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Devil Summoner: Soul Hackers |OT| New World Order, Old World Chaos

F

ForteanMan

Member
Soriku said:
What result do you get?
Click to expand...

So far I've only been able to get cu chulainn, Tlaloc, and a few other genmas I can't recall off the top of my head. I've messed around with the formula thing a few times from Victor, but none of the demons I've picked have shown to give me Nata Taishi.


I really, really like Soul Hackers in almost all respects except for it's demon fusion stuff. It feels like it's a bit more straightforward in the other SMT games I've played, unless I'm just missing something obvious about the fusion rules and it's actually pretty simple (which is entirely possible).
 
cj_iwakura

cj_iwakura

Member
ForteanMan said:
So far I've only been able to get cu chulainn and a few other genmas I can't recall off the top of my head. I've messed around with the formula thing a few times from Victor, but none of the demons I've picked have shown to give me Nata Taishi.


I really, really like Soul Hackers in almost all respects except for it's demon fusion stuff. It feels like it's a bit more straightforward in the other SMT games I've played, unless I'm just missing something obvious about the fusion rules and it's actually pretty simple (which is entirely possible).
Click to expand...

It's just very, very unwavering. That's what I hate about it. You fuse two demons, you get a static result.
 
S

Soriku

Junior Member
ForteanMan said:
So far I've only been able to get cu chulainn, Tlaloc, and a few other genmas I can't recall off the top of my head. I've messed around with the formula thing a few times from Victor, but none of the demons I've picked have shown to give me Nata Taishi.


I really, really like Soul Hackers in almost all respects except for it's demon fusion stuff. It feels like it's a bit more straightforward in the other SMT games I've played, unless I'm just missing something obvious about the fusion rules and it's actually pretty simple (which is entirely possible).
Click to expand...

Cu Chulainn? Tlaloc?

Dude, those are lvl 39 and 53 demons lol. You're using demons that are too high of a level. You need to fuse demons that are in the 20s so they only rank up a bit and hit a demon that's closest to their level, which is hopefully a lvl 30 Genma. Or try to balance things out by, say, using a demon that's like 35 or something and 18-20 (just an estimate I pulled out)?

The fusion system is OK. It's not flexible enough but you can still make good demons with dedication.

As for my Extra Game team, right now I have a Metatron with Megidolaon, Shiva with Mediarahan and Rakukaja, and Alilat with Rakukaja, Majakaja, and Makarakarn. Those are just the inherited skills. I tried getting Mediarahan/Samarecarm/Makakaja on Alilat but Makakaja is a bitch to inherit on it with some other top tier skills you want. I'll just make do. Now I just need Lucifroz and I need to make more Mitamas and I'm good. I also have an Anat with Mediarahan and Samarecarm for backup.
 
Jawmuncher

Jawmuncher

Member
Ok things are going good now. Just got to the planetarium. My only question now is what's the deal with demon talk? Am I missing something? It just feels so random. I was talking to a dead tree for 5 minutes and got the same dialog options over and over until he payed me money.

I really don't miss demon talk in some of the newer megaten games.
 
S

Soriku

Junior Member
Jawmuncher said:
Ok things are going good now. Just got to the planetarium. My only question now is what's the deal with demon talk? Am I missing something? It just feels so random. I was talking to a dead tree for 5 minutes and got the same dialog options over and over until he payed me money.

I really don't miss demon talk in some of the newer megaten games.
Click to expand...

Demons like that are Dark demons I believe. You need the Dark Man install to actually recruit them and stuff. You can buy it at a shop called EL-115 eventually. Very useful.
 
Danny Dudekisser

Danny Dudekisser

I paid good money for this Dynex!
Played like 7 hours of the game in the last day, so I think I like it.

It always takes a little while, but with this sorta game, once you get into it, it's some zen shit. All I wanna do is crawl more dungeons.
 
V

vall03

Member
Can someone explain the inheritance system better than that one link from the Gamefaqs? My problem is that Goumaden fusion always gives my fusions Dia spells and its driving me nuts! Inheritance through COMP fusion is a bit difficult too considering I can't do Ternary fusions so Im locked out of many possible combinations. I know its possible to pass good moves from what I've heard, but I just can't do it for some reason. Any help will be appreciated.
 
Jawmuncher

Jawmuncher

Member
Through me up for another line of help. I seem to have gotten everything grasped expect getting money. Is there a good place to farm it? Since you don't seem to get it from just finishing battles.
 
B

BearChair

Member
Jawmuncher said:
Through me up for another line of help. I seem to have gotten everything grasped expect getting money. Is there a good place to farm it? Since you don't seem to get it from just finishing battles.
Click to expand...

The only the way to get a decent amount of money is to sell magnetite. Depending where you are in the game sell as much as you are comfortable with for yen and buy items.

Early in the game I would keep around 1,000 magnetite reserve and sell the rest. By the end, I was keeping around 10,000
 
K

Kipe

Member
Jawmuncher said:
Through me up for another line of help. I seem to have gotten everything grasped expect getting money. Is there a good place to farm it? Since you don't seem to get it from just finishing battles.
Click to expand...

Sea Ark with a small party and convert magnetite into yen.
 
Jawmuncher

Jawmuncher

Member
BearChair said:
The only the way to get a decent amount of money is to sell magnetite. Depending where you are in the game sell as much as you are comfortable with for yen and buy items.

Early in the game I would keep around 1,000 magnetite reserve and sell the rest. By the end, I was keeping around 10,000
Click to expand...

Kipe said:
Sea Ark with a small party and convert magnetite into yen.
Click to expand...

Ahhh ok. Didnt even realize I could do that.
 
S

Soriku

Junior Member
vall03 said:
Can someone explain the inheritance system better than that one link from the Gamefaqs? My problem is that Goumaden fusion always gives my fusions Dia spells and its driving me nuts! Inheritance through COMP fusion is a bit difficult too considering I can't do Ternary fusions so Im locked out of many possible combinations. I know its possible to pass good moves from what I've heard, but I just can't do it for some reason. Any help will be appreciated.
Click to expand...

The Goumaden makes it more likely to inherit healing/support skills. There are certain skills that are more likely to be inherited and the demon itself makes it more likely/less likely to inherit certain skills than others.

All I can say is try to put the skills you want on different demons that can create your result and see if that changes anything.

By the way, did you know that your potential skill pool can change by the order you pick your demons for fusion? Yesterday I tried doing a Fusion search for Alilat but the Fusion search doesn't take into account order at all. One of the potential skill sets that I got was Rakukaja/Makakaja/Makarakarn and that didn't appear in the Fusion search AT ALL. I decided to fuse manually and used three demons to create my Alilat (Susan-o, Shiva, and Palas) and I picked a specific order to fuse them. I think my order was in the way I listed the demons, but say my order was Shiva, Pales, then Susan-o I could've gotten a completely different skill set. So try different orders.
 
V

vall03

Member
Soriku said:
The Goumaden makes it more likely to inherit healing/support skills. There are certain skills that are more likely to be inherited and the demon itself makes it more likely/less likely to inherit certain skills than others.

All I can say is try to put the skills you want on different demons that can create your result and see if that changes anything.

By the way, did you know that your potential skill pool can change by the order you pick your demons for fusion? Yesterday I tried doing a Fusion search for Alilat but the Fusion search doesn't take into account order at all. One of the potential skill sets that I got was Rakukaja/Makakaja/Makarakarn and that didn't appear in the Fusion search AT ALL. I decided to fuse manually and used three demons to create my Alilat (Susan-o, Shiva, and Palas) and I picked a specific order to fuse them. I think my order was in the way I listed the demons, but say my order was Shiva, Pales, then Susan-o I could've gotten a completely different skill set. So try different orders.
Click to expand...

yup, Thats what Im currently doing. I've been entering the Goumaden and exiting to check the different combinations between the COMP. So far, Im trying to start with Megidolaon. From Pixie, I was able to do quite a bit of fusion experiment until I was able to get it to Forneus. Right now, Im experimenting again on how I can pass it to higher level demons. After that, Im going to work my way again for those Recovery B skills. Since Im just in Akane Mall in my second playthrough, I'll stop with this until I have access to the top level of Sea Ark to farm Magnetite.

I really can't complain right now tbh. I bet its way more difficult in the earlier SMT games,
 
S

Soriku

Junior Member
vall03 said:
yup, Thats what Im currently doing. I've been entering the Goumaden and exiting to check the different combinations between the COMP. So far, Im trying to start with Megidolaon. From Pixie, I was able to do quite a bit of fusion experiment until I was able to get it to Forneus. Right now, Im experimenting again on how I can pass it to higher level demons. After that, Im going to work my way again for those Recovery B skills. Since Im just in Akane Mall in my second playthrough, I'll stop with this until I have access to the top level of Sea Ark to farm Magnetite.

I really can't complain right now tbh. I bet its way more difficult in the earlier SMT games,
Click to expand...

You got Megidolaon on Forneus? Hmm, interesting.

Here's a list of some other demons that can inerhit Megidolaon (it's a fickle skill):

Vishnu (lv 84 Deity), Metatron (lv 80 Herald), Garuda (lv 63 Avian), Shiva (lv 85 Fury), Xi Wangmu (lv 81 Lady), Mitra (lv 80 Tyrant), Obariyon (lv 11 Haunt), Shadow (lv 53 Foul), Alilat (lv 82 Entity)
 
V

vall03

Member
Soriku said:
You got Megidolaon on Forneus? Hmm, interesting.

Here's a list of some other demons that can inerhit Megidolaon (it's a fickle skill):

Vishnu (lv 84 Deity), Metatron (lv 80 Herald), Garuda (lv 63 Avian), Shiva (lv 85 Fury), Xi Wangmu (lv 81 Lady), Mitra (lv 80 Tyrant), Obariyon (lv 11 Haunt), Shadow (lv 53 Foul), Alilat (lv 82 Entity)
Click to expand...

It was time-consuming, but it went from Pixie -> Obariyon -> Forneus. And from what I can remember, theres quite a bit more demons that can inherit Almighty spells. I'll leave the experimenting next time.
 
T

TurnipFritters

Member
vall03 said:
It was time-consuming, but it went from Pixie -> Obariyon -> Forneus. And from what I can remember, theres quite a bit more demons that can inherit Almighty spells. I'll leave the experimenting next time.
Click to expand...

There aren't that many in the regular game, but just about every "new" demon (as in not just a different design for a demon that's already in the game) that Nemechi sells has Almighty inheritance.
 
S

Soriku

Junior Member
About damn time I unlocked Lucifroz. Or should I say...Lucifrost. The Lucifroz name is wrong.

You have to unlock him and the other higher tier Nemechi demons by buying a crapload of D-Souls. Just getting Nemechi to lvl 5 isn't enough. After I got to lvl 5 I had to buy 40-50 play coins worth of D-Souls to unlock Lucifrost. Also you have to exit the Nemechi menu and go back in for its catalog to update.

Also, it doesn't seem he's affected by the lunar cycle in any way.
 
C

CSX

Member
ForteanMan said:
So far I've only been able to get cu chulainn, Tlaloc, and a few other genmas I can't recall off the top of my head. I've messed around with the formula thing a few times from Victor, but none of the demons I've picked have shown to give me Nata Taishi.


I really, really like Soul Hackers in almost all respects except for it's demon fusion stuff. It feels like it's a bit more straightforward in the other SMT games I've played, unless I'm just missing something obvious about the fusion rules and it's actually pretty simple (which is entirely possible).
Click to expand...

if you are still going for nata taishi, i got Apsaras, Pyro Jack, and Maruts

I cant fuse him yet since im lv 29 T__T
 
S

Soriku

Junior Member
Any tips on the Soulless God in Extra Game? I can beat the other bosses fine but then I just get crushed by the God eventually. I can't even get him down to the yellow yet. Stupid Soulless Cannon and Ogre Blade...

Right now I'm using Metatron, Lucifrost, Shiva, and Alilat. Metatron is a damage dealer with Megidolaon. Lucifrost has Mediarahan, Samarecarm, and Megidolaon for notable skills. Shiva has Mediarahan, Tarunda, Megido, and Rakukaja. Alilat has Rakukaja, Makakaja, Makarakarn and Megidolaon.

I've also maxed all my demons' stats out (as high as they can go anyway) except for Str and Luck btw.
 
Danny Dudekisser

Danny Dudekisser

I paid good money for this Dynex!
So is it just me, or is this game really tough? Dunno why, exactly, but I'm finding it way more difficult than Nocturne, Persona 2 IS, or Persona 2 EP. In a way, it kinda works for the game, cuz I'm fuckin' terrified as I run through a new area and just wanna get back to a save point and weep a bit.
 
cj_iwakura

cj_iwakura

Member
Chacranajxy said:
So is it just me, or is this game really tough? Dunno why, exactly, but I'm finding it way more difficult than Nocturne, Persona 2 IS, or Persona 2 EP. In a way, it kinda works for the game, cuz I'm fuckin' terrified as I run through a new area and just wanna get back to a save point and weep a bit.
Click to expand...

It's way harder than IS, but EP and Nocturne alike are far harder. EP is nuts boss after nuts boss, SH only has two or three really tough fights.
 
Danny Dudekisser

Danny Dudekisser

I paid good money for this Dynex!
cj_iwakura said:
It's way harder than IS, but EP and Nocturne alike are far harder. EP is nuts boss after nuts boss, SH only has two or three really tough fights.
Click to expand...

Oddly enough, I'm struggling a lot more with the random encounters than the bosses. Maybe I'm trying to rush through them too much.

Well anyway, I'm like 10 or so hours in now. Game's pretty sweet.
 
V

Vamphuntr

Member
Soriku said:
Any tips on the Soulless God in Extra Game? I can beat the other bosses fine but then I just get crushed by the God eventually. I can't even get him down to the yellow yet. Stupid Soulless Cannon and Ogre Blade...

Right now I'm using Metatron, Lucifrost, Shiva, and Alilat. Metatron is a damage dealer with Megidolaon. Lucifrost has Mediarahan, Samarecarm, and Megidolaon for notable skills. Shiva has Mediarahan, Tarunda, Megido, and Rakukaja. Alilat has Rakukaja, Makakaja, Makarakarn and Megidolaon.

I've also maxed all my demons' stats out (as high as they can go anyway) except for Str and Luck btw.
Click to expand...

No idea, it was one of the easier of the 4 for me :S. Are you guarding all the time with your main character? I had Nemissa to summon back the demons using sabbatoma so I could guard all the time. My MC had little EN or INT so I had him guard all the time. Rakukaja x 4 then Tarunda then Makaja and it's over quickly. When he's in the red he dispels all the kaja and nda spell so you have to put them up back quickly or finish him quickly.
 
S

Soriku

Junior Member
Vamphuntr said:
No idea, it was one of the easier of the 4 for me :S. Are you guarding all the time with your main character? I had Nemissa to summon back the demons using sabbatoma. My MC had little EN or INT so I had him guard all the time. Rakukaja x 4 then Tarunda then Makaja and it's over quickly. When he's in the red he dispels all the kaja and nda spell so you have to put them up back quickly or finish him quickly.
Click to expand...

I realized what the issue was. He likes to put Bomb status on the MC and then if he uses Soulless Cannon then WELP. One hit kill. I have Bombdi on Lucifroz but the God's agility is really high even when Lucifroz is at 40 AGI so I'm still having trouble. Otherwise, Rakukaja and Tarunda really lowers his damage and Makakaja helps with your damage.

Is Bomb status a Mind, Nerve, or Curse btw? I can null Mind and Nerve with armor. I have one Masakado armor that nulls Curse but I can't equip it without 10 MAG. If it's a Curse, any other armor that can null Curse?
 
V

Vamphuntr

Member
Soriku said:
I realized what the issue was. He likes to put Bomb status on the MC and then if he uses Soulless Cannon then WELP. One hit kill. I have Bombdi on Lucifroz but the God's agility is really high even when Lucifroz is at 40 AGI so I'm still having trouble...

Is Bomb status a Mind, Nerve, or Curse btw? I can null Mind and Nerve with armor. I have one Masakado armor that nulls Curse but I can't equip it without 10 MAG. If it's a Curse, any other armor that can null Curse?
Click to expand...

The bomb doesn't trigger if the character bombed is guarding. So guard and wait until it dispels or you dispel it.
 
S

Soriku

Junior Member
Got him. Guarding solved everything :p

Nice message by Atlus at the end of the fights. Looks like I'm done with Soul Hackers now at 52 hours on the clock (Extra Game doesn't clock time so actually more than that).

Good game overall. Positives/negatives:

+Lightning fast battle system. The fastest turn based battle system of all time pretty much, as far as I know.
+Some good characters, especially Nemissa and Spooky. Also well designed.
+Demon negotiation was cool in this game.
+Cool setting.
+Solid soundtrack.
+Decent story.
+North American mythology combined with cyberpunk. Weird combo but it works.
+Good dungeons.
+Because you can overlevel easily, Repulse Water/Estoma lets you bypass tons of encounters. Makes things less grating.
+Extra Game bosses were cool and were tough until I fought them a couple times and they became easier.

-Fusion system not as flexible as other games. You can still manage to create good sets though.
-Some characters don't get much elaboration.
-Story was kinda simple overall with villains having simple motivations.
-Soundtrack was probably the weakest of the SMT games I've played. Definitely not bad, still solid, but not as good as the others. Favorite battle theme is the second to last boss theme. Best area theme is Akane Mall. Picture Gallery Madder and EL-115 are also cool. Other battle themes are good but not amazing.
-Frequent encounter rate.

I'd keep the SMT ranking I posted a few pages ago the same more or less:

Persona 4
Raidou 2
Nocturne = Persona 3 FES
Devil Survivor 2
Strange Journey
Soul Hackers = Devil Survivor
Digital Devil Saga 1
Digital Devil Saga 2

Maybe have Soul Hackers over Devil Survivor 1. Not sure.
 
cj_iwakura

cj_iwakura

Member
If you're feeling adventurous and/or have a PS1/Saturn, checking out the original version might give you a different take on it. It's the same game, but a lot slower paced.
(Much better audio quality, too.)


I wonder if that fan translation will ever happen now... but I'd be lying if I said I was upset this came first. I'd prefer an official release get supported rather than a fan translation undercutting sales.
(Did that hurt IS? We'll never know.)
 
T

TurnipFritters

Member
Soriku said:
Is Bomb status a Mind, Nerve, or Curse btw? I can null Mind and Nerve with armor. I have one Masakado armor that nulls Curse but I can't equip it without 10 MAG. If it's a Curse, any other armor that can null Curse?
Click to expand...

I mean I know you got past it already but:
Stone is Death.
Charm and Poison are Curse.
Bomb and Paralyze are Nerve.
Sleep and Confuse are Mind.
 
B

Busaiku

Member
cj_iwakura said:
If you're feeling adventurous and/or have a PS1/Saturn, checking out the original version might give you a different take on it. It's the same game, but a lot slower paced.
(Much better audio quality, too.)
Click to expand...

With the same encounter rate?
I doubt I could ever make it through the latter 1/2 with slower battles...
 
S

Soriku

Junior Member
Busaiku said:
With the same encounter rate?
I doubt I could ever make it through the latter 1/2 with slower battles...
Click to expand...

Did you play DDS? Slower battles (though still fast by turn based standards, just doesn't touch SH) and an encounter rate that's just as ridiculous. And repel items/spells aren't nearly as effective. More annoying dungeons too. The encounters really detracted the game.

Nocturne had a similar encounter rate/speed but the fusion system really salvaged things for me and I ended up liking Nocturne much more overall.
 
Jawmuncher

Jawmuncher

Member
Currently at the Art Museum.
Now that it's sunk in and I figured out some of what was bothering me (Thanks to this thread!). Gotta say i'm really enjoying it now. Also being able to use the hacks for alignment and easier difficulty etc I really enjoy. Since when I play megaten (From the few i have played) I'm in it for the story. So it's nice to have a easier experience.
 
S

Soulhouf

Member
This game must be one of the only RPGs with random battle where I use the item/skull that increases the random battle frequency.
 
ttocs

ttocs

Member
I decided to pick this up today for my birthday and so far it's a lot better than I thought it would be. I was hesitant of the dated gameplay but it's been really fun so far. I'm not far into it but I'm looking forward to playing more.
 
C

Clov

Member
So, I'm on Vision Quest 3.
Which path should I take that would make it easier for my MC when I inevitably return here?
 
S

Soriku

Junior Member
ttocs said:
I decided to pick this up today for my birthday and so far it's a lot better than I thought it would be. I was hesitant of the dated gameplay but it's been really fun so far. I'm not far into it but I'm looking forward to playing more.
Click to expand...

The gameplay really isn't dated at all.

Clov said:
So, I'm on Vision Quest 3.
Which path should I take that would make it easier for my MC when I inevitably return here?
Click to expand...

Right path to fight Apsu.

You're actually allowed to "check out" either boss before fighting one of them btw.
 
S

SteeloDMZ

Banned
Yeah, I'm pretty surprised how well the gameplay holds up. It feels like a modern, classic game to me.

Some parts of the presentation are definitely dated though.
 
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