Topic: The Megami Tensei Thread

@Losermagnet Yeah Devil Survivor 2 had amazing gameplay but I was super mixed on the story and felt that it tried to be too much like Persona in terms of tone which is a problem that also permeated through SMT IV Apocalypse during my first playthrough

P5S is probably the best Persona spinoff since the Arena titles and the marketing just doesn't do the game enough justice. It is missing certain major features from mainline like confidant routes and demon negotiation, but the gameplay is surprisingly in depth despite looking like Musou with a Persona 5 skin upon first glance

@TheFrenchiestFry Good to know it has more complexity than it looks on the surface. I'll be glad to have more story involving the phantom thieves.

I'd read that the tone in SMT IV Apocalypse was inconsistent. The tone in Devil Survivor 2 was all over the place. I couldn't take anything seriously because I knew before long that stupid "silly music" would kick in. It's a shame 'cause the gameplay is wonderfully challenging.

IV: Apocalypse is my favorite entry in the series to date. The QoL updates from IV, gameplay balancing, smooth difficulty curve on hard mode, and pacing overall were just fantastic. And, honestly, I kind of like the mix of tight, challenging SMT gameplay with Persona-esque silliness.

@Ralizah I'm still sad I didn't find out IV: A wasn't a Persona style rerelease until semi-recently, so I never got it. Only played Strange Journey and IV so far, but I'll be adding III and V to that once those come out.

Do you all think they'll bring the 2 SMT IV games to Switch as well, at some point .... ? Seems a bit weird to me we'll be getting III & V

@BruceCM I'm gonna say probably not. It's not impossible though. I don't think either game had touch screen gimmickry. Next year, if Nocturne and V do really well then I'd feel more optimistic about it.

Well, Switch games don't rely on touch-screen, usually, @Losermagnet .... So, they don't need that! Guess we'll see how the other 2 do but I think they'll do well enough

@BruceCM i meant more specifically something that a Switch port would have difficulty replicating without a touch screen. The battle system in 'The World Ends With You' comes to mind. There isn't anything like that (i think...), so that's good news for a possible port.

Oh, right, @Losermagnet .... Was Nocturne the most popular or something, though? Just wondering why they chose that one!

@BruceCM Yeah it' a valid question. Admittedly I'm a relative "newb" to the series but, from what I gather, Nocturne is a good combo of: well made, fan favorite, and sold well.

Heh, I'm even newer, really, @Losermagnet ... Heard about the games in very general terms & that's about it

@BruceCM I'd say the fact that it's also the only one that's not available on systems that can still be purchased (outside of the untranslated 1&2) would also make it the most likely candidate. IV, IV:A, and SJ all have 3DS releases, and the games are still easily available.

Hmm, I'm sure there's a few people with Switches who don't have a 2 or 3 DS, though, @link3710 ....

@BruceCM Yeah, but if you're choosing between the people who haven't had access to III vs the ones who haven't had access to the other three games, it's clear which one is more likely to have a wider audience. Plus, the remaster of III is based on the Japanese only Maniax Chronicles version, so it's got brand new content for western players without them doing anything new.

Ooh, this is a good thread. My experience with SMT started with IV on 3DS which I brought on a whim because I remember seeing it on sale in the eShop constantly so Inpicked it up during one of the sales. Loved it, including getting my butt kicked by the Minotaur, meeting Charon, being welcomed to the Cathdral of Shadows, being told by the shopkeeper to "Make sure you bring more Macca next time", and Burroughs. All good stuff...

Then I brought IV Apocalypse, Devil Summoner: Soul Hackers, Devil Survivor, Devil Survivor 2 and Strange Journey Redux... and not really managed to get into any of them (the beginnings just feel slow to me, so I feel that if I persevere, I will get into them). Then played and finished Tokyo Mirage Sessions, then brought a PSVita to play Persona 4 Golden, then played Persona 5, then the dancing games and arena games, then Royal.

And that is where I currently stand. I am really looking forward to V and Nocturne, but I feel like I should beat some of the others first. Any recommendations based on the ones I listed?

Yeah, I'm quite happy to be getting it, @link3710 .... Hopefully, we might see IV & IV A coming to Switch later, as well, though

@link3710 believe it or not, as of a few months ago you could still buy Nocturne brand new for ps2 for around $20. Obviously ps2's aren't as convenient to get, but part of the reason I got into the series was I didn't have to pay an arm and a leg for Nocturne. Devil Summoner: Raidou Kuzunoha 1 & 2 on the other hand required a second mortgage.

@Losermagnet I mean fair, I got into the series cause Strange Journey was featured in Nintendo Power then I found it for about that price used so same deal really. And then I kept at it because of the 30$ deal they did, it just took me a few years to get around to playing. This'll be the first time I'm looking to get games from the series ahead of them coming out.

@BruceCM Not unless they're remakes. IV and IV: Apocalypse are built with a dual screen 240p device in mind.

@Losermagnet Yeah, some of the older games really go up in price. I auctioned my Devil Survivor games on eBay as I wanted to make space and they went for a total of £127 for the pair. I paid face value for them at the time.