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Shin Megami Tensei |OT| Choose a new Reason
- Thread starter HylianSeven
- Start date
Well the original release of Strange Journey did outsell expectations if I recall. Atlus didn't even have enough copies of it.
Looking at Soul Hackers and Strange Journey, the people have spoken: they want more 1st person Megaten. Bring on 1, 2 and If remakes!So Strange Journey Redux did pretty well in it's opening week in Japan.
Media Create Sales: Week 43, 2017 (Oct 23 - Oct 29)
Graph and info courtesy of Ishaan
Opening week:
(2011) Devil Survivor Overclocked - 20,809
(2012) Devil Summoner: Soul Hackers - 69,365
(2015) Devil Survivor 2: Record Breaker - 53,264
(2017) SMT: Strange Journey Redux - 60,848
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Wasn't that because Nintendo controlled the allotment of DS carts and a second printing would be too late? I hope I ain't misremembering that.
I kept thinking when I went into an SMT game that it would be in first person. It was like Nocturne isn't first person...next earlier game I play must be first person. P2 EP wasn't first person either.
SJ is the only first person SMT franchise game that I've spent some time with that is first person so far.
SJ is the only first person SMT franchise game that I've spent some time with that is first person so far.
Clearly they want Nocturne with redone art and new loli demons!
Wow. Just looked that up. It is a NG+ feature? I'll have to check that out. It is a game I want to play again.
I just can't play dungeon crawlers that aren't grid-based in first-person. Or at least not with Nocturne. The controls feel all whack. Also I like seeing Demi and the way his tattoos glow off the walls and stuff.
I loved Strange Journey, Persona Q, and the gameplay of Etrian Odyssey, though. More grid-based first-person JRPG dungeon crawlers, please.
Really don't like the 'wrapping' of EO at all though. The dungeon crawling and combat are awesome, but I find the universe it exists in so incredibly boring.
For this reason I am incredibly happy Persona Q both exists and is getting a sequel.
For this reason I am incredibly happy Persona Q both exists and is getting a sequel.
The dungeons in SMT3 are honestly designed to be pretty grid-like. They're very blocky. Sure, you don't snap to grid, but it works pretty well. I refuse to play the game any other way, honestly.
Sorry, I wasn't clear enough. The dissonance is that the dungeons really are very blocky and yet you don't snap to the grid, plus Nocturne's slightly wonky controls.
I've played through the Metroid Prime trilogy multiple times, for example, which is something like dungeon crawling at times.
I'm surprised at that DeSu number.I always though Devil Survivors are the more popular spin off series.
Spoilers for one of SMT IV's endings:
So I was browsing SMT videos on YouTube, and I found this gem.
So I was browsing SMT videos on YouTube, and I found this gem.
We still don't have a release date for Deep Strange Journey? It still just some time in 2018?
I might actually try and finish it now instead of giving up halfway in salty frustration.
I might actually try and finish it now instead of giving up halfway in salty frustration.
Nope there hasn't been a release date announced for the remake in the US or EU yet, just that we know it's early 2018.
It's a NG+ thing, yeah. I think you have to load your complete save file and start a new game with it. I thought it'd be just a cool curiosity but it's surprisingly fitting due to how the dungeons are designed.
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They were surprisingly quick at announcing the US localization. They announced it within a month or two of the Japanese announcement of the game. Compared to Apocalypse when they took many months to announce the localization, scaring the hell out of us that it wasn't coming. There was a lot of chop-busting, as Aeana put it, back at the other place over it.
^They announced it along with EOV and Radiant Historia too (and there's Yakuza as well), so they've been pretty busy lately. I'd expect it to release around June the earliest
Then again they can reuse part of the original script and this doesn't have a dub, so who knows.
Then again they can reuse part of the original script and this doesn't have a dub, so who knows.
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Yeah I might expect it earlier because of no dub, but who knows. They would have to put in any changes for the Alex stuff.
Speaking of Alex, her battle theme sounds like it would have been right at home in the original game.
EOV localization announce wait was scary, too. Still, I can't understand why Atlus USA waited until E3 to announce it, but whatever, the game is with us now.
Oh? What "Alex stuff"? I'm intrigued.
Regarding the localization, going by what they did with Devil Survivor 1 and 2 upgraded ports on 3DS, they'll more than likely do a full retranslation/edit of the script again.
On the topic of first person or third person: I kinda want SMTV to be first person, at least just to see the meltdowns from some of the fans. Haha. Make it so that third person is the NG+ feature this time around instead, heh.
I personally don't mind either perspective with SMT, I enjoy both styles.
I've never played a SMT game before, although it's one I always wanted to get into. What is a good game to start with in terms of easing you into the core mechanics of the series without going overboard on difficulty?
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Either Shin Megami Tensei IV or Shin Megami Tensei III: Nocturne. Nocturne is harder, and it doesn't have some QoL stuff that later games have. Honestly I would say IV is the best starting point, it's kind of built as a game to bridge the gap between new players and veterans.
Edit: if you like IV, play IV Apocalypse next. They are not the same game. Apocalypse is a sequel to IV.
I would say Soul Hackers. It has the demon loyalty system which can be a bit confusing, but all you have to do is get them drunk and they obey you. The difficulty and fusion system is fair.
I do NOT recommend IV or Nocturne to a beginner, especially IV. IV has a notoriously vicious early game.
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Even as bullshit as *that* boss is, I think if you go prepared and keep trying, you can beat it in just a couple of tries, maybe first time if you don't get Walter. Beyond that IV opens up.
I disagree with recommending Soul Hackers though, as it might be too much learning SMT basics alongside loyalty and dual currency types.
It's a fairly easy game, though. I'd recommend that over easy systems with tough battles. (Arguably has the best story, too.)
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Yeah, it is fairly easy, and story is great. Some of the battles are neat taking the "MegaTen battles are a puzzle" idea further:
Snappy
It's a shame that Apocalypse is a sequel to IV and not a prequel, because it's much more accessible than IV. I don't mind having played it first (I actually like recognizing things from Apocalype now that I'm past the minotaur in IV), but it's not the way it was intended to be played.
I agree, but yeah, Apocalypse should not be played second, no way. I guess you COULD, but it ruins just about everything about IV.
This really shouldn't surprise you. Look at Raidou 2, all people cared about was the damn plushie.
Sheesh, imagine if the fan translation had come out first...
Ok, thanks for the answers! I'll probably start with IV and see how that goes, and then Soul Hackers.
Best game on the 3DS too! I wanted that game for soooo long and it surpassed my expectations despite being "dated" or "old", if anything that enhanced the game for me, that 90s feel.
I bought a copy, but haven't gotten around to playing it yet to my shame. Hopefully I can rectify that soon, although I have some other 3DS games I want to finish up first. I have no doubt that I'll enjoy the game once I play it.
IV is a good starting point, and it's one of my personal favorite games. I hope you enjoy it.
Seconding Hylian suggestion for SMTIV. Between the QoL improvement and vanilla SMT flavour (IV shares a lot of elements with the first SMT), SMTIV is a great game for newcomers...I think.
What's Soul Hackers like? I think, after I get Devil Survivor 1, it and Devil Survivor 2 would be the SMT games I don't have on 3DS.
The Raidou games are the ones I haven't played on the PS2 too, although I don't know how strongly all the Devil Summoner games are connected.
The Raidou games are the ones I haven't played on the PS2 too, although I don't know how strongly all the Devil Summoner games are connected.
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Yeah, it's really a damn shame. People are missing out on an awesome game.
PSA: You should really play Soul Hackers if you haven't.
People cared about that plushie?! I worked in a game store when Raidou 2 came out (and wasn't into MegaTen at that point), and we got one of the special editions of the game with the plushie, and it sat there for months! No one ever bought it, and it eventually went up on the top shelf next to the Xbox 360 HD-DVD add-ons! I haven't been to that store in forever, but I bet if I still asked a friend that worked there if it's still there, it probably would be.
Soul Hackers is a first person dungeon crawler, and in gameplay it's fairly close to mainline. It does preserve many elements from SMT I, II, and if... such as having Yen and Magnetite, and demons costing Magnetite to summon and they drain it. Demons don't level up, and have the loyalty meter which is kind of a staple of Devil Summoner. There's also the Zoma which is a special demon that doesn't have a loyalty meter and costs no Magnetite to summon. It doesn't have press turn, so the advantages from weaknesses and resistances are doing more damage or taking less or no damage. Boss battles are still a puzzle here though.
The setting and storyline is a thing I, and most others like about the game. Nemissa really steals the show in this game.
I enjoyed playing through Soul Hackers, but...
Regarding IV's difficulty, there's a mechanic called demon negotiation, where you need to talk with enemies to make them join your party. In early SMTIV, never talk while there's more than one enemy alive. That's the basic mistake most people seem to make and why the early game is considered difficult.
The ending was a big disappointment. It felt like the game ended just because it ran out of content, with elements that had been introduced like the summoner group just left there rather than taking them on.
It's even more frustrating that the extra dungeon added afterwards is just some joke dungeon (I mean story-wise, obviously it's really hard), rather than addressing that loose thread with a final dungeon where the protagonist goes after them.
It's even more frustrating that the extra dungeon added afterwards is just some joke dungeon (I mean story-wise, obviously it's really hard), rather than addressing that loose thread with a final dungeon where the protagonist goes after them.
Regarding IV's difficulty, there's a mechanic called demon negotiation, where you need to talk with enemies to make them join your party. In early SMTIV, never talk while there's more than one enemy alive. That's the basic mistake most people seem to make and why the early game is considered difficult.
That's probably the second most common cause of lack of Soul Hackers in peoples' lives. The other 3DS games can wait. The Spookies need you!
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I'd say keep going. You might have to remember where you were or what you were doing (if you ask in here one of us can probably tell you), although if I'm not mistaken the game has a feature of telling you the story so far so you can remember what you were supposed to be doing.
I haven't played the original, but based on videos and playing the 3DS version, I know the battles move like 4x faster than the original. They looked slow as all hell in the original, so it's good they are sped up, but I do feel (like many others) that they move TOO fast that you can barely make out what's going on sometimes. There's stuff like that one spell that has the two dancing babies on either side of the screen (I forget what it was called) and the animation for summoning a demon during battle move so fast it's ridiculous. It's okay to slow the animations down a bit so we can see them guys, just don't make them as long as the original.
Dungeon movement is 2x faster as well(THAT is a blessing), but yeah, battles are way too fast.
I have the original on Saturn, so I could tell pretty fast.
So I'm currently on my way to Shinjuku in SMTIV and goddamn, leveling suddenly goes fast. Overworld demon groups award around 1900 exp per fight against 300 around Kasumigaseki.
I liked Mikado for the atmosphere, but I'm having more fun now.
I liked Mikado for the atmosphere, but I'm having more fun now.
It basically plays like the first two SMT games, but with a loyalty system which makes combat a chore imo. It's still worth playing though, its setting and atmosphere are great.
It's not really connected to the Raidou games but you should play them eventually. They're not perfect but they're very charming and have tons of personality.