If you’re reading this, basic services appear to be back to normal. If you’re not reading this you’re seeing the old server. Name server lookups should become consistent over the next day or so.

Stay tuned, more information to come.

On an up note the website is back, and its future is more secure than ever. However, what little creative interest we’ve been able to sustain since the first downtime late last year is now (after our second, and what should be final, downtime) at an all time low. In fact there appears to be no party interested in contributing new content to the website.

That said we still have administrative and editorial staff eager and available to assist any fans who would be interested in helping to expand the website. A long term commitment is not even necessary. As always, just drop us a line in the website BBS and we will see that your contribution however great or small is made available to our readership.

The website will not be going anywhere in the meantime, and we still field a lot of traffic everyday. Generally about 300 people visit the site about 1000 times a day like clockwork. We are still the premier source for in-depth Megaten info in English. We know the site could be a much better resource, but its up to Megami Tensei fans everywhere to see to that. Details follow.

This host’s response time can be a little slower than the last. And has a knack for not returning from long jobs such as complex searches - like the discussion link below. On the other hand we can now host large files including video. Our stay here will be only temporary however. A very feature rich server with the works is slated to host the website. Unlike previous transitions this move will be seamless, and open up a world of possibilities. We will retain the use of this present server for hosting unlimited downloads which will then no longer compete with or impede the performance of the website.

Last but not least, we’ve become a reluctant branch of the “Megami Tensei Wiki” at megamitensei.wikia.com. Time will tell if our branch will or won’t become the dominant of the two. The decision to do so was completely necessary by the most basic of ethical standards. Two out of three sysops (including myself) made the decision to do so with the encouragement of the third and Wikia staff. We will hopefully find the time and initiative to document these circumstances along with the rest of the wiki. You can edit the wiki at wiki.digitaldevildb.com/wiki/. This branch of the wiki is now the source of content retrieved by our wiki pages at www.digitaldevildb.com/wiki/.

Short and sweet, this is a courtesy sticky, to be removed, letting our loyal readers know account holders are no longer being denied access to their IMAGINE accounts in Japan under the auspices of CAVE. As a fellow long-time IMAGINE player, this is good news and cause for celebration. Yee-hah!

Update, June 19th: The blocking of foreign IPs has been ended. Though it appears some parts of the world might still be blocked out for particular reasons. Please let us know if you’re still blocked out where you live/play. This post is now de-sticky-fied.

This is a short and simple sticky until the block is lifted. I don’t know much except I can’t login, and I’ve sunk hours into this game, and can’t wrap my head around the entity that would just pull the plug on that sort of investment for someone else. So in short, this is a petition. To pledge, not to spend any money on Megaten products from any region until the block is lifted. You don’t have to play on the Japanese server to sign the petition - ie. leave a comment. Just agree it’s a shitty thing to do, and the wrong way to treat your fans. We live in a day when pirating software is much easier than ponying up at your nearest retailer. This site makes no bones about piracy, it’s a personal decision, made by people who feel like they’re being served or not.

Ever since the website was resurrected (after a nearly fatal fumble left it without a soul to tend to it’s needs) there has been a gulf where it was hoped wayward writers would find their way. We have waited and baited to no avail. So in one last ditch effort we’d like to make it plainly clear, we have no writing staff (in case anyone had presumed there was one.) In fact the website is user generated. Anyone and everyone are welcome, and encouraged, to make a scene in our forums, and we’re pledged to scramble to see that your contributions find a way onto the website. And anyway, this is how the website works now in case someone didn’t get the notice!

Oh, and on a not-unrelated note. The website will need to raise at least 100$ per year by way of the ads (per click) or there is no guarantee it will survive from year to year. So far we have almost 60$ in our coffers, but the current trend is not projecting in our favor. Observing our advertisements is a very easy way to support the site that anyone can do. Please consider doing so. Many people have worked hard to make this website possible, and now so can you! There are no more barriers (or excuses) just possibilities.

We have to find an English editor fast or else!!
Translators also welcome…

March 2nd, 2009 by Digital Devil Database at www.digitaldevildb.com

On a less dreadful note, we’re nearing completion of our translation facilities. And would very much like to welcome anyone who can read and write two languages, and preferably one with native fluency, to help us translate our website’s interface and many articles. Please don’t hesitate to offer your support. . . . .

Read the rest of this post »

We have our phasers set to IMAGINE! And are dedicated to finally giving Shin Megami Tensei IMAGINE some timely coverage. We are committed to covering everything Megami Tensei in-depth even if it sometimes takes a little longer than we’d like to rally our forces. Expect retro-posts and up-to-date posts and updates just over the horizon. Including detailed information pages just as soon as we can get them to print.

We have a new author, Aren, who has volunteered to focus efforts on IMAGINE exclusively. We have their word they’re committed to the cause. The rest of our crew will be doing everything they can to help. And our new administrator, yksehtniycul, is also banging out a new IMAGINE page with up-to-date and in-depth information regarding the Japanese IMAGINE experience so far.

IMAGINE is filed under the database’s Megaten Online page. These pages our by far our most popular at this moment in Megaten history. We’d like to apologize to our readers, who were probably unable to find their sought information within our pages. We hope however that our pages have been there to shed some light on IMAGINE to date.

update: There is a new IMAGINE news item retro-posted just a few posts down from this one on the front page…

Retro-posted January 21st, 2009