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[FONT=Verdana, Geneva, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif] When it comes to the end, "of that day and hour no one knows," says the Book of Matthew. But what if you did know? What if you had a little handheld computer telling you exactly what day you, the person next to you, everyone you met, was going to die -- and it was going to happen soon? You'd want to do everything you could in the time you have left to prevent that from happening, right?
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[FONT=Verdana, Geneva, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif] That very situation is the premise for the way Shin Megami Tensei®: Devil Survivor plays out. At the outset, you discover that your handheld COMP systems allow you to summon demons -- but some of them have a secondary function. When linked together in small groups, the holder of the "leader's" COMP can use the system's death clock feature and see how many days everyone nearby has left to live. When the death clock reaches 0, it's that unlucky person's last day on Earth.
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[FONT=Verdana, Geneva, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif] What follows from that is a time management system not entirely unlike that of Persona 3 or 4, but with central Tokyo locked down and demons rapidly proliferating, there are more pressing things on your group's mind than hanging out with the sports club. Each day is divided into 30-minute increments, during which you have your choice of where to go and what to do. But you can't do everything, and some of your choices will have severe consequences down the line.
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[FONT=Verdana, Geneva, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif] Different days will have different overall goals, which it's up to you to decide how to approach. Sometimes your own death clock will read 0, in which case you'll be focused on how to survive to see another day. Sometimes you'll have a few days left but someone close to you is slated to die, and it's up to you to prevent that from happening. And eventually you'll come to realize that no one you encounter has very long at all on their death clock, at which point the most important goal of all becomes clear...
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[FONT=Verdana, Geneva, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif] Like all the best SMT games, a lot is riding on your decisions. Even if you can survive the lockdown, how much time can you spend helping those around you? If the extreme stress everyone is facing means you have to choose a side between two of your friends, who will you stand with? And when it falls to you to make the ultimate choice, what will you do? The only way to find out is to test your mettle against demons, time, and death itself when Shin Megami Tensei: Devil Survivor is released June 23rd.
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