Is Digimon Story: Time Stranger a Good Starting Point for Digimon?

You've probably seen the buzz for Digimon Story: Time Stranger, which is out now. It's always tricky hopping on the hype train when you feel late to the party, especially since this is the seventh game in the Digimon Story franchise (and let's not even try to count the number of Digimon games, TV shows, and movies you might have missed too). 

If you're wondering whether Time Stranger is a good opportunity to see what these digital monsters are all about, I'm here to tell you that it's the perfect way to start. I myself have consumed pretty much no Digimon material before this, and I've found myself having a blast. 

There are a few challenges, sure, but for the most part, I'm on board. I'm not lost in some deep lore, and everything is presented in an easy-to-digest way. Furthermore, I'm having a blast.

It's a Standalone Story & A Great Introduction to Digimon 

My only real memories of Digimon are of some action figures of Devimon and WarGreymon I had as a kid. I didn't know that was their names at the time, and I really had no context about them. I knew of Digimon, but mostly in relation to Pokemon ("They're like Pokemon, but digital," said 10-year-old me, probably). 

For all intents and purposes, I knew basically nothing about the Digital World—and Digimon Story: Time Stranger is totally fine with that. It treats you like this is your first Digimon game. Even the term "Digimon" is seemingly new in Time Stranger's universe, where scientists previously called them "phase electron lifeforms." 

The early narrative makes everything about Digimon, like Digivolving and Converting, feel new to both the player and the main character. Even diving into the Digital World and seeing a Digimon society feels like a new development to the protagonist and the rest of ADAMAS, their organization.

To be fair, I might have missed some inside references or things that are obvious to Digimon veterans, but I don't feel like I've missed anything crucial. The story has its mysteries early on, but the mysteries feel within the bounds of what's normal for a narrative, instead of my lack of knowledge of the lore. 

Digimon Story: Time Stranger Is Easy to Learn, Hard to Master

The gameplay in Digimon Story: Time Stranger is your fairly standard turn-based affair, so if you have experience with JRPGs, you'll have a good handle on things. What I was most worried about, however, was learning a whole new attribute system.

Digimon Story: Time Stranger works on two major axes here: the data-virus-vaccine triad (to keep it simple), and then the whole slew of elements to worry about. The first set is fairly straightforward rock-paper-scissors (until it isn't, but you've got time to get used to it). And the latter is essentially Shin Megami Tensei or Persona—keep trying elements until one sticks. 

I've never played an RPG with two systems that stack multipliers on top of each other, but this one does a great job of simplifying things. Before you commit to an attack, it'll tell you your multiplier and what attributes are contributing to it, which is a nice tool that keeps things clear. 

There's also a personality system here that affects how each Digimon grows and what special bonus trait they'll have. It gets pretty complicated pretty quickly, and optimizing your stats requires a lot of homework. However, the game is transparent about how you can impact their personalities and how those will impact their growth. 

Overall, the gameplay is a lot easier to digest because of little quality-of-life additions like these. Clarity is key here, so learning the complex systems is as easy as possible. That only makes it easier to digest the world, lore, and narrative. Furthermore, if you get fully hooked, you have a long on-ramp before you need to start taking the systems seriously to min-max your stats. 

Some Hiccups Along the Way

Of course, it's not a fully smooth on-ramp to get on the Digimon highway. While the game clearly defines its systems well enough, that doesn't change the fact that it's a lot of systems to learn. It's easy to get lost in the numbers, and if you get option paralysis early, it could be too overwhelming. 

Even simple choices like Digivolution can feel a little daunting. Unlike Pokemon, it isn't a linear system. Each Digimon has a handful of evolutions, and two different ones could Digivolve into the same champion-level Digimon. You can De-Digivolve whenever you want, too, but that level of options can cause choice paralysis. 

However, if you're familiar with Shin Megami-sona, there's a similar vibe of having to play a little fast and loose with how your monsters transform. Sometimes you just have to deal with the consequences later as you're learning the ropes. 

I will say, though, the personality system does feel the most daunting, of all the systems in the game. In the early couple hours, it didn't feel so important that it's impacted my fun, but I am starting to see it impact how I want to strategize my Digivolutions.

And this is a small nitpick but relevant all the same: I feel like the naming conventions and the general visual design of the Digimon is something that you'll either love or hate. Personally, I think it's absolutely ridiculous to remember names like GeoGreymon or Agumon (Bond of Bravery). 

Additionally, I find that the monster designs across the spectrum to feel inconsistent and weird, and not in a flattering way. Some Digimon feels like they're from entirely different universes, while others just look plain ridiculous. That all comes down to personal taste for sure, but regardless, how much you enjoy the Digimon's designs will impact how much you enjoy the game overall. 

Regardless, overall, Digimon Story: Time Stranger is an absolutely stellar way to hop onto the Digimon Story subset of games and the Digimon world as whole. It's an easy way to learn about the universe, and it's a neatly wrapped package of RPG goodness. 

And even if you don't quite fall in love with the world and the universe, it's a rock-solid RPG system that's meaty and gratifying. It's simple enough that you can keep things a little casual, but there's enough simmering underneath to sink your teeth into. 

Digimon Story: Time Stranger was played on PlayStation 5 with a copy provided by the developer. All screenshots were taken during the course of gameplay.