<s>
It	O
was	O
published	O
by	O
Atlus	O
in	O
Japan	O
and	O
by	O
Sega	O
worldwide	O
for	O
PlayStation	B-Operating_System
4	I-Operating_System
,	O
PlayStation	B-Device
5	I-Device
,	O
Windows	O
,	O
Xbox	B-Device
One	I-Device
,	O
and	O
Xbox	B-Device
Series	I-Device
X/S	I-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
game	O
is	O
the	O
fifth	O
installment	O
in	O
the	O
Devil	O
Summoner	O
series	O
,	O
itself	O
a	O
part	O
of	O
the	O
larger	O
Megami	B-Application
Tensei	I-Application
franchise	O
,	O
and	O
a	O
sequel	O
to	O
Devil	B-Application
Summoner	I-Application
:	I-Application
Soul	I-Application
Hackers	I-Application
(	O
1997	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
game	O
was	O
developed	O
by	O
a	O
team	O
including	O
several	O
staff	O
members	O
from	O
Tokyo	B-Application
Mirage	I-Application
Sessions	I-Application
♯FE	I-Application
including	O
Eiji	O
Ishida	O
and	O
Mitsuru	O
Hirata	O
,	O
who	O
worked	O
as	O
co-producers	O
and	O
co-directors	O
,	O
and	O
scenario	O
writer	O
Makoto	O
Miyauchi	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
received	O
mixed	O
reviews	O
from	O
critics	O
,	O
who	O
praised	O
its	O
presentation	O
,	O
combat	O
system	O
,	O
and	O
story	O
,	O
but	O
criticized	O
the	O
dungeon	O
design	O
,	O
side	O
content	O
,	O
and	O
implementation	O
of	O
downloadable	B-Protocol
content	I-Protocol
.	O
</s>
<s>
Soul	B-Application
Hackers	I-Application
2	I-Application
is	O
a	O
role-playing	O
video	O
game	O
in	O
which	O
players	O
take	O
on	O
the	O
role	O
of	O
artificial	O
being	O
Ringo	O
,	O
who	O
is	O
joined	O
during	O
the	O
game	O
with	O
three	O
human	O
allies	O
with	O
different	O
abilities	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
As	O
with	O
other	O
Megami	B-Application
Tensei	I-Application
titles	O
,	O
demons	O
play	O
a	O
key	O
role	O
in	O
combat	O
,	O
and	O
can	O
be	O
recruited	O
and	O
customised	O
by	O
the	O
player	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Soul	B-Application
Hackers	I-Application
2	I-Application
is	O
set	O
in	O
a	O
near-future	O
city	O
where	O
humans	O
and	O
demons	O
coexist	O
in	O
secret	O
,	O
with	O
some	O
humans	O
able	O
to	O
form	O
pacts	O
with	O
demons	O
to	O
become	O
Devil	O
Summoners	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Soul	B-Application
Hackers	I-Application
2	I-Application
was	O
developed	O
by	O
Atlus	O
,	O
long-time	O
developers	O
of	O
the	O
Devil	O
Summoner	O
series	O
and	O
its	O
parent	O
franchise	O
Megami	B-Application
Tensei	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
co-producers	O
and	O
co-directors	O
Eiji	O
Ishida	O
and	O
Mitsuru	O
Hirata	O
had	O
previously	O
worked	O
entries	O
in	O
the	O
Shin	O
Megami	B-Application
Tensei	I-Application
series	O
and	O
the	O
spin-off	O
title	O
Tokyo	B-Application
Mirage	I-Application
Sessions	I-Application
♯FE	I-Application
(	O
2015	O
)	O
,	O
while	O
scenario	O
writer	O
Makoto	O
Miyauchi	O
worked	O
on	O
the	O
Etrian	B-Application
Odyssey	I-Application
and	O
Megami	B-Application
Tensei	I-Application
series	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Since	O
the	O
release	O
of	O
the	O
original	O
Devil	B-Application
Summoner	I-Application
:	I-Application
Soul	I-Application
Hackers	I-Application
in	O
1997	O
,	O
the	O
Megami	B-Application
Tensei	I-Application
franchise	O
had	O
grown	O
increasingly	O
popular	O
,	O
particularly	O
through	O
its	O
Persona	O
subseries	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
developers	O
wanted	O
to	O
return	O
to	O
the	O
Devil	O
Summoner	O
series	O
,	O
and	O
create	O
a	O
sequel	O
to	O
Soul	B-Application
Hackers	I-Application
that	O
would	O
be	O
easy	O
for	O
new	O
players	O
to	O
engage	O
with	O
while	O
carrying	O
over	O
classic	O
elements	O
from	O
the	O
series	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Concept	O
work	O
for	O
the	O
game	O
began	O
after	O
Hirata	O
and	O
Ishida	O
finished	O
work	O
on	O
Tokyo	B-Application
Mirage	I-Application
Sessions	I-Application
♯FE	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Compared	O
to	O
the	O
original	O
game	O
's	O
2D	O
first-person	O
design	O
,	O
Soul	B-Application
Hackers	I-Application
2	I-Application
used	O
a	O
3D	O
third-person	O
perspective	O
to	O
promote	O
immersion	O
and	O
a	O
more	O
cinematic	O
style	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Contrasting	O
against	O
the	O
dystopian	O
themes	O
of	O
the	O
original	O
Soul	B-Application
Hackers	I-Application
,	O
the	O
team	O
opted	O
for	O
a	O
story	O
showing	O
commonality	O
between	O
fighting	O
groups	O
and	O
how	O
a	O
non-human	O
being	O
would	O
view	O
and	O
interact	O
with	O
them	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Originally	O
Ringo	O
was	O
not	O
the	O
player	O
character	O
,	O
instead	O
being	O
an	O
important	O
secondary	O
character	O
similar	O
to	O
Nemissa	O
from	O
Soul	B-Application
Hackers	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
She	O
was	O
also	O
made	O
a	O
more	O
active	O
participant	O
in	O
events	O
than	O
previous	O
Megami	B-Application
Tensei	I-Application
protagonists	O
,	O
and	O
the	O
playable	O
cast	O
were	O
all	O
given	O
in-depth	O
stories	O
tying	O
into	O
the	O
conflicts	O
between	O
Summoner	O
clans	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Another	O
dropped	O
concept	O
was	O
a	O
parallel	O
setting	O
similar	O
to	O
the	O
Metaverse	O
of	O
Persona	B-Application
5	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
While	O
he	O
asked	O
whether	O
he	O
should	O
emulate	O
the	O
designs	O
of	O
Soul	B-Application
Hackers	I-Application
,	O
Miwa	O
was	O
told	O
to	O
design	O
the	O
characters	O
in	O
his	O
own	O
style	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
world	O
design	O
,	O
which	O
used	O
a	O
brighter	O
aesthetic	O
compared	O
to	O
other	O
Megami	B-Application
Tensei	I-Application
,	O
also	O
drew	O
inspiration	O
from	O
the	O
world	O
design	O
of	O
Nier	B-Application
:	I-Application
Automata	I-Application
,	O
which	O
had	O
several	O
superficial	O
similarities	O
to	O
Soul	B-Application
Hackers	I-Application
2	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
music	O
for	O
Soul	B-Application
Hackers	I-Application
2	I-Application
was	O
handled	O
by	O
music	O
studio	O
Monaca	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Soul	B-Application
Hackers	I-Application
2	I-Application
was	O
announced	O
in	O
February	O
2022	O
for	O
PlayStation	B-Operating_System
4	I-Operating_System
,	O
PlayStation	B-Device
5	I-Device
,	O
Windows	O
(	O
via	O
Steam	B-Application
and	O
Microsoft	B-Application
Store	I-Application
)	O
,	O
Xbox	B-Device
One	I-Device
,	O
and	O
Xbox	B-Device
Series	I-Device
X/S	I-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
ports	O
to	O
Windows	O
and	O
Xbox	B-Device
platforms	O
were	O
handled	O
by	O
Artdink	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
release	O
coincided	O
with	O
the	O
25th	O
anniversary	O
of	O
Soul	B-Application
Hackers	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
Japan	O
,	O
the	O
game	O
's	O
release	O
was	O
also	O
accompanied	O
by	O
a	O
Soul	B-Application
Hackers	I-Application
25th	O
Anniversary	O
Special	O
Edition	O
Box	O
Set	O
for	O
the	O
PlayStation	O
versions	O
of	O
the	O
game	O
,	O
featuring	O
commemorative	O
packaging	O
,	O
an	O
art	O
book	O
featuring	O
concept	O
illustrations	O
,	O
setting	O
art	O
and	O
various	O
staff	O
interviews	O
,	O
an	O
arrangement	O
album	O
featuring	O
modern	O
compositions	O
of	O
songs	O
from	O
the	O
original	O
Soul	B-Application
Hackers	I-Application
,	O
and	O
a	O
Jack	O
Frost	O
mascot	O
figurine	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
game	O
also	O
came	O
with	O
various	O
types	O
of	O
downloadable	B-Protocol
content	I-Protocol
(	O
DLC	B-Protocol
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
As	O
a	O
pre-order	O
exclusive	O
bonus	O
,	O
all	O
editions	O
came	O
with	O
costumes	O
and	O
music	O
based	O
on	O
Persona	B-Application
5	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
different	O
Editions	O
came	O
with	O
a	O
self-contained	O
story	O
campaign	O
dubbed	O
"	O
The	O
Lost	O
Numbers	O
"	O
,	O
an	O
extra	O
difficulty	O
level	O
,	O
booster	O
items	O
,	O
additional	O
demons	O
,	O
costume	O
and	O
music	O
packs	O
based	O
on	O
other	O
Megami	B-Application
Tensei	I-Application
titles	O
included	O
the	O
original	O
Soul	B-Application
Hackers	I-Application
,	O
and	O
two	O
additional	O
costumes	O
for	O
the	O
Digital	O
Premium	O
Edition	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
All	O
DLC	B-Protocol
outside	O
the	O
Digital	O
Premium	O
outfits	O
were	O
available	O
for	O
purchase	O
separately	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Soul	B-Application
Hackers	I-Application
2	I-Application
received	O
"	O
mixed	O
or	O
average	O
reviews	O
"	O
according	O
to	O
review	B-Application
aggregator	I-Application
Metacritic	O
;	O
the	O
Xbox	B-Device
Series	I-Device
X/S	I-Device
version	O
received	O
"	O
generally	O
favorable	O
reviews	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Willa	O
Rowe	O
of	O
Inverse	O
said	O
that	O
the	O
DLC	B-Protocol
was	O
enjoyable	O
but	O
was	O
essentially	O
necessary	O
for	O
a	O
good	O
experience	O
with	O
the	O
base	O
content	O
,	O
bringing	O
more	O
gameplay	O
variety	O
to	O
the	O
otherwise	O
repetitive	O
dungeons	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	B-Operating_System
PlayStation	I-Operating_System
4	I-Operating_System
version	O
,	O
which	O
was	O
the	O
third	O
highest-selling	O
retail	O
game	O
of	O
the	O
week	O
in	O
the	O
country	O
,	O
accounted	O
for	O
about	O
31,600	O
of	O
the	O
Japanese	O
opening	O
sales	O
,	O
while	O
the	O
PlayStation	B-Device
5	I-Device
version	O
was	O
the	O
fifth	O
highest-selling	O
and	O
accounted	O
for	O
the	O
remaining	O
20,200	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
According	O
to	O
the	O
NPD	O
Group	O
,	O
Soul	B-Application
Hackers	I-Application
2	I-Application
was	O
the	O
15th	O
best-selling	O
title	O
of	O
August	O
2022	O
,	O
and	O
the	O
third-highest	O
new	O
release	O
after	O
Madden	B-Device
NFL	I-Device
23	I-Device
and	O
the	O
Saint	O
's	O
Row	O
reboot	O
.	O
</s>
