3DS Exclusive JRPG Shin Megami Tensei IV: Apocalypse Gets Release Date and Trailer

Today Atlus USA announced that Shin Megami Tensei IV: Apocalypse will release exclusively for 3DS on September 20th.

[thepatientgamer]

Is SMTIV worth it? The first one on 3DS. It looks cool just haven't dropped the $20 on it because I haven't been sold on it yet...

[MoveTheGlow]

I would say wait for this one. This isn't a "second" SMTIV, it seems to be an improvement and a response to the earlier one's issues.

Vanilla SMTIV was an awesome RPG for its time, in that it was very focused, had a nice enough ending, and... well, it was a SMT game with all the usual fusions and negotiations, so it was good. It's their b-tier music guy, so you don't get that Persona / Devil Summoner sonic gold, but it's sufficient. Same with the art - they had some guest artists and a backup guy doing the demon designs, and sometimes it really showed. It's not bad - near the end, you get to see some bizarre stuff - but it's not up to snuff with what other SMTs brought to the table.

SMTIV was especially lacking substantial side content and more compelling characters, often feeling like a long list of missions with a paper-thin reason to do them instead of a narrative. The graphics were janky, but they're always a little weird in SMT, and it's not like this is a home console release.

This version looks like they're fixing exactly those issues, with additional content and characters that look much more interesting and - idunno, "human?" - than the original. The three-or-so characters you interact with in the original game were just see-through - they had a bland archetype based on how the endings work in SMT games, and that was it. That's why I'd wait - SMTIV is nice, but then you might not want to play this seemingly improved version later, and that might sour your taste for the game overall.

My recommendation is to play the remastered Soul Hackers, which is also available in the shop, or to find the DS game SMT: Strange Journey, which is as strange as the title suggests but fun, while you wait for this September release.

[Hold_It]

@movetheglow
I agree with most of what you said, but this is a continuation of SMTIV.

@PatientGamer
It's hard to tell you whether it's worth it for you or not, because I don't know if you like challenging turn based JRPGs, or like Shin Megami Tensei in general. If you're a huge persona fan, you'll probably dislike this game, because it is very hard in comparison to those games. If you don't plan ahead for boss fights, and the unknown the game will punish you for it. If you're a fan of SMT III Nocturne, I think you'll like this game a lot. This feels like the closest thing we will get to having a Nocturne successor for a long time with the exception of the sequel/continuation that is SMT IV Apocalypse.

Just know the game does become easier after you get through the first three bosses. The beginning of the game has a very huge difficulty curve if you're not playing these games with a guide, or if you haven't played anything like these games before at all. After that, you don't need to plan as much, but it still helps a lot. If you die about three times in a row you unlock an easier difficulty you can switch on the fly in the options menu. Also in this game, you can save anywhere so that is very nice to have. I'd play this before SMT Apocalypse, because of spoilers, and because if SMT IV Apocalypse is better, you might not come back to this..

[MoveTheGlow]

It's really a sequel? I feel like Atlus hasn't made this clear...

[Hold_It]

Yeah, it's a sequel, because Narvarre is in it, and so is Isabeau and Flynn, Walter and Johnathon . I think the game is a continuation of Isabeau's ending or it might be a combination of all three endings. You're playing as a different protagonist though. They do need to clarify it for those who haven't played IV. I haven't beaten IV yet, but I've got decently far in it. Some of the things from the different characters endings are canon and are continued in this game.

Kinda like how Deus Ex Mankind Divded is a sequel to Human Revolution, but they are taking things from all three endings of that and are making them canon for Mankind Divded, and the story is being continued.

http://megamitensei.wikia.c...

NOTE: ANYONE WHO HASN'T BEAT SMT 4 DON'T READ PAST THE SUMMARY ON THIS LINK.

[thepatientgamer]

A big thank you to @MoveTheGlow and @Hold_It

Thank you for the input. I am a HUGE persona fan (Specifically P3), and have not dabbled in SMT before. Seeing as to how I have a 3DS and SMTIV is rather cheap at the moment I thought I would play through it. Granted, story is a huge draw for me when it comes to an RPG that I'll be devoting 100+ hours in. And world building is huge as well. I've seen that the story and characters of SMT IV have been highly criticized; however, I just chalked that up to reviewers not 'getting' it, since more often than not they don't know what they're getting into with such a 'JRPG' game. Apocalypse looks really cool, and I would rather go in with the know-how of what the hell is going on.

[OtakuDJK1NG-Rory]

Its a sequel so yes you should play the first one. That like saying you should play Bravely Second before Default because of the improvement they made.

[Hold_It]

@thepatientgamer

You're welcome! Persona 3 was great, and one of the best entries in the series imo. I'd say the game requires a bit more preparation than P3, but it's better than you're more accustomed to P3 than P4, cause P4G gets you used to not fusing a lot, and not really being prepared, and if you have those habits, you will want to break them. World Building has in my opinion, something SMT has always had over the Persona games. P3 has a great story, and if you like that, you'll really like Nocturne, and SMT IV/ Apocalypse.

If world building, and multiple endings is something you like, you will like the SMT series a lot. If you're interested in DDS (Digital Devil Saga) or Nocturne (SMT III), they are both on PS3's PS2 classics library, and are also on regular PS2, and they can be emulated on the PS2 emulator on PC. Soul Hackers was originally on Sega Saturn if I remember correctly, and is pretty fun as well, but just know that the exploration and a lot of the gameplay is similar to Persona 1, where the dungeon movement is in first person, and you have to negotiate with demons (one of the biggest things SMT has besides being known for its difficulty is having to negotiate with demons to get them to join your party rather than finding their persona card).

Yeah, reviewers kinda didn't get the game. Game has really good graphics for a 3DS game, pretty good music (Nocturne, and Strange Journey, and Digital Devil Saga 1 & 2 probably have the best in the franchise imo). Persona got really big with Persona 4 Golden's release in the US and Europe, and since it was the most accesible one in the series, more people got into it and it became more mainstream around the globe rather than it staying as a kind of niche game. I wouldn't be surprised if people came from P4G expecting it to be the same, and got very upset with the difficulty and judged it harshly because of that. The characters are alright, not really amazing, but not really garbage either. Kinda average or better than average anime archetypes.