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[leonemesis]

On that note: Did they do anything about how utterly terrible the Tokyo World Map / directions are for someone who isn't familiar with Tokyo ?

Having world map demons clip & pathfind and more clearly marking what is and isn't solid barriers would be an enormous help

Yes, it is improved, objectives are clearly marked and barriers are properly identified in the world map. I didn´t have any issues with SMTIV, but I welcomed the small changes.

So, aside from the gameplay, character design and soundtrack, which I've already seen it's good, what do you say about the science fiction/cyberpunk-y part of the game? Is it darker or lighter than the first one when it comes to the game's themes and lore?

Well, the way the events unfold and some choices available makes the atmosphere darker, you feel like apocalypse is unfolding for real (now that I think of it, the title change makes even more sense), but the main protagonist and Asahi being so young, the dialogue feels common, more "light-hearted", if that´s even a word, haha.

All in all I felt it managed to do its own thing compared to SMT IV, which may or may not please those who played SMT IV and expected this or that, but at the end of the day I´m sure most RPG fans will have a blast with the game anyway as the gameplay and OST are top notch.

 

[Spieler Eins]

At least NIS is getting us Odin Sphere right in time for summer.

 

[hao chi]

This summer is going to kill my wallet and free time.

 

[Auron_Kale]

Probably the one thing I don't like about the cover is the font choice for Shin Megami Tensei (and the black case like in Japan).

The case I can deal with but the font kinda bothers me a bit as it looks too cramped.

 

[Hey_Blinkin]

I feel like at least once a week lately I've been thinking to myself "Man, it's a great time to love RPGs". SMT 4 was my favorite game of 2013 so this one has a lot to live up to.

 

[Andrew J.]

SMT IV: Apocalypse, Fire Emblem Fates, Dragon Quest VII and VIII, Final Fantasy XV, Star Ocean 5, Bravely Second, Tokyo Mirage Sessions, Persona 5, 7th Dragon III, I am Setsuna, Pokemon Sun and Moon...2016 really is shaping up to be the year of the JRPG.

Yes, just like every year. But still.

 

[Thoraxes]

SMT IV: Apocalypse, Fire Emblem Fates, Dragon Quest VII and VIII, Final Fantasy XV, Star Ocean 5, Bravely Second, Tokyo Mirage Sessions, Persona 5, 7th Dragon III, I am Setsuna, Pokemon Sun and Moon...2016 really is shaping up to be the year of the JRPG.

Yes, just like every year. But still.

Finally I'll have no more summer drought.

 

[Chibot]

I'm just glad to see it confirmed. The tile is ok- doesn't make any difference to me what they call it.

 

[Rabid Dwarf 76]

SMT IV: Apocalypse, Fire Emblem Fates, Dragon Quest VII and VIII, Final Fantasy XV, Star Ocean 5, Bravely Second, Tokyo Mirage Sessions, Persona 5, 7th Dragon III, I am Setsuna, Pokemon Sun and Moon...2016 really is shaping up to be the year of the JRPG.

Yes, just like every year. But still.

I have tears of joy right now. It's a wonderful year indeed!

 

[Grim Patron]

I kind of regret not buying the SMTIV JP guide I saw in a bookstore in Singapore because I bought everything else I could find related to SMTIV. Also kind of bummed at the box art not using the SMTIV style logo with apocalypse written below.

 

[Hibiki Kurosawa]

Fuuuuuuck YEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[Voliko]

Won't be getting this unless the battle system isn't busted and the dungeons aren't FF13 tier like the last game.

Also , dat Atlus tax

 

[Mcdohl]

SMT IV: Apocalypse, Fire Emblem Fates, Dragon Quest VII and VIII, Final Fantasy XV, Star Ocean 5, Bravely Second, Tokyo Mirage Sessions, Persona 5, 7th Dragon III, I am Setsuna, Pokemon Sun and Moon...2016 really is shaping up to be the year of the JRPG.

Yes, just like every year. But still.

Would Dark Souls III count? Because that's another big title.

Also: World of Final Fantasy, The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel II, Digimon Story: Cyber Sleuth, Final Fantasy Explorers, Final Fantasy IX (PC re-release), Mario & Luigi: Paper Jam, etc.

 

[BLACK AMERICAN PSYCHO]

Final was such a bad title (caused so much confusion). Should have just been IV-2 or even V, despite being a direct sequel.

 

[Elaugaufein]

Final was such a bad title (caused so much confusion). Should have just been IV-2 or even V, despite being a direct sequel.

It may be a little confusing though since II was a direct sequel to I but III is almost something completely different while IV is sorta of a spiritual successor to II despite being in the same series.

 

[jwhit28]

That song is delicious. Thanks for sharing.

The music was my favorite part of the first game, the few songs I've heard from Apocalypse have matched or exceeded that quality.

 

[coopolon]

This makes me excited to replay smt iv. But then I remember the map. Damn it that map. Really glad to hear they've improved upon it

 

[marmoka]

I've been thinking about this, and I concluded we shouldn't blame Atlus for bringing the games so late to Europe.

We must blame Nintendo for the region free. It didn't let us play the game imported when it launched, and we had to wait more than a year. Same with this game, we won't be able to play it months because of region lock.

Don't blame Atlus, they are doing their best. Blame Nintendo. And just in case, I'm not an Atlus fanboy, I only like SMT games.

 

[Jb]

Don't blame Atlus, they are doing their best. Blame Nintendo. And just in case, I'm not an Atlus fanboy, I only like SMT games.

Nintendo's region locking sucks, but at the same time Atlus could have worked out a more robust solution to bring their games to PAL countries by now. There's a pretty big JRPG fanbase here and from a business standpoint it's a shame not to capitalize on that in the way publishers like Bandai Namco have.

 

[Fandangox]

Everyone hear this: https://youtu.be/xCkmjDmKTxk

This is pretty good.

 

[Andrew J.]

Would Dark Souls III count? Because that's another big title.

I tried to limit my list to "the traditional Japanese RPG, God bless you ma'am."

 

[Hylian7]

Final was such a bad title (caused so much confusion). Should have just been IV-2 or even V, despite being a direct sequel.

It may be a little confusing though since II was a direct sequel to I but III is almost something completely different while IV is sorta of a spiritual successor to II despite being in the same series.

I kind of think the title Final doesn't exactly mean what it means in English. I feel like it was meant to be something like "the end times" or something like that. In English, it would sound more like a remaster than a new game.

SMT games have had plenty of title shenanigans over the years. Strange Journey was going to be SMTIV, but wasn't because it didn't take place in Tokyo. Nocturne is called Lucifer's Call in Europe, and Nocturne everywhere else. It didn't have the III outside Japan because SMT1 and 2 never released outside Japan.

Many spin-off titles didn't have the SMT branding in Japan, but did outside the US. Many of them were labeled with "Megami Ibunroku", meaning " Strange Tale of the Goddess ". Persona and Devil Survivor were examples of this. For Persona, the SMT branding outside of Japan was stopped later on, because it became a known brand of it's own.

 

[BlackJace]

Title's good, but I wonder why they didn't go with SMT IV: Final Act or something.

 

[Eolz]

I've been thinking about this, and I concluded we shouldn't blame Atlus for bringing the games so late to Europe.

We must blame Nintendo for the region free. It didn't let us play the game imported when it launched, and we had to wait more than a year. Same with this game, we won't be able to play it months because of region lock.

Don't blame Atlus, they are doing their best. Blame Nintendo. And just in case, I'm not an Atlus fanboy, I only like SMT games.

Both are to blame there (including Sega), your post is ridiculous and completely short-sighted.
Importing the game doesn't solve the problem.

 

[Kyonashi]

SMTIV Apocalypse is dated September 20th. Amazon is usually pretty good w/ these dates. Persona's anniversary date. https://twitter.com/Wario64/status/721068557438586880

September 20th release date?

 

[AerialAir]

Both are to blame there (including Sega), your post is ridiculous and completely short-sighted.
Importing the game doesn't solve the problem.

Yes, all of them are to blame for. But you know what really pisses me off? Is that Atlus is publishing OTHER dev's games in Europe as Atlus USA, yet they can't publish their own game? Wut? And yes, examples:

Straight out of the European PS Store, published by Atlus USA, developed by ACE Team.

 

[CrimsonFist]

September 20th release date?

Placeholder until there's an official announcement . Could be accurate, or could end up a few weeks later if you go by previous Atlus placeholder dates.

Still, can't be that much later than that if they're saying Summer 2016.

 

[Finalow]

no one posted atlus.gif?

can't wait for my 2019 Apocalypse Digital Deluxe Edition.

Spoiler

I like Shin Megami Tensei IV: Final way more.

 

[Thickstone]

no one posted atlus.gif?

can't wait for my 2019 Apocalypse Digital Deluxe Edition.

Spoiler

I like Shin Megami Tensei IV: Final way more.

LOL

/dead

 

[AerialAir]

no one posted atlus.gif?

can't wait for my 2019 Apocalypse Digital Deluxe Edition.

Spoiler

I like Shin Megami Tensei IV: Final way more.

 

[M3d10n]

Dat Atlus tax. Will wait for the inevitable eShop sale this time.

 

[KLoWn]

no one posted atlus.gif?

can't wait for my 2019 Apocalypse Digital Deluxe Edition.

Perfect

 

[rhandino]

HOW DID I MISS THIS! YAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAS!!!

I'm ready to dive in once more in that Tokyo wasteland and the cover + trailer looks amazing.

EDIT: Eeek, I can't believe that some people are surprised at the ATLUS tax being a thing with this game. smh... the only thing that makes me a bit sad is that there is not going to be another flawless cross-promotion like the one when SMTIV and Fire Emblem: Awakening launched =/

 

[Hylian7]

HOW DID I MISS THIS! YAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAS!!!

I'm ready to dive in once more in that Tokyo wasteland and the cover + trailer looks amazing.

EDIT: Eeek, I can't believe that some people are surprised at the ATLUS tax being a thing with this game. smh... the only thing that makes me a bit sad is that there is not going to be another flawless cross-promotion like the one when SMTIV and Fire Emblem: Awakening launched =/

We don't necessarily know they won't do that kind of promotion. If I remember correctly, they didn't announce that until close to SMTIV's US release.

I could see it happening again with FE: Fates.

Also if the release date really is September, that is a lot sooner than I expected we would be getting it (before this was announced).

 

[Andrew J.]

September 20th release date?

The trailer said "summer," and that date is just before the autumn equinox, so I guess it was technically correct.

The best kind of correct.

 

[Jisgsaw]

I think I found where the source of your problems come from.

We're not a big company. At all. Minus a few admin and accounting people (and excluding our QA staff, who amount to maybe 10 people at max at any given time), there's maybe 30 people in production/marketing/sales working on multiple titles a year.

While I understand you aren't the biggest publisher around, what I can't understand is why companies that are (AFAIK) similarly small (e.g. XSeed, NISA) manage to do almost simultaneous releases.
From an external point of view, it really seems like a systemic management problem that is avoidable, as shown by other companies. Like someone said, EU releases really seem like an afterthought after the US release went through, which from what I gathered from the publishing process, is the most inefficient way to go about it.

 

[StereoVsn]

September 20 date is only 10 days before Final Fantasy XV. That's a dangerous release date for NA, IMO. A lot of people will be budgeting for that.

 

[JonathanNemo]

I do wonder if the $50 price tag is a bit high, if it recycles as much from SMT IV as I've heard. The story doesn't feel like it's got as strong of a hook as the original.

But then, the DLC and finale is really sweet looking.

I'll totally get it when I have the time to burn, maybe a few years later.

 

[ShinRPGamer]

Atlus has announced that Shin Megami Tensei IV Final, released in Japan on February 10, 2016, will be localized as Shin Megami Tensei IV: Apocalypse for the Nintendo 3DS in North America, in summer 2016.

That's a relatively quick turnout. What's the Canadi-

Shin Megami Tensei IV: Apocalypse will be released at retail stores and on the eShop, and it will cost $49.99 US / $64.99 CA.

Oh come on, really!? What's Persona 5 going to cost here, $105 dollars?

 

[Parakeetman]

That's a relatively quick turnout. What's the Canadi-



Oh come on, really!? What's Persona 5 going to cost here, $105 dollars?

Isnt that only like around 50 USD converted though? The 64.99 CAD into USD that is.

 

[ShinRPGamer]

Isnt that only like around 50 USD converted though? The 64.99 CAD into USD that is.

Unfortunately. But regardless, at 65 dollars, it really hurts my interest in getting the game.

 

[Man God]

That's a relatively quick turnout. What's the Canadi-



Oh come on, really!? What's Persona 5 going to cost here, $105 dollars?

It'd be closer to 90 if P5 had the Atlus Tax, which it won't.

 

[SolVanderlyn]

I wonder if you can play this without having ever played SMTIV, or any SMT ever.

 

[mrmickfran]

Giving Persona 5 Atlus tax would be suicide.

 

[names2hard4you]

Isnt that only like around 50 USD converted though? The 64.99 CAD into USD that is.

It doesn't really work like that. Our games used to cost the same as US games did. Our dollar tanked, and our pay hasn't gone up in the slightest. We went from paying $60 for games to $90 in a few short months.

 

[Hylian7]

I wonder if you can play this without having ever played SMTIV, or any SMT ever.

I haven't played the import, so I couldn't tell you for sure, however I know there are characters and a ton of references that will be lost on you without having played SMTIV. However you can still probably play it and it can stand on it's own just fine.

As for the rest of the series, you should be fine. I do highly recommend the other games though.

 

[StereoVsn]

Giving Persona 5 Atlus tax would be suicide.

Everyone would still buy that... unfortunately. Atlus tax is irksome, no doubt, but on the other hand, their games drop in price like a rock 6 months later.

 

[True Fire]

I wonder if you can play this without having ever played SMTIV, or any SMT ever.

It starts off 3/4 of the way through SMTIV, so it's a pretty definitive "no."

 

[Parakeetman]

I wonder if you can play this without having ever played SMTIV, or any SMT ever.

Feel free to if you want to be totally lost in whats going on.

As someone else mentioned its fairly connected and can be considered spoilers for IV if you ever decide to go back and play it.

So would most def play IV first. If you dont like IV the chances of you liking this would be slim.

 

[toastyToast]

no one posted atlus.gif?

can't wait for my 2019 Apocalypse Digital Deluxe Edition.

Spoiler

I like Shin Megami Tensei IV: Final way more.

I like how Australia and New Zealand aren't even on the map