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Thread: MegaTen MegaThread!

  1. #31
    Memento Mori Site Contributor Wolf Kanno's Avatar
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    Been watching a few videos about SMT after my write up of Nocturne on my Top 100 Thread and felt this could be useful for people curious about the franchise and want to get into it. Now it should be noted that everyone has different opinions of these type of things and for my list, I'm only sticking to the game's I've either beaten or have at least gotten far enough o have a pretty good idea on how it works.

    So without further ado...
    **************************************************************************************************** ****
    Great Starters: Games I usually recommend people to start with due to the games being more straightforward and a more newb friendly learning curve. Games have enough elements of typical RPGs to not feel too jarring transitioning to.
    **************************************************************************************************** ****
    Persona 3
    Pros: Good story and cast, and the core game is designed to ease you into everything and the game offers moderately good challenge and multiple difficulty modes.
    Cons: Feels a bit to basic compared to later installments, The Answer is a bit of a mixed bag, and P3P has a boring UI.

    Persona 4
    Pros: Fun cast of characters and better emphasis on the social link stuff. Largely an improvement of P3's ideas.
    Cons: Very lightweight experience that can make other entries in the series feel a bit jarring, some questionable gameplay changes from P3 as well.

    Shin Megami Tensei IV
    Pros: Streamlined gameplay and an incredibly user-friendly fusion system. Game is also filled with great side content and it's more story focus than past entries.
    Cons: Steep learning curve in the beginning combined with a rather non-intuitive world map can lead to some frustration. Story and characters feel subdued compared to Persona.

    Digital Devil Saga
    Pros: Feels the most like a normal RPG with no Day/Calendar system or heavy exploration to find the plot like the rest of the franchise. Gameplay is a slightly better version of Nocturne's and the game has a cool story and customization.
    Cons: Dungeons are a bit too long at times and heave help you if you go for the extra content. The game is also split into two parts so you'll need to play both to understand anything.

    Devil Survivor
    Pros: It successfully combines Press Turn mechanics with Tactical Grid based RPGs. Has a really cool premise and some cool boss battles with plenty of customization.
    Cons: The plot is kind of let down by some awkward pacing and grating characters, the lack of a compendium hampers long term planning which is something this game needs. Tries too hard to marry SMT themes with Persona character focus.

    **************************************************************************************************** ***
    Standard: You can start with these games but they usually involve either more advanced stuff or unique gameplay that really on't prepare you for other entries in the franchise. The games can be either a bit more challenging than the starter entries and these entries are also prone to older game tastes that can be off putting from modern gaming tastes.
    **************************************************************************************************** ***

    Shin Megami Tensei III: Nocturne
    Pros: Great battle system and very unique setting and story with pretty good characters. Gameplay is complex but rewarding.
    Cons: May need a guide to understand fusion and to clear a few parts of the game. Plot is sparse compared to more typical RPGs and the learning curve is a bit harder than the beginner entries.

    Persona 2 Duology
    Pros: Great cast and a really interesting story with a unique battle system and gameplay features like the rumor system. Tons of replay value.
    Cons: Dungeon design is on the tedious side and all that unique gameplay is not very apparent without a guide. Like DDS, there are two entries to play to get the whole story. Gameplay is also unique to them and won't help you with the rest of the franchise.

    Persona 5
    Pros: Good cast and more focused story than previous installments. Lots of great gameplay improvements over predecessors. Best dungeon design in the Persona series.
    Cons: Combat is a bit more advanced than it's predecessors with several new game changing features and the return of demon negotiations which can be off putting for new players or ones used to older entries. Social Sim aspect isn't played up as much as it's predecessors.

    **************************************************************************************************** ********
    Unique: These are fun entries but have design features that can be very off putting for people not prepared for it.
    **************************************************************************************************** ********

    Shin Megami Tensei: Strange Journey
    Pros: Nifty dungeon crawler with complex dungeons and gameplay to keep you entertained. Plot is pretty damn cool and has a fun cast of characters to play with. Brings back a lot of old school game design elements from the past.
    Cons: Dropped the superior Press Turn system for something a bit more standard.. Dungeon can be frustrating and the game is pure dungeon crawler so only play if you're a fan.

    Devil Summoner: Raidou Kuzunoha vs. The Soulless Army
    Pros: Unique setting and gameplay not seen in the genre very often with the gameplay focused on detective work. Interesting story told in episodic case files that eventually tell one overarching plot. Gotou.
    Cons: Action-RPG combat leaves much to be desired and can grow tedious with the game's encounter rate. It is inadvisable to drop this game midway through a case and then try to come back to it.

    **************************************************************************************************** ********
    Bad: This is a bit of misnomer, these games are still perfectly fine but either have archaic design, old school, values or funky design choices make these games difficult to get into unless you're already a fan.
    **************************************************************************************************** ********

    Persona 1
    Pros: Game that started the franchise which boasts two unique scenarios with plenty of replay value and multiple endings.
    Cons: Plot is laughably bad, battle system is more of a chore than fun, persona options are unbalanced, and game is way too grindy.

    Shin Megami Tensei
    Pros: Game that started it all, and the most referenced entry in the series. Novel gameplay design for it's time and music is still pretty strong. Alignment mechanic is most rewarding. Still surprisingly fun despite it's age.
    Cons: Fugly graphics. Far more challenging than later installments, demon fusion isn't as rewarding, and good luck trying to make your way though the game's plot without a guide since the encounter rate is almost crippling high to make wandering around directionless as fun as having teeth pulled.

  2. #32
    Radical Dreamer Fynn's Avatar
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    A small appendix to Wolf's list: Devil Survivor's 3DS rerelease did add in a Compendium.

  3. #33
    Memento Mori Site Contributor Wolf Kanno's Avatar
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    Finally found a translated version of the director interview.

    https://www.rpgsite.net/news/6264-re...su-translation

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