The Megami Tensei series has some of the best monster designs in all of video games.
In Western countries, the Megami Tensei JRPG series is largely unknown. This is primarily due to the fact that the original Megami Tensei games were exclusively for Nintendo consoles and ran afoul of Nintendo of America's '90s-era "no religion" policy. Thus, while its contemporary JRPGS, including the early Dragon Quest and Final Fantasy titles, became popular with early Nintendo gamers, the Megami Tensei franchise never received the same exposure (although on of its multiple spin-off series, Persona, became incredibly popular in its own right).
Then, in 2003, Shin Megami Tensei 3: Noctourne debuted on PlayStation 2, bringing the franchise to English-speaking audiences at long last. Essentially a very adult version of Pokemon (although the Megami Tensei franchise predated Pokemon by nearly a decade), Shin Megami Tensei 3 revolved around an unnamed protagonist traversing through a post-apocalyptic, demon-infested Tokyo. During battle, the protagonist had the option to fight demons; but, if he so chose, he could also engage with them in conversation and potentially convince them to join him. It was a strange, fantastic game.
Now, 13 years later, Shin Megami Tensei 3 is being remastered for Nintendo Switch, and Shin Megami Tensei 5 is set to be a Switch exclusive. In celebration, we're taking a look at the best monster designs in shin Megami Tensei 3.
Mara
Atlus
Mara is a gigantic, green, veiny pen!s monster that rides around in a spiked chariot. It is single-handedly the most grotesque, insane, and downright incredible monster design in video game history. That is all.
▲Shadow
Atlus
According to the Shin Megami Tensei 3 bestiary: ""It can transform into any person it sees. It is said that whomsoever meets it will die within a few days, and much folklore stems from this creature. They may also become physical incarnations of psychological ailments."
The idea of a twisting mask creature (almost certainly influenced by the Jungian concept of "Persona") that exists as a physical representation of mental illness is so clever and simultaneously horrifying, that the Shadow might be one of the best video game demons ever designed.
▲Slime
Atlus
Oftentimes, the best indicator of an RPG's aesthetic is the lowly Slime monster. In Dragon Quest, Slimes look like a happy, adorable anime gumdrop, perfect for the series' cartoonish art direction. Final Fantasy Slimes are ugly, gooey monsters, indicative of the series' more mature fantasy vibe. But in Shin Megami Tensei 3, the Slimes are absolutely f*cking demonic, with jutting bones and twisted jaws. That's how you know that the Megami Tensei series is not messing around.
▲Pisaca
Atlus
It's rare to see a monster design so viscerally grotesque that you take one look at it and think, yes, that thing most certainly eats human meat. Thus, The Pisaca design is perfect, because eating human meat is pretty much the only thing it does.
▲Beelzebub
Atlus
Beelzebub is the demonic lord of flies and, according to old Christian legends, is also equivalent to Satan. Beelzebub has been represented in plenty of fantastical media, but I especially love his Shin Megami Tensei design where he's decked out with a skull necklace.
Think of the implications. He had to have made that himself, which means that a giant, evil insect deity spent his free time stringing together human skulls because he thought it would make for cool jewelry.
▲Pazuzu
Atlas
Pazuzu is supposed to be an evil demon who protects humans against other evil demons (but also brings famine), and its design perfectly conveys that weird concept of demonic protection. Pazuzu's presence is both comforting and imposing, somewhere between a stone angel and a ferocious beast.
▲Nozuchi
Atlas
What the f*ck is this thing?
▲Vishnu
Atlas
A number of monsters in the Megami Tensei series are manifestations of gods and demons from across various real world religions. This one is the Hindu god Vishnu, known in Hindu mythology for being particularly kind towards humans. Unlike many of the other demons in the franchise, Vishnu looks decisively human and has an incredibly warm presence. He's just so pretty.
▲Albion
Atlas
Albion is a primeval giant based on 17th century poet William Blake's mythology. Shin Megami Tensei is not afraid to get literary up in here.
▲Seiten Taisei
Atlus
Shin Megami Tensei's take on the Chinese epic Journey to the West, Seiten Taisei is the equivalent of the monkey king, Son Goku. As a massive DBZ fan, I'd be remiss not to include him.
Dionysus
Atlus
The vibrant, swirling design for Dionysus, the Greek god of wine, is amongst the more beautiful imagery in Shin Megami Tensei. I also like how the swirling color palette could potentially reflect the effect of drinking copious amounts of wine.
▲Metatron
Atlus
In Judeo-Christian mythology, Metatron is the voice of God. Here, Metatron is also coated in metal. Frankly, a lot more people would go to church or synagogue if this kind of thing were a bigger part of services.
▲Nekomanta
Atlus
This one is just a sexy anime cat girl. I don't know why. Let's move on.
▲Inugami
Atlas
A very long dog.
▲Fuu-Ki
Atlas
A creature with the power to harness wind, Fuu-Ki's design heavily features spiral designs, carved along its body and emblazoned on its clothes. But the coolest part of Fuu-Ki's aesthetic is the fact that its face is a spiraling hole.
▲Jack Frost
Atlus
One of the rare actually cute demons in Megami Tensei, Jack Frost is a plump little snowman-lookin' dude in a goofy hat. He's the series' de facto mascot and easily one of the best monsters around.
▲Flauros
Atlas
This dude is like a heavy metal suit of armor, but also a jaguar. Flauros was almost certainly designed with the influence of heavy acid, which probably explains why he's so trippy to look at. It's almost funny until it's suddenly terrifying.
▲Queen Mab
Atlus
Queen Mab has a real '80s hair metal look about her, and we're 100% here for it.
▲Dante
Atlus/Capcom
Dante is the half-demon Devil Hunter who stars in Capcom's Devil May Cry franchise. His cameo as a recruitable demon in Shin Megami Tensei 3 continues to rank amongst the best video game crossovers of all time. Unfortunately, Dante is not likely to return in the Switch version due to licensing issues, but you can always just play the original on PS2.
▲Raidou Kuzunoha
Atlas
Likely replacing Dante in later versions of Shin Megami Tensei 3 (and most likely in the Switch port as well), Raidou Kuzunoha is the protagonist of another Megami Tensei spin-off series titled Devil Summoner: Raidou Kuzunoha. He may not be the iconic red-coated Devil Hunter, but he does have a pretty sharp hat.
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