Support NeoGAF

[Semjaza Azazel]

Was wandering around Atlus's forums and came across this post by DeadtoRights.

I received an e-mail by Atlus today and it reads the following;

Shin Megami Tensei: Nocturne

Nearly the entire population is annihilated by a global catastrophe called the Conception. Now, the fate of the world lies on the shoulders of one boy, who must battle his way through opposing demonic forces and shape the world to come... or destroy it.

For more info, go to www.shinmegamitensei.com

Available Fall 2004 for the PLAYSTATION 2!

Features:

Special guest appearance by Dante, from Capcom's Devil May Cry series.
Persuade over 100 different demons to join your party.
Multiple endings! Over 50 hours of gameplay!
Soundtrack included with the limited edition of the game! Pre-order today!
400 page official strategy guide also available!

The link goes to Gamestop.com, so I assume that's where you can get it. It's not on their site yet though... I'm not sure what that means for us exactly.

I already pre-ordered, so I figure this will come along with it. For those of you interested in the game, this is the only deal I've come across for it... so might as well grab it.

Can't wait, myself

I'm thinking about ordering that guide too (http://www.doublejumpbooks.com/nocturne/)... not to help me get through the game, but it sounds like it as lot of interesting things in it for if I play the game again.

# A 400-page Monster-Size™ guide!

# A full walkthrough, taking you through the entirety of the game.

# Exhaustive details explaining how to get each of the game’s multiple endings.

# Illustrated maps of every level.

# A complete bestiary, covering every monster in the game.

# Instructions detailing how to get Dante, the hero of Capcom’s Devil May Cry™ series, to join your party!

# Our ninja gamers show the reader how to master the Press Turn system, which allows the player to exploit an enemy’s weaknesses to get more attacks in a combat round.

# Itemized tables to help you get the most out of the mysterious Magatama, parasites which grant their hosts new and strange powers.

# Biographies and dossiers on each of your fellow survivors, so you know who to trust and when.

Sounds good to me.

 

[Grizzlyjin]

Yeah, I got the email this morning. I guess the regular edition ahs the soundtrack or something...maybe like Phantom Brave. I can't wait, this game is going to be awesome. Set me up, Atlus!

 

[Tamanon]

That is so freakin' cool.

Pre-order AWAY!

And a monster Strat guide huh? They must know I'm a guide collecting freak

 

[Traumahound]

I got a second email from Atlus:

Q: Some retailers do not indicate whether or not the soundtrack will be included with SMT: Nocturne. If I pre-order, will I get the soundtrack?

A: The soundtrack is packaged with all first-run copies of the game, so if you pre-order online or in a retail store, you will receive a copy of the soundtrack.

 

[MoxManiac]

Fuck, I was hoping to put off purchasing this until I was ready, but I guess not. Stupid LEs and my compulsiveness to have them. Damn the patriots!

 

[RevenantKioku]

Damn, I was gonna hold off, but fuck it. I'm gonna go set up a presell tomorrow and dump some buckage in it each week so the final cost doesn't wreck me.

 

[EGM92]

This is a little off topic but I'm just wondering. Until I joined this forum about a year ago I've never heard of Shin Megami tensei. Now I see on that link theres Shin Megami Tensei: Nocturn, and Digital Devil Saga. Are these the same game? or something compelely different from each other? Sorry if this is a stupid question.

 

[AeroGod]

This is a little off topic but I'm just wondering. Until I joined this forum about a year ago I've never heard of Shin Megami tensei. Now I see on that link theres Shin Megami Tensei: Nocturn, and Digital Devil Saga. Are these the same game? or something compelely different from each other? Sorry if this is a stupid question.

No they arnt the same game, same developers though.

 

[Semjaza Azazel]

Yeah, different games.

SMT:N is a proper continuation of the series in Japan. There it is SMT3:N. They just dropped the three here.

SMTDS is just called Digital Devil Saga: Avatar Tuner in Japan. It's basically a spinoff, same as the Persona series on Playstation and Demi-Kids on GBA.

SMT:N is more traditional and aimed at longtime fans of the series. DDS is apparently bigger on flash and will have voice overs and more cinematics and such. They both have different ideas and gameplay elements, despite the same style and "universe".

I'm getting both personally, but at this point I expect DDS to be delayed anyway. I've not trusted that November date since it was announced, especially since the Japanese release was only this past July (and it was only May when that was announced for US shores).

 

[ferricide]

I already pre-ordered, so I figure this will come along with it. For those of you interested in the game, this is the only deal I've come across for it... so might as well grab it.

worth noting that it's very unlikely to be the original soundtrack, as in japan, that's a multi-disc affair. worth getting though, as some of the game's music is quite good.

I'm thinking about ordering that guide too (http://www.doublejumpbooks.com/nocturne/)... not to help me get through the game, but it sounds like it as lot of interesting things in it for if I play the game again.

there's an excellent FAQ over at gamefaqs, but the guide is going to be worth buying, if for no other reason than having it in your lap as you play the game. the bulk if it is actually a translated enterbrain (famitsu) guide. it's incredibly extensive (i've got some PDFs of the early version). a FAQ/guide helps with this game immensely as a lot of the gameplay revolves around weaknesses/strenghts and also creating/fusing demons, so you want to know what you're going to end up with. plus the dungeons are pretty hardcore.

This is a little off topic but I'm just wondering. Until I joined this forum about a year ago I've never heard of Shin Megami tensei. Now I see on that link theres Shin Megami Tensei: Nocturn, and Digital Devil Saga. Are these the same game? or something compelely different from each other? Sorry if this is a stupid question.

not really. the games are completely different; the US releases just happen to be way too close together (bad move on atlus' part, IMO.) we're actually getting the directors' cut version of nocturne (known as "maniacs" in japan). the first version of the game originally came out over a year ago. DDS, on the other hand, came out last month in japan. just bad timing on the part of the US marketing people, i guess.

SMT has been around in japan since the SNES, but none of the games prior to this one (jsut a couple of spin-offs) have come out in the US.

 

[Semjaza Azazel]

ferricide, I had asked this in that lame-o Fable thread, but I don't know if you ever responded. Are you going to be the one reviewing the game? I certainly hope so because as I've said in the past, you've wrote the only decent things on this series that I've seen in major publications/sites.

I'm hoping it might actually get some people to watch this game a bit more. I've been trying hard to get people interested in it and it seems to be working... albeit slowly. Doesn't help that the GameSpy article is about all I can link anyone to that's good.

 

[Alex]

I'll be picking it up, although it may be on day one, it may be months from now, I'll have to wait and see.

That said, it's really strange Atlus didn't rename this, same goes for Namco and Katamari Damacy. I'd love to see someone call up Wal-Mart and Target looking for these games.

"Do you have Shin Megami Tensei: Nocturne in stock?"

"What?"

 

[RevenantKioku]

"Do you have Shin Megami Tensei: Nocturne in stock?"

"What?"

Oh yeah, the butchering of the pronunciation is going to be fun. Some of my customers can't handle english names. Not that you can blame them, but eh.

Shin Megami Tensei (as well as Katamari Damacy) have some mystery with the japanese names though. Then again "True Goddess Revival" would have been slightly interesting, I guess. (I realize I'm just doing a literal translation, I don't know what else it could be )

 

[SolidSnakex]

The RPG of the year keeps getting better. I hope it's Maniax soundtrack though, mainly because of Dante's theme which is awesome.

 

[radios shipping overview]

Shin Megami Tensei (as well as Katamari Damacy) have some mystery with the japanese names though. Then again "True Goddess Revival" would have been slightly interesting, I guess. (I realize I'm just doing a literal translation, I don't know what else it could be )

"True Goddess Revival'/"Reincarnation" wouldn't make too much sense to English-speaking fans of the game. ^^; "Megami Tensei" was the name of the original NES game, which was by Namco. They made a sequel and then sold the franchise to Atlus, who called their spin on the series "Shin (true) Megami Tensei." It's an acknowledgement of the game's past and it's Atlus' assertion that their version of the series is the "real" one. The official English version of the series title is "Digital Devil Story," which is also the name of the novel(s) the first game was based on, so if they were set on using an English title, they'd probably use that. And of course, "Digital Devil Saga" is a play on that, so it'd fit.

 

[RevenantKioku]

"True Goddess Revival'/"Reincarnation" wouldn't make too much sense to English-speaking fans of the game. ^^; "Megami Tensei" was the name of the original NES game, which was by Namco. They made a sequel and then sold the franchise to Atlus, who called their spin on the series "Shin (true) Megami Tensei." It's an acknowledgement of the game's past and it's Atlus' assertion that their version of the series is the "real" one. The official English version of the series title is "Digital Devil Story," which is also the name of the novel(s) the first game was based on, so if they were set on using an English title, they'd probably use that. And of course, "Digital Devil Saga" is a play on that, so it'd fit.

I actually own the Namco(t) cart. But wait, there's a sequel to the Famicom Megami Tensei? I never thought of the Shin to be referring to the "authenticity" of the series under Atlus's control. That's pretty interesting though. I knew about Digital Devil Story, but I completely forgot about that while typing up my post. Just checked the boxes, it says Digital Devil Story on Megami Tensei, but I see no obvious mentioning on the SMT boxes. Interesting stuff. I tried playing MT, but holy shit it was difficult, and I don't mean the Japanese.

 

[Greenpanda]

I actually own the Namco(t) cart. But wait, there's a sequel to the Famicom Megami Tensei?

Yeah, there were 2 Famicom MegaTens, both by Namco.

 

[Semjaza Azazel]

I only have the first MegaTen for Famicom. Still the best packaging of any Famicom cart I own. I love the plastic shell casing and such. The whole thing is mint, but I can't get it to run on my Famicom lately for some reason...

 

[RevenantKioku]

Yeah, there were 2 Famicom MegaTens, both by Namco.

Fuck, and i thought I picked up all the carts.

I only have the first MegaTen for Famicom. Still the best packaging of any Famicom cart I own. I love the plastic shell casing and such. The whole thing is mint, but I can't get it to run on my Famicom lately for some reason...

Isn't it so fucking awesome? I bought it from small shop in Japan for 200 yen. And its flawless. I can't buy used games in the States anymore. Hell it still has the registration card in it. Game is still fucking hard though.
Another thing that's been bugging me. When did Namcot change to Namco? Or were they Namcot for Famicom publications only? Cause I saw some pre-famicom pictures where they were called Namco.

 

[MoxManiac]

Anyone of any screenshots of the NES games? I'm curious as to what they look like.

 

[radios shipping overview]

That's pretty interesting though. I knew about Digital Devil Story, but I completely forgot about that while typing up my post. Just checked the boxes, it says Digital Devil Story on Megami Tensei, but I see no obvious mentioning on the SMT boxes.

In the intro to SMT1, with the bootup sequence and the assembly code and names of God and whatnot, "SHIN MEGAMI TENSEI" is "typed" as if into a Japanese IME, with "SHIN" switching from the kanji for "new" to "god" to "true," and then "DIGITAL DEVIL STORY" becomes the kanji for "megami tensei." It's pretty cool, and the "shin" is a neat pun.

 

[radios shipping overview]

Another thing that's been bugging me. When did Namcot change to Namco? Or were they Namcot for Famicom publications only? Cause I saw some pre-famicom pictures where they were called Namco.

I think they used the name "Namcot" for licensing reasons (thanks to Nintendo policies, probably). They used it for home console publishing all the way up through the SFC, and I'm they dropped it slightly after they started publishing for PSX.

 

[RevenantKioku]

In the intro to SMT1, with the bootup sequence and the assembly code and names of God and whatnot, "SHIN MEGAMI TENSEI" is "typed" as if into a Japanese IME, with "SHIN" switching from the kanji for "new" to "god" to "true," and then "DIGITAL DEVIL STORY" becomes the kanji for "megami tensei." It's pretty cool, and the "shin" is a neat pun.

Haha, that's fantastic. I never really put much thought into it before.

I tell you what though, no games have ever freaked me out so much. I don't know what it is, but these games give me the serious heebie jeebies

 

[Drinky Crow]

What's the release date for Nocturne?

 

[RevenantKioku]

What's the release date for Nocturne?

9/28 I think.

 

[radios shipping overview]

I tell you what though, no games have ever freaked me out so much. I don't know what it is, but these games give me the serious heebie jeebies

Yeah, definitely, the intro to SMT1 still gives me goosebumps. Art over tech, indeed.

 

[Semjaza Azazel]

9/28 I think.

Yeah... I think it is. It was earlier, but I saw that a lot of sites put it at that date recently. Atlus's page still says "Sept 2004".

As long as it's September, I don't care heh.

 

[ferricide]

Are you going to be the one reviewing the game?

yes, in GMR. and one of the EGM reviews.

"Do you have Shin Megami Tensei: Nocturne in stock?"

"What?"

nocturne is an english word. i think they probably should have just called it that, but probably weren't realizing magazines would have to print everything the same size. "nocturne" is printed really big on the cover, and SMT small. it probably has something to do with the fact that there was also already a PC game called simply nocturne.

or they could have stuck with "revelations". say what you will, but it gave an apropos mood. especially for this one.

anyway, my point is -- people only have to remember 'nocturne' ... the japanese is irrelevant. hoping people will glom onto it. =)

I think they used the name "Namcot" for licensing reasons (thanks to Nintendo policies, probably). They used it for home console publishing all the way up through the SFC, and I'm they dropped it slightly after they started publishing for PSX.

don't think it has anything to do with nintendo, cos they put that on megadrive and PCE titles too. just was their home publishing label. for some reason, i guess they wanted to differentiate it from their arcade name. FWIW the games say "namco" on the back in katakana for the name of the company (just like their post-namcot home games do.)

also, i'm not quite sure why megaten went from namco to atlus, but i don't think it was a mere rights-selling thing. i think staff changed companies, or something. atlus did remakes of the famicom megatens on SFC in a bundle cart, i believe, so they actually ended up with rights to the first games as well.

the funny thing is that 'shin megami tensei' doesn't have much to do with the actual content of the games anymore. another reason to drop it from the US title. oh well, what's done is done!

 

[Kakusha]

At EB, in the computer it's "Nocturne".

 

[u_neek]

Is the game fully voiced?

 

[RevenantKioku]

FWIW the games say "namco" on the back in katakana for the name of the company (just like their post-namcot home games do.)

Sure does, also says "Namco Ltd." in good old english. That's just, well really weird. Speaking of the original book, I've tried looking into it, but haven't really found much. Anyone know anything?
I saw a few SMT mangas while browsing in some manga shops, and they were really, really fucking bizarre. Lesbian sex with demons and, the tv is playing the torgo theme right now in an infomercial and I think I'm gonna have a heart attack, haha.

 

[Semjaza Azazel]

Most MegaTen manga I've seen are unofficial, fan nonsense.

Is the game fully voiced?

No. Apparently Digital Devil Saga will be (or at least mostly).

 

[RevenantKioku]

Most MegaTen manga I've seen are unofficial, fan nonsense.



No. Apparently Digital Devil Saga will be (or at least mostly).

I don't doubt it, one of the reasons I didn't buy any. The other being they were all really fuggin' expensive comparably. But still, this all came about from some book, unless I'm mistaken, so I find that quite interesting.

 

[Crazymoogle]

SMT3, now in LE form at no extra cost?

Does Growlanser have any hope left at this point?

 

[SolidSnakex]

SMT3, now in LE form at no extra cost?

Does Growlanser have any hope left at this point?

Well to be fair, WD has announced a no extras version of Growlanser since the LE is really expensive ($90)

Here's hoping that both SMT and DDS do well here so Atlus will continue bringing them over. Maybe Atlus will start up a remakes of the original on some system and finnaly release them here. SMT1/2 and "if" would be especially nice.

 

[radios shipping overview]

Here's hoping that both SMT and DDS do well here so Atlus will continue bringing them over. Maybe Atlus will start up a remakes of the original on some system and finnaly release them here. SMT1/2 and "if" would be especially nice.

They just remade them for PSX in the run-up to SMT3, and SMT1 and 2 ports/remakes came to GBA last year. I'm not counting on them coming over, though.

 

[ferricide]

Most MegaTen manga I've seen are unofficial, fan nonsense.

there's a real persona manga. i have a volume of it. i haven't looked at it in forever, so i dunno if it's any good, but i'm not a big fan of retellings anyway.

there's also a mediocre shin megami tensei OAV from the 90s that's out here under the title tokyo revelation. coincidentally simply because it's the kind of thing manga video used to go crazy for, not because anyone gave a shit about the games.

SMT3 has no voice whatsoever. it's still incredibly atmospheric. bebpo said DDS didn't have as much voice as we were led to believe, which hopefully leads to the budget being manageable and atlus getting decent voice talent. i'm sort of worried about that.

 

[Semjaza Azazel]

Atlus just released a press release that announced the game will be rated M... no surprise there lol.

Anyway, what caught my attention was a few more details on the soundtrack:

Shin Megami Tensei: Nocturne is scheduled to launch onto store shelves in the fall with a suggested retail price of $49.99. As a bonus, the game will come packaged with a Limited Edition Soundtrack that contains over 30 tracks from the in-game music. For additional information on the game, visit the official Shin Megami Tensei website at www.shinmegamitensei.com.

:rock

Apparently the CD is packed in with the game. No worrying about whether or not the store will have pre-order bonuses lying about (I got burned on that before...). I guess pre-ordering is the only assurance you'll get the soundtrack though. Kind of like with that Mario Kart: Double Dash bonus disc.