Get that existential crisis counter ready, this one is going to be an existential doozy.
"Shin Megami Tensei: Strange Journey Redux," as mentioned in my non-spoiler review, was developed by Atlus.
This will be a review of the alignments present in "Shin Megami Tensei," within the context of "Strange Journey Redux." To give context for anyone who hasn't played "Shin Megami Tensei" before: in the mainline "Shin Megami Tensei" titles, your ending is decided depending on your alignment.
Chaos has you side with the demons, Law has you side with the angels who serve God, and Neutral has you side with humanity. I'll elaborate on each alignment, but that's the basic gist of it. While siding with humanity sounds like an easy decision to some, since we created bacon, but it's not that simple.
Law
Law consists of fighting for a world with the angels where humanity focuses its life on serving God for the good of all humans. However, this world is created through stripping humanity of its free will by force. It's hypocritical when you think about it, to save humanity by stripping them of what makes them human.
You may find yourself in the Law alignment given the threat for most of "Strange Journey" is demons that want to destroy humanity. It's easy to see them as in the wrong early on. Socializing 101, don't join a group if their members try to kill you, that's called attempted murder.
I found myself siding with Law for most of the game. The turn to Law came after I told fellow crewmate Anthony that being in love with demon girls wasn't normal.
That sounds like a joke, but I'm serious, don't stick your peepee in demons. I was also agreeing with Zelenin a lot. I found she often had the right idea with most situations, albeit self-righteous. While she can be cold, she’s a caring person, especially towards the avatar. She's a genuine friend and a shining light in a way.
Even if I didn't agree with her, it's hard to not feel bad for her given she was imprisoned in prison where her crewmates were tortured by demons, with her being the only survivor. She was only saved because of Mastema, the angel.
It's a huge reason she's uncomfortable with demons, even with humans summoning demons, and why she leans towards angels. Her experience there was... Traumatic.
However, another reason Zelenin is my favourite is because of the writing with her downfall, or as she calls it... Her ascension.
Throughout "Strange Journey," Zelenin loses faith in humanity. This starts as early as in Sector Carina, with Horus only being killable through Mastema's intervention. However, his involvement showed the limits of humans and their technology. A normal gun couldn't affect Horus, but one made with the help of an angel could.
This makes Zelenin start to trust angels more, but trust humans less. This escalates a bit in Sector Fornax and Grus, when the human crew is split on Jimenez being a demon and with being in the Schwarzwelt for so long. Morale is low, selfishness is high.
Zelenin believes everyone should cooperate, given the nature of their mission. However, she doesn't apply human flaw to her expectations. It's perfectly natural for humans stop fight when they're in an alien world for so long. Only the angels fit her expectations, who don't discourse amongst each other.
This comes to a boiling point when another human squad betrays the Red Sprite, with Zelenin pleading to the Red Sprite to deal with them without casualties. However, this human squad has already killed people, and the Red Sprite could be next.
She seeks Mastema for help, who offers the avatar and Zelenin to become angels. Zelenin volunteers, not only to stop the rouge squad, but to give her the power to steer humanity from its path of destruction.
I found myself filing a restraining order to Law when Zelenin transformed into an angel. It was honestly unsettling. The cold, but still kind and caring friend by my side had her emotions shrivel away. Now she was just cold.
In fact, she brainwashes people with her new angel abilities, which is hypocritical given how she criticized the existence of brainwashing equipment on the Red Sprite earlier in the story. However, she doesn't see it as wrong when she does it since it's in God's favour, she sees it as saving people.
The entire thing feels manipulative with how Mastema told Zelenin she could get rid of the sadness inside her, caused by doubt. That's a huge red flag since emotions are part of what makes us human. We need to feel sad to appreciate joy. We need to feel anger to appreciate and recognize composure. Without emotions, we lack humanity.
Now that I think about it... Mastema only saving Zelenin from the torture prison is suspicious too. Was he... Was he planning all this so Zelenin would become an angel and so he could get a higher position of power in the angel hierarchy?! That's it, I'm never going to use Mastema as a demon- Wait, what was my final party in "Apocalypse?"
DAMN IT MASTEMA! Since Zelenin's my favourite, and one I found myself to deeply care about, having to fight her in Neutral was... Brutal. On one hand, it's the right thing to do, she's a shell of her former self. On the other hand, my friend is still in there somewhere.
Her battle theme perfectly captures a sense of melancholy. It hurts but in the fantastic writing sense
The fact Zelenin says she'd rather die with her eyes open, than live blind to God's will as she's dying... It's the cherry on-top of this depressing sundae.
The twisted thing is, for the angels, the way Zelenin becomes IS their ideal. They see human emotions as a hindrance, something that holds back humanity. In essence, they see free will as a barrier for God.
I do see their point, I mean, generalizations of shipping fandoms exist. However, I disagree because emotions are extremely important. Although, as odd as it may sound, I do see Law's point and even agree with it to an extent as they give the only permanent solution to stopping the Schwarzwelt.
Think about it, the Schwarzwelt was created from how humans abused Earth. War leading to destroyed land, pollution, construction of large buildings like malls. lust, geometry, and more.
We pollute the world since it makes our lives easier (ex. water bottles); we go to war out of anger, to protect our pride, & so on; we deforest to build large buildings that sell things that are made with materials from the planet for convenience; I'm not sure about lust apart from maybe red-light districts; and geometry is an extremely unfun subject to learn.
Our harm towards the Earth comes from our emotions, and the above is only simplifying things. There's also the business perspective to consider too. If humans are brainwashed to worship God, they'd let go of their desires that would result in the abuse of the planet. Forests would flourish, nature would become stronger, and more.
Big problem though: if humanity is made into drones, then the Schwarzwelt coming back or not becomes obsolete. What's the point of making sure the Schwarzwelt never comes back if us humans can't even enjoy it? We wouldn't even be human by that point, nothing but husks with human bodies, incapable of independent thought.
It's tough because Law has the best plan for the planet itself, but the sacrifice is also too much on humanity. I'd be willing to give up some freedom of mine, but not all of it.
That is the compromise the New Law ending makes, where all desire of conflict is the only freedom given up with humanity to live in peace. However, this means if something non-human attacks, humanity is doomed. Given only the desire for conflict is removed, the abuse of the planet could continue causing the Schwarzwelt to come back.
I think New Law is my favourite of the new endings. While the solution is no longer permanent, it also brings up genuine problems with the concept of world peace. World peace is the ideal, yet it also leaves us defenseless against other worldly threats.
Looking at it from a character perspective, I think it leads to an extremely satisfying finale for Zelenin. She gets what she really wanted, a world without conflict among humans, she achieves world peace. In Law, any brainwashed humans wouldn't even be human anymore. New Law fixes that, giving Zelenin a wakeup call.
It's also possible I'm just a sucker for the theme that plays during the New Law ending. It's one of my favourite tracks in the game and it's just... Oh my Zelenin, it's gorgeous.
I still prefer the original Law ending more as it made me think a lot more about the dilemma and Law alignment, but as a new ending, I think it works well while still being thought-provoking.
Chaos
Don't like having freedom stripped? Try some reliable, old-fashioned Chaos. In Chaos, you let the Schwarzwelt expand, letting demons and humans fight each other in their most primal forms. A land where the strong thrive and make the rules.
Now... I'm not a tough guy. I can barely lift a baby carrot, so I never once found myself in the Chaos Alignment. Out of the three alignments, this is the one I'm against the most in "Strange Journey."
I mean, a world where humans go up against demons isn't exactly fair for humans. In the world of "Strange Journey," it's the technology that makes humans grow strong in the Schwarzwelt and out. Without a Demonica suit, a human doesn't stand a chance against a demon.
If Law is a mental genocide, which it is, Chaos is physical genocide. Humanity would be wiped out in the world of Chaos. Ironically, Jimenez proves this the most. Despite being the Chaos representative, he's nearly killed multiple times, but is saved by the compassion of others such as Commander Gore, who dies protecting him.
Despite that, he still ends up in Chaos given he often has an "out for himself" attitude. He only took the Schwarzwelt mission for the money and only wanted to escape. Despite that, he has a compassionate side with the avatar and his demon friend, Bugaboo. Which, despite Bugaboo looking like a man in a mask wearing a diaper, is an adorable dynamic.
He's your black horse best bud. He sees himself as an outcast, hence why he connects with Bugaboo so much, given he's also an outcast to demons. It honestly seems like Jimenez will change to someone more compassionate overall.
However, like Zelenin, Jimenez undergoes a transformation. Unfortunately, unlike Zelenin, he makes the decision while Bugaboo is dying, seeing it as the only way to save him. It's important to consider Bugaboo is likely the closest thing to a best friend Jimenez has had.
Begging the avatar to fuse them, the fusion happens regardless of the avatar's choice, and Jimenez becomes a demon.
This was the only choice in the game that left me with genuine regret. Unlike Zelenin's transformation, which I couldn't stop, I chose to fuse Bugaboo with Jimenez. In the process, I created a hypocritical monster who loves violence and who slowly loses his compassion. When I fought Jimenez, it was like putting down a monster I'm to blame for.
It was emotionally tough fighting him, as we only battle in Neutral, not out of malice, but because we have no choice. His theme, like Zelenin's, perfectly captures the tragedy of a man sent to save humanity becoming the very thing he was sent to destroy.
Even when Jimenez dies, he still respects the avatar's strength, admitting why he lost to a human was because it was the avatar of all humans. MY HEART!
Although, that got me asking: why are humans weak? Why are demons so strong? In my opinion, it's because humans undergo what can only be called mandatory brainwashing.
Now, hear me out, I don't mean brainwashing in the same fashion as how cults or Zelenin brainwashes people. What I'm talking about can have a positive connotation. Hm... How do I explain it without giving someone an existential crisis?
Okay, let's take a baby being raised by a loving mother as an example. As a result of this nurturing love and care, the baby grows to depend on their mother. However, this is also shaping the baby's mind, and is a form of brainwashing. Not the bad kind, as it's common for babies to rely on their parents, but it's still forming a belief in their mind.
Societal standards, commercials, the cartoons we watch/watched, how we're raised, our cultures, and even reviews like this brainwash us. All humans start from a blank slate, and that blank slate gets filled with other beliefs and values. Some of those are our own, others are implanted without realizing or we're made to believe it's normal.
This brainwashing isn't bad, it's crucial for us to survive. Without values, we'd have no compassion nor development with technology as a race. Without being raised, we'd die as babies. Without learning compassion, pet rocks would die. However, it can also be bad too, since beliefs like hating pizza exist.
Regardless, the point I'm making is that humans can never truly be free in the same way demons are in "Strange Journey." Demons don't really have baby forms; they are born strong to carve their own path. While they have a mother, they believe in what they want.
Demons have the freedom to choose what to believe in and value. Most demons aren't even in the Chaos alignment, many of them are Neutral or Law.
Demons spend their time fighting and following that strength value, hence why they're stronger than humans, with most humans not experienced in combat. New Chaos tries to compromise by letting humans grow in the Chaos world so they can survive it. Their chances are still small because again, they need the Demonica to stand a chance.
However, unlike the New Law route, this is a decent compromise morally. It's a permanent solution to the Schwarzwelt by embracing it while giving humanity a chance to survive. Jimenez also recognizes his hypocrisy, which lets him regain his human compassion.
However, it might be TOO good of a compromise, since the downside is surprisingly small in comparison to other endings. While humans are only strong with Demonicas, in a Chaos world, that might change. The rules can always change, but there's still room for hope unlike with the New Law ending.
Neutral
If neither Law nor Chaos fancy you because of their extremes, you can go Neutral. In Neutral, you aim to destroy the Schwarzwelt to protect humanity from both demons and angels. It's the only route that isn't extreme.
For example, when you get locked into the Neutral route, Commander Gore says goodbye to you. In Law and Chaos, Gore attacks you, and you kill him. The crew is then either subjected to brainwashing by Zelenin or given a disease that makes them primal. Which is... A bit of an overreaction... Okay, major overreaction.
[Credit: AikyiPlays and BuffMaister]
Despite being the Neutral rep, I won't talk about Gore. He's fine, but he's not present that much since he spends most of the game wandering as a reanimated corpse.
Neutral can seem like the morally correct one. The Neutral world has laws, but not to the point where they make one give up all freedom. This world values strength, but not to the point where it's mandatory to survive. The world of Neutral also has wacky waving inflatable arm flailing tube men, a necessity. Neutral is balanced.
I disagree with Chaos & Law, and I believe in a world that would best prosper with a balance between both order and freedom without going into extremes. As a result, my preferred alignment is Neutral. However, I do see where Law and Chaos are coming from, which raises arguably the biggest criticism with the Neutral alignment.
Even if the Red Sprite destroys the Schwarzwelt, it's unknown if it'll come back or not, nor does Neutral offer a permanent solution to the Schwarzwelt.
There's a reason Law and Chaos are so extreme; their solutions permanently stop or embrace the Schwarzwelt. By taking away free will, humans won't abuse the planet. By embracing the Schwarzwelt, the planet won't be abused in the new world.
Whether it comes back or not if you choose Neutral depends on if humanity learns their lesson... Which they most likely won't realistically. It's one thing to hear about what happened in the Schwarzwelt, it's another to experience it, which is a problem when most of humanity hasn't been inside of the Schwarzwelt.
This is a huge problem with Neutral, when you're left without a God or your strength to rely on, you must rely on humanity. However, as hot dog pizza crusts have shown, humanity can be hard to rely on.
This was a major factor for why Zelenin and Jimenez turned to a God or demons. Zelenin found herself trusting humans less and less, with the Red Sprite considering a violent option to handle the rouge Squad, who had betrayed and killed some of the Red Sprite crew. In that moment, she found she could only rely on law-aligned creatures.
Jimenez's attitude cost him to be seen as an outcast on the Red Sprite. Instead of humanity accepting him, he was the odd one out. The other human squad torturing and nearly killing his friend nearly broke the line for him given his best friend was almost killed. That's not even considering his fusion with Bugaboo messing with his mind.
Humanity is flawed. Human values and beliefs vary. Not every belief correlates with everyone among our race, leading to conflict. It's even possible for one person or even a group of people to make us despise and lose our faith in humanity.
However, at the same time... Humanity is capable of incredible feats as much as it's capable of committing atrocities. Humans can learn from their mistakes, but they need the chance to do so.
That's why I don't regret siding with Neutral on my first playthrough. Even if humanity is killed by the next Schwarzwelt, at least they had the chance to learn their lesson. If they don’t learn, their fate is on them. I know that may seem harsh, but you can't give someone or a group of something too many chances. Otherwise, they may never learn.
[Credit: AikyiPlays]
New Neutral is the opposite, with the Avatar becoming Earth’s guardian. Every time the Schwarzwelt returns, he destroys it. By sacrificing his own ability to live a normal life, he gives humanity as many chances as they need to change their ways.
Also, screw Antarctica I guess since man that place must suck to live in now. While it's a satisfying ending, I prefer the more unsure feeling the normal Neutral ending gives. It makes the other alignments look wacky given what they make humans sacrifice.
New Neutral removes what makes the alignment so interesting by providing a permanent solution, the fact the morally best option for humanity is also the temporary one speaks volumes more than a permanent solution. However, that's not to say it's perfect, as the Earth suffers the most in this path, potentially being abused without end.
Alexandra
Also known as Alex, the lady that time traveled from the future that tries to kill the Avatar many times. I like to call her Alexandra since it's adorable. Now trying to murder me on the other hand... Not so adorable.
Alexandra has an interesting background- Well, backgrounds. Her backstory entirely depends on which alignment you choose.
She's the last human alive with humanity wiped out in Chaos. In Law she's immune to Zelenin's song, hunted down by angels with the other unaffected humans. In Neutral, humans were less prepared for the Schwarzwelt, resulting in the Chaos world hitting harder. In all three worlds, Alex has suffered so much loss.
[Credit: BuffMaister (Law & Chaos) And AikyiPlays]
Admittedly, it's a little clunky. Alexandra hunts down Zelenin, Jimenez, and the Avatar before the alignment lock. However, it's not clear why she hunts down Jimenez if you take the Law path, vice versa for Zelenin in the Chaos route. Her backstories also all make Alex the same person, they only change her struggle.
I understand this is because of the alignment lock occurring late into the story. Unfortunately, it does hold Alexandra back. However, despite these flaws, I found myself really enjoying Alexandra as a character.
She succeeds so well at being this intimidating threat that catches you off guard. The first time you meet her, you nearly die. However, it's also satisfying to slowly gain her respect throughout the game and learn more about her.
When she introduced herself to the Avatar, I was filled with genuine joy as for once, I was seeing Alexandra not as a threat, but as a normal girl. She seems like someone who'd be neat to have tea with.
I also understand her hatred towards the Avatar and her refusal to communicate at first. When the Avatar's name is presented as the reason the world is doomed, it's easy to label him as a poopy head of the highest form and as a one-dimensional villain.
In a way, throughout the Womb of Grief, you're proving your humanity to Alexandra. That you care about human lives, that somewhere inside you, there's a part that wants to genuinely save humanity.
That's not to say Alexandra is always right. For example, the Avatar destroys the Schwarzwelt in the original Neutral ending to save humanity. There's no way he could know about the consequences that'd have on the next generation.
However, it also can't be denied that the Avatar's actions do make things worse for humanity eventually. It's a fact written in permanent marker that can't be erased... Unless you use a dry eraser... Or alcohol... Or an eraser... Or a-
I also love how Alexandra convinces Zelenin and Jimenez to change their ways. She points out their hypocrisies and appeals to the humanity inside of them. With Zelenin, it's wanting to save everyone but doing something that'll endanger some of them. For Jimenez, it's how his ideal world contradicts why he saved Bugaboo.
However, this also leads into my biggest criticism with Alexandra: I think she's a great character in the wrong game. Alexandra is realistically only in "Strange Journey Redux" to make the new endings possible, however I feel they conflict with the original message of "Strange Journey."
The message of "Strange Journey" is that humanity is self-destructing due to war, lust, materialism, pollution, and more. Unless we resort to an extreme or lessen our impact on the planet, humanity will suffer grave consequences.
It's like what "The Happening" was trying to point out. Even down to the same concept of Earth retaliating against humanity.
Now, "The Happening" is an unintentional masterpiece of comedy, but hot take, "Strange Journey" delivers the message better. While the original "Strange Journey" endings aren't satisfying, they illustrate the point.
Law and Chaos are permanent solutions that destroy humanity. That's why Neutral is both the best and hardest path for humanity and the avatar to take. It's difficult to do what's right, but easier to give into prayers and demons. However, it's up to you to decide which path is the best.
The new endings create compromises that work morally but harms the message. The new endings make Law and Chaos less extreme; the leaders of Law and Chaos are now bad guys in the new endings, and Neutral has a permanent solution.
[Credit: BuffMaister (Law & Chaos) And AikyiPlays]
For me, they simplify things too much by drawing a thinner line between good and evil and offer compromises that are a bit too good. Obviously, they have downsides, but they aren't nearly as glaring as the original endings, which makes choosing between the three alignments more interesting when you can only choose an original ending.
However, I do want to be clear that I do like the new endings, especially the New Law ending. They just don't compliment the message like the old endings do.
It's a shame to say it, but I dislike Alexandra's role for hindering the original message. Alexandra would've worked much better in a story that was meant for time travel from the beginning.
Overall (A+)
"Shin Megami Tensei: Strange Journey Redux" is a thought-provoking game that makes you reflect on the pros and cons of humanity. This game changed my viewpoint on humanity a lot, in both positive and negative ways, from world peace to how humanity can stop destroying nature.
With world events like the destruction of nature like the Amazon Rainforest fires, a new war among humanity in 2022, and more... "Strange Journey" has only become more relevant, aging like wine.
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