Spirit Hunter: Death Mark II (NSP, XCI) ROM + v1.02 Update

Spirit Hunter: Death Mark II (known in Japan as Shinigami: Shibito Magire) is a horror visual novel adventure game developed and published by Experience. It is the third entry in the Spirit Hunter series, following 2017’s Spirit Hunter: Death Mark and 2018’s Spirit Hunter: NG. The game was released for Nintendo Switch and PlayStation 4 on December 1, 2022, in Japan, and was released by Aksys Games for Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 5, and Windows on February 15, 2024, worldwide.

The story is set in a Tokyo suburb and sees the player take the role of Kazuo Yashiki, who is hired to infiltrate a school as a teacher to investigate gruesome, spiritual incidents that occur there every ten years. Like previous Spirit Hunter games, it is an adventure game, but it also incorporates elements from tabletop role-playing games. The player investigates areas in a side-view perspective together with many partner characters; the choice of partner determines which locations the player has access to. The game is directed by Ataka Motoya and produced by Hajime Chikami and was financed through a crowdfunding campaign.

GAMEPLAY

Shinigami: Shibito Magire is an adventure game in which the player investigates areas from a side-view perspective. The investigations are conducted together with one of several partner characters; depending on which is chosen, the player has access to different locations and items.

Each character has a set of statistics, which in the player character’s case can be increased. These are used to affect outcomes in dangerous situations, such as when being attacked by a spirit, in a system called the Suspensive Act.

PLOT

Shibito Magire is set in a suburb of H City in Tokyo and revolves around Konoehara Academy, where gruesome events occur every ten years. The police are unable to explain the incidents and classify them as accidents, but they are rumored to be caused by spirits. Because of this, Konoehara’s principal hires Kazuo Yashiki of the Kujo family to infiltrate the school as a teacher and investigate the incidents.