
They may have to abandon things like compassion and concern after stumbling upon a fallen ally’s mech in the field, instead seeing how it might be able to benefit them. Body modification and surgery plays a major part, as people have to decide if they will give up their humanity and normal appearances in the name of getting additional skills that could keep them alive a little longer. The demo highlights the sorts of tough decisions we will have to make and things we give up for them. Our characters are going to have to be strong to survive.

The world Daemon x Machina is set in is a harsh one. Instead of wondering or worrying about how things happened, you have to push aside any attachments and make a split second decision about how you can benefit from this person’s misfortune. You are only allowed to take one part from the fallen mech. These carcasses are usually found in dangerous areas, where enemy Immortals can be firing down on you. Though, in this case, that refers to defeated Arsenals and the armor and weapons you might still be able to use. In the second mission, the Daemon x Machina demo alerts you to the importance of picking any valuable meat off of the bones of the dead. But still, Daemon x Machina is always showing you what you have done to yourself in exchange for additional skills and the effect each of these surgeries has had on your body. Other adaptations may not be as obvious, like the Increased Mobility that improves an Arsenal’s air and ground movements, is only a 1,500c injection. Going with Increased Femto Absorption causes glowing blue veins to appear on your face, due to your nerves being laced with an artificial chemical and mechanics. As you earn more money and keep returning to the hub and Lab, you can spend more money to alter yourself. They are permanently glowing orbs, noticeable enough that even in the hub, you can see the change. In the character customization menu, you can no longer change your eyes’ appearance. The Daemon x Machina demo warns you and says, "This will drastically affect your body." Once it is done, your character’s eyes change.

For 1,000c, you get intraocular implants that let an Outer lock on to enemies like Immortals. For example, one of the first body modifications is Lock-On. These are framed as being possibly optional, but the benefits can provide immediate and much-needed boosts to a pilot. One of the major ways to spend funds earned from missions is on additional surgeries. After this initial test, which is easy to pass, you are introduced to the Lab. They have only underwent one surgery so far to prepare for this new lifestyle a neural link terminal has been installed to connect and work with the mech. Their first mission is to take a test with Orbital to determine if they would make a suitable member of the Outers community and be capable of defeating Immortals. They are just getting into a new, basic mech. Our avatars are new to the mercenary lifestyle. In Daemon x Machina, players start out as ordinary.

But what the demo is good at even pointing out early on is how the game shows the sacrifices made in the name of power.

It is also about becoming strong enough to survive and earning some money along the way by defeating the Immortals AIs that decided to consider humans enemies after the moon fell. Well, part of it is to make the world a better place. In it, players get to create a pilot who will act as a mercenary and fight to protect innocent people. Daemon x Machina is going to be Nintendo’s major mech game for the Switch.
