You can easily compare different RPG's combat however. Just because a game was designed to be that way doesn't make it automatically above criticism. There are plenty of questionable designed choices.
Also, most games are made to have some type of curve in it, even if they aren't always successful. I doubt the developers legit wanted to game to get easier as it went on. Or at least not at the speed that once you reach Tokyo the game difficulty is nearly slashed.
There are a lot of things I enjoy in SMT IV. The combat isn't even awful, or bad. But I can't say it's much better simply because it's different. Considering all end game bosses end up either being hit its weakness after debuffs or physical and almighty attacks.
Being ambushed and one shotted in tight corridors on a map isn't really a legitimate challenge.
Also SMTIV is a very flawed game, combat is fast and that's it. The press turn System is fine, just not witn the changes that SMTIV made with the stats, the smirk system ect.
Magic Demons become useless or at least not as good due to their low HP pool due to how high damage the game can be. Something I know the creators didn't plan for.
And it also seems like you're missing the point about SMT 4's combat as a whole. Its not all about strategy, but mostly about the flexability. At its core, the base combat does revolve around you fusing 3 demons you want with different skills and using them in combat to fight other enemies. And its also about fusing different demons to make your party (and you) even stronger to fight stronger demons.
However, the game takes its chaos/law/neutral morality and implements it in a genius way into the combat. The game rewards you for taking the chaotic route and plowing through the demons. You can also opt to be a pacifist/law (most of the time) by choosing to negotiate with the demons instead and recruiting them or issuing a cease fire. The game still gives you a lot of experience for doing this (almost as much as killing them).
Or you can take the neutral route and kill some while recruiting others (which is the preferred route from a gameplay and narrative standpoint)
It seems like the biggest misconception you have about SMT4 is that the game is all about the chaotic combat itself and the strategy behind killing when there's so much more to the game's combat then just that. That's why I have a hard time comprehending the comparisons to any RPG outside its own series since you can't find that kind of ability in any JRPG, especially Etrian Odysey.
I will repeat again, that the game's actual combat isn't deep. Its very fast paced and about who can kill who first. But that's the chaos route and it fits perfectly in this game. And I personally think game design is much better than just adding depth. There's such a thing as too much and if SMT had EO levels of strategy to its combat, then that's too much.
And there's also nothing wrong with the smirk system. I think its great, especially the fact that its a SMIRK. That's so god damn cool when you think about a demon rampaging so hard that it starts smirking.
And magic is still great in this game, I'm in the blasted part of the game and my magic teammates are still doing great. This game has a better balence between physical and magic demons than something like Persona 4 where phsyical is completely OP.
