MONARK Receives Early 2022 Western Release Date

 All gameplay imagery and footage were taken from a developmental build. May contain light spoilers.

MONARK, a Japanese role-playing game developed by former Shin Megami Tensei series developers, will release on 22nd February 2022 in Europe and the United States and 4th March 2022 in Australia. This follows a Japanese release on 14th October this year. Shin Megami Tensei series writers and developers working on MONARK include Ryutaro Ito, Kazunari Suzuki, Aya Nishitani, and Tsukasa Masuko. Other notable MONARK staff include Crystar director Fuyuki Hayashi and artist so-bin.

MONARK is a turn-based strategy role-playing game with a focus on psychology and the seven deadly sins. The player uses a seven-axis point graph which changes throughout the game depending on the way the game is played, the choices the player makes, and various psychological tests. This graph is known as Ego and each point represents a sin. Depending on the balance of the player’s Ego, specific fiends and demons can be unlocked and used in battle.

The game also features an exploration mechanic with horror-like elements. Controlling the amnesiac vice president of the True Student Council, the player must traverse Shin Mikado Academy, a high school plagued by strange occurrences and strange mist that drives students to true madness. While in the mist, the player must pay attention to a gauge on the bottom of the screen that records the protagonist’s madness. Failure to keep the protagonist from going mad will result in a game over. To cure the school of these areas, the player must find cell phone reception in the school and make phone calls that connect to the Otherworld, the source of the mist.

MONARK will be available on Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, and PlayStation 5. The PlayStation 4 version will be eligible for a free upgrade to PlayStation 5.