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[Danjin44]

Apparently it was actual buffs like Attack Up X2 etc

It great buff skill but it cost lot of SP, but you can increase your affinity towards support skill it would cost less.

 

[Danny Dudekisser]

I skipped the Switch version, because I wanted to get the game on a console that could handle it. It wasn't worth the wait.

They should not have turned SMT into another generic open-world game. The environments have no personality, the pacing is a mess, and progression is unsatisfying. SMT5 isn't a bad game, but 12ish hours in, I'm pretty convinced that it's bottom tier SMT. Open-world design once again demonstrates why it is the absolute worst trend to happen to gaming. I'm tempted to kick this to the curb and just replay Nocturne again, since I've yet to play the HD version.

 

[Dr. Claus]

I skipped the Switch version, because I wanted to get the game on a console that could handle it. It wasn't worth the wait.

They should not have turned SMT into another generic open-world game. The environments have no personality, the pacing is a mess, and progression is unsatisfying. SMT5 isn't a bad game, but 12ish hours in, I'm pretty convinced that it's bottom tier SMT. Open-world design once again demonstrates why it is the absolute worst trend to happen to gaming. I'm tempted to kick this to the curb and just replay Nocturne again, since I've yet to play the HD version.

I think the idea is less to make it an “open world” and more to have you feel like you are actually traversing Tokyo ala the Map by actively moving through the map in real time. Instead of going to a point on the map and entering a mini zone/dungeon. I do feel like this could have worked more if there was more dungeons to explore and alternate areas to go to. Maybe entering buildings and the like, instead of almost all of them being destroyed.

 

[semiconscious]

man, these guys just never get old:

who in the hell designed these little fuckers? I mean, talk about a dangerous imagination...

 

[sigmaZ]

Impressions after about 6 hours. I bought it on launch, but had to finish my re-playthrough of P5R, so I only started a couple of days ago.

I gotta say I am disappointed by the bareboneness of the experience. My problem is not that there is basically no story or character motivation, I sort of expected this to be a lot more basic than Personas in this regard.

The Vengeance path isn't going to win any rewards, but it's decent enough to drive the gameplay and occasionally make you think about stuff.

But the lack of style or, I don't know how to express it, quality of presentation, is really strange to me.

Lack of style? I mean, lack of the Persona style for sure. That's gonna come down to personal preference in the end, but I find the post 2 Persona's to be a bit overstylized at times in contrast with how dull the actual gameplay and plot action is. Personally, I prefer the post-apocalyptic dark atmosphere of despair, but if you don't, yeah this isn't for you.

I just finished P3R and then P5R back to back. Both have so much more style, I even want to say more soul, although this is probably not true and is only a question of the allocated budget.
Basic things, like menu art, in SMT5 they look like some sort of a placeholder that was not replaced before releasing the game.
Your MC dies - no cutscene, no question for battle replay, no anything, you are just kicked back to main menu.

I can get an argument for more substance, but stylistically, like I said it's just a preference thing. The menu is highly functional which is what matters to me most.
The MC dying does have a cutscene, but going back to the main menu is the old-school DNA I previously mentioned. I think it's annoying when you cannot save anywhere, but now that you can, I don't find it to be that big of a deal.

The music is also not my cup of tea, I honestly want to turn off the battle music completely, it's so grating to my ears. Especially after P5, where I could listen to "you never see it comiiiiing" forever and not get tired of it.

Odd. I find the soundtrack to be fantastic and I love how chaotic it is at types to represent the themes of the games. Persona music is more like jam music to me. The OST in SMTV feels more crafted as videogame music. Plus, you're in a demon world. I don't want to hear Lotus Juice Englishing all over every track. I want synth and guitars. I'm sure Persona 6 will have more of that for you.

That said, I do like the gameplay, all the demon's innate abilities look really cool and I can see there is ton of customizability and experimentation of the party setup.

It just feel like I am playing a low budget demake version of a great game and I so wish it had the presentation level of Personas.

Sounds like you just want Persona, which is fine, but there's a reason they have separated from each other. I would just wait for Metaphor as that is likely to much closer to the modern Persona experience.

 

[Danny Dudekisser]

I think the idea is less to make it an “open world” and more to have you feel like you are actually traversing Tokyo ala the Map by actively moving through the map in real time. Instead of going to a point on the map and entering a mini zone/dungeon. I do feel like this could have worked more if there was more dungeons to explore and alternate areas to go to. Maybe entering buildings and the like, instead of almost all of them being destroyed.

It just doesn't work, though - if they wanted me to feel like I'm exploring post-apocalyptic Tokyo, there needs to be some sort of... I dunno, landmark or any sort of point of interest on the map? This is just copy-pasted sludge.

It's really emblematic of my chief complaint with most open-world game designs, which is: all they offer you is the *illusion* of exploration. SMT V offers precisely 0 additional nuance over the traditional games -- you just have to cover more ground to do the same things. Like having to scale destroyed buildings to get treasure instead of just putting the thing on the ground like a sane designer. But on the downside, now it's also too easy to avoid enemies, so you have to awkwardly seek them out to gain xp... but if you go back to explore other parts of the map, enemies are too weak to give you any meaningful amount of xp, so fighting is just a waste of time... which makes backtracking or any sort of longer-term exploration pointless, other than to force yourself to engage with the too-large map.

It is absolute amateur hour design.

 

[Naked Lunch]

I skipped the Switch version, because I wanted to get the game on a console that could handle it. It wasn't worth the wait.

They should not have turned SMT into another generic open-world game. The environments have no personality, the pacing is a mess, and progression is unsatisfying. SMT5 isn't a bad game, but 12ish hours in, I'm pretty convinced that it's bottom tier SMT. Open-world design once again demonstrates why it is the absolute worst trend to happen to gaming. I'm tempted to kick this to the curb and just replay Nocturne again, since I've yet to play the HD version.

Im so far removed from modern gaming that I couldn't even place exactly wasn't clicking with me. But your post explained it perfectly - its that super gross open world level design.

Such a shame too because the core SMT series doesn't release very often.
I basically avoided reading any info on this game for years and waited for it to leave Switch, but V is average at best - Im so bummed.

Of what I played so far, Nocturne runs circles around V - I would just much rather replay that.

 

[acidagfc]

The Vengeance path isn't going to win any rewards, but it's decent enough to drive the gameplay and occasionally make you think about stuff.

Sounds like you just want Persona, which is fine, but there's a reason they have separated from each other. I would just wait for Metaphor as that is likely to much closer to the modern Persona experience.

I completely agree that this primarily a style preference and I am really looking forward to Metaphor.

The game being designed for low res Switch screen might also be a serious limiting factor design-wise. IMO, it does not look great blown up to 55" TV. I guess I should have stuck with Steamdeck in handheld mode.

Also, I just got to the first boss fight and when you die to that, there is suddenly a cutscene. Dying in the openworld is an almost immediate cut to main menu.

Would you say the Vengeance path is better for a single playthrough?
I don't expect any of the confidants\schoollife stuff from Personas (frankly I am tired of it after 2 games in a row), but is it maybe more interesting than the original?

 

[sigmaZ]

I completely agree that this primarily a style preference and I am really looking forward to Metaphor.

The game being designed for low res Switch screen might also be a serious limiting factor design-wise. IMO, it does not look great blown up to 55" TV. I guess I should have stuck with Steamdeck in handheld mode.

Also, I just got to the first boss fight and when you die to that, there is suddenly a cutscene. Dying in the openworld is an almost immediate cut to main menu.

Would you say the Vengeance path is better for a single playthrough?
I don't expect any of the confidants\schoollife stuff from Personas (frankly I am tired of it after 2 games in a row), but is it maybe more interesting than the original?

Oh, you were playing the original path? Ok, then I understand your complaints more. I never finished the original path, like you I started it on release and put it down because it felt so bare bones and there were other games I was playing at the time.
This time around I started with Vengeance and even though the start is very similar a lot of little things stuck better. The enemies look a lot cooler and there's a lot more story bits in between everything. Like I said, it's not an amazing story or anything, but thematically it's quite cool.

 

[Thick Thighs Save Lives]

Dude, I love these edgy and frankly hilarious interactions that Nahobino has with some of these demons. The new Demon Haunt is such a great addition to SMTVV!

 

[Kazdane]

I'm about to finish P5R (I'm already on the third semester and apparently some 5 hours or so from the end) and then it's time to finally jump into this one

 

[semiconscious]

Dude, I love these edgy and frankly hilarious interactions that Nahobino has with some of these demons. The new Demon Haunt is such a great addition to SMTVV!

it's very impressive, & adds so much life to the game. i especially love the miman comments...

another game that has the same immense amount/variety of quirky, funny npc commentary as this game is animal crossing: wild world. between your homies, the village regulars/guests, the bottle/bulletin board messages, & the letters from mom? all crammed onto that little cart? 15 years on, i still visit my town every day for a few minutes, &, once in a great while, i'll hear/read something i'd swear i've never heard/read before. pretty sure that the incredibly clever localization crew that worked on it was having even more fun than anyone who's played it...

 

[Jsisto]

Pretty early on in the new Daat zone but man, it’s incredibly unnerving in a way that’s hard to describe. I feel like it has this biblical, Garden of Eden aesthetic going on paired with music that brings to mind cosmic horror. I love it.

 

[Thick Thighs Save Lives]

Pretty early on in the new Daat zone but man, it’s incredibly unnerving in a way that’s hard to describe. I feel like it has this biblical, Garden of Eden aesthetic going on paired with music that brings to mind cosmic horror. I love it.

The SMTVV OST is a certified banger for sure! I've even added some of its tracks to my video game OST rotation.

This one is my favorite battle music by far. Hypes me every time it plays!



Also, love this upbeat battle music for the DLC, Konohana Sakuya:



And this track is dope as well, I think you first hear it when you first encounter Poison Gas Man.

 

[Unknown Soldier]

I skipped the Switch version, because I wanted to get the game on a console that could handle it. It wasn't worth the wait.

They should not have turned SMT into another generic open-world game. The environments have no personality, the pacing is a mess, and progression is unsatisfying. SMT5 isn't a bad game, but 12ish hours in, I'm pretty convinced that it's bottom tier SMT. Open-world design once again demonstrates why it is the absolute worst trend to happen to gaming. I'm tempted to kick this to the curb and just replay Nocturne again, since I've yet to play the HD version.

LMAO there's nothing open world about these zones, you move in a linear fashion from point A to point B following quest markers. The structure of the areas is like any other outdoor environment dungeon in every JRPG ever

If you think this somehow has less personality than the bland environments of Nocturne then I think you need to get your eyes checked

 

[Jsisto]

Anyone that played the original find that they’re mixing things up a bit this time? Try as I might, I’ve pretty much ended up using nearly all the same demons. I feel like there’s such a big need to focus primarily on raw magic damage for the first big chunk of the game. A lot of the support/debuff and physical attackers in the early game kind of get a bad deal IMO. Especially on hard mode.

 

[sigmaZ]

The SMTVV OST is a certified banger for sure! I've even added some of its tracks to my video game OST rotation.

This one is my favorite battle music by far. Hypes me every time it plays!



Also, love this upbeat battle music for the DLC, Konohana Sakuya:



And this track is dope as well, I think you first hear it when you first encounter Poison Gas Man.

I love the standard boss battle song. Just really cool melody, rhythm, and cool sound on the lead


My favorite is the world map song though. I love that dark ethereal stuff. It's why I love the Persona 1 soundtrack so much. And that friggin bass...

 

[Danny Dudekisser]

LMAO there's nothing open world about these zones, you move in a linear fashion from point A to point B following quest markers. The structure of the areas is like any other outdoor environment dungeon in every JRPG ever

If you think this somehow has less personality than the bland environments of Nocturne then I think you need to get your eyes checked

I mean... if these areas aren't open-world, then what is? What even constitutes open-world at that point? The existence of quest markers doesn't make something linear - practically every game has that.

I also don't know how you arrive at the conclusion that Nocturne's environments are comparatively bland. I'm 20 hours into SMTV and it's pretty safe to say that almost the overwhelming majority of the game has been a lot of sandy vista with some random rubble scattered all over the place. Things changed a bit for the better in the back half of the second area, but... even that was pretty bog standard. I don't think that's unfair to say - there isn't a lot of variation, and there's basically a single tileset that gets reused for an entire, huge map. Nocturne, on the other hand, had many more, smaller areas and tried way harder with the art direction:

Spoiler

It did a hell of a lot more to riff on the post-apocalyptic urban setting at just about any point in the game than SMT V has attempted in my entire playtime so far. SMTIV and IV A did a much better job too - while they didn't go as artsy, they committed to the cyberpunk riff and were really successful with it.

It also doesn't help that unlike SMT III and IV/IV A, SMT V's OST is mostly amelodic nothingness that conveys no mood whatsoever in the game's areas. There are some good tracks in the game, but they're few and far between and generally not the music that accompanies the actual exploration segments.

 

[Arsic]

So I beat the castle now I’m in the largest da’at area yet to get to the empyrean.

I was like level 54 or 55 and beat the castle easy. Now everything is 60,64, and 72. Wtf at the level spike jump?

Is this the last area for the game? I can see myself losing 6-10 hours here easy.

 

[Metnut]

Game didn’t feel open world to me. My favorite part of the game was the exploration. Plot was a waste of time but atmosphere, music, exploration were all a blast. 8/10 game IMO

 

[acidagfc]

It has certainly grown on me. I restrarted in Vengeance mode and got further in.

Made it to the second open area.
Fuck that demon chick in the underground with Mamudo +3 always critting without anyone in the party having a weakness to dark. I replayed this battle like 15 times. Next boss was a joke compared to her.

The music is apparently way better when the sound goes to headphones. I have to set my soundbar to low volume when playing, so all of music just turns into noise. But in headphones it is great.

I like the darker themes compared to Personas, although I wish they'd went with adult protags for a change. School stories are so done for my taste.

Interested to see where the plot goes.

 

[PanzerCute]

Damn, the fight against the 4 Qadistu at the end of the third zone was amazing! 20 minutes of pure tension!

Atlus really are the king of turn based combat.

 

[Pasta la Vista]

Says im at 90% completion on Canon of Vengeance on the PS5 dashboard, that doesn't seem right.. Just turned 61 and I'm definitely not in the final area.

 

[Kazdane]

Just finished P5R, and now it's finally time to dive into this one. Since I've never played SMT before, I've decided to start with the Canon of Creation story... I haven't even begun actual play yet, but the vibe is SO different to Persona games. Looking forward to learning more about the world and the story

EDIT: Alright, first battle, battle music theme slaps

 

[Bojji]

Game gets better and better with progress. I'm near the end and love how many things are to do here (and shit ton of boss fights).

Not a bad team I think...

 

[Danjin44]

I really like balance changes they did here, you can beat level 70 side quest boss while still being level 50.

In Vengeance your party composition and your character build matters much more.....If people still say this game is "grindy" then they have no one but themselves to blame, not the game.

 

[jshackles]

I'm 18 hours into this game, just made it to the third zone. Shinjuku.

I just NOW figured out that you can run by holding down the L button. Fuck me that would have saved me a bunch of time.

 

[Bojji]

I'm 18 hours into this game, just made it to the third zone. Shinjuku.

I just NOW figured out that you can run by holding down the L button. Fuck me that would have saved me a bunch of time.

You can even lock running by pressing L2+R2 at the same time.

 

[Jsisto]

I’m about halfway through the game so my mind might be changed, but I’m not crazy about Yoko. I get that she’s supposed to make you think more about the consequences of your choices, but she just comes across as a typical edge lord to me. She’s always contrarian just for the sake of testing everyone else but doesn’t seem to have any of her own beliefs. Kinda boring.

 

[Danjin44]

Holly shit I managed to beat Mephisto (level 79) while myself being only level 60, its great you can take on higher level enemy and have actual chance beating them if you put more thought in to your party composition.

 

[Hrk69]

My first SMT game, can't fucking wait!

 

[acidagfc]

Is it expected that each time an enemy gets a crit, they will crit their entire turn? Not even the weakness crit, just a chance one.

Basically if a boss crits, it may suddenly wipe the party from full health and there is nothing you can do to stop them.

 

[Kazdane]

Is it expected that each time an enemy gets a crit, they will crit their entire turn? Not even the weakness crit, just a chance one.

Basically if a boss crits, it may suddenly wipe the party from full health and there is nothing you can do to stop them.

The enemy may crit from time to time, but keep in mind they also have Magatsuhi (the skill that makes everything a critical hit regardless for the whole squad). Although you see a warning message the turn before it. So maybe that's the explanation (but you may be talking about something else, in which case I wouldn't know).

I have only one real complaint about the game, and is the lack of autosave. I lost some 30 minutes of progress (precisely due to an unlucky Magatsuhi chain) because I was having a blast and I had forgotten to save and it's a shitty feeling, as if the game was telling you "HAHA, now retrace your last 30 minutes because you were having so much FUN you forgot to save". That soured me a bit, tbh.

 

[acidagfc]

The enemy may crit from time to time, but keep in mind they also have Magatsuhi (the skill that makes everything a critical hit regardless for the whole squad). Although you see a warning message the turn before it. So maybe that's the explanation (but you may be talking about something else, in which case I wouldn't know).

I have only one real complaint about the game, and is the lack of autosave. I lost some 30 minutes of progress (precisely due to an unlucky Magatsuhi chain) because I was having a blast and I had forgotten to save and it's a shitty feeling, as if the game was telling you "HAHA, now retrace your last 30 minutes because you were having so much FUN you forgot to save". That soured me a bit, tbh.

Ah, so when the game says they started collecting magatsuhi, it is the guaranteed crit next turn? Is there any counter, does blocking prevent it?

I started saving every few minutes because of those crit chains. At least there is a shortcut for save menu, so it is quick.

 

[Kazdane]

Ah, so when the game says they started collecting magatsuhi, it is the guaranteed crit next turn? Is there any counter, does blocking prevent it?

I started saving every few minutes because of those crit chains. At least there is a shortcut for save menu, so it is quick.

Yes! On the next turn after collecting magatsuhi, they get 100% crit. The counters are either kill them before it (or as many as you can) or blocking (which also makes them lose 2 moves on each block, just as it happens to the player).

 

[acidagfc]

Yes! On the next turn after collecting magatsuhi, they get 100% crit. The counters are either kill them before it (or as many as you can) or blocking (which also makes them lose 2 moves on each block, just as it happens to the player).

Wow, thanks, I must have missed when the game told me about it. I thought it was random and was really getting pissed at some fights. This should make the game so much easier, lol.

 

[sigmaZ]

Any tips for this guy? I'm finding him really hard.

 

[jshackles]

Any tips for this guy? I'm finding him really hard.

 

[Danjin44]

Any tips for this guy? I'm finding him really hard.

Debuff him and buff yourself because he has physical attack that can pierce through any resistance.

Also bring demon who can cure ailments, because of his poison master skill you get a lot of damage from his poison….ideally have demon who is null against poison attacks.

 

[Danjin44]

I finally managed to beat Khonsu and his damn nasty! He starts the turn first and after he summon his allies he will immediately uses Megidoraon and if your demons don’t have not enough HP they will die right away.

 

[Markio128]

I’m thinking of picking this up soon. Do you need to have played any of the other games in the series to understand the story, or is it similar to how Persona works in that regard?

 

[acidagfc]

I’m thinking of picking this up soon. Do you need to have played any of the other games in the series to understand the story, or is it similar to how Persona works in that regard?

The story is self-contained, no prior knowledge is needed.

 

[Hrk69]

Played about 7 hours now and it's still a bit overwhelming sometimes, but in a good way

I'm struggling with the map, I can't always make out where you can't and can go. Suppose I need to to do more exploring

Fun times though!

 

[Gandih42]

Been playing a ton over the last few days as I'm currently sick and can't go to work. My first SMT game and I'm loving it!

One thing that really surprised me was the all the demon lore the game exposits. Both in descriptions and through conversations with the demons. It's really fun to read through.

I think I'm about 15 hours deep and just got back to Tokyo the first time (did all the side quests I could and messed around tons with fusions and essences).

So far, my strategy for harder enemies/bosses has been to spyglass them and then rebuild my team around their strengths and weaknesses. Which feels like a satisfying step-up from the likes of Pokémon where you can generally brute force your way through anything.

If there's still people active in this thread, any other essential tips for SMT newbies?

 

[Danjin44]

If there's still people active in this thread, any other essential tips for SMT newbies?

When you building your MC you want to specialize, don’t be jack of all trades. This also true when fusing and building you demon. Make sure to have demons on your team that are specialize in support skills, this becomes very important in end game when high rank buff and debuffs skills cost a lot of MP if the demon don’t have affinity for it.

Also have good back up demons, in this game when one your party demon dies they go back to stock, you need waste two turn bring them back to life and summon them again.

 

[sigmaZ]

Been playing a ton over the last few days as I'm currently sick and can't go to work. My first SMT game and I'm loving it!

One thing that really surprised me was the all the demon lore the game exposits. Both in descriptions and through conversations with the demons. It's really fun to read through.

I think I'm about 15 hours deep and just got back to Tokyo the first time (did all the side quests I could and messed around tons with fusions and essences).

So far, my strategy for harder enemies/bosses has been to spyglass them and then rebuild my team around their strengths and weaknesses. Which feels like a satisfying step-up from the likes of Pokémon where you can generally brute force your way through anything.

If there's still people active in this thread, any other essential tips for SMT newbies?

You're probably doing this, but make sure to customize the Nahobino's essences (both skills and affinities) regularly. Having the right affinities on him for a battle can make a huge difference on a fight.

 

[Bojji]

So I completed Vengeance path on Normal 2 days ago. Amazing game, it's not like Persona games but it's easily on the same level of greatness. Around ~80h, hahaha.

Now I'm speeding through path of Creation.

 

[Hrk69]

I love how every area (and some bosses I guess?) has its own music. A lot of bangers too

The game is growing on me. Atlus knows their craft well.

 

[Danjin44]

I love how every area (and some bosses I guess?) has its own music. A lot of bangers too

The game is growing on me. Atlus knows their craft well.

I LOVE Beelzebub’s boss music!

 

[sloppyjoe_gamer]

This game's soundtrack

Were not worthy