on his partner and their team of demons to provide support.

RTS

At certain points in the story, the player will need to try his or her hand at hacking. This is done through an RTS minigame. The icon used to mark the hero is the traditional world map icon from the series.

Jewels

The player will not gain experience. Instead, the protagonist's level is determined by the jewel he or she has equipped. Jewels also have a carrying capacity, determining the number of allies and pieces of equipment the player can wear.

Characters

 * Hero: The nameless protagonist whose name and gender the player selects. The Hero has a younger sister, named Emi, and they live together in slums with their mother Mieko. The Hero spends a lot of time in Idea Space, and, through a twist of fate, becomes a Debugger. A seemingly simple job, the Hero soon finds that they're in a position to shape the future of mankind.


 * Baraki and Sumire: Depending on the Hero's gender, their roles will be swapped. If the player is female, Baraki will be the friend she grew up with and Sumire will be a young girl and Emi's classmate. Whichever one is the Hero's friend will also become a Debugger. They're the "Chaos Heroes" of the game and will be the Hero's partner if the player chooses to align with Chaos.


 * Mubiora and Miranda: Debuggers working for the Central Administration Bureau in Idea Space. They're the "Law Heroes" of the game. Miranda will be the Hero's partner if the player is male, and the Mubiora will be the Hero's partner if the player if female.


 * Feris: Secretary General of the Central Administration Bureau, who controls not Idea Space. She nominates the Hero and his friend as Debuggers.


 * Shijimi: Chief of the Central Administration Bureau in charge of coordinating and deploying the Debuggers. He reports directly to Feris, his main role is supervising the Hero.


 * Shiki: An angel who's lost his power. He seems to be guiding the Hero to something, but his goals are unknown. He's really the fallen angel [Sariel].


 * Naitou: A preacher who seeks to revive the Gaia_Cult


 * Steven: A peculiar man in a wheelchair.


 * Cute Girl: A cute girl who runs the flower shop in Idea Space's Shinjuku. She's hiding her true form.
 * Maria: An artificial goddess who rules over the Idea Space.

Packages
The standard and Xbox collection are the same, but of course the Xbox Collection was released at a lower price point. However it's suspected that at that time the standard and even the deluxe pack were selling used for quite a small figure. The Deluxe Pack included a watch, a figure, and some paper materials, and was sold in a gigantic Xbox-case looking book.