Last summer, Atlus tried to tease the world by launching a teaser site with an ominous picture of a black void covering up the bottom of the Earth. Of course, we had to be spoilsports and ruin their fun by uncovering the truth: the image was related to a DS game called Shin Megami Tensei: Strange Journey. We didn’t know much about it then, but the game was released in Japan last month to critical acclaim. Today, Atlus announced that they would be bringing Strange Journey to North America in the spring of 2010, which is sure to make RPG fans in the western hemisphere very happy.

Strange Journey is a first-person RPG, which is a bit of a departure for the series and an odd choice in and of itself. The game’s plot will center around a mysterious black void on the South Pole, and the elite team of explorers sent to figure out what it is and how to get rid of it. Since it’s a Shin Megami Tensei game, it’s almost guaranteed to be all kinds of weird, but will probably be pretty awesome too. From the press release, it appears that the battle system will have aspects of the original Persona, like being able to bribe or coerce monsters.

The full press release can be found below. The subject matter and location are a new approach to the series, which is usually set in modern-day Japan, and other than the dungeons in the first Persona, I can’t think of a MegTen game with a first-person perspective. At the very least, Strange Journey should be interesting.

IRVINE, CALIFORNIA -- NOVEMBER 5, 2009 -- Atlus U.S.A., Inc. today announced Shin Megami Tensei®: Strange Journey™, a first-person science fiction RPG for Nintendo DS™. A startlingly original entry in the award-winning Shin Megami Tensei universe, Strange Journey takes the heralded RPG franchise to exciting new frontiers.  The game has already released in Japan to strong demand and critical acclaim, earning a 10/9/9/8 from Famitsu, the highest score the popular magazine has ever awarded a Shin Megami Tensei title.
 
In the near future, a mysterious, growing, black void appears at the Earth's southern pole. Unable to determine its cause and powerless to stop its deadly encroachment, humanity sends an elite team of explorers into the heart of the phenomenon, just as Strange Journey's look and feel represent a return to the heart of Shin Megami Tensei, bringing to mind the all-time classic Nocturne™. With over 300 demons to bribe, coerce, and negotiate with to gain assistance in battle, Strange Journey is every bit the deep, rewarding RPG experience fans have come to expect from the SMT franchise, yet delivered with a fresh new sci-fi story that taps into mature themes of morality and introspection.
 
Shin Megami Tensei: Strange Journey for Nintendo DS is currently scheduled for release in Spring 2010.