Japanese role-playing game joins Download Festival
Set in a post-apocalyptic Tokyo, players in Shin Megami Tensei battle demons in turn-based combat
This summer’s Download Festival has added a new act to its line-up.
It’s not another band though, but the Japanese role-playing video game Shin Megami Tensei 5: Vengeance.
An “immersive experience” will let festival-goers play the game on-site in Lincolnshire, battling demons in a post-apocalyptic world.
Download has called it a “first of its kind experience” and is the latest in a growing crossover between the worlds of music and gaming.
The festival, which will take place 14-16 June, is usually known for its line-up of rock and indie bands, with acts this year including Fall Out Boy, Queens of The Stone Age and Sum 41.
They’ll be joined by the latest in the Shin Megami Tensei series, where players are being promised a way to play the game “like never before”.
This title, which combines some previous Shin Megami Tensei 5 games with new features and a new story path, launches on the same day as the gates to the festival open.
Some fans say the game’s soundtrack sounds like it could be right at home on one of Download’s rock-focused stages
Set in an alternative apocalyptic version of Tokyo, players battle demons in turn-based over-the-top combat.
The original version of the game, made by Sonic the Hedgehog developers SEGA and ATLUS, received generally positive reviews, praising its combat and high difficulty.
While Download is promising a new kind of experience at the festival, it’s far from the first time the worlds of gaming and music have come together.
Concerts where full orchestras play the soundtracks from games have become popular in the last decade.
Most recently, a performance of the music from multi-BAFTA award winning game Baldur’s Gate 3 filled London’s Royal Festival Hall.
Dan Lazarides, vice-president for marketing at SEGA West EMEA told BBC Newsbeat he thought the partnership would be a good way to get his game in front of new audiences who might not have considered playing it before.
“The Shin Megami Tensei series is well known for its amazing soundtracks, so what better place to be some of the first people to play the game than at this legendary rock festival.”
Not everyone is convinced though.
Following Download’s announcement on X, one user simply replied: “I think you’re mistaken; this is a music festival.”
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