DEMONS’ NIGHT FEVER is an upcoming tactical JRPG produced and written by Sohei Niikawa, former Nippon Ichi Software CEO and creator of the Disgaea series. Published by Arc System Works and developed by Niikawa’s independent studio SuperNiche, the title is scheduled to release on October 22 for PC (Steam), PS5, and Nintendo Switch.
Ahead of launch, Niikawa has shared some interesting insights about the game’s setting and design in an interview with INVEN. Demons’ Night Fever is a dark comedy in which you literally become the Devil’s disciple. The catch is, the Devil, known as Giga Super Death, has lost his powers and regressed into a helpless baby. The story unfolds as you work towards resurrecting the Devil through grid-based strategy battles, with the player being tasked to commit as many atrocities as possible – including blowing up your own allies.
Commenting on this premise, Niikawa tells INVEN that the main concept of the new game is “relishing evil,” which means it essentially flips around all the conventions of classic SRPGS like Disgaea. Instead of raising allies and making sure they survive each battle, you have disposable minions whom you’re encouraged to sacrifice as much as possible in order to win.
To make sure players find the game entertaining rather than suffer from the guilt of “being on the evil side,” Niikawa says his team came up with several measures, the funniest of which is making God’s character insufferable. “We made God, the opposing force, an extremely unpleasant character. God in this game is a total scumbag. We crafted the story so players would feel, I absolutely have to beat this guy,” he says.
Another measure, which is also important to gameplay, is that the minions you detonate in battle are reincarnated. Or rather, they’re forced to reincarnate just to be violently killed again. It’s questionable how much this contributes towards alleviating guilt, but perhaps players can receive some relief in knowing the Peons they kill aren’t going to perma-die. Niikawa also adds that the people you’ll be killing aren’t exactly great people either, as recruitment of minions works by taking in petty criminals and lowlifes.
Interestingly, to capture a good balance and make sure the game remained within the scope of a tasteful dark comedy, Niikawa says he drew inspiration from Akira Toriyama’s Dr. Slump, particularly when it comes to villains appearing in the series.
DEMONS’ NIGHT FEVER is scheduled to release on October 22 for PC (Steam), PS5, and Nintendo Switch.
Related: Sohei Niikawa has “absolutely no interest in having AI write stories instead of him”
