Shin Megami Tensei V: Vengeance

[i][b]Review EN/RU (Firstly in English / Затем на русском)[/b][/i] [h2]The Best JRPG Gameplay I've Ever Experienced[/h2] https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3720826477 I won't pretend to be some kind of JRPG expert, but I've played most of Atlus' modern titles, along with plenty of games from other developers and series. The Press Turn system makes every battle tense and rewarding, largely because it punishes mistakes just as much as it rewards good decisions. You can earn extra turns by exploiting enemy weaknesses, but you can just as easily lose them by missing an attack or hitting an enemy that nulls, drains, or repels your damage. I played on Hard, and I think the game's balance is quite good—even if it's not perfect. The opening hours are challenging, the midgame loses a bit of momentum (outside of bosses, regular encounters rarely feel threatening), and then the optional superbosses at the end will absolutely put your build and your understanding of the mechanics to the test. Consumable items are genuinely useful and can completely turn a battle around when used at the right moment. Demon fusion has never been this convenient. As always with Atlus, the UI is beautiful—although I still think Persona has the edge in terms of style. The soundtrack is absolutely incredible and had me hooked within minutes. And the demon designs... well... let's just say it's probably for the best Atlus hasn't introduced demon dating yet, because I might have completely lost my mind. [h2]That said, the game does have some genuine weaknesses:[/h2] [list] [*] [h3]The story is extremely minimalist.[/h3] And, in my opinion, it simply isn't engaging enough to carry multiple playthroughs. So if you're not sure whether you'll replay the game—or you're certain you'll only finish it once—[b][i]take the girl's hand.[/i][/b] Yes, I know. That sounds a little ominous. Trust me. Yoko is a fantastic character, her route does a much better job developing many of the supporting cast, and—most importantly—you'll get four absolutely incredible villainesses. The central conflict becomes much more personal, several boss fights gain additional emotional weight, and, of course, you'll eventually be able to recruit all four demon girls. [*] [h3]The open world becomes repetitive.[/h3] To be fair, the maps have excellent vertical design, searching for secrets is fun during your first playthrough, and although many demon quests are fairly straightforward, quite a few of them surprised me with their humor and creativity. Unfortunately, once I started NG+, I quickly realized how tiring it was to run through the same deserts all over again. It doesn't help that only one of the four major regions received meaningful additions for the new story route. The other three are almost entirely reused. [*] [h3]SEGA and the DLC.[/h3] As usual, Sega and Atlus locked several pay-to-win progression boosters behind paid DLC. To be fair, the game doesn't really require grinding... unless you're the kind of player who enjoys creating absurdly powerful demons. For example, I wanted to turn Mermaid into a legitimate endgame powerhouse—and I managed to do exactly that. But if your goal is to build several early-game demons with endgame-level stats, or simply keep your favorite low-level companions viable throughout the entire game, you'll either have to spend an enormous amount of time farming stat-boosting items... ...or buy the DLC that dramatically speeds up the entire process. Personally, I'm not a fan of monetization like this, and I think it deserves criticism. [/list] https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3730513354 Despite those flaws, I ended up binging the entire game. The superbosses beat me into the ground more than once. Some of the side quests had me laughing out loud. Several tracks immediately found their way into my playlist. By the time the credits rolled, I walked away more than satisfied. If you enjoy turn-based RPGs and have somehow skipped this one, I'd wholeheartedly recommend giving it a chance. [hr][/hr] [h2]Лучший JRPG-геймплей, что мне только довелось испытать.[/h2] Я не буду строить из себя гуру жанра, но поиграл и многие современные игры Атлус, и некоторые игры других серий и разрабов. Press Turn система делает бои напряжными и увлекательными, в том числе - благодаря наказаниям. Можно как выигрывать ходы, так и потерять их, промахнувшись/ударив в null/drain/repel. Я играл на сложном, и баланс на мой взгляд выстроен вполне неплохо, хотя и не идеально. Потненько в начале, середина немного провисает (кроме боссов, особо враги не напрягают), ну и опциональные супербоссы в конце дают прикурить. Расходники полезны и в нужный момент могут перевернуть бой. Слияние демонов еще никогда не было настолько удобным. UI как обычно у этой студии приятен глазу, хотя и не настолько шикарен, как в персоне. OST просто убойный и зацепил меня с первых же минут. Дизайны демонов... ух... скажу лишь, хорошо, что Атлусы систему свиданий с демонами не ввели, иначе можно было бы потерять голову полностью. https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3726757235 [h2]Но есть у игры и объективные слабости:[/h2] [list] [*] [h3]История крайне минималистична.[/h3] И, на мой взгляд, точно не увлекательна для нескольких прохождений. Поэтому, если не уверены, сколько раз будете проходить (или если уверены, что только раз...) - [b][i]возьмите девушку за руку[/i][/b]. Да, да, знаю, звучит страшновато, но не пожалеете. Юко и сама клевая, и другие НПС раскрываются в ее истории лучше, и, самое главное, вы получите 4 шикарных злодеек. Сам конфликт будет более личным, босс-файты интереснее, и, конечно же, 4 шикарных демоницы можно будет потом завербовать! [*] [h3]Открытый мир довольно монотонен и надоедает.[/h3] На самом деле, вертикальность у карт неплоха, секреты в целом забавно искать в первый раз, квесты демонов хотя и зачастую прямолинейны, есть и всякая забавность - удивили меня приятно! Но когда я бежал НГ+, меня конечно сильно накрыло уныние пробегать эти пустыни второй раз. Не прибавляет энтузиазма и то, что только одна из 4х карт была добавлена для новой истории. 3 из 4 повторяются. [*] [h3]СЕГА и ДЛС.[/h3] Как обычно, Сега/Атлус засунули в ДЛС всякие p2w штучки, ускоряющие прогрессию. С одной стороны, гринда в игре особо нет... если только вам не захочется наворотить суперкрутых демонов. Например, мне лично хотелось сделать под финал крутую Русалку - и у меня это вполне получилось. Но если вам захочется создать под финал много раннихз демонов с супер статами, или просто таскать ранних демонов с собой всю игру, придется выложить кругленькую сумму/нафармить кучу расходников на статы. Или... купить ДЛСшки, которые этот процесс ускоряют. Я такие практики не люблю, и считаю достойными порицания. [/list] Вместе с этим, игру я прошел запоем. Настрадался с супербоссами, поорал с некоторых сайдов, закинул некоторые композиции себе в плейлист, и игрой более чем доволен.

Imagine persona 5 BUT it has gameplay

搭配豪华版的御魂把等级控制在和主线接近的水平省去了很多重复的刷刷刷，让整个游戏流程变得非常流畅。我认为游戏的长板在于大地图的探索以及仲魔的合成培育，随着主线推进不断合成仲魔、搭配技能的正反馈让人欲罢不能。美中不足的是身为JRPG,乏味的主线剧情如同鸡肋一般食之无味，好在长板对我来说足以兜住剧情方面的短板。

音乐顶，美术顶，战斗顶，养成顶，地图顶，优化顶，这种游戏十年做一个我没意见

Good game, better gameplay than 4. The world can feel a bit empty, but if you enjoyed 3 then it should be right up you alley.

Nowhere close to as good as Metaphor Refantaszio (which is newer) or SMT-Nocture (much older). I would rate this under Persona 3/4/5 as well. I dont know why they skewed so heavily into "look it's scant-clad anime girl demons" so heavily for this game, but it's pretty awful and in your face the whole time and detracts heavily from the experience. It just feels immature. Perhaps aiming for a different market (tweenage boys perhaps)? Anyways the point is, it is not a small amount, but pretty much consistently throughout the entire monster roster, nevermind the main baddie's opening attack is slapping her ass (I mean seriously, that's not an embellishment) for an 'attack' Anyways, functionally the game is "ok" - it's SMT so if you've played any SMT or Persona game, you know what you're getting into. Its nothing special. It gets to be a slog midgame. Cest la vie. For new players, just pick "Vengeance" when you start. It's basically (taking some liberties here) like Persona 5 vs Personal 5 Royal, but instead of just having the extra content integrated out of the gate (like P5R), there's a selection screen/menu choice early on within the game intro sequence if you want the extra content. There's a few tidbits not available but they are inconsequential to the run. I would rate it a 6.5/10, but would I recommend it? No. There are better games in this genre and from this developer. Paid $12 CAD for it and would feel awful paying a penny more. It is the most "meh" Atlus game I've ever played, and I've played them all. I don't know if I have the drive to finish it after 34 hours of uninspired sameness. I wish I played Nocturne or Metaphor again (or even a Persona game) instead.

a lot of monsters that are more in depth than other atlus games which imo makes it more fun, but it's not as engaging since the story is non-existent. obviously don't get this game if the latter is a dealbreaker for you and you're lowkey a chud or spiritually black

I don't like it. Nearly the entire game is just a desert with little variation. Nocturne had plenty of exoteric and odd structures to compensate for that. The magatsuhi gameplay is extremely annoying on random encounters, you will randomly lose or get half your team dead whenever you lack the dps to end the fight in one turn. On bosses this turns into either knowing which element they're gonna use and getting a free turn or not being aware and being wiped. Many times you can just spam dampeners/block for the whole fight and watch as the enemy never gets a single attack through. Demons have too much hp, in previous SMT it's normal to be able to oneshot entire groups with a single spell if you have the required stats and levels but on V I find myself being unable to end fighs quickly even against demons 5 levels below me. The story is just weird but not in a fun way. The entire world is an apocalyptic hellhole but protagonist-kun still has to worry about going to school? Not funny Japan. Yoko sure talks a lot but she never has anything interesting to say, just superficially boring observations about whatever you're doing. The other characters are so thin I can barely remember that they exist. You can pick dialogue options some times but it is implied that the Nahobino just *fluoride stares* at everydody who talks at him when you're not given an option. I know that it's supposed to be funny but I did not laugh. The music is amazing of course. The graphics are PS3 tier but whatever. The open world is just a running simulator, everything is very far apart and there's a billion miman and apples and others to find. No way to tell if that unique demon over there is a couple of levels above you or 50. Too many quests involve going backwards across the map over and over again or researching which one of the 200 directions on the map contains the next part. I am not impressed by a single boss so far. Maybe it's like an MMO and it gets better at the endgame but honestly every other SMT had grabbed far before the point I'm at on V