Will SMTV be the break out hit for the series that Persona 5 was?

[Jeff ChickenDig]

Personally felt like a powerful visual look is a common factor for jrpgs that 'blow up' in the west like with persona 5 and more recently Tales of Arise.

feel like all ive seen from SMT5 is pretty dull looking desert locale with a kinda sus framerate, but ive not been following it closely.

 

[Motorcycle Dork]

that isn't a real comparison. Both demon slayer, jujutsu kaisen, and chainsaw man have very very radicle styles and animation. Also, Jujutsu kaisen is not THAT self serious. Literally has a Jojo's character in it, one of the most powerful players has a move called boogie woogie, jazzy beats, smooth cuts, kind of bleach inspired clothing design, a lot of comedic levity in general. I mean if you are a manga reader it is clear JJK is becoming increasingly zanier in a lot of regards. Demon slayer which I honestly think is overrated uninspired trash managed to trick a lot of people because of how artistically unique it is in setting, battle animation, etc. One of the main crew is literally a dude running around with a boar head. Chainsaw man I mean I shouldn't even have to go into that one, it's in the name.

Shin megami tensei is going to look far more typical anime to a Western audience then any of those three. What I mean by self serious isn't that it is a super super serious plot/story, but that it takes it's typical anime tropings too seriously (more like the irregular at magic highschool anime type of self serious) and the artistic design itself is incredibly uninspired outside of the monsters, which most people know through Persona. So again, it is basically going to come across as persona without the style in the West imo

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okay you loss me

If you played a number of SMT games, you'd be aware there are numerous goofy moments.

Believe it or not, "boogie woogie" is one of Raidou's movesets thats in Nocturne. You do a dance off with zombie Jackson in SMT II, you get high in SMT IV and SJ has Anthony!! Anthony!!

Art is the beholder of the eye but come on...the tone of trailer is obviously hinting it's not going to be like a persona game. And Nocturne is radical in art style, the MC in SMT V looks anime as fuck.

How "anime" do people want their JRPGs to be? Wish fufillment, cute waifus, emasculated bros??? There's so many JRPGs out there that offer that stuff. Not every JRPG should be expected to be like Persona nor should the standards of anime.

 

[slothrop]

Hard to see how this breaks out beyond the typical jrpgs audience.

 

[BasilZero]

I hope so.

Been playing a ton of SMT recently.

Finished

-SMTIV
-SMT Soul Hackers

And currently playing through SMTIV Apocalypse

All in the past year.

I still got SMT Strange Journey and Devil survivor on 3DS - planning to get III Nocturne on Steam in the future.

Got SMTV wishlisted for Switch too.

I really want to play SMTI and SMTII.

 

[Deleted member 61531]

I don't think so. Persona has been actively trying to touch the nerve of "mainstream" ever since Persona 3.

SMT is still doing weird shit that I think is totally cool, but is doubtlessly off-putting to lots of potential players. I don't even mean on a gameplay level, just a presentation level.

 

[Maligna]

I love Persona but haven't played any SMT.

From the ads I've seen for the new one it just looks like Persona, but with all the social stuff taken out? It just feels like a lesser version. Is there a reason to play it over Persona?

 

[Deleted member 4090]

I love Persona but haven't played any SMT.

From the ads I've seen for the new one it just looks like Persona, but with all the social stuff taken out? It just feels like a lesser version. Is there a reason to play it over Persona?

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It is a gameplay focused game. Do you hate gameplay focused RPGs and only like character-focused ones?

Dungeons, boss fights, and character customization are massively better than the Persona games. And they are like a third as long while having more gameplay content.

 

[Mendrox]

Won't be Persona sized, but the best selling SMT yet. Not enough things that made Persona big on here.

I love Persona but haven't played any SMT.

From the ads I've seen for the new one it just looks like Persona, but with all the social stuff taken out? It just feels like a lesser version. Is there a reason to play it over Persona?

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SMT is more gameplay orientated. With this one also hopefuly nice looking dungeons unlike past games that didn't even have average looking ones or well didn't really give a shit about graphics/style. So most of the things that people loved with P4/P5 aren't here. Doesn't mean it's worse though - just way different in comparison to Persona. If you like the gameplay of SMT games and dungeon crawling/grinding then you are home here.

 

[Deleted member 11008]

I love Persona but haven't played any SMT.

From the ads I've seen for the new one it just looks like Persona, but with all the social stuff taken out? It just feels like a lesser version. Is there a reason to play it over Persona?

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SMT are dungeon crawler-esque jrpgs. It's different, and certainly Persona 3 and onward owes a lot to SMT Nocturne, but it's not a lesser series.

 

[shoptroll]

I don't see it happening sales wise, or at least in the West. IV released in the wake of P4G (which was the start of the franchise's mainstream glow up) and while that helped a bit it was still not enough to really break out.

Nocturne HD also doesn't get much chatter even here so I expect that V will have a lot of first week buyers and just lack the staying power that Persona games usually seem to have.

 

[PlanetSmasher]

I don't think so. SMT doesn't have that same easily-approachable "dating sim" "best girl" content that made Persona so popular to talk (and argue) about.

SMT is dark, bitter and mean, and most of the characters are miserable and wind up dead. It's always going to be way more niche than approachable teens who never shut the hell up.

 

[Maligna]

Hmm, well the dungeons were usually my least favorite part of any Persona game so SMT probably isn't for me. It's weird, I like the battle system in Persona but I always dread having to start a dungeon.

 

[PlanetSmasher]

Hmm, well the dungeons were usually my least favorite part of any Persona game so SMT probably isn't for me. It's weird, I like the battle system in Persona but I always dread having to start a dungeon.

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SMT's dungeons are typically less exhausting than Persona's. Persona's whole thing is overwhelming you with content volume to the point at which the gameplay kind of becomes a chore.

SMT feels more like a traditional RPG in that regard - the dungeons and towns are the core content.

 

[Deleted member 11008]

Hmm, well the dungeons were usually my least favorite part of any Persona game so SMT probably isn't for me. It's weird, I like the battle system in Persona but I always dread having to start a dungeon.

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To be fair as a SMT and Persona veteran, Persona is a hit or miss with dungeons, I like the gameplay loop of the Tartarus, but by 4 the formula was already tiring, and 5, despite have proper dungeons, don't invite you a lot to explore the dungeons at you proper pace.

 

[MrDoctor]

we really don't have enough information to make more than blind guesses

Well they got me. Like Persona 5, SMT5 will be my first SMT game.

I just hope it's better than P5...

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what's almost assured is less story interrupting the gameplay, more choice, and a higher difficulty curve. you can see the difference as persona being a playable anime series, while smt is more of a classic crpg

 

[Mr. Genuine]

It will be the best selling Shin Megami Tensei game.

 

[AnimeAvatar]

Another factor that helped Persona 5 gain more mainstream appeal was it's flashy visuals and snappy combat helped pull in casual players. The person who hates turn based RPG combat but loves P5 is pretty much a meme at this point but it's true. So many people who picked up Persona 5 did so as their first real JRPG and I think what helped is that P5's battle system was simple, flashy and most importantly snappy. In comparison SMTV's UI, while good, is very standard for a JRPG (it's never gonna become a meme/have people cosplay as it like P5's UI) and while some attacks are flashy they seemingly last a long time. Hell I've seen some attacks in SMTV that probably last longer than most fights in P5. P5's combat obviously has a lot more depth if you want to engage in it, but if you're a casual player who just wants to get back to the stuff you actually like in P5 (the story and characters) I don't see how SMTV is gonna pull them in.

 

[Enduin]

Relative to the series, yes. In relation to most other JRPGs, no. I think it's got a pretty easy road to 1 million, which is huge for the series, but real question is how much farther it can go beyond that. Even the big RPGs on the Switch like XBC2 and FETH capped out in the mid 1 million and upper 2 millions, reapectively.

It's got potential but it's not Persona. It's still a more niche experience and it lacks a lot of those story and character elements that draws in a larger audience.

But it looks amazing so buzz and word of mouth might do wonders.

 

[Nimby]

It will easily be the best selling SMT, which is a start. I think SMT as a series are all well and competent RPGs, but without a hook . It's core mechanics that separate it, negotiation and alignment are played relatively straight in gameplay terms, I don't think they are utilized in a way the player would think "wow this really sets this game apart from other games". I haven't seen much of SMTV due to blackout to know if does anything to really break the series norms, but the everyone seems to love the protagonist, press turn is talked about very favorably. I guess we will see at launch.

 

[John Omaha]

Personally felt like a powerful visual look is a common factor for jrpgs that 'blow up' in the west like with persona 5 and more recently Tales of Arise.

feel like all ive seen from SMT5 is pretty dull looking desert locale with a kinda sus framerate, but ive not been following it closely.

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Persona 5 is one thing, and one of the most aesthetic games out there, but what exactly is powerful about Tales of Arise? It looks more or less like what you'd expect from a Tales game on PS4 hardware.

 

[Dice]

I know it seems like I'm shitposting but the lack of waifu's in SMTV is probably going to stop it from hitting Persona numbers.

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I don't even think it's waifus, just the cast and mood tend to be a lot less fun for that "broad appeal" that Persona has.

 

[Tohsaka]

No, it has much less mainstream appeal. It will likely review well, though.

 

[Vault]

Western marketing has poor so who knows

Will be the best selling game in the series at least

 

[Necromanti]

Not in exactly the same way, but it will unquestionably be the release with the most sales momentum in its series history like Metroid Dread.

Part of that will be some Persona fans paying attention for the first time. Plus the Switch effect. I don't think I remember SMTIV having even a fraction of the same online presence at the time, whether through marketing or in various gaming spaces. Many more views on trailers and videos. I've never noticed attention directed at a SMT game before.

 

[AnimeAvatar]

I do find it weird that after giving SMTV a whole lot of time during their E3 presentation in the last direct SMTV was on screen for a whole five seconds sandwiched in between big titles like Surviving the Aftermath and Wreckfest (did not have to look up the direct just to remember their names). You'd think since Nintendo has some stake in this game what with it being a big third party exclusive and this being the last direct before it's release they'd give it a more prominent spot like with Metroid Dread. Maybe there's something more to it, maybe not and i'm reaching. idk.

 

[Pokémon]

I think SMT games are lacking a memorable and iconic cast (like the Persona series has) to really break out.
We will see if the new MC with the fabulous blue hair is enough to carry SMTV and make it more successful than past entries in the series.

 

[Deleted member 61531]

I don't even think it's waifus, just the cast and mood tend to be a lot less fun for that "broad appeal" that Persona has.

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This. It's more than waifus (though waifus are for sure a major part of Persona's success, unfortunately).

SMT games are just kinda...unpleasant. Visually, thematically, and spiritually. I don't know how else to put it other than that--and it's clearly a conscious choice. Their reach is always going to be limited by this.

 

[djplaeskool]

SMT games aren't really built for breakout success.
They tend to be created with a rather niche appeal and rely on some heavy themes.

 

[Plankton2]

People will complain about graphics and the score will be lower, but I think it will move the franchise forwards and make some record breaking sales numbers

I would though, love to see some comparison shots between the original PS4, P5 and SMTV

Edit: just digged up some shots

 

[We_care_a_lot]

usually a 'hit' is in terms of sales and I'm not so sure persona 5's score reflected in it's sales

 

[fiendcode]

I feel like the people who are saying Persona didn't get popular until P5 or P4G or whatever are just basing that on their own experience of when they got in. As someone who was into this series when the PS2 games were coming out, trust me when I say Persona was always leagues above anything else in popularity. I knew plenty of people in High School and in College who were obsessed with P3/P4 but had no idea what any other SMT game was and had very little interest.

Even when SMT IV was coming out, if I brought it up people thought I was talking about Persona 4, they just knew "Shin Megami Tensei Persona".
And that's just talking about in person. Online it was even bigger. The resentment felt by particularly silly branches of the SMT fanbase towards Persona's popularity started way before 5. Now, P5 is definitely the most popular entry to date for sure, but it's inaccurate to say it wasn't popular before it. The series "blew up" with P3 and then "blew up more" with P5.

As for if SMT V is going to have that moment? Probably not, no. Edgy apocalypse drama doesn't sell as well as character-driven anime romance pop. That's why it's so frustrating to some that Atlus is trying to make SMT more mainstream. It'll never be.

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Sales don't really support that tbh. In the US Persona was more popular but not inordinately so based on NPD leaks:

Persona (PS) 38k
Persona 2 Eternal Punishment (PS) 25k
Persona 3 (PS2) 80k (2009)
Persona 3 Fes (PS2) 154k (2009)
Persona 4 (PS2) 123k (2009)
Persona (PSP) 23k
Persona 4 Golden (PSV) 94k

SMT3 Nocturne (PS2) 60k (2009)
SMT Strange Journey (DS) 28k (2013)
SMT Soul Hackers (3DS) 36k (2013)
SMT4 (3DS) 96k (2013)

 

[Cerulean_skylark]

People will complain about graphics and the score will be lower, but I think it will move the franchise forwards and make some record breaking sales numbers

I would though, love to see some comparison shots between the original PS4, P5 and SMTV

Edit: just digged up some shots

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I wouldn't count my chickens because P5 was a full 1080p on ps4, SMTV will not be. And we cannot know yet if some of these cutscenes are real-time or pre-recorded. I'm super excited to play it, but make no mistake, SMTV will look like a muddy mess compared to p5.

unfortunately that's just the reality of choosing to release on switch when other options are possible. (will be interested to see if this does a console jump later on)

 

[ramenline]

nah it won't, but it will easily be the best selling non-persona smt title.

 

[Ashes of Dreams]

Sales don't really support that tbh. In the US Persona was more popular but not inordinately so based on NPD leaks:

Persona (PS) 38k
Persona 2 Eternal Punishment (PS) 25k
Persona 3 (PS2) 80k (2009)
Persona 3 Fes (PS2) 154k (2009)
Persona 4 (PS2) 123k (2009)
Persona (PSP) 23k
Persona 4 Golden (PSV) 94k

SMT3 Nocturne (PS2) 60k (2009)
SMT Strange Journey (DS) 28k (2013)
SMT Soul Hackers (3DS) 36k (2013)
SMT4 (3DS) 96k (2013)

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Nobody is talking about Persona 1 and 2. There's a reason I specified 3/4.
I would say 230,000 for the two versions of P3 is significantly more popular than Nocturne's 60,000.

I'm not particularly familiar with these leaks though, I'm talking about what it was like to be there as it was happening. 2006-2013 or so is the era I'm talking about. I was in High School and College during those times as well as on many various video game and anime forums. People knew what Persona was, people talked about Persona, people anticipated Persona 5 news, you had Persona figures and cosplay at anime conventions, you had people playing Persona 3 on CRTs in the corner of a video game club.

Mainline SMT never had the impact or popularity that P3/P4 had and those two games 100% were the Atlus meal ticket before P5 came out. Hell, there's a reason they put so much time/money/marketing behind P5. They knew it was going to be big based on what Persona was doing. They had already stopped tying the SMT name onto Persona stuff before then too, with all the Persona 4 spin-offs and ports.

 

[Jimnymebob]

As an outsider to non Persona SMT games, they always came off as super unapproachable, and a true 'JRPG/dungeon crawler fans' series of games, and I can't really see this being much different.

 

[mrmickfran]

Definitely

Atlus and Nintendo are doing their work marketing it and the game itself looks great. Idk if it'll do P5 numbers but it'll def be a million seller

 

[Broseph]

Relative to the series, yes. In relation to most other JRPGs, no. I think it's got a pretty easy road to 1 million, which is huge for the series, but real question is how much farther it can go beyond that. Even the big RPGs on the Switch like XBC2 and FETH capped out in the mid 1 million and upper 2 millions, reapectively.

It's got potential but it's not Persona. It's still a more niche experience and it lacks a lot of those story and character elements that draws in a larger audience.

But it looks amazing so buzz and word of mouth might do wonders.

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I believe XBC2 hit 2 million and FETH was at 2.9 million as of a year and half ago. I don't think it'll get to the 3 million of Persona 5 but I could see it hitting 2 million

 

[Mendrox]

usually a 'hit' is in terms of sales and I'm not so sure persona 5's score reflected in it's sales

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I am pretty sure that 3.2 Mil for P5 alone and another 1.8 Mil for the Royal version are hit sales for Persona, yeah.

 

[Kunka Kid]

I think it'll get strong reviews and will be the best selling mainline SMT no way will it hit Persona numbers.

No waifus, and unfortunately I think the title "Shin Megami Tensei" is off putting for some non-Japanese speakers compared to "Persona".

 

[We_care_a_lot]

I am pretty sure that 3.2 Mil for P5 alone and another 1.8 Mil for the Royal version are hit sales for Persona, yeah.

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well by that metric wouldn't persona 4 be the 'breakout hit' with over 2.5 million copies sold?

 

[Meriadock]

I know it seems like I'm shitposting but the lack of waifu's in SMTV is probably going to stop it from hitting Persona numbers.

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The main character itself is a waifu /s

It'll sell slightly better than smt 4 did which did pretty well really.
I think smt could be more popular but atlus and dlthere decision to keep it Nintendo exclusive and not marketing to the rite type is holding it back. Smt could definitely sell better in a post dark souls market but atlus kneecaps it's potential

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Look, I hate exclusivity most of the time. But I do believe that, in that case, it's better to the franchise to be locked on one system. It's a niche game and Nintendo is marketing it A LOT . First party level of marketing. And I also believe that switch base is more open to turn based rgs than other consoles.

I have faith in this game and believe it will sell a lot, even if it don't reach p5 sales.

 

[demosthenes]

No.
Persona 5 had charm, and style and looked great in trailers.

I'm looking forward to megaten 5 and most of the showings have been less than impressive. I had a ton of friends ask me about persona 5 before it came out. I haven't had any ask me about megaten 5.

It will be a cult hit like usual, and will likely have a boost in sales compared to previous entries because of the switch popularity, but it's not going to be a break out hit.

As for reviews, I could see megaten 5 getting upper 80s.
But it's not like it's that huge of an increase over 4

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This.

 

[FluxWaveZ]

It's going to be the best selling Shin Megami Tensei game of all time. I think for SMT, that's enough of a break out hit, and it'll satisfy both Atlus and Nintendo. It won't reach close to Persona 5's fervor, but it'll be important enough to reestablish SMT as a tentpole series of Atlus'.

 

[YaBish]

Anecdotally, the bigger Persona audience that P5 collected is looking towards SMTV with curiosity at the very least.

 

[abellwillring]

It will be the best selling title in the series, but I don't know that it can break out in the same way as Persona. The waifu aspect of Persona is a big selling point but also the visual style of the SMT series is relatively limiting in general. I've got the Premium Edition preordered personally though and that isn't something I've basically ever done. I hope it's a huge hit.

 

[Starlatine]

I feel like SMT ticks very different boxes than Persona and the ones Persona ticks are more popular with a larger population of players.
It can be (and probably will) the best SMT game but i dont believe it can dent persona numbers. Could be wrong though.

 

[Necromanti]

I wouldn't count my chickens because P5 was a full 1080p on ps4, SMTV will not be. And we cannot know yet if some of these cutscenes are real-time or pre-recorded. I'm super excited to play it, but make no mistake, SMTV will look like a muddy mess compared to p5.

unfortunately that's just the reality of choosing to release on switch when other options are possible. (will be interested to see if this does a console jump later on)

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My feelings are definitely...conflicted. On one hand, I'm usually annoyed by how long in the tooth the Switch hardware has been seeming for newer games. But it also might mean near-release 4k/30-60+ FPS gameplay via an emulator. (And dumping games has never been easier.)

As an outsider to non Persona SMT games, they always came off as super unapproachable, and a true 'JRPG/dungeon crawler fans' series of games, and I can't really see this being much different.

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I definitely think that's changing, at least, looking at SMTIV. The QoL changes made it a smoother experience than Persona 4, and you can change the difficulty at any time. And P3/P4 felt significantly more dungeon-crawlery.

 

[Lagamorph]

Oh Shin Megami Tensei 5.

For a second I thought Ant & Dec were doing another SMTV comeback but more permanent this time.

 

[Cerulean_skylark]

My feelings are definitely...conflicted. On one hand, I'm usually annoyed by how long in the tooth the Switch hardware has been seeming for newer games. But it also might mean near-release 4k/30-60+ FPS gameplay via an emulator. (And dumping games has never been easier.)

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I'll buy it, hands down. But i am REALLY REALLY REALLY praying for like... a wider console release later on down the road. (I will probably also end up emulating my purchased copy).
being forced to play incredible games with great art direction on a switch is a real monkey's paw.

 

[Mendrox]

well by that metric wouldn't persona 4 be the 'breakout hit' with over 2.5 million copies sold?

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It certainly was the break point for the series which nobody denies. The thing is that Persona 4 had a lot more time to get to those sales. Not to mention the latest PC port too which was boosted by P5 and P4 Golden only being playable on a dead handheld. The thing is that with Persona 5 the series appeared in other games too. Joker being in Smash should be the main point really. It certainly went more mainstream with 5. Including the higher sales it's certainly the game with the most success.