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Atlus announces Shin Megami Tensei: Strange Journey (DS)
- Thread starter duckroll
- Start date
Awesome Animals
Member
I am definitely interested in this, I am playing through Devil Survivor right now (and would be playing instead of typing if my DS wasn't charging ><), and it definitely has me interested in the other entries of the series...
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ZombieMaster
Banned
I will be more excited if I can have a SMT game in HD.
Pureauthor
Member
ZombieMaster said:
Read the first post. The whole thing.
All you heathens to finish Devil Survivor. Get off yer butts and get crackin! It needs more demons and a better weakness system. But overall a very fun game (which will be refined in the next iteration I am sure).
As for this announcement, I don't think anything could have topped this. 300 Demons, first person EO vibe, negotiations, compendium....gonna be awesome. I have not seen the scans but what everyone is saying is very promising. It does sound alot like SMT4 as well.
As for this announcement, I don't think anything could have topped this. 300 Demons, first person EO vibe, negotiations, compendium....gonna be awesome. I have not seen the scans but what everyone is saying is very promising. It does sound alot like SMT4 as well.
Awesome Animals
Member
As far as the series goes, is it worth going all the way to the beginning? Are their games worth skipping? Best place to start? I am always interested in experiencing additional gameplay in the same universe.
Looking at the screens makes it seem like they ditched the Command/Passive/Racial skill distinction from Raidou 2 and DS. Am I missing something due to being illiterate?
I really hope they keep the vast improvements to the fusion system from those games. Selecting what skills to pass along, the ability to outright select the final product rather than which two demons to fuse, an in-game demon search engine, a more transparent "accident" system...
DS generally had the best party customization mechanics in the series.
The search feature in Devil Survivor was probably the best change (or at least tied with selectable skill setting) to the Fusion system in that game. Not sure if they should keep the Magnetite post-fusion skill setting though. Anyway, looking forward to this as both a fan of the SMT games and the EO games. I hope they up the difficulty though or at least a setting for it. I want the game to make me cry at the difficulty
Yeah, there's definitely some new mechanics I didn't like, namely the magnetite system, or that skills that will eventually be learned fill up a slot you can't overwrite at fusion.
I really hope they keep the vast improvements to the fusion system from those games. Selecting what skills to pass along, the ability to outright select the final product rather than which two demons to fuse, an in-game demon search engine, a more transparent "accident" system...
DS generally had the best party customization mechanics in the series.
The search feature in Devil Survivor was probably the best change (or at least tied with selectable skill setting) to the Fusion system in that game. Not sure if they should keep the Magnetite post-fusion skill setting though. Anyway, looking forward to this as both a fan of the SMT games and the EO games. I hope they up the difficulty though or at least a setting for it. I want the game to make me cry at the difficulty
Yeah, there's definitely some new mechanics I didn't like, namely the magnetite system, or that skills that will eventually be learned fill up a slot you can't overwrite at fusion.
The search feature in Devil Survivor was probably the best change (or at least tied with selectable skill setting) to the Fusion system in that game. Not sure if they should keep the Magnetite post-fusion skill setting though. Anyway, looking forward to this as both a fan of the SMT games and the EO games. I hope they up the difficulty though or at least a setting for it. I want the game to make me cry at the difficulty :lol
Yaweee said:
Well, I don't think it would be right to do the Command/Passive/Racial thing for an actual SMT game honestly. It really limits the demon choices when you're playing this way. Instead the traditional SMT limitation of simply having x skill slots on every demon, and being able to fill those with whatever, is much more to my liking.
There's no reason why I should be limited to having 3 command skills, if I feel the demon has nothing to benefit from passive skills at all. It kinda forces every demon to be kinda mixed, and while that works in games designed for that sort of mix like Raidou's action gameplay or DS' SRPG gameplay, I don't think it's ideal for a normal dungeon crawling RPG with tons of encounters.
I'm glad to see the fusion menu is back to the traditional one too, because the one in DS fucking sucks honestly. It's a pain in the ass navigating it because it's just so badly designed. The traditional fusion table is so well designed and readable that I see no reason why they could have done what they did in DS, other than to emulate some corny COMP application like they're supposed to be using in the game.
woah! never expected Strange Journey to be DS bound! total surprise for me! Cant wait for more info about this one and more importantly a US release 
I just started playing SMT this year through P3 and P4 and they're both awesome RPGs and the whole SMT series in general. I would really love to branch out to other games in the series especially Nocturne but I hate how its so rare here in my country. Well, this announcement really made me crave for Nocturne again... Guess I'll just try out SMT I and II first...
I just started playing SMT this year through P3 and P4 and they're both awesome RPGs and the whole SMT series in general. I would really love to branch out to other games in the series especially Nocturne but I hate how its so rare here in my country. Well, this announcement really made me crave for Nocturne again...
Guess I'll just try out SMT I and II first...â Narayan
Member
FUCK YES CAN'T WAIT!
SmokingBarrelX said:
You can start anywhere in the main SMT and Persona series. Digital Devil Saga and Devil Summoner both have sequels. Lucky for you a thread was just started about this :lol
http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=368941
duckroll said:
I agree, for the most part. I liked the fusion menu in DS because you could freely toggle between reagents and resulting demons. That could be done in the regular grid, though (and let's hope it is)
The screens make it look like it borrows a page from Persona 1, with different colors for the OKAY circle denoting different degrees of compatibility.
duckroll said:
Yes to all of this. I want the search portion out personally, I really like mixing and matching to see what you will get (sometimes you get a real prize in a special "you can only make me with this combo" demon.). And like duck said, fusion table is all you need to go and make an effective and useful party.
One touch they added with 4, and I hope they keep, is the ability to look at skill that you will learn next level in the menu/when fusing (before you are choosing skills to drop when you have too many, like in P3 and Nocturne). This helps alot for trying to figure out exactly how useful a skill is and planning what you want.
So are there any confirmation whether drawing maps ala EO is in the game? EO's strength is always its dungeons that are intricately designed in terms of both gameplay and graphics, and SMT's downside is often that its dungeons are often very tedious and boring past the first few minutes. EO's class system isn't that great either as it often requires very specific skill tree setups to get an efficient party member. Take both of their good points and make it into a game and whatever that comes out could be .... totally out of this world. But it might also become too complicated after mixing them up as SMT and EO aren't exactly the most casual of games.
As for the devil fusion systems, all I'm for is less randomness in them and whatever that helps me from looking up information in a guide. I'm not that big of a fan of Devil Survivor compared to other SMT games after playing it, but I especially liked Devil Survivor's demon list that tells you what demons you could fuse and what demons you need for them just right there. No need to look for charts and calculate what base levels their levels add up to... Make that process simpler and you can make the game harder for all I care.
Also, other than the buff/debuffs shenanigans and agility/misses being so vital, Press Turn (SMT3) is more complex to work with while One More (Persona3/4) is much more simpler and turns the battle in your favor more easier. Extra Turn in Devil Survivor is not that different from Persona's, except for the randomness that you start battles with which I absolutely detest and the ability to take turns away from the enemy on top of getting your own extra turns.
That said, <3 DS. Best system ever etc. etc.
As for the devil fusion systems, all I'm for is less randomness in them and whatever that helps me from looking up information in a guide. I'm not that big of a fan of Devil Survivor compared to other SMT games after playing it, but I especially liked Devil Survivor's demon list that tells you what demons you could fuse and what demons you need for them just right there. No need to look for charts and calculate what base levels their levels add up to... Make that process simpler and you can make the game harder for all I care.
Also, other than the buff/debuffs shenanigans and agility/misses being so vital, Press Turn (SMT3) is more complex to work with while One More (Persona3/4) is much more simpler and turns the battle in your favor more easier. Extra Turn in Devil Survivor is not that different from Persona's, except for the randomness that you start battles with which I absolutely detest and the ability to take turns away from the enemy on top of getting your own extra turns.
That said, <3 DS. Best system ever etc. etc.
OokieSpookie
Banned
Looks fantastic, can not wait.
I am liking the old school feel to it
I am liking the old school feel to it
KeioSquad2
Member
I never played the old school SMT's, is it like old ass western pc rpgs...?( ugh) Or is it just a first person Jrpg....? I want to be hype too, damnit!!
So, just to be clear, this is SMT4, correct? Or another spin off? I'm not so sure about the tactics style of the SMT: DS since I've already got Disgaea and FF:TA2 for my tactics fix (and I've yet to beat FF:TA2 despite about 80 hours in the game... long game is long)
Can't wait to find out more about it, though. SMT games are always good for story and OH GOD DEMONS ALL OVER MY FACE!
Can't wait to find out more about it, though. SMT games are always good for story and OH GOD DEMONS ALL OVER MY FACE!
KeioSquad2 said:
First person JRPG. Probably movement along the overworld with a little cursor though.
Althane said:So, just to be clear, this is SMT4, correct? Or another spin off? I'm not so sure about the tactics style of the SMT
Can't wait to find out more about it, though. SMT games are always good for story and OH GOD DEMONS ALL OVER MY FACE!
Spinoff, but closer to normal SMT than anything.
OldDirtyClooney
Banned
Awesome! Day one for sure.
But if this isn't SMT4, I wonder when that is gonna come? The staff working on this sure makes it seem like number four, but why not call it that then? Just because it's on the DS?.. pffft.
But if this isn't SMT4, I wonder when that is gonna come? The staff working on this sure makes it seem like number four, but why not call it that then? Just because it's on the DS?.. pffft.
OldDirtyClooney said:
I'm pretty sure Hashino will be directing SMT4 himself, if not at least producing it. This is produced by Kaneko, so it's clear that it's something for fans of SMT and Kaneko art (much like how Devil Summoner was) as opposed to the on-going Persona releases. I doubt very much that Hashino would want SMT4 to return to a first person view anyway, especially since SMT3 worked so well.
Strange Journey is mostly likely an idea born out of how much fucking sense it makes to create a great oldschool serious SMT game on the DS using the technology and knowledge they already gained from two EO games. Devil Survivor was probably conceived at around the same time, since if they were going to be porting demon sprites over to the DS, they might as well get maximum bang for their buck.
OldDirtyClooney said:
Well, the proper SMT games have all taken place in post-apocalyptic Tokyo (or slightly before), with the central conflict at least partially influenced by the Paradise Lost version of Christianity. Maybe they just didn't want to go with that setting or plot again.
charlequin
Banned
Totakeke said:
Based on the screens, I'm guessing it maps stuff for you but you can annotate it.
It's really just a matter of good user-interface. If it's possible to design any demon out of the skills you have available, then it should be easy to do. There's no reason to force people to sit there cancelling over and over just to get a result that the game allows for.
Well, Once More is designed for a different purpose -- to work in a game where you control only one PC and do all your fusing with the intent of powering up that character.
Althane said:
It's a "real" Shin Megami Tensei game that isn't SMT4. $50 says there will be another game later on that is called "Shin Megami Tensei 4" and which more closely resembles an evolution of Nocturne than this, which is like a fusion of newer series elements back into an evolved version of the early first-person SMT style.
I'm pretty interested in seeing the character customization systems in Strange Journey. The article makes it very clear that the Demonica Suit is upgradeable in terms of applications and functions. While some of these functions are stuff which you would on the bottom screen, or stuff to affect your ability to progress in the dungeons or environments, they also show the armory on board the Red Sprite, where you can buy equipment of some sort. The equipment selected in the screenshot is a Surpriser, which increases the chance of you getting first initiative in battles, and it also notes that it is "Size: 2" which indicates to me that the suit will have equipment slots of some sort, and different equipment types of different sizes can be fitted onto the suit. I really want to find out more.... ^^;
darkwings said:
Apparently this is a spinoff unrelated to previous spin offs, but still related in some what to the main SMT series. (Basically, it's a spin off that's related to the same core games that all the other spin offs are related to). So no, I don't think this is Persona 5.
OldDirtyClooney
Banned
duckroll said:
Well, that does make sense.
Anyhoo, I'll goble this and the eventual number four up no matter what the name is. Hopefully the localization don't take too much time. (How long did it take for Devil Survivor to make it to the US?)
OldDirtyClooney said:
Devil Survivor was released in Japan in Jan, announced for the US in Feb, and released in June. Persona PSP was released in Japan in April, and will be released for the US in Sept. Since the turn around time for these two titles are about 5 months, it would be reasonable to expect that Strange Journey will not be released any SOONER than 5 months after the Japanese release. It might take longer, depending on how much work there is to do on it, so I wouldn't expect it out in the US until March to June next year.
charlequin
Banned
duckroll said:
I'm really excited about this, because one of my biggest "disappointments" with Nocturne (scare quotes because Nocturne is obviously fucking amazing) was a lack of equipment. I'm really excited by the idea that in addition to fusing demons to fill out my party, I can also equip a variety of different equipment pieces that give me various combat and exploration capabilities!
OldDirtyClooney
Banned
duckroll said:
Well, boo-urns to that!
duckroll said:Well, aside from equipment returning, the good news is that we KNOW there are weapons in SMT:SJ. How do we know this? The physical attack elements are separated into slash and shoot. Finally, a return to GUNS in SMT!
Since I've never played SMT1 and 2, and all the other intepretations I've played do have guns (except Persona 4, at least so far (don't tell me!))... I assume that SMT1 and 2 had guns? Or at least, guns that were decidedly guns, rather than Aigis' piercing weapons?
At least they were good in Raidou Kuzuhona. Empty a clip into a demon and stun it. I like that.
charlequin
Banned
OldDirtyClooney said:Well, boo-urns to that!
You have Persona Remake to tide you over!