Demon Summoning Program

The Demon Summoning Program was first featured in Digital Devil Story: Megami Tensei and plays an important role in the games it appears in as it allows for humans with the capability to utilize demons in battle as well as storing them away for later as data. It's usually utilized via portable computers called COMPs due to its convenience. Typically, the Demon Summoning Program works by using code to replicate a summoning ritual. This was elaborated on twice in Digital Devil Story and Devil Survivor.
==Appearances==
*Digital Devil Story: Megami Tensei
*Digital Devil Story 2: Warrior of the Demon City
*Digital Devil Story 3: Demise of the Reincarnation
*Megami Tensei
*Megami Tensei II
*Kyuuyaku Megami Tensei
*Shin Megami Tensei
*Shin Megami Tensei II
*Shin Megami Tensei: if...
*Shin Megami Tensei: 20XX
*Shin Megami Tensei IMAGINE
*Shin Megami Tensei: Strange Journey / Strange Journey Redux
*Shin Megami Tensei IV
*Shin Megami Tensei IV Apocalypse
*Shin Megami Tensei V
*Majin Tensei
*Majin Tensei II: Spiral Nemesis: As DIO
*Devil Survivor / Overclocked
*Devil Survivor 2 / Record Breaker
*Persona 5 / Royal: Mentioned as Demon Summoner program
==Profile==
===Digital Devil Story: Megami Tensei novels===
Akemi Nakajima created a system using his programming skills and amateur magician knowledge to cobble together the first Demon Summoning Program, which requires so much memory he has to use the Computer Assisted Instruction Room at his high school to run it. He summons the demons Cerberus and Loki from Atziluth, but has to negotiate a contract with them in person, as his Demon Summoning Program is limited.
===Megami Tensei II===
The protagonist receives the program from Pazuzu, who believes it will help the protagonist stop the demons' tyranny.
===Shin Megami Tensei===
Sometime before the series begins, Stephen was working on and developing proper software in conjunction with the digital teleporting technology that was pioneered years earlier. During one of these experiments, he was involved in a crippling incident after having accidentally programmed coordinates to the Expanse and summoning a demon, which attacked him out of fear. After the incident, it inspired him to create a program which would allow one to communicate and even allow the summoning of allied demons to protect oneself.
After hearing of plans to use the teleportation technology to summon demons for military, religious and political purposes by the Ring of Gaea, he mails it out to random addresses in hope of catching the attention of people to stop them.
One of these users is the protagonist, carrying a COMP which houses this program. Later on, Stephen also makes appearances, allowing him to hand out upgrades throughout the protagonist's journey through Tokyo.
===Majin Tensei II: Spiral Nemesis===
The demon summoning program is known as DIO in Majin Tensei II. Similar to how Stephen developed the program in Shin Megami Tensei. This technology was an anomaly that emerged from using the Free Area Shifter System (FASS), which became known as DIO from the experiments of Naoki's father: Dr. Takeuchi. The usage of DIO itself is the reason behind how all the events throughout the game have happened.
===Shin Megami Tensei IMAGINE===
Each player character in Shin Megami Tensei IMAGINE carries a COMP which possesses the program. In the start of the game, the player can choose between two models of COMPs. Snakeman upgrades the player's COMP once they become a Demon Buster.
===Shin Megami Tensei: Strange Journey===
The Demon Summoning Program is downloaded to the crew's Demonicas during the initial demon attacks on the Red Sprite. The program was routed through and distributed from a hacked Arthur from an unknown source. The second half of the program, the Demon Fusion Program, was retrieved from the Blue Jet's AI, Verne.
Despite the Schwarzwelt Investigation Team's advanced technology and elite staff, they are unable to fully decipher the DSP or crack the numerous "black boxes" in its code. Though protocol normally prohibits the use of such unknown technology, Commander Gore authorizes its use due to the vital tactical advantage the program grants.
===Shin Megami Tensei IV===
In the Counter-Demon Force base in Kasumigaseki, there is a file that discusses the Demon Summoning Program. Around a year before the ceiling went up in Tokyo, the program became famous with internet users in 2012. It was installed on the user's PC or smartphone. Once it was run, the boot-up screen stated that "Your life has just changed forever." Some users were supposedly able to actually summon demons and converse with them, but no one ever knew why it was created or who made and distributed it.
The Counter-Demon Force used the program. A Demonoid in Infernal Tokyo mentions it only works for those who are strong willed, while the program stops working for those who become Demonoids.
===Shin Megami Tensei IV Apocalypse===
===Shin Megami Tensei V===
Aogami warns the protagonist that using the demon summoning program can cause the user to become like demons themselves when explaining Ichiro’s hesitation to use the program. While Yuzuru himself was willing to use the program to protect Jouin High School, this reflected Sahori’s behavior when using Lahmu’s power.
===Devil Survivor===
The Demon Summoning Program has been coded into altered COMPs, short for Communication Players, that look similar to the Nintendo (3)DS consoles. Naoya gave the protagonist and his friends specially designed COMPs to survive the Tokyo Lockdown. Usually, a demon summoning requires a great amount of human emotion which would limit the amount of people who would be able to use it. Naoya circumvented this by making the program harness emotions from the internet, thus allowing anyone to summon demons without much effort.
===Devil Survivor 2===
The Demon Summoning Program appears as a phone application known as the "Demon Summoning App." It, along with Nicaea, is created by the Anguished One. Once a person has made a contract with a demon it is automatically installed in their phone and is not possible to delete or remove it. Only by destroying the phone or jamming its signals can it be shut down. If its user is killed by the demons before the contract is formed, and the phone remains intact, the app goes berserk and creates a miasma that constantly summons demons until the phone is destroyed. The information that the app displays is apparently exactly as it appears on the DS's top screen. This can be seen when a phone screen depicts the stats and moves of Merak and Alioth. The characters even use this to note that Benetnasch has a "Pacify Human" ability.
The Demon Summoning App has been subject to constant study by JP's personnel in an attempt to understand its mechanics. Like its predecessor in Devil Survivor, the app greatly simplifies the rituals involved in summoning and forming of contracts, allowing easier access to demons. According to Fumi, the phone sends a query far out into space when its user attempts to summon a demon. After which, magnetite is transferred towards the phone's location, allowing the demon's body to take form.
==Trivia==
*According to Aya Nishitani, the idea for the demon summoning program came from his interest in astrology as a child which lead to him learning about western black magic. Because of this he thought the idea of practicing black magic on a PC would be interesting.https://dijeh.tumblr.com/post/145807344153/heres-a-recent-interview-with-nishitani-aya
==References==
Category:Shin Megami Tensei
Category:Shin Megami Tensei II
Category:Shin Megami Tensei IMAGINE
Category:Shin Megami Tensei: Strange Journey
Category:Shin Megami Tensei IV
Category:Shin Megami Tensei IV Apocalypse
Category:Majin Tensei
Category:Devil Survivor
Category:Devil Survivor Overclocked
Category:Devil Survivor 2
Category:Devil Survivor 2 Record Breaker