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Atlus announces Shin Megami Tensei: Strange Journey (DS)

H

HK-47

Oh, bitch bitch bitch.
duckroll said:
Errr... wut?
Click to expand...

Well some people were saying before that they thought Bugaboo was connect to fusing, and then he and the compendium get pages on the same day.

If it bothers you that much that I said something wrong, then tell me the truth. I, unfortunately, cant read Japanese.
 
D

duckroll

Member
HK-47 said:
Well some people were saying before that they thought Bugaboo was connect to fusing, and then he and the compendium get pages on the same day.

If it bothers you that much that I said something wrong, then tell me the truth. I, unfortunately, cant read Japanese.
Click to expand...

I'm just confused as to how you can draw such a connection at all. There is.... no connection whatsoever which I can see, so there isn't even anything to correct except to say... no? I'm sorry but it's just a really random comment to make!
 
D

duckroll

Member
Totakeke said:
So what does the description say about Mansemat and what he's talking about?
Click to expand...

He's a mysterious being who appears to the investigation team during their exploration. He claims to be an angel under the service of heaven, and says that he is an opposing force to the demons the team has encountered thus far. It seems he's willing to help the team if they decide to fight against the demons.
 
D

Dresden

Member
duckroll said:
He's a mysterious being who appears to the investigation team during their exploration. He claims to be an angel under the service of heaven, and says that he is an opposing force to the demons the team has encountered thus far. It seems he's willing to help the team if they decide to fight against the demons.
Click to expand...

I hope he's not some demon in disguise that'll be used for a cheap plot twist later on. I have faith in the SMT team though.
 
R

RevenantKioku

PEINS PEINS PEINS PEINS PEINS PEINS PEINS PEINS PEINS PEINS PEINS PEINS oh god i am drowning in them
duckroll said:
FUCK YOU! They already delayed Blue Dragon by a week because of your curses! :(
Click to expand...
I got no fucking time. I still haven't finished DQ9 and SaGa 2 is sitting in the first world. :(
 
E

Error

Jealous of the Glory that is Johnny Depp
Famitsu review is 10/9/9/8

completion time is estimated to be 50-70 hours, with over 100 hours if you try to fill up the compendium

Atlus delivered. SMT IN THE PALM OF MY HAND!
 
Z

Zerokku

WHAT HAVE YOU DONE?
Dresden said:
Hey, Devil Survivor wasn't that bad. :lol

It definitely didn't measure up to the PS2 entries, though. But SJ looks like it'll be a worthy addition.
Click to expand...

Nah it was awesome, second favorite game on the DS for me.

What I meant by that was it sadly took me that long to get into the series.

So when do you think this game will hit the states? Hearing a few people say probably around April.
 
D

duckroll

Member
Yesterday, this appeared: http://megamisj.atlusnet.jp/arthur/index.html

It's a Creator's Corner where Kaneko (Lord Emperor) and Ishida (director) talk about the various aspects of Strange Journey. I didn't want to post at first because it's all Japanese and but..... I decided to anyway just to make some people SADDER! :lol

Kaneko says that originally, this was indeed SMT4. It is SMT4 for all intents and purposes as a SMT game. Except, SMT1-3 all took place in Tokyo, and because this takes on a different location and setting, he felt it would be more fitting to just give it a different title. He also mentions why it does not take place in Tokyo. For someone living in Tokyo, the original games will have a strong impact geographically because it's their home city and this is a "what if" situation revolving around that. But for people who live in other countries, far away from Tokyo, it would not have the same impact and they might feel left out. So he decided to create a scenario and setting where everyone can appreciate and feel connected in a more similar way.

So suck it down haters.

This is.

Shin Megami Tensei IV.

FOR THE WORLD!

:lol :lol :lol :lol
 
V

Varna

Member
That's cool I guess. I've ready come to terms with how it's going to be from now and I'm just happy it's here. Now if Atlus USA could hurry up and announce it....

EDIT: That's also pretty interesting because I don't think I've ever seen Atlus JP really care what happened outside of Japan with it's games.
 
L

Lain

Member
That's cool to know. I don't understand why some people made such a big deal about this being/not being SMT4.
The game is going to be awesome.
 
V

Varna

Member
NeoZylom said:
Where does this game rank up in the SMT Chronology?
Click to expand...

Don't think anything has been hinted. I would guess sometime (in some dimension) after Nocturne. Continuity after SMT2 has been an iffy thing though.
 
V

Vamphuntr

Member
About time we get SMT 4. They released so many spin off after nocturne that I had lost all hope. I guess the part duckroll translated pretty much guarantee a US release :D .
 
V

Vamphuntr

Member
obonicus said:
I thought part of the reason people liked these games was for the real-world (read: Japan) setting, though.
Click to expand...

For my part it's more about the fusions, demon negotiations and the different aligment choices you can make!
 
O

obonicus

Member
Vamphuntr said:
For my part it's more about the fusions, demon negotiations and the different aligment choices you can make!
Click to expand...

I realize that, and a lot of people in this thread will tell me that, I'm sure. But I'm just thinking back to when people describe SMT the setting being grounded in the real world often comes up as a big positive and something to differentiate it from 'other RPG series'.

(And to be crystal clear, I'm not saying this will suck or that all SMT games must be set in Japan, just that trying to appeal to a foreign SMT audience by making the game be set outside Tokyo/Japan may be missing the point.)
 
H

HK-47

Oh, bitch bitch bitch.
I just like the art and the mythology. If they decided to do away with fusion I wouldnt care as long as the systems and story that were there are compelling.
 
Z

Zerokku

WHAT HAVE YOU DONE?
HK-47 said:
I just like the art and the mythology. If they decided to do away with fusion I wouldnt care as long as the systems and story that were there are compelling.
Click to expand...

This is pretty much it for me as well.
 
G

grafcheyne

Member
Argh, I'm sitting on the fence over whether or not to buy this when it comes out at my local import shop. It looks so damned good, but I've still got Pokemanz SS and DQIX to beat and I'm nowhere near the end of those!! I'm also planning on getting Persona (PSP) as well...and that's another epic ass game.

Come release day, I think I know which decision I'll end up making. How will I be able to resist Atlus?
 
F

Flying_Phoenix

Banned
duckroll said:
Yesterday, this appeared: http://megamisj.atlusnet.jp/arthur/index.html

It's a Creator's Corner where Kaneko (Lord Emperor) and Ishida (director) talk about the various aspects of Strange Journey. I didn't want to post at first because it's all Japanese and but..... I decided to anyway just to make some people SADDER! :lol

Kaneko says that originally, this was indeed SMT4. It is SMT4 for all intents and purposes as a SMT game. Except, SMT1-3 all took place in Tokyo, and because this takes on a different location and setting, he felt it would be more fitting to just give it a different title. He also mentions why it does not take place in Tokyo. For someone living in Tokyo, the original games will have a strong impact geographically because it's their home city and this is a "what if" situation revolving around that. But for people who live in other countries, far away from Tokyo, it would not have the same impact and they might feel left out. So he decided to create a scenario and setting where everyone can appreciate and feel connected in a more similar way.

So suck it down haters.

This is.

Shin Megami Tensei IV.

FOR THE WORLD!

:lol :lol :lol :lol
Click to expand...

Why doesn't he just have a Megaten that takes place world-wide? Like one point your at Tokyo than you can go to Paris than New York City and etc.?

Sarcasm.

Or maybe not.

Anyway YES! SMTIV!!!!
 
V

Varna

Member
obonicus said:
I thought part of the reason people liked these games was for the real-world (read: Japan) setting, though.
Click to expand...

It has more to do with the modern setting. I don't live in Japan so all these places could have been completely made up for all I know. I also really love the minimalist story approach, heavy dungeon crawling and battle emphasis.
 
D

duckroll

Member
obonicus said:
(And to be crystal clear, I'm not saying this will suck or that all SMT games must be set in Japan, just that trying to appeal to a foreign SMT audience by making the game be set outside Tokyo/Japan may be missing the point.)
Click to expand...

It is not missing the point at all. The interview shows that Kaneko and Ishida know exactly what SMT is. After all Kaneko helped create the series, so I think he of all people would know what he's doing. They are NOT trying to appeal to a foreign audience. If you get that from what I said, then you have misunderstood what it meant. They are saying that the same personal experience the game offers, and sort of story the games tell, can be appreciated independent of the location. This is 100% true. No one who has played the shit out of megaten games will tell you otherwise.

SMT2 was set in a futuristic post-nuclear wasteland. Geographically, it was Tokyo, but there is pretty much nothing recognizable about the place. It could be set anywhere, and you wouldn't be able to tell the difference if the game didn't say that this used to be Tokyo. The only advantage to setting it in Tokyo is for a small effect of "oh cool, this is Ginza" or whatever, when you're in certain areas. It's not a big deal at all, otherwise the rest of the franchise would not have been successful since most of them take place in fictional places within Japan.

What Kaneko is saying is that there is a need to create a setting which has no barrier in terms of immersion or personal reflection. It means that any person who is playing the game, can experience it fully in the same way. This is the best way to tell a story, because you should not require or expect the player to have a certain cultural background in other to "fully" appreciate it. Especially if the game is an occult fantasy scifi game.
 
Z

ZephyrFate

Banned
I'm incredibly excited for Strange Journey but a next-gen SMT would fucking blow my mind. I'll accept SJ for now, but Atlus better move forward sooner or later!
 
Z

Zerokku

WHAT HAVE YOU DONE?
ZephyrFate said:
I'm incredibly excited for Strange Journey but a next-gen SMT would fucking blow my mind. I'll accept SJ for now, but Atlus better move forward sooner or later!
Click to expand...

This is atlus. Not exactly a highly profitable developer/publisher. I would be shocked to see an HD SMT game. I don't think they could afford HD development costs, particularly being as niche as they are.

I see a lot of people complain about this, but I'll be floored if I ever actually see it.
 
F

Flying_Phoenix

Banned
ZephyrFate said:
I'm incredibly excited for Strange Journey but a next-gen SMT would fucking blow my mind. I'll accept SJ for now, but Atlus better move forward sooner or later!
Click to expand...

Outside of Nocturne every Megaten game has been WAY below presentational expectations of its generation (and even Nocturne wasn't known for it's glare and shine. And really, what could Megaten gain from going to the PS4 or Xbox 3? The series can't even go much further if it was on the PS3 or 360, hel even the PS2 games barely pushed the PS2.
 
H

HK-47

Oh, bitch bitch bitch.
Zerokku said:
This is atlus. Not exactly a highly profitable developer/publisher. I would be shocked to see an HD SMT game. I don't think they could afford HD development costs, particularly being as niche as they are.

I see a lot of people complain about this, but I'll be floored if I ever actually see it.
Click to expand...

Didnt they say they were working on HD projects relatively recently?
 
O

obonicus

Member
duckroll said:
It is not missing the point at all. The interview shows that Kaneko and Ishida know exactly what SMT is. After all Kaneko helped create the series, so I think he of all people would know what he's doing. They are NOT trying to appeal to a foreign audience.
Click to expand...

I specifically didn't want to get into the merits of this, but he's specifically talking about reaching a broader audience. Unless you completely mistranslated, he's specifically talking about reaching people who have don't have an attachment to Tokyo. Now, maybe he's referring to Japanese people who don't live in Tokyo but according to you he did talk about people living in 'different countries' not being 'left out' and 'being connected in a more similar way' as 'why it did not take place in Tokyo'.

I think it's a fairly harmless remark, especially since everything else indicates that this game is as dense and Japanese as any other SMT title.

If you get that from what I said, then you have misunderstood what it meant. They are saying that the same personal experience the game offers, and sort of story the games tell, can be appreciated independent of the location. This is 100% true. No one who has played the shit out of megaten games will tell you otherwise.
Click to expand...

That's sort of a 'No true scotsman', isn't it? I'm just saying that when I first actually read about the series, one of the big positives as described to me was its grounding in the real world. Maybe I've been unlucky and only found sources written by people putting undue emphasis on the wrong aspects.

I was going to continue arguing about SMT games audiences but I realized I was going 'lol fatlus comics' except more politely, which really isn't what I wanted to do.
 
Z

ZephyrFate

Banned
Flying_Phoenix said:
Outside of Nocturne every Megaten game has been WAY below presentational expectations of its generation (and even Nocturne wasn't known for it's glare and shine. And really, what could Megaten gain from going to the PS4 or Xbox 3? The series can't even go much further if it was on the PS3 or 360, hel even the PS2 games barely pushed the PS2.
Click to expand...
The thing is, even if Nocturne didn't push the PS2 graphically, it used the PS2 in ways that few other games could -- it provided a level of aesthetic beauty that was a treat for the senses, had an amazing cel-shaded touch that wouldn't be surpassed by any game until Rogue Galaxy, and was further improved by Digital Devil Saga 1 and 2. DDS1 and 2 still hold up visually, even today.

There are ways that Atlus could innovate the HD industry with their unique approach to graphical fidelity, atmosphere, and sound that would be a treat for the senses.
 
F

Flying_Phoenix

Banned
ZephyrFate said:
The thing is, even if Nocturne didn't push the PS2 graphically, it used the PS2 in ways that few other games could -- it provided a level of aesthetic beauty that was a treat for the senses, had an amazing cel-shaded touch that wouldn't be surpassed by any game until Rogue Galaxy, and was further improved by Digital Devil Saga 1 and 2. DDS1 and 2 still hold up visually, even today.
Click to expand...

There was a reason why I said that Nocturne as the only exception in the franchise. And that's because with an exception of Nocturne (and it's cell-shaded brethren) the Megaten franchise has always looked like ass.


ZephyrFate said:
There are ways that Atlus could innovate the HD industry with their unique approach to graphical fidelity, atmosphere, and sound that would be a treat for the senses.
Click to expand...

What makes Megaten different from everything else is it's simplicity and crafted design. Seriously most of Nocturne's level design could be done on the DS.
 
Z

ZephyrFate

Banned
Aside from the Temple area that Isamu takes you to, the Obelisk, and the Tower of Kagutsuchi, I guess I can agree with you on dungeon design. Everything else, though, deserves a bit more graphical prowess.
 
F

Flying_Phoenix

Banned
ZephyrFate said:
Aside from the Temple area that Isamu takes you to, the Obelisk, and the Tower of Kagutsuchi, I guess I can agree with you on dungeon design. Everything else, though, deserves a bit more graphical prowess.
Click to expand...

I know what your saying but again Megaten's feel and atmosphere are usually done through the gameplay and design. Think of Nocturne being the Dragon Quest VIII of the series. Yeah it COULD go that way but it's usually done another way.
 
C

charlequin

Banned
Varna said:
EDIT: That's also pretty interesting because I don't think I've ever seen Atlus JP really care what happened outside of Japan with it's games.
Click to expand...

I imagine Persona becoming a series that sells about 1:1 in the US compared to Japan was a big contributor to that.

NeoZylom said:
Where does this game rank up in the SMT Chronology?
Click to expand...

I would argue thinking about it as a "chronology," rather than a bunch of games set in related but distinct spurs of the multiverse in what may or may not be an ultimately cyclical and repeating pattern of destruction and recreation is likely to produce only headaches. :lol

obonicus said:
But I'm just thinking back to when people describe SMT the setting being grounded in the real world often comes up as a big positive and something to differentiate it from 'other RPG series'.
Click to expand...

Every SMT game post-Nocturne is set in a modern or nearly-modern setting with characters whose experience is in the "real world" rather than some fantasy realm, and that's still true of SJ -- the characters come from real-world modern nations. That's really more of what I think of when I say there's a "real world" setting to SMT than actually having real-world locations per se.

HK-47 said:
Didnt they say they were working on HD projects relatively recently?
Click to expand...

At least two 360 games, and some indeterminate number of PS3 projects that may or may not be the same, based on previous statements.
 
Z

ZephyrFate

Banned
Aside from tweaks to the fusion system and such, I'm kind of wondering if SJ is really changing the formula in the same vein that Nocturne did. I would like to add that I am curious about it and not trying to get some insta-ban or anything.
 
G

grandjedi6

Master of the Google Search
Zerokku said:
HK-47 said:
Didnt they say they were working on HD projects relatively recently?
Click to expand...
I'm not sure, though I may have missed it. Though is that developing, or localizing/publishing?
Click to expand...
They had job posting for 360/PS3 developers over a year ago and they told Famitsu that they were working on a 360 game earlier this year. So yeah, they better be developing an HD game :lol
duckroll said:
Yesterday, this appeared: http://megamisj.atlusnet.jp/arthur/index.html

It's a Creator's Corner where Kaneko (Lord Emperor) and Ishida (director) talk about the various aspects of Strange Journey. I didn't want to post at first because it's all Japanese and but..... I decided to anyway just to make some people SADDER! :lol

Kaneko says that originally, this was indeed SMT4. It is SMT4 for all intents and purposes as a SMT game. Except, SMT1-3 all took place in Tokyo, and because this takes on a different location and setting, he felt it would be more fitting to just give it a different title. He also mentions why it does not take place in Tokyo. For someone living in Tokyo, the original games will have a strong impact geographically because it's their home city and this is a "what if" situation revolving around that. But for people who live in other countries, far away from Tokyo, it would not have the same impact and they might feel left out. So he decided to create a scenario and setting where everyone can appreciate and feel connected in a more similar way.

So suck it down haters.

This is.

Shin Megami Tensei IV.

FOR THE WORLD!

:lol :lol :lol :lol
Click to expand...
Badass awesome
 
R

Reilly

Member
13z1mvk.png


:D
 
D

Dresden

Member
Totakeke said:
Holy shit.

Frost ace plush doll pre-order bonus for US release please.
Click to expand...

Eh, I don't know, the Devil Summoner 2 Raiho plush doll is gathering nothing but dust and lints at my house. They're absolutely useless.

I'd much rather have the OST.
 
T

Totakeke

Member
Dresden said:
Eh, I don't know, the Devil Summoner 2 Raiho plush doll is gathering nothing but dust and lints at my house. They're absolutely useless.

I'd much rather have the OST.
Click to expand...

Never hurts to have both.
 
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