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Shin Megami Tensei Community Thread: Be Your True Demon

T

TurnipFritters

Member
Vamphuntr said:
Well that Guardian thing sounds annoying but I suppose you eventually get wiped out automatically when they start to drag down you characters.

In your opinion the Guardian system makes it a worse game than Devil Summoner? From this thread it seemed you didn't like DS much :S I found a good guide for it similar to the one you had found for Soul Hackers. Do you think the PSP version would make the game more tolerable?

At this point it seems I have to choose between two poison.
Click to expand...

Devil Summoner is probably more up your alley since it has actual, like, characters (although they're pretty barebones). The PSP version is better than the Saturn version, but... ok. You can probably glean from playing SH 3DS that they put some work into it. They sped everything up and they polished the presentation a little bit, stuff like that. Devil Summoner is almost a straight up port, so you really, really need to be prepared for that.
 
V

Vamphuntr

Member
TurnipFritters said:
Devil Summoner is probably more up your alley since it has actual, like, characters (although they're pretty barebones). The PSP version is better than the Saturn version, but... ok. You can probably glean from playing SH 3DS that they put some work into it. They sped everything up and they polished the presentation a little bit, stuff like that. Devil Summoner is almost a straight up port, so you really, really need to be prepared for that.
Click to expand...

Yeah, it does look really bad in screenshots but I'm okay with that since it's a 2005 port of a 1995 game. Especially the 3D town maps that are similar to those in the original version of Persona.

I don't mind having games having less emphasis on story/characters but I do prefer when they have. I still like SMT I and II and recently I discovered EOIV which is fairly great too.

I will get SMT IF at some point
and SMT NINE too!
. I'll try to shop around the web a bit for Devil Summoner PSP. The digital version is cheap but a 3000 yen card seems to be 40$ on play-asia, NCSX and ebay. It seems the physical PSP version goes for 40$-80$ used and 35$ for the Atlus best version. I'll check stores/ebay for a bit, I'm in no hurry to have it.
 
Link1110

Link1110

Member
You guys are making me wanna give DS another try. When I get a 1000y psn card, I'm thinking of getting it on my vita through UMD passport. Any tips on making negotiations not fail every single time in this game?
 
J

Jucksalbe

Banned
Big Papa Husker said:
I haven't played a SMT game and was wondering which game should I start with? My friend said I should start with Nocturne or DDS.
Click to expand...

Can't go wrong with either. But if you want to experience the "true" SMT (the mainline) games you should go with Nocturne. DDS on the other hand is probably easier to understand for newcomers.
 
A

archnemesis

Member
I agree. They're both good games to start with. One thing that makes DDS easier is that you get to keep all the skills you unlock. In Nocturne you have to juggle around which skills you want use which might be a bit more difficult for a newcomer.
 
Krelian91

Krelian91

Member
Big Papa Husker said:
I haven't played a SMT game and was wondering which game should I start with? My friend said I should start with Nocturne or DDS.
Click to expand...

If you want to experience the real feeling of the mainline series you should go for Nocturne, however DDS is more traditional and easy, so it may be the better place to start. I like to think of DDS as the beginner's SMT.

I have started with DDS, and now SMT is my favorite jrpg series ever. My advice is: get the two DDS first for practice, and then experience the real thing with Nocturne.
 
B

Big Papa Husker

Member
Jucksalbe said:
Can't go wrong with either. But if you want to experience the "true" SMT (the mainline) games you should go with Nocturne. DDS on the other hand is probably easier to understand for newcomers.
Click to expand...

archnemesis said:
I agree. They're both good games to start with. One thing that makes DDS easier is that you get to keep all the skills you unlock. In Nocturne you have to juggle around which skills you want use which might be a bit more difficult for a newcomer.
Click to expand...

Krelian91 said:
If you want to experience the real feeling of the mainline series you should go for Nocturne, however DDS is more traditional and easy, so it may be the better place to start. I like to think of DDS as the beginner's SMT.

I have started with DDS, and now SMT is my favorite jrpg series ever. My advice is: get the two DDS first for practice, and then experience the real thing with Nocturne.
Click to expand...

Well I think I will start DDS this afternoon! :D
 
B

Big Papa Husker

Member
Jucksalbe said:
Just remember that the story continues in DDS2, so you will probably want to play both. But they are only about half as long as Nocturne anyway.
Click to expand...

I have played a little under 2 hours so far. I'm really liking it. The battle system is really fun and the story is interesting so far.
 
S

Seda

Member
I never thought I'd get around to playing the Raidou games due to their prices but when they got reprinted I picked them up right away. I played through the first game pretty quickly in the last week. Overall I enjoyed it, but had a lot of things that were a bit annoying or irksome.

I went through the tutorial/prologue stuff in Raidou 2. Holy shit. Best first impressions for a direct sequel I think I ever had. 2 demons in battle, better camera, dodging, more combos, faster on field movement, a place to heal for free.






(DDS is really fun btw, enjoy. And don't spoil yourself on events in the sequel. Seriously.)
 
Y

yami4ct

Member
In preperation for SMT IV, I decided to start trying mainline SMT games. Started with trying out 1 and 2, but really couldn't get into them. First retro games that I really couldn't get into. Just too esoteric and not enough guidance. That combined with the minimalist graphics made the barrier of entry way to high for me.

After that, I tried Nocturne. Now that one stuck with me. I've gotten through the Mantra HQ so far. There have been some tough spots, Thor and Matador both gave me quite a bit of trouble, but I really love it. A great world and some fun combat. I can't wait to get further in. I know SMT IV will be a step down on budget and production values, but if it can have a similar level of world building and combat balance I'll lose myself to it for quite some time.
 
E

EvilKatarn

Member
How imperative is playing Devil Summoner 1 to fully grasping Devil Summoner 2?

Currently playing Strange Journey
I fused a Jimenez and a Bugaboo oh god
with Nocturne on standby. I think I got up to the Ose fight there.
 
S

Seda

Member
EvilKatarn said:
How imperative is playing Devil Summoner 1 to fully grasping Devil Summoner 2?

Currently playing Strange Journey
I fused a Jimenez and a Bugaboo oh god
with Nocturne on standby. I think I got up to the Ose fight there.
Click to expand...

You won't miss out on much at all if you start with Raidou 2. It's the same small set of characters and everything, but the story is completely unrelated. The sequel is a better game in almost every regard.

  • Faster field movement
  • No random battles in towns
  • A free healing place (in the first game you had to use items or pay a fee, which isn't unlike other SMT games however.)
  • A dynamic camera in battle
  • Much better weapon system
  • Case File sidequests (totally optional but just another thing to do)
  • Able to dodge in battle (a button press)
  • 2 Demons instead of 1
  • More tubes to hold demons at any one time, also X2 the number of demons available.

The sequel also uses a single MAG bar instead of MP for every demon. For example, say I have 700 MAG - all my demons skills detracts points from this single value. I wouldn't call this an improvement, it's just slightly different.

The only references to the first game are usually a returning minor character saying "Nice to see you again, Raidou."

Transfer bonuses are also insignificant, unlike Digital Devil Saga.
 
S

Seda

Member
Urban Scholar said:
*scratches chin* umm aside from a narrative point I don't remember anything else.
Click to expand...

Well DDS's transfer bonuses certainly aren't a required thing but there's stat bonuses, skills, accessories, and even a character for the final dungeon you can only get with a DDS1 save file, where in Raidou 2 it's just money and some free low level demons.
 
C

cluderi

Member
What's the best way to play SMT 1 & 2 ? Trying to pick up as many as I can with English subs or audio and I'm unsure with the older titles.
 
A

archnemesis

Member
The fan translations of the SNES games are your best bet. I would prefer to play the PS1 version, but I don't think the translation of it is finished yet.

It's fairly easy to get lost in it compared to later Shin Megami Tensei games, but otherwise it's a good game.
 
D

Data West

coaches in the WNBA
Somebody on 4chan just put an awesome idea in my head (I know, right?)

Raidou character action game by Platinum. Less RPG mechanics(But not stripped completely) with way better combat. Keep the summoning and all that.
 
J

Jessicat

Member
I'm gonna repost this news here too~

BIG NEWS in the Megaten figure world, the Megahouse Raidou figure now has a sculpt, check it out:
BLEzwV_CAAM0U42.jpg
Click to expand...
Source: Plastikitty
I wonder if we'll get other Raidou characters done up too [okay, this is just me wanting a Louis figure, lol]

But wait! IT GETS BETTER! FuRyu has confirmed that they will be making a prize figure of Hitoshura/Demi-Fiend! This is a different type of prize figure, instead of crane games, it will only be avaialble in some kind of lottery, so you can't pre-order it anywhere... the windfall I just earned at a local anime convention will probably go straight to buying this figure through some kind of proxy *sigh* |D Will be totally worth it of course. No images as of yet, it was just recently announced.
Source: Plastikitty

And even more news, there are a couple of figures from Devil Survivor 2 AND Labrys from P4A being done by Megahouse as well! Preview pic below [with more Raidou~] check out the article for more pics! The Devil Survivor figures seem to be slated for November release this year, unsure what's going on with Labrys or Raidou though [can't read kanji, lol]
30583-Header%20SMT.jpg
Click to expand...

Source: Tomopop and Plastikitty for DS2 figures
 
P

perfect free

Member
Is there any significance to the "ten" 転 in "Megami Tensei" being written a little lower than the other characters? Or is it just an aesthetic thing? (Probably just the latter, since it does look cool, but I've always wondered.)
 
Z

Zippedpinhead

Member
buddha0991 said:
post this here too
Click to expand...

This is pretty cool, though I will admit I only recognize the characters from SMT1-3, SMT IF, Devil Summoner, Soul Hackers, Raidou, Strange Journey, DDS Serph, and the persona games (include FeMC from Persona 3 portable)

Is top center from Devil Survivor? Exact center from the original Megami tensei?

I have no clue about bottom left, person to the left of Kyouji Kuzunoha from Devil Summoner, or the ones between dead center and Hitoshura.
 
T

TurnipFritters

Member
Zippedpinhead said:
This is pretty cool, though I will admit I only recognize the characters from SMT1-3, SMT IF, Devil Summoner, Soul Hackers, Raidou, Strange Journey, DDS Serph, and the persona games (include FeMC from Persona 3 portable)

Is top center from Devil Survivor? Exact center from the original Megami tensei?

I have no clue about bottom left, person to the left of Kyouji Kuzunoha from Devil Summoner, or the ones between dead center and Hitoshura.
Click to expand...

Top center is Devil Survivor 2. Exact center are Nakajima and Yumiko from Megami Tensei 1.

Bottom left girl is the heroine of Maken X, next to her is Devil Survivor 1's protagonist.

Left of Kyouji is the protagonist of SMT1, beneath him (and beside P4's hero) is the Boy with Earring from Persona 1.

The two characters standing above the Demi-fiend are the protagonist options for Shin Megami Tensei NINE.

Dude on the far right facing away from the viewer is the hero of Majin Tensei.
 
B

buddha0991

Member
TurnipFritters said:
amano maya
spiral nemesis hero
ronde hero
the last bibles
flynn the human
Click to expand...

How could I forget Maya. Spiral Nemesis guy was one i noticed too, we dont speak of Ronde, Last Bible guys true. Flynn the human is 2new4u and has a silly hair cut. I know how you feel about Aigis but I still consider her protag of The Answer so screw it, also toss in the P3 female mc cuz why not. We got a NINE rep, so might as well put in an IMAGINE rep, Snakeman I guess. Giten was poop so just forget that all together.
 
T

TurnipFritters

Member
buddha0991 said:
How could I forget Maya. Spiral Nemesis guy was one i noticed too, we dont speak of Ronde, Last Bible guys true. Flynn the human is 2new4u and has a silly hair cut. I know how you feel about Aigis but I still consider her protag of The Answer so screw it, also toss in the P3 female mc cuz why not. We got a NINE rep, so might as well put in an IMAGINE rep, Snakeman I guess. Giten was poop so just forget that all together.
Click to expand...

giten doesn't count because of what the title means
 
D

Data West

coaches in the WNBA
It's ok Tadano. I like you and your spahs suit more than everyone on there except the Demi Fiend and Aleph and Yu.

I don't like SRPGs(which is why I worry about SMT x FE)
 
A

Aeana

Member
Giten is so frigging bad, and yeah, it's not an official product at all. It really would be better if it wasn't even cited, especially not on the Megaten wiki.
 
D

Data West

coaches in the WNBA
They should remake SMT 2, but I wonder if they would do it old school style or in the same engine as SMT 2 with a third person running perspective.

It'll never happen anyways. And if it did, it will never come over like Persona Vita... Seriously, what the heck on that? Atlus is usually really good about putting out Persona titles over here, even super niche ones.
 
T

TurnipFritters

Member
Aeana said:
Giten is so frigging bad, and yeah, it's not an official product at all. It really would be better if it wasn't even cited, especially not on the Megaten wiki.
Click to expand...

did you play through the whole thing? i only got as far as the
sex scene with girlfriend
before i decided it was Not The Game For Me, and based on what i've heard it gets even worse
 
A

Aeana

Member
TurnipFritters said:
did you play through the whole thing? i only got as far as the
sex scene with girlfriend
before i decided it was Not The Game For Me, and based on what i've heard it gets even worse
Click to expand...
Yes, I played through all of the PC98 version. It's bad memories. :( The sex stuff is really, really gross because it ventures into guro territory.
 
R

randomkid

Member
I'm still looking forward to giving NINE a shot one day, anything that vaguely reminds me of Raidou can't be that bad!

In the mean time though, SMT2 is pretty pretty good.
 
R

randomkid

Member
I guess this might be the right place to ask since the other threads are even more dead. Playing through SMT2, I accidentally got through some random dungeon way early and beat Baphomet, the FAQ says I was supposed to get Masakado's Right Arm afterwards but I didn't get anything at all, Onamuchi just said thanks and peaced out. Can I come back and get it later, or am I totally boned? Aeana? CJ?
 
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