Shin Megami Tensei V

 Switch
  • Publisher: Atlus
  • Release Date: Nov 12, 2021
User Score
7.5

Generally favorable reviews- based on 760 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 554 out of 760
  2. Mixed: 47 out of 760
  3. Negative: 159 out of 760
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  1. Nnorvv
    Nov 18, 2022
    9
    Could be better in terms of story and characters, but gameplay and exploration is rock solid, fun and exciting. Played for 90h finishing game 4 times on all endings.
  2. Loicz
    May 3, 2023
    9
    Hands down the best JRPG on the system as for May2023. Very few are the games where I spent +60 hours and still wanting more. I'm almost done with it, and having not played any SMT game before I cannot give you the "it's better or worse" than previous titles lesson, and to be honest I don't care. This title ticks all the boxes, it's great in every aspect. It's a 9.5. Can't wait for theHands down the best JRPG on the system as for May2023. Very few are the games where I spent +60 hours and still wanting more. I'm almost done with it, and having not played any SMT game before I cannot give you the "it's better or worse" than previous titles lesson, and to be honest I don't care. This title ticks all the boxes, it's great in every aspect. It's a 9.5. Can't wait for the next one. I've now purchased Nocturne on switch and Devil Survivor 2 on 3DS, but I doubt they'll be reaching that high on my top played game list. SMT5 has reach top 1, yes, closely followed by RE4 (not the remaster). Funny cause these are the last 2 games I played, so I feel kind of lucky, and I'm playing games since the early 90s. Yes i'm that old. Just grab it and shut up ;)… Expand
  3. Risax
    Nov 19, 2021
    8
    Although the game isn't as brutally unfair as IV was, especially at the start where you could get ambushed and wiped out in the tutorial fight, SMT V is still hard as and a slip-up during a random encounter can get your party wiped out. But I like it!

    Exploration feels amazing. Running and jumping around to find Minman's, treasure or just cross the area is a lot of fun even if most of    Although the game isn't as brutally unfair as IV was, especially at the start where you could get ambushed and wiped out in the tutorial fight, SMT V is still hard as and a slip-up during a random encounter can get your party wiped out. But I like it!

    Exploration feels amazing. Running and jumping around to find Minman's, treasure or just cross the area is a lot of fun even if most of the areas are a bit "meh" to look at. If you've seen one ruined cityscape in the desert or ash than you've seen them all, I'd say. But that really doesn't get me out of the game.

    The best part about the game has to be combat, however. Finding enemy weaknesses to take them out before they can even take a turn feels *fantastic*! But you're always kept on your toes, because if you're unlucky the same thing can happen to you. Which takes us to the World of Shadows where Demons gather and you can fuse more powerful Demons that might lack the weaknesses of the old ones.

    Or you can try to convince a Demon to join your group by talking to one during combat. They might call you a b***h and leave, though. But those conversations are probably another thing that makes the game great.

    Now what I dislike about this new game in the series is stuff like the buffs now being on a timer and feeling pretty much useless until you get their "Ma" versions that can target the entire party. In past games they simply lasted until they got dispelled. I guess that adds another layer of challenge which I can *kind of* understand, but I still kind of feel "meh" about it.

    Physical attacks no longer taking HP and *everything* simply costing MP now does friggin' suck. Takes away the fun of "Hmmm... Do I want to use this big move that does a lot of damage but costs x amount of HP, or will I hold off for now?" I also don't understand why they've done away with it because SMT IV still used HP for it, and the Persona 5 spin-off games that have come out in the interim still use it as well.

    Overall, I would score the game between an 8 and an 8.5. Some changes and additions I dislike, but overall it's a solid game that I will likely play again to get a different ending once I finish it. It's a definite recommendation on my end!    … Expand
  4. GaryLinekar
    Jan 13, 2022
    8
    The proto-fiend stuff is cringe. The high school, Persona-esque stuff is cringe.
    However, it is otherwise a solid SMT game. Just a bit easy. It's quite masterful how they made the openworld into a sort of dungeon. So even while there are few real dungeons in the game, the openworld fulfills this, a bit. Still wish there had been more real SMT dungeons and the story had been less    The proto-fiend stuff is cringe. The high school, Persona-esque stuff is cringe.
    However, it is otherwise a solid SMT game. Just a bit easy. It's quite masterful how they made the openworld into a sort of dungeon. So even while there are few real dungeons in the game, the openworld fulfills this, a bit. Still wish there had been more real SMT dungeons and the story had been less embarrassing but I enjoyed it very much.    … Expand
  5. Captaincrap94
    Nov 23, 2021
    8
    I beat the game on casual. This was my first SMT game. Most of the game is great but I didn't like the end of the game. The open world sections of the game are the best parts. I really enjoyed running around in the environments. Adding new demons to your party and acquiring skills is fun too. The battles are great as well, you can even talk to enemies. The soundtrack has some hit or missI beat the game on casual. This was my first SMT game. Most of the game is great but I didn't like the end of the game. The open world sections of the game are the best parts. I really enjoyed running around in the environments. Adding new demons to your party and acquiring skills is fun too. The battles are great as well, you can even talk to enemies. The soundtrack has some hit or miss songs, but I did enjoy it overall.

    I have gripes with the gameplay and the story of the end of the game but I won't put spoilers in this review.    … Expand
  6. Z06Wingnut
    Nov 13, 2021
    8
    Great game.

    NOT a 10, quite clearly. - Minor performance issues (pop-in, frame rate drops/stutter), textures not great. - Story really stands more on great themes and atmosphere than great narrative. - Light on meaningful or particularly interesting characters to carry said story. Also not a 0 (zero), equally clearly. - Great battle system, thoughtfully executed and balanced.    Great game.

    NOT a 10, quite clearly.
    - Minor performance issues (pop-in, frame rate drops/stutter), textures not great.
    - Story really stands more on great themes and atmosphere than great narrative.
    - Light on meaningful or particularly interesting characters to carry said story.

    Also not a 0 (zero), equally clearly.
    - Great battle system, thoughtfully executed and balanced. Tons of variety.
    - World and exploration is fun, level design and vertical-ity is well done.
    - Aesthetics and art style is unique and interesting, in SMT tradition.
    - What story is present is cool, as is the lore of demons and overall atmosphere.
    - Ton of replay value due to difficulty and challenge as well as party and skill variety.

    The game is an 8 (probably 8.5) and is a ton of fun.
    More JRPGs could do with darker themes and more interesting non-basic medieval fantasy type settings/influences. This one is among the best in a while, and one of the best games I've played on Switch.    … Expand
  7. Bodom
    Feb 2, 2022
    8
    Probably the best in tbe Series to date. The story is interesting, music is fantastic as is to be expected from the series. Graphics are pretty nice for a system such as the switch and the performance is not bad, although it slows down every now and then. Gameplay is vastly improved over previous entries too. Would recommend to anyone that likes Jrpg's and monster collecting.
  8. TheHambro
    Jan 8, 2022
    8
    As a newcomer to the Shin Megami Tensei series, I was pleasantly surprised at what it had to offer. If you’re familiar with Persona, it feels familiar but don’t come into this expecting the same thing. The premise is pretty straightforward: fight demons along the way, recruit them, and fuse them to create more powerful demons. As for gameplay, you’ll want to have demons who can exploitAs a newcomer to the Shin Megami Tensei series, I was pleasantly surprised at what it had to offer. If you’re familiar with Persona, it feels familiar but don’t come into this expecting the same thing. The premise is pretty straightforward: fight demons along the way, recruit them, and fuse them to create more powerful demons. As for gameplay, you’ll want to have demons who can exploit weaknesses to give you an advantage. Pretty simple. There is a pretty good variety of skills each demon can specialize in, so you’ll focus primarily on building a team that suits your style. The number of demons you can find and summon is simply staggering, giving you the freedom to customize how you see fit. You could spend hours tweaking your party getting that perfect team composition. The music has this eerie, foreboding, and tense feel to it, but man, it absolutely bangs. Visually, the game excels in character and demon design. I always looked forward to seeing a new demon just because of how awesome or bizarre their design is.

    Here is where I have problems. The overworld that you explore remains this drab, boring landscape throughout almost the entirety of the game. Each area doesn’t feel distinct from the previous, only swapping color palettes. The performance is, well, terrible. The game will chug and stutter a lot. And finally, the story did not keep me engaged at all. For a story about godhood, it just didn’t feel exciting, and I didn’t know what I was working towards. You get some dialogue, a few short cut scenes, and you’re back to slogging through the world (sometimes for hours) before you get to the next part of the story, but there was nothing really to look forward to.

    In the end, I really enjoyed Shin Megami Tensei V. It’s nowhere near perfect by any means, but it’s still a pretty good JRPG for its gameplay, customization, and the astonishing amount of demons you can recruit. It’s got me hooked, and I look forward to future entries and going back to play the previous ones. Thumbs up from me.    … Expand
  9. arh3399
    Apr 20, 2022
    8
    First and foremost this is a great game. I love the core gameplay of this game. Its classic SMT but better in every way. Spent 80 hrs beating it and getting all the demons and I really enjoyed it. The first half of the story was great but the latter half of the game narratively just wasn't as good. In particular I think all the endings are pretty mediocre. Really looked forward toFirst and foremost this is a great game. I love the core gameplay of this game. Its classic SMT but better in every way. Spent 80 hrs beating it and getting all the demons and I really enjoyed it. The first half of the story was great but the latter half of the game narratively just wasn't as good. In particular I think all the endings are pretty mediocre. Really looked forward to this game and it delivered on everything I wanted from SMT, I just wish it had a more satisfying conclusion to be the cherry on top.… Expand
  10. Alvz9
    Feb 15, 2022
    8
    SMT V es una excepción dentro del JRPG. Siendo este un género plagado de clichés, repetitividad y poca innovación en sus franquicias más reconocidas, sabe destacar con un sistema de combate único, enviciante, y muy retante. Uno que en las primeras horas de juego se vuelve un autentico desafío hasta que logras entender las mecánicas, y que hacia finales del juego te obligar a llevar alSMT V es una excepción dentro del JRPG. Siendo este un género plagado de clichés, repetitividad y poca innovación en sus franquicias más reconocidas, sabe destacar con un sistema de combate único, enviciante, y muy retante. Uno que en las primeras horas de juego se vuelve un autentico desafío hasta que logras entender las mecánicas, y que hacia finales del juego te obligar a llevar al límite tus habilidades adquiridas en el transcurso. Esto es sin duda una bondad que otorga casi la totalidad de la nota en esta reseña; pues al igual que ocurre en Persona 5 (pero con ciertas distancias), el combate de por sí define gran parte del juego. Pero a su vez falla en algo que el resto del género no: su historia, construcción de mundo y narrativa están escuetamente desarrollados, forzados para una conclusión, que cuando llega a su climax ni siquiera te diste cuenta que habías terminado el juego. Las primeras 3 mazmorras se sienten como un relleno hasta la aparición de los verdaderos villanos del juego, lo que incluye el arco de la chica del colegio (que no tiene mucha relación con el desarrollo de la trama del "nahobino"). Tiene una gran cantidad de personajes interesantes para la trama, pero que no alcanzan a desarrollarse de forma debida; e incluso tiene esa "máscara" de relación cotidiana por el mundo real que vimos en Persona 5 pero que en este juego no cumple ninguna otra función que servir de pantalla de carga dinámica al movernos por el mapa de Tokio y cambiar de ubicación. De hecho, en general, los tramos en el Tokio real se vuelven pesados y descontextualizados con el desarrollo del juego. Esto a mi juicio hace que el juego no llegue a cuotas de excelencias, y que no se acerque a entregas anteriores muy laureadas, como el caso de la tercera parte de esta saga principal. Entre otros datos importantes el juego me duró unas 60 horas, lo que es bastante contenido de juego; mucho jefe secundario divertido y en algunos casos más interesante que varios de la línea principal. El DLC me parece un aditivo importante, sobre todo el de SMT III; los combates son muy desafiantes y te permite manejar demonios muy fuertes si es que logras derrotarlos (y el combate final con el semi-oscuro es un verdadero infierno). El apartado gráfico la verdad no está muy logrado, Switch a mi juicio podría dar más con el mismo motor gráfico (con ejemplos claros como Fortnite con rendimientos muy distintos pero texturas similares); pero esto se compensa con un apartado visual post-apocalíptico que atrapa y que en algunos tramos como la tercera mazmorra cautivan (sobre todo por su verticalidad).… Expand
  11. yangfanhong
    Jan 2, 2022
    8
    The goddesses and demons are surely much more attractive than little animals like Pikachu.
  12. SushiMess
    Jul 13, 2022
    8
    After playing Persona 4 and 5 i fell in love with the combat and the fusion system so i went to get this game. I think this game’s combat overall is very enjoyable and the exploration is great. Building the MC and Demons are very fun too as you can select the abilities or moves that you want to inherit from other demons. My only complain with this game is that towards the end of the game,After playing Persona 4 and 5 i fell in love with the combat and the fusion system so i went to get this game. I think this game’s combat overall is very enjoyable and the exploration is great. Building the MC and Demons are very fun too as you can select the abilities or moves that you want to inherit from other demons. My only complain with this game is that towards the end of the game, it becomes really really grindy and the story is mediocre at best. We almost never see the casts and feel nothing towards them.… Expand
  13. Traumvita
    Sep 6, 2023
    8
    It’s an SMT game. Good turn based combat. Solid story about Gods and creations and destruction etc etc. visuals are good I like the direction but a little fuzzy and held back by switch limitations. Felt like a DQ11 world with big open areas to explore. Challenging at times but why else would you be playing an SMT game. A must play RPG for any switch owner.
  14. Ripper36
    Jan 15, 2022
    8
    Good game i have to say. First few hours are a total bore, but if u can get past it u can really have fun. Your hero is a bit odd loooking like some 80s rock band and is silent of course which to me drops off a few points. But over all its a good looking game and plays nice with alot to do.
  15. PMG-Writer
    Jan 1, 2022
    8
    With Shin Megami Tensei V, Atlus and Nintendo have created another masterpiece for fans and newcomers to the new Nintendo console. The storyline always seems interesting and the dialogues are just great. Thus, we learn more about the game. The possibilities in the battles are also successful and especially with the allies there should always be a chance to beat the adversaries in theWith Shin Megami Tensei V, Atlus and Nintendo have created another masterpiece for fans and newcomers to the new Nintendo console. The storyline always seems interesting and the dialogues are just great. Thus, we learn more about the game. The possibilities in the battles are also successful and especially with the allies there should always be a chance to beat the adversaries in the turn-based battles. Thus, "Shin Megami Tensei V" can be recommended to all players of the Switch console and a clear buy recommendation from us.… Expand
  16. Bridgeburner88
    Nov 13, 2021
    8
    A fantastic Jrpg

    Shin Megami Tensei 5 is one of the most
    Accessible and addictive entries in the series. My only complaint is constant performance issues. This game should of been developed for the ps4 at best.
  17. NicholasW
    Nov 21, 2021
    8
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. SMT V is one of the most beautiful and fun JRPGs available on the switch, but it's held back by a lackluster story, parts of it's design, and presentation. On the surface, SMT V is one of the best looking games on the switch and it performs fairly well albeit with a couple instances of frame drops as you explore the world of Da'at and during cutscenes. The OST throughout the game is fantastic and might be my favorite across all of the mainline SMT games. Combat is also fast-paced and takes on many of the great aspects from the past two mainline entries (SMT IV and IVA) but with enough new additions to still feel fresh. Demon negotiation and fusion are as addictive as ever with new QoL improvements that eases the frustration that people may have had in past entries. Gameplay is still decently challenging without being overtly frustrating due to how much customization you are given between the protagonist and demons.

    Exploring the world of Da'at is really fun and the maneuverability of the protagonist is a big reason why. Being able to jump and run across Da'at allows players to have a new level of verticality that makes exploring areas feel a whole lot more engaging. However I can't help but feel like the level design is where the game has some issues in. The world of Da'at contains 4 main regions that are very unique in both tone and presentation but some of them suffer from having a confusing or tedious layout that makes exploring them a chore. The game also does feature 2 dungeons although they are rather hit-or-miss due to either being boring to navigate or having an interesting mechanic that isn't used much. Certain dungeons in SMT III also have some of these issues but in that game they are lessened by the unique and creative puzzles that these dungeons offer which isn't necessarily present here.

    The story of SMT V is where I felt the game was really lacking. While there are ideas here that I found to be really fascinating (especially the concept of a Nahobino) they unfortunately aren't explored or presented well enough here to create a solid and compelling narrative. Most of the really exciting plot points are introduced during the early and late game, while mid game feels like filler when it really should have been used for more world building (like introducing the different branches of Bethel) or more character development. Characters in this game serve as exposition dumps as they tell you in chunks regarding the world they reside in. There are hints of decent character development here but only for a select few while the rest of the cast barely get any screen time or a chance to really shine. Even some of the characters who are presented as important to the story are thrown away as side characters and only shown through subquests or unceremoniously killed off. All of this comes off as poor storytelling and ultimately leads to one-note characters that makes it hard to be emotionally invested in them when everything falls apart.

    Alignment and what ending you get in this game unfortunately comes down to a single dialogue choice made at the end of the game rather than based on choices you made throughout like how it was implemented in SMT IV. Some may like it because you can obtain any ending you want but I feel like this design hurts the game's replay value as any of the story choices you make throughout the game is meaningless. The story progression is basically the same for each playthrough and unfortunately doesn't offer any unique branching paths in them like in IV. Although I will admit the alignments in this game are a really nice surprise in who represents them and how they are presented but out of the available endings only one them was really good and felt complete. Overall, the story starts off strong, falls off mid game, and only picks up once you reach late game, but even then it felt really rushed.

    The voice acting here is serviceable, although oddly enough not every scene in the main quest is voiced like in SMT III HD, IV, and IVA. Some subquests are also voiced but only parts of them and some of the ones that seem really important in context of the main story aren't. It's a really odd decision considering what we got in the last three mainline entries. On the English dub side I found it to be really strange that only some of the demons are dubbed while the rest are strictly in Japanese. This might be due to budget constraints so I won't hold it against Atlus but it is very inconsistent.

    All in all, SMT V is a fun game and if you were someone who cares more about the gameplay rather than the story then this is the perfect game for you. The combat is challenging yet fun and exploring the world of Da'at has its own merits at times. But if you play games more for their story, then this game is likely going to disappoint you. I can see a lot of potential here but the game just falls short of being the best JRPG on the Switch.    … Expand
  18. Cakwe
    Nov 21, 2021
    8
    Graphics 8/10
    Gameplay 10/10
    Music 9/10
    Story 8/10
    Characters 7/10
    Replayablity 10/10

    Exceeded my expectation. But man being able switch exclusive, make this game suffer a lot from performance issues. Overall i give this game 8 out of 10.
  19. Comicmaster138
    Nov 23, 2021
    8
    The game has a really good story and has captivating semi open environments. My only complaint tis that a lot of the bosses can be HP sponges which drag out the time to complete boss fights.
  20. Amberstorm
    Nov 24, 2021
    8
    Probably the single most important thing to say in regards to SMT V is that it is not a game for everyone. If you are looking for a game with a colorful cast or do not enjoy slower or methodical games, do not pick this game up, you will not enjoy it. However, if you are alright with that being the case, then SMT V is by far one of the most satisfying games that I have played in a longProbably the single most important thing to say in regards to SMT V is that it is not a game for everyone. If you are looking for a game with a colorful cast or do not enjoy slower or methodical games, do not pick this game up, you will not enjoy it. However, if you are alright with that being the case, then SMT V is by far one of the most satisfying games that I have played in a long time.

    The game's open world works to make it truly feel like you are fighting tooth and nail for every inch of ground you make, slowly fighting your way through the horde of demons that lays in front of you. Backtracking for things like farming vending machines for money is quick and mostly painless and gives you a real sense of power as you can effortless stomp any enemy who before you were wary of. Exploration is also quite enjoyable as there is so many collectables or items to find that even while backtracking you will occasionally run into a Miman you missed.

    Gameplay is rock solid and sticks to a formula that has remained solid for years. Aliments and Buffs/Debuffs remain as viable as always unlike many other JRPG franchises, even with the shift to "Persona buffs" with single target buffs in the early game and a set time limit to buffs that needs to be refreshed every few turns. Combat can certainly get a bit repetitive, but you level up and get access to new demons at a consistent rate to where your party is often a revolving door of new demons coming and old reliable leaving as their viability runs thin, so there is always some new spice being added to gameplay. Boss fights are difficult and require proper planning to defeat on higher difficult, which in turn makes the extremely memorable.

    Probably my biggest gripes are accuracy and how even when striking an enemy on the overworld to initiate combat, they can still gain the first turn. Flying enemies in particular can be a real pain in the ass in the regard. Accuracy feels a bit too low without the use of buffs/debuffs. Bosses are mostly fine in this regard since you will be using buffs and debuffs in those fights and most early game bosses lack additional mob enemies, but it really hurts in random encounter with multiple enemies where Sukukaja and Sukunda are far less impactful and the lost of 2 press turns can be devastating. This is only a major issue in the first few areas of the game until you get access to AOE accuracy buffs like Cautious Cheer and Masukukaja, but reducing the cost of a miss to 1.5 Press Turns or giving the player access to Masukukaja or Masukunda a bit earlier would be a very welcome change in my books

    Overall, this is an incredible game and a worthy entry into the franchise.    … Expand
  21. Lweo4
    Nov 28, 2021
    8
    The gameplay and exploration are really solid, the side-quests are really good, but the story and the characters are worthless, truly worthless.
    The story gets a 4/10 at best because it's just boring (tbh I would rank it at 2/10), I can't even say that I dislike or like the characters, because they're boring and don't do anything.
  22. shw079
    Mar 1, 2023
    8
    I picked up this game because of my perfect experience in Persona 5. The game doesn't have a plot (I mean it) compare to other RPGs, but magically I am happy to play it to the end without a complain. The music may sound monotonous or dull at first but it actually fits surprisingly well to the world the game tries to describe and thus I feel the composers/developers are really clever aboutI picked up this game because of my perfect experience in Persona 5. The game doesn't have a plot (I mean it) compare to other RPGs, but magically I am happy to play it to the end without a complain. The music may sound monotonous or dull at first but it actually fits surprisingly well to the world the game tries to describe and thus I feel the composers/developers are really clever about this. I played the game in normal difficulty, and it was one of the most difficult normal difficulty I have ever played. I blacked out a few times at the first few hours into the game but the game is becoming much easier later on once you get the mechanics. Something is magical about this game but I couldn't really tell. What a weird yet enjoyable experience!… Expand
  23. Megidolaon91IT
    Apr 13, 2022
    8
    Tecnicamente è il miglior Shin Megami Tensei: bellissimo open world, tante quest secondarie, sistema di crescita del personaggio e Press Turn ottimi. SMT V è il gioco ideale per chi non ha mai giocato a questa serie. Tuttavia due cose non mi sono piaciute. La trama è il punto debole perché non è coinvolgente e si conclude in maniera sbrigativa. La mappa inoltre poteva essere visualizzataTecnicamente è il miglior Shin Megami Tensei: bellissimo open world, tante quest secondarie, sistema di crescita del personaggio e Press Turn ottimi. SMT V è il gioco ideale per chi non ha mai giocato a questa serie. Tuttavia due cose non mi sono piaciute. La trama è il punto debole perché non è coinvolgente e si conclude in maniera sbrigativa. La mappa inoltre poteva essere visualizzata meglio perché in certe zone (come a Chiyoda) non è chiara.… Expand
  24. Jofe
    Apr 30, 2022
    8
    SMT5 is clearly not a game to put in all hands. Unfortunately, the game only scratches the surface of its storyline and universe. But the quality of the combat system, the gameplay in general and its unique atmosphere make it a solid representative of the genre. Maybe not the best, but clearly one of the most original and unique, which offers a different experience from what can be done inSMT5 is clearly not a game to put in all hands. Unfortunately, the game only scratches the surface of its storyline and universe. But the quality of the combat system, the gameplay in general and its unique atmosphere make it a solid representative of the genre. Maybe not the best, but clearly one of the most original and unique, which offers a different experience from what can be done in the genre.… Expand
  25. BlackFang
    Nov 15, 2021
    7
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. This game is great overall, with the enhance graphic (which is to be expected with unreal engine), combat system is more smooth with various customization and puzzles. But in some parts it felt shallow, like your choices doesn't really matter that much until near the end. Or a personal pet peeve of mine, killing off character early. I know Tao is "reborn" in the near end but it always leave a bitter taste in my mouth. You introduce them as this nice character that cares for everyone and everyone loves, then bam, kills her early into the game, and she just re-appears near the end, and that's it. The ending felt a bit lazy, for lawful and chaos, it just your character walking across status floating in space, for true and neutral endings, it just the beginning cutscene again, I get the meaning but it just felt lazy when comparing to the other SMT games I have play before. The two biggest ones I still occasionally go back to is SMT 4 apocalypses and SMT devil survivor 2 record breaker.

    I have play SMT 4 apocalypses, that was crazy, the law and chaos are similar but you have to choose in front of everyone. Then you choose to become god, that requires you to kill all your friends and allies, which is pretty impactful. Lastly there's freeing humanity, the classics. The ending cinematic has much of a greater of an effect as you have dialogue and visual with everyone. In SMT 4 also you have more interactions with people, you form bonds and allies, and every single choices felt like it had impact. A bonus is in the DLC you get to see what you have become by choosing one path or another.

    I've also play SMT devil survivor 2 record breaker, which is my personal favorite, there's good and evil and all that but the ending is based on what path humanity should follow, all sides holds water. Whatever you think peoples' worth is from handwork or everyone is equal, or screw it, just get rids of god and let the world decided its own fate. My personal favorite is sacrificing oneself to ensure everything goes right.

    Overall, SMT 5 is very solid, which is to be expected as its the first one SMT game on switch (I don't care about Personal 5 strikers) with graphics, gameplay and variety of customization. What felt short is an important factor, your choices, I have replay certain parts of the game just to see what my choices would do, it did nothing, the game has a scripts and its sticking with it. Only the ending ones matter. It also felt so..... lonely, you don't have much interaction to start with, then they just kill one off right in front of you. I was hoping to see more allies and dialogue to understand peoples' lives and what are they fighting for, there's not much. Then there's the ending, chaos and lawful looks almost identical as well as neutral and true, I mean I got the symbolize and meaning, but I didn't felt the excitement and feeling of what impact my choices have, even at the end, what it actually effect something.

    Personal note, I love story more than anything, I also love the characters, through my playthrough I had to reset a few times, like with Tao to see if I can save her, but to surprise me, nothing have change, its a straight forward script. you choices don't matter.    … Expand
  26. Reed618
    Dec 22, 2021
    7
    I enjoyed smt 5 but it's definitely a missed opportunity. Visually the areas you explore are pretty bland. There are a few cool dungeons with interesting mechanics though.

    The story is pretty weak. The transition into post apocalyptic tokyo was much more interesting in smt 3 and 4. In 5 it's kinda dull. The characters and voice acting are mostly just ok as well. I also thought it sucked    I enjoyed smt 5 but it's definitely a missed opportunity. Visually the areas you explore are pretty bland. There are a few cool dungeons with interesting mechanics though.

    The story is pretty weak. The transition into post apocalyptic tokyo was much more interesting in smt 3 and 4. In 5 it's kinda dull. The characters and voice acting are mostly just ok as well. I also thought it sucked that one of the bosses mispronounced its name. You just need to google cú chulainn to find how its said correctly.

    The weakest aspect is probably the structure. At one point I fought a boss that was level 58 and I was level 57... then I was put into a new area with three bosses all level 73... so at that point I needed to grind 16 levels... it really felt like they needed to pad them main quest out and that was the laziest way they could do it.

    I know this game was in development for a long time and it's such a cool series so I had very high hopes for it. I thought this was guaranteed to be my rpg of the year but both tales of arise and monster hunter rise have a lot more to offer.    … Expand
  27. pmasterfunk
    Jun 19, 2022
    7
    I do love me some good MegaTen, and SMT 5 is good MegaTen. It's close to being great, but that's also what make it so disappointing.

    I gotta say, SMT 5 is very accessible. What makes it so accessible? Quality of Life improvements, baby. First off, we got rid of random battles, which is nice. Scanning an enemy for stats and weaknesses is better. Battle animations can be skipped, for    I do love me some good MegaTen, and SMT 5 is good MegaTen. It's close to being great, but that's also what make it so disappointing.

    I gotta say, SMT 5 is very accessible. What makes it so accessible? Quality of Life improvements, baby. First off, we got rid of random battles, which is nice. Scanning an enemy for stats and weaknesses is better. Battle animations can be skipped, for snappier battles. Demon Fusion now has Reverse Search and Reverse Compendium search, making it much easier to figure out which demons are accessible, and skill inheritance remains selectable. Fast travel is quick.

    Visually, I think the game looks good, but it is pretty grainy and draw distance isn't great. The game stutters in some areas though. It's not too problematic, but still... Environments aren't super varied in looks; desolate sandy urban wasteland counts for at least 80% of the game. I wish there were more variety, like Nocturne has. The areas themselves are pretty elaborate, and some areas can be hard to navigate - which isn't a bad thing. The music is quite good, with some outright great tracks here and there. Voice acting is fine, some stuff is kinda clunky, but it's not Octopath-level cringe.

    Gameplay-wise, I have some gripes. I'm not a huge fan of Heavy-level attacks that pierce, seems like a cop-out to me and doesn't really promote skill and demon variety. And when a boss casts Impaler's Animus (basically Charge/Concentrate with the Pierce effect added), guard with your MC and just hope for the best, because it's practically a one-hit KO. Regular attacks are painfully weak, to the point of being useless. Here, skills are so essential to deal basic damage that MP is often the limiting factor in both boss battles and exploration. It doesn't help that skill MP consumption is way higher than it was in previous games. Luster Candy and Debilitate usually took about 50 MP per cast in previous games, here it starts at 150 MP with baseline support affinity.

    ONE HUNDRED AND FIFTY

    Like in SMT 4,physical skills use MP, so a demon with high HP and low MP is useless. Damage output is heavily correlated with character level, and the level scaling effect seems a bit too drastic. Any fight with a level gap over 5 is often too great to overcome. Exp gain is also heavily nerfed when above enemy levels, and without a decent late-game or post-game dungeon (at least without DLC to my knowledge), late-game grinding is incredibly impractical without level-up items, which I wasn't super careful about hoarding in my first playthrough.

    So there I was, trying to beat the superboss, under-leveled and getting rekt with little recourse but hours upon hours of super slow grinding... or buying DLC.

    I mentioned earlier that the Demon Compendium is easier to fill, but at the same time it makes the whole process less exciting and more mechanical. By the end of my second playthrough, I was just fusing all the demons I didn't have, with little regard to what skills they should be getting or what role they'll have in my team, because my team was already set with all those piercing skills, anyway.

    Ultimately, when playing on Normal for a "casual" run, these issues aren't that problematic, but during my second playthrough on hard where I wanted to change up my build, these issues became a bit more obvious.

    The second playthrough also exposed some issues with the story. A lot of "important" parts end up being forgettable and irrelevant to the overall arc, and secondary characters seem like they'll have something interesting or important to say, but they just end up being background noise. Only one character gets any sort of development, and he's the most annoying character in the game. And that's really too bad, because at the start of the game, when all these secondary characters are introduced, it seems like they're going to be really important, and that they'll have all sorts of interesting things to say and do, and that we'll get to see them grow and influence the world, but nah, they don't do anything. Endings-wise the Neutral choice is kinda chaosy, Chaos doesn't feel all that chaotic, and Law is so hardcore authoritarian it's hard to consider it a serious option.

    All in all, I don't think SMT 5 will convert non-fans into stans, but it's still a decent. Will I ever revisit this game? Not for the story, it's not particularly interesting or deep. A hard run? The level scaling would probably make it a crazy slog. Purely for the gameplay? I prefer Nocturne's, honestly. I think that's what makes it disappointing; mechanically it's solid, the gameplay is fun, but ultimately the weak story and poor characterization make the experience bland and forgettable.    … Expand
  28. M3G4L
    Sep 15, 2022
    7
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Great and fun gameplay, animations are excellent and character designs in 3D maintain their essence as in past games. But sadly the messy story beats really hurt its score, for a game that's premise is the core appeal it didn't deliver as great as it should.… Expand
  29. lesiuML
    Jan 3, 2022
    7
    It is really good game but it is hard ass hell... To be honest I haven't found that game to be satisfying... I was more stressed out after a long battle than happy. A lot have changed when I lowered the difficulty, game was a lot more engaging than for me. The story wasn't the best I've ever witnessed. But still story is so much better than smt3...
  30. KingGilda
    Jan 31, 2022
    7
    After putting 90 hours into this game (and going!), I can say, it is an amazing game, a true pleasure for any turn-based RPG fan. If you like action games, don't play this.
    As a fan of SMT/FF/DQ for more than 20 years, I guarantee any fan of these titles that this game is a masterpiece. As an SMT/Persona fan, specifically, this game is one of the greatest in the aeies. This one is for    After putting 90 hours into this game (and going!), I can say, it is an amazing game, a true pleasure for any turn-based RPG fan. If you like action games, don't play this.
    As a fan of SMT/FF/DQ for more than 20 years, I guarantee any fan of these titles that this game is a masterpiece. As an SMT/Persona fan, specifically, this game is one of the greatest in the aeies. This one is for those with a brain, though.

    UPDATE: After putting 130 hours into this game, and choosing the neutral path, I'm downgrading my rating, with dissapointment. The regular-neutral ending sucks, and the secret-neutral ending is impossible to get without extreme grinding. After 130 hours, I will not grind 20 more just to get AN ENDING. Great game but a horrible, horrible endgame.    … Expand
  31. OhNoItsSenpai
    Nov 22, 2021
    7
    Fun game, staying true to the SMT franchise without the annoying dungeon crawling. Definitely feels like good game direction for the series. However the sprawling open worlds brings up this games main, glaring issue. It's on the Switch. Only plaid on TV so can't speak for how bad it plays in handheld but things look a bit gross, like the background is all cardboard cutouts being moved byFun game, staying true to the SMT franchise without the annoying dungeon crawling. Definitely feels like good game direction for the series. However the sprawling open worlds brings up this games main, glaring issue. It's on the Switch. Only plaid on TV so can't speak for how bad it plays in handheld but things look a bit gross, like the background is all cardboard cutouts being moved by children. Better off waiting for the game to come out on a real console.… Expand
  32. Noncanon
    Dec 8, 2021
    7
    Firstly, I'm not a lifelong SMT fan. I played SMT IV on 3DS, and Persona 4 and 5. I didn't really have the nostalgia glasses on while playing this.

    I found this game to be all over the place. The demon collecting and fusing is great and has near infinite depth to sink your teeth into. The combat is fun and snappy, although it can be tough as nails sometimes. But that's part of the    Firstly, I'm not a lifelong SMT fan. I played SMT IV on 3DS, and Persona 4 and 5. I didn't really have the nostalgia glasses on while playing this.

    I found this game to be all over the place. The demon collecting and fusing is great and has near infinite depth to sink your teeth into. The combat is fun and snappy, although it can be tough as nails sometimes. But that's part of the appeal of these games. The graphics are pretty good for a Switch game, and the demon designs are fantastic, although some were a little too familiar.

    My biggest beef, and this looks like a common one, is the save system. It's so archaic that it made me frown with annoyance the first time I got destroyed by a mini-boss that I hadn't been able to prepare for, and ended up losing a ton of progress. It's not like Souls games, where you're sent back to the last bonfire but keep items you found and have an opportunity to retrieve your souls. You just load up an old save file and completely lose all progress you had made. It had me going out of my way to run back to save points sooo many times, and it definitely gets old fast. Every time I got a decent item drop or talked a new demon into joining me, I felt like I had to go back and save, and it really hurts the pacing and flow of the game.

    If you're here for the story, I found it to be just OK. I'm usually on board for "Anime BS" but I didn't really connect to any of the characters. There are some cool ideas at the macro level, but not much going on when zoomed in on the PC and his cohort. I enjoyed the music (Atlus always seem to kill it in that department) but the combat sounds were usually boring. I was confused the first time I had the PC use a melee attack and there was barely a sound effect when his weapon made contact. I felt like I hit with a nerf bat. There was no real heft or impact, which is weird since you do that so many times.

    If you're an SMT or Persona fan, it's a no-brainer. All the stuff you love is there, and it's mostly well done. If you're new to the series or on the fence, I would recommend it but with caveats. If you're impatient or the kind of person to quit a game if you lose progress, it'd be a hard pass. It also wouldn't be great for someone who likes RPGs where you can just jump in and go. You'll really have to put in some effort to get the most out of this game, but if you're up for it, there's a lot to enjoy.    … Expand
  33. HellfirePlayer
    Dec 4, 2021
    7
    Honest Spoiler-Free Review:

    -> General Verdict: A fun and flawed game. - Battles: Very polished and addictive. There are a couple of new mechanics which add some interesting depth and could be a novelty for veterans. No random battles gives you and edge on developing your party in different ways. - Music: Adequate to set the mood and ambience. Some tunes really standout and are    Honest Spoiler-Free Review:

    -> General Verdict: A fun and flawed game.

    - Battles: Very polished and addictive. There are a couple of new mechanics which add some interesting depth and could be a novelty for veterans. No random battles gives you and edge on developing your party in different ways.
    - Music: Adequate to set the mood and ambience. Some tunes really standout and are memorable.
    - Visuals: There's definitely a good artistic direction following the usual style which tries to use whatever Switch's hardware can output to acceptable results. This applies to characters, demons and environmental designs. New designs are mostly OK or great, environments feel samey but that's expected given the themes of the game.
    - Exploration: Mostly good, roaming and pseudo platforming in the different areas can be quite engaging at times, but to some degree, it feels like a half-hearted attempt as well. Some elements are straight up hand holding to get you where you need to be, and after a while the sense of discovery just wanes given the lack of surprises.
    - Fusion: It's fine but I found it way too straightforward and simplified. You can do some experimentation but it's not as deep or complex as in some previous games.
    - Customization: Very flexible and rewarding. Maybe a bit too exploitable at times which could make the game too easy for some.
    - Story: This is by far the lowest quality part of the game. The main conflict and story itself are lackluster and weirdly paced. Supporting characters, factions, choices and lore could have saved it from mediocrity/apathy, but they are shallowly exposed to the player, so they are hard to relate to. There's probably just one supporting character that gets fleshed out, but sadly it is a very annoying and inconsequential individual (SMT4 had a neat and simple way to get players to engage with the supporting cast, probably they came up with it given the limitations of the NDS. It's very sad that they didn't learn anything from it). On the bright side, some optional quests are well written and engaging; there are not too many of those though.

    Conclusion: Weirdly enough it is as worth playing as it is disappointing. New players might find a good entry point to a shallower but meaty iteration in the series, while veterans might enjoy the meat but will feel empty and a bit abused after consuming it.    … Expand
  34. ManManManMan69
    Jan 20, 2022
    7
    I decently enjoyed the game but it has a couple of problems.
    Mainly:too tanky bosses,bad optimalization and some bad design choiches that make this gane less enjoyable.
    Tanky bosses wouldnt be a problem if every skill wouldnt cost 5 times more mp than in previous smt titles,but because of this,every harder boss requires you to have at least a couple mp restoring items. The tanky bosses    I decently enjoyed the game but it has a couple of problems.
    Mainly:too tanky bosses,bad optimalization and some bad design choiches that make this gane less enjoyable.
    Tanky bosses wouldnt be a problem if every skill wouldnt cost 5 times more mp than in previous smt titles,but because of this,every harder boss requires you to have at least a couple mp restoring items.
    The tanky bosses wouldn't be that bad if you didnt have to spend every 2 turns buffing yourself and the enemy,the sole buffing isnt a problem but i fell like the buff nerf is a big downgrade from the rest of the series.
    Before smt v buffs/debuffs could be stacked 4 or 3 times and would stay until the enemy gets rid of them by using a special skill.
    Now, buffs/debuffs stay for 3 turns and can be stacked 2 times.
    and this wouldnt be that much of a difference if the bosses wouldnt be so **** tanky,even on double buffed attack and double debuffed defence most of the bosses take around 20min(on normal mode) and renewing buffs/debuffs every 2nd turn just isnt fun.
    The optimalization is bad but its not that big a deal.
    sometimes you get lags for a second and thats it.
    Now onto the good stuff:
    The explortation is great and probably the best in the series,the only problem is that there are only 3 dungeons and i kinda missed them during the game.
    The music is Great but almost all of the tracks are too similar in my opinion.
    Overall: The game is good except the bad optimalization, it just didnt stick well with me,i love the smt/persona series but the fifth installments in those series are just not for me.
    Smt 3 is very good tho i reccomend (:    … Expand
  35. Quadrin
    May 30, 2022
    7
    If you are primarily wondering if you should buy this game or not: I would definitely recommend it, despite its flaws.

    I've been looking forward to the next title of the mainline Shin Megami Tensei series for years, and the prospect of another console game (the last one being Nocturne, which was first released about 20 years ago) for my favorite game series was obviously a big thing for    If you are primarily wondering if you should buy this game or not: I would definitely recommend it, despite its flaws.

    I've been looking forward to the next title of the mainline Shin Megami Tensei series for years, and the prospect of another console game (the last one being Nocturne, which was first released about 20 years ago) for my favorite game series was obviously a big thing for me.

    After spending nearly 100 hours in total, I can say that this game is a good time. The biggest pro about it is the demon fusion, collecting, and personalization. Every single demon in some way feels unique to each other, and all the new ones, animated amazingly, have at least one unique move with its own animation and effects, so even underleveled demons feel important as the game goes on. The combat itself is the mostly the same great press-turn system from Nocturne, with a few changes. For once, the smirk system introduced in IV is now replaced with the magatsuhi gauge, which when full can be used to do an instant super move, and while there are many kinds of these super moves, only a couple are really good. The damage however in general is now level-based, meaning no matter how skillful or prepared you are for a boss, you MUST be near or at the level of the boss to even stand a chance (without an hour long cheese fest). Speaking of bosses: they have 2x health than they should, so fights at times really overstay their welcome.

    V is a new take towards the overall movement of the game. Instead of a constant line of dungeons and random encounters, you have 4 large worlds with a couple small dungeons, and demons in the overworld are pretty easy to avoid, save a specific annoying lion-falcon jerk. The controlling and movement of the MC himself is really fun, and especially the 1st world feels great to run up and slide down sandy hills.

    The visuals of this game are really impressive for the Nintendo Switch; the console will definitely overheat in just short play sessions, and there will be major pop-ins for a couple seconds for models appearing in battles and cutscenes, but you'll still have a good graphical time. As emulators have shown (which I myself didn't use), the game can look absolutely stunning, so I blame the switch rather than SMT V itself for its performance.

    Now, my biggest issue with V: the story. I often here many say that SMT V is solely for the gameplay, and the story isn't meant to be the main focus. I couldn't disagree more (I find IV to have one of the best plots in history). There are characters in this game that barely have any development, and are either sidelined or thrown out once you deal with them. While there are some good moments here and there, I can't deny that charcters that had only 5 minutes of any role in past entries had a much more profound and interesting role than most of the characters on the BOX ART of the game!

    Overall, while this game was somewhat disappointing, with a shockingly small amount of content beyond the really well-made balancing and collecting aspect, I still find it to be a good game, and honestly the best rpg of 2021, which isn't saying much.    … Expand
  36. Netrion
    Feb 15, 2023
    7
    This game at it's core is very fun, great story, great characters, and fun gameplay, but I can't help but feel that it was too limited by the Switch and it's performance.
  37. ericiidx
    Oct 28, 2022
    6
    It's just okay. Fans of Shin Megami Tensei and/or JRPGs in general will probably be able to look past the game's myriad flaws. The game's story beats play out exactly as you'd expect with little to no exposition, and there are no surprises for anyone who has played a SMT game before -- it's a story of angels and demons warring in some-day-Tokyo, with you right in the middle. The gameIt's just okay. Fans of Shin Megami Tensei and/or JRPGs in general will probably be able to look past the game's myriad flaws. The game's story beats play out exactly as you'd expect with little to no exposition, and there are no surprises for anyone who has played a SMT game before -- it's a story of angels and demons warring in some-day-Tokyo, with you right in the middle. The game doesn't really respect your time, whether it's the constant need for (light) grinding, or the uselessness of much of the non-story-related dialogue (I don't need a demon to tell me "there's a human up ahead," I can see them 10 feet away.) The Switch hardware both struggles to maintain 30FPS, and its age imparts a number of graphical downgrades in order to do so. The music is absolutely excellent - once again, the shining star of a SMT game - but sounds muddled, as if it were mastered to sound best coming out of the Switch's built-in speakers. The demons (who also appear in the Persona series) look better than they ever have, but again, the detail and performance is hampered by the inadequate Switch hardware.

    Every aspect of the game feels like give and take, but to me, this feels like one for the fans. For those who just want to battle familiar demons and drown themselves in a moody, wailing industrial soundtrack. I really think this game could've been an entirely different beast if it weren't Switch exclusive. Being able to pause and resume a game on a whim is always nice, though...    … Expand
  38. maniaque
    Jan 12, 2022
    6
    the game is another japanese rpg style game. theres alot japanese in this game. the game looks japanese and everything has the japanese taste. im not into this genre of games. those who like alot japanese rpg with cartoonish style and tour based fights with alot fantasy will like. it is probably a good game in this genre but mostly for hardcore japanese rpg fans. this is just not for me.
  39. truemask
    Dec 19, 2021
    6
    Good game, but to me a lackluster experience.

    The story seems to be standard for SMT, and follows a common Law Vs. Chaos theme. The protagonist seems interesting at first but quickly becomes dull and lacks personality even for a Genre (JRPGS) that usually has mute characters. The actual story scene only amount to about 3-4 hours and there is practically no interaction or development of    Good game, but to me a lackluster experience.

    The story seems to be standard for SMT, and follows a common Law Vs. Chaos theme. The protagonist seems interesting at first but quickly becomes dull and lacks personality even for a Genre (JRPGS) that usually has mute characters. The actual story scene only amount to about 3-4 hours and there is practically no interaction or development of side characters.

    Exploration environments are dull and very very similar. But I am glad there aren't random encounters like previous SMT games.

    Combat and demon negotiation is similar to previous SMT games and i can't help but draw comparisons to Atlus's Persona Series, It lacks a more fluid Battle Menu and uses a more classic but slow JRPG battle menu

    It is a challenging game even on easy, but depending how much grinding/sidequesting/team building you do it can be not as challenging. in my experience its a hard game to speedrun because you do need to spend time leveling to beat hard enemies. Of course manual saves are present meaning sometimes replaying half a hour of progres after defeat which can be frustrating.

    Music was another disappointing aspect, it has typical gritty SMT music but seems to lack variety for general exploration and severely lacking for main battle music, only one track plays the entire game and it is a monotonous 10 second loop that quickly becomes grating. I found the exploration music from SMT 4 and 4A more memorable.

    overall a decent JRPG but it left me disappointed,    … Expand
  40. Zski
    Dec 5, 2021
    6
    I have never played an SMT or Persona game prior to this one, so I don’t have much to go off of. The gameplay had a bit of a steep learning curve which made it tough to get into, but once it clicked, I enjoyed it a lot more. The mechanics of the game ended up feeling fairly simple, under the mask of making it appear very complex. You simply target enemy weaknesses, and build a team that isI have never played an SMT or Persona game prior to this one, so I don’t have much to go off of. The gameplay had a bit of a steep learning curve which made it tough to get into, but once it clicked, I enjoyed it a lot more. The mechanics of the game ended up feeling fairly simple, under the mask of making it appear very complex. You simply target enemy weaknesses, and build a team that is balanced for your average encounters, and then for boss battles you just modify your team to exploit their weakness - that’s it, that’s all the mechanics boil down to. That does not mean the game is bad though, it had a little bit of an addictive gameplay loop, but it actually feels pretty grindy. For example when I was 6 hours in, I felt like I made it super far, but I could literally run back to the beginning of the game within a minute or two, just because most of my time was spent grinding. It feels like a Pokémon game without the sense of adventure. Pokémon games were fun, but they offered no challenge - SMT5 adds a nice challenge to formula which I appreciate about the game. Like I said above, the challenge ends up coming back to having to grind, and then the lack of save points. Not a bad thing because it makes you play a little more tactfully. The plot is uninteresting, the graphics are sort of blurry, the performance is surprisingly bad, but the music is pretty good (although repetitive). I am enjoying it so far, but it’s not a game to go crazy over. The game ended up losing my attention because of the incessant grinding that is constantly demanded. I am realizing that it is artificially difficult because it requires so much grinding between each segment of the game.… Expand
  41. LiterallyMe
    Nov 23, 2021
    6
    It's ok but I'm not a fan of the changes made to press turn, the relatively terrible music (compared to 3, 4, and 4A), terrible story and pacing, terrible main character design, idolmaster demons, etc.
    If you're starved for a JRPG it will probably satisfy you but this is without a doubt the worst mainline SMT game (yes, including the SNES ones)
    Definitely the worst implementation of    It's ok but I'm not a fan of the changes made to press turn, the relatively terrible music (compared to 3, 4, and 4A), terrible story and pacing, terrible main character design, idolmaster demons, etc.
    If you're starved for a JRPG it will probably satisfy you but this is without a doubt the worst mainline SMT game (yes, including the SNES ones)

    Definitely the worst implementation of Press Turn in a modern MegaTen game and the difficulty curve is broken- the game becomes a cakewalk by the time you get to the second area    … Expand
  42. Coded
    Nov 19, 2021
    6
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Spent a long time thinking about this, so I thought I’d give my honest thoughts.

    Out of all the SMT line games I’ve played from mainline to spin-offs this one was probably my least favourite. The combat and demon summoning system were the same steadfast that longtime players have gotten to know and love - and I even enjoyed some of the new additions (i.e.; race specific abilities). The music was also a high point for me and generally fit with the atmosphere.

    Where the game really falls flat is on its story and overalll feel. The story for the most part is non-existent - and I’m not just talking about dialogue spews (as much as I enjoy those, usually the mainline games are less reliant on them, and manage not to suffer for it). What I can say with absolute certainty is that o felt more about the world and characters in other mainline games (Nocturne, SMT IV) and some of the less story intensive spin-offs (Strange Journey). I never thought I’d say that a cosmic game of such epic proportions could feel so inconsequential. Part of it lies in the fact that your character, for the vast majority of the game, doesn’t really make any ‘choices’. The other games did a good job of bringing clear alignment in the early game, and even if there were ways out of it you generally created a path for yourself from start to end. Having a home base of sorts where you always returned to for small tidbits of story without really adding much may have actually been a down point in the story, Abbas the few situations interacting with characters in a mostly empty world didn’t do much to make you care about them (even those they swiftly killed off).

    Generally it was a turn based slugfest, which while enjoyable in bursts, seemed to overstay its welcome. Spending tens of hours walking around maps isn’t bad by itself, but it would have been better with some pacing and a bigger sense of purpose. The environments were nice to start with, but soon grew bland (the lighting sometimes felt more obnoxious and in the way than moody - imagine trying to find a new path or a collectable when the colouring gets in the way).

    All in all, it has me a bit worried for the future.

    I still enjoyed the game for what it’s worth and I’m sure many others did to - it was just generally a step down from my historical experience and expectations. Without the classic combat system it would have fallen flat for me. And if you don’t get any enjoyment out of that, you likely won’t enjoy this game.    … Expand
  43. Ramas
    Sep 15, 2022
    6
    Not a bad game, but not good either. If you played persona 5, so that game wins on all fronts vs this game, story, music, combat, overall quality.
  44. neph36
    Nov 25, 2021
    5
    This game is pretty overrated. It performs abysmally on Switch. The music is terrible. The story is mostly non-existent and what's there is uninteresting. The overworld is good for exploration but just doesn't keep my interest. It is a dungeon crawler without dungeons.
    The gameplay is decent enough but could be better. Overall a pretty meh game. Disappointing.
  45. Cancery1987
    Nov 14, 2021
    5
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Music 9/10
    Graphic 9/10
    Gameplay 5/10
    Story 4/10

    This game so boring, just beautiful.    … Expand
  46. AllNewSuperfake
    Nov 24, 2021
    5
    While pretty much every mechanic in the game is enjoyable, and technical nitpicks are mostly hardwaree-related, SMT 5 fails to answer the question why I'm doing what I'm doing. There is no agency at all, just busywork with the occasional story blurb that most of the time only underlines the total absence of a narrative.
  47. 2random
    Dec 2, 2021
    4
    The game feels like persona with 100 times less money spent on development.
    Some features are non existent, or just bad:
    - Graphics. Though the game looks like it was made for PS2, it still lags. - Walking through the city. You can only move your character on a map. - Most of the social stuff- hanging out with friends, etc. is not there. - Music. There are like 2 BGM tracks and 2    The game feels like persona with 100 times less money spent on development.
    Some features are non existent, or just bad:
    - Graphics. Though the game looks like it was made for PS2, it still lags.
    - Walking through the city. You can only move your character on a map.
    - Most of the social stuff- hanging out with friends, etc. is not there.
    - Music. There are like 2 BGM tracks and 2 battle tracks playing in a loop. It felt extremely annoying after few hours.
    - Endless grind. Normal mobs give you little exp, so you'll have to run around killing special type of mobs that give more exp. But you can't kill em without a special item you can buy from a NPC. So, you just go to the shop, buy 10 items, kill 10 mobs, repeat, repeat, repeat. The item allows you to oneshot them, so there is no fun in this process whatsoever. And after you level up just enough, you can proceed to the next area (and continue that same boring process).
    - Secondary quests. They're either like "go there and talk to that person" or like "kill 5 creatures of this type". Extremely boring, but you'll still have to do all of them to get some exp.
    - Level design. So, there's a desert. It's not even close to being as good as the one in Nier Automata, though it looks kinda similar. And that's it. There's a desert with some ruins here and there. It's filled with enemies that respawn seconds after you kill them.
    - Story. Though I've set my expectations pretty low, the game somehow still managed to disappoint me. The game places a marker on a map you have to get to. After an hour of killing your enemies, you finally get there, watch a 20 second long dialogue or a cutscene and get a new marker on a map.
    - Bossfights. They're way too easy, once you get the hang of it. You just die once, to check it's affinity- e.g. the thing attacks with fire and is weak to ice. Then, you make yourself resistant to fire, grab a few demons with strong ice attacks, and you're done. Bosses are neither challenging nor interesting.
    - Gameplay. This is the main issue. After you spend few hours in game, get familiar with all the mechanics, nothing but grind awaits you. Lets say, you're at lvl5. You see a new quest marker. You get there, and all the mobs running around are lvl10. You grind for an hour and get to lvl10. Now you go to the next quest marker, but all the mobs are lvl15! So, you grind for an hour and a half to get to lvl15. And the thing continues until you get either bored or beat the game, whatever happens first. Unlike in persona, you see no consequences of your actions, you have no reason to fight, and you get no rewards for the progress you make. Instead of being like "oh man, I'm really fired up, let me punish that bad guy!", you're more like "oh man, don't tell me I'll have to kill these same mobs for 2 more hours".    … Expand
  48. JK73
    Nov 24, 2021
    4
    Artificial difficulty that doesnt reward strategy but rather grinding levels, its either super easy or you get one shot, which in a turn based game is MISERABLE. Story and characters are forgettable but the open world and world building is incredible, carries the game.
  49. Qwerti3d
    Nov 30, 2021
    4
    SMT V is a game touted as "excellent", "brutal" and "uncompromising" in its vision, but much of this is little more than hyperbole that masks the bland gameplay loop, characters and contrived world-building, suited for either the masochistic or those with an excess of time. The premise of SMT V is promising but is ruined by its poor execution. Pacing of the overall story is erratic andSMT V is a game touted as "excellent", "brutal" and "uncompromising" in its vision, but much of this is little more than hyperbole that masks the bland gameplay loop, characters and contrived world-building, suited for either the masochistic or those with an excess of time. The premise of SMT V is promising but is ruined by its poor execution. Pacing of the overall story is erratic and does little to elaborate on its supposed themes of law and chaos other than the occasional dialogue choices. Characters have as much personality as cardboard or dried paint; there is nothing to evoke pathos or simply to make you care. Music (especially combat) is little more than droning, repetitive guitar riffs and **** synths. There is no atmosphere, eeriness or mystery after the first few hours.

    The only goal is to proceed to the next quest marker, the next HP sponge and the next round of grind in a constant attempt to build your team against the next arbitrary obstacle. Gameplay consists of encounters mainly won by abusing specific elemental weaknesses/items (dampeners/shards/gems). Adjusting your team of demons requires an insignificant amount of grind (levelling characters, demon negotiation, etc.). Repeat this for every sub-quest/main-quest. Layer on the additional resets needed because of missed attacks, subsequent criticals, etc. and you have the game.

    If you enjoy mind-numbing grind and bastardised mythology, buy this game. Otherwise this is yet another, COVID-era JRPG that delivers an archaic and disappointing experience.    … Expand
  50. daimon72
    Feb 10, 2023
    4
    Boring as hell. Nonexistent plot, boring atmosphere. It's like this game was made for a robot to enjoy. Completely lacks creativity. I can't believe how generic this game is. Huge downgrade from SMT IV imo.
  51. GRX3m0m
    Feb 24, 2023
    4
    Mediocre story, coupled with dragging battles and too much grinding needed to even stand a chance against bosses, killed the game not even 10 hours in. As someone who loves turn-based RPG, I expected to love the game, but it turns out it was only made for hardcore fans of the series, which unfortunately, I am not.
  52. DJBobRokk
    Jun 14, 2023
    4
    I love Japanese care to make games.. but this one is a nonsense.. boring at top level, no feel into gameplay, no interest into dialogues, no attraction into environment
  53. kems
    Jan 8, 2023
    3
    I'm not a SMT fan, I've only played Persona 5 and this game. And my score is not objective, because I'm just around 8hrs in the game. But so far this is a constant battle between myself wishing to drop it and all the people who said this was the best jrpg of 2021. The only thing I've liked until this point is the versatility of your party. Battle system is just meh, it's like persona 5 butI'm not a SMT fan, I've only played Persona 5 and this game. And my score is not objective, because I'm just around 8hrs in the game. But so far this is a constant battle between myself wishing to drop it and all the people who said this was the best jrpg of 2021. The only thing I've liked until this point is the versatility of your party. Battle system is just meh, it's like persona 5 but worst. Technically no comments, is awful. The music is weird, because it feels cohesive with the atmosphere of the game... but I like neither atmosphere nor the music. Story is non existing, I've heard that nearly at the end of the game it starts developing. I'm not going to play 50hrs of a game just to see if the story it's probably good, so I'll just say it's bad. Characters are so dead and unappealing. And the progression of the game is just boring, it's a grindfest from the start. I'm ok with grinding, but a game that just throws you into a world to grind for hours without knowing why or what the hell is going on it's just nonsense.
    And the difficulty spikes oh God. I like difficult games, but I hate unfair ones. It's so obnoxious to be exploring a new area for secrets and collectibles for 30 minutes, just to be surprised by an enemy group who attack first, one shots your main character and make you lose all your progress from last save point (because forget about auto save or manual save from the map, just get back to last save point). If I ever finish this game I'll update this rating, but everyday I'm closer to drop it, so I doubt it.    … Expand
  54. WombatWarrior
    Nov 14, 2021
    3
    Game is nothing like persona games no social links story is horrible, side characters are bad and combat feels worse huge downstep from persona 5
  55. NoLameGames
    Dec 1, 2021
    3
    SMT V was a very disappointing title. The music is phenomenal, combat system is fun, the overall experience is brought down by performance issues and a story so barebones and dull you'd get as much entertainment from watching paint dry as reading through it. The combat is SMT at its best, the music is the standard fare. The new exploration elements are quite welcome. I'd recommend SMT IIISMT V was a very disappointing title. The music is phenomenal, combat system is fun, the overall experience is brought down by performance issues and a story so barebones and dull you'd get as much entertainment from watching paint dry as reading through it. The combat is SMT at its best, the music is the standard fare. The new exploration elements are quite welcome. I'd recommend SMT III and IV:A or Strange Journey over this anyday.… Expand
  56. Muzhai
    Jan 23, 2022
    3
    Thank god for the beer. I am usually very focused on what I play. Even the things I hate, I play with burning passion. But for Shin Megami Tensei V, it's like my soul was meaning "kbye, abuse yourself as much as you want, I see myself out!"
  57. Color465
    Apr 12, 2022
    3
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Only negative but it's in all atlus games it's the frustrating map designs if only they would remove that difficulty from there games it would be a much better experience imo spending 12 hours on 1 map and still didn't find all the items anyone with bad sense of direction I recommend not picking this up… Expand
  58. ShadowofZexa
    Nov 23, 2021
    2
    The game is just rinse and repeat you keep doing the same thing over and over again it becomes absolutely grueling
  59. Tzelanit
    Mar 8, 2022
    2
    People on Metacritic love to rate things as either a perfect 10 or flat 0, which makes the user scores essentially useless. Nothing is either the greatest thing ever created or pure **** that's completely irredeemable.

    That being said, SMT V is a missed opportunity for what has been a solid mainline series of SMT games. Switch hardware was a generation old the day that it was released,    People on Metacritic love to rate things as either a perfect 10 or flat 0, which makes the user scores essentially useless. Nothing is either the greatest thing ever created or pure **** that's completely irredeemable.

    That being said, SMT V is a missed opportunity for what has been a solid mainline series of SMT games. Switch hardware was a generation old the day that it was released, and it really shows here with a low framerate with constant fps dips and bad textures.

    The story, which is usually the meatiest part of mainline SMT, is stripped down on favor of aggressive repetition and an emphasis on exploring and grinding.

    This is essentially Persona without the cringe romance and relationships, which basically makes this a D- entry in an otherwise fantastic series. I worry for the future of mainline SMT. Up until now, Persona contained all of the cringe, but those design ethics are bleeding out and will begin to hurt the series starting with this entry if it keeps up.

    If you're one of the handful of people who still own a Switch, if Persona 3 was your first SMT game, and if you enjoy generic anime bull****, SMT V will be a 10 for you. If you actually have good taste and standards, it won't be more than a 3/10 on its best day.    … Expand
  60. Efrim
    Feb 20, 2022
    2
    Sería un 10 si viniera aquí la versión de yuzu a 2k 60fps( el cambio es absolutamente abismal ).

    Sinceramente en switch no se juega bien. Caídas de fps constantes. Pop-in absurdo, no he revisado pero estoy seguro que el juego corre a menos de 720p de resolución. Se ve súper borroso. El juego es un bonito 10 si lo emulas en yuzu. Mi juego de switch lo voy a vender
  61. ShahTheDude
    Dec 25, 2022
    2
    Boring story, Repetitive grindy gameplay on medium and probably the easiest game ever on easy it's like they couldn't make up thier mind, it feels like if you don't let me F you than I wouldn't play with you lol, boring atmosphere and open world with very ugly graphics and not because of the Nintendo Switch because the Switch has very beautiful games obviously, very boring characters,Boring story, Repetitive grindy gameplay on medium and probably the easiest game ever on easy it's like they couldn't make up thier mind, it feels like if you don't let me F you than I wouldn't play with you lol, boring atmosphere and open world with very ugly graphics and not because of the Nintendo Switch because the Switch has very beautiful games obviously, very boring characters, honestly UT is a waste of money and time! The Shin megami tensei 3 remastered is A LOT better game than V, and now that Persona 5 Royal is on the Switch you have NO reason to spend any money on this crappy game, if you got a 3ds go back and play the ones on it because honestly those are much better than V, Shin megami tensei V is a worthless disappointment.… Expand
  62. celtaheaven
    Sep 4, 2022
    2
    I wanted to have the will to explain in details how bad this game is. I tried to not bring myself, wasting my time, to explain such disgraceful and disappointing this game was, but yet here I am.

    To summarize: 10/10 gameplay, 8/10 visual and 7/10 audio direction; seems good right? Well, this is the reason why individual factors dont play in how a videogame product is good, because in    I wanted to have the will to explain in details how bad this game is. I tried to not bring myself, wasting my time, to explain such disgraceful and disappointing this game was, but yet here I am.

    To summarize: 10/10 gameplay, 8/10 visual and 7/10 audio direction; seems good right? Well, this is the reason why individual factors dont play in how a videogame product is good, because in everything else this game is awful. I can't even describe how bad it is. Awful plot, characters, development, ending; everything else.

    The game basically tries way too hard to pose as something minimalist, objective, stylish, end up being the laziest unfinished videogame I've ever seen from a double to triple A industry.

    This game became the reason why I wont pre-order any other game, even from a "trustful" company.    … Expand
  63. drsnap
    Nov 15, 2021
    1
    Another boring JRPG, where its only strenght is its variety in partymembers. The game is a grindfest that most of the time relies on who has the most HP points. Its understandable JRPG fans swollow this, but all other people. Just avoid! The main character are paperthin, and you never really get to know him or any compainions.
  64. RicardoDavid
    Nov 23, 2021
    1
    I bought this game when it had a 9 user score. I realized too late those were paid reviews. This site should do something to prevent that to happen. I guess it's the last time I believe these reviews.
    The game story is really dumb, gameplay boring, graphics are the worst in Switch, and they scam you to buy "DLC" which is just a part of the game and should be included. I didn't give it a 0    I bought this game when it had a 9 user score. I realized too late those were paid reviews. This site should do something to prevent that to happen. I guess it's the last time I believe these reviews.
    The game story is really dumb, gameplay boring, graphics are the worst in Switch, and they scam you to buy "DLC" which is just a part of the game and should be included. I didn't give it a 0 because the summoning system was ok.    … Expand
  65. Roflan105
    Nov 22, 2021
    1
    Very bad game. Story is worst in all SMT franchise. Gameplay is mediocre, open world is good but fights are too easy even on hard mode.
  66. rucinax
    Nov 28, 2021
    1
    Boring game, you just do the same things over and over again, story is uninteresting, characters are boring. Could have been acceptable 20 years ago...
  67. Encore22
    Nov 27, 2021
    0
    When IGN reviewed this game, they described it as "Persona without the soul" and received a lot of critique because of this. But were they actually spot on?

    The game barely has a story, and honestly might as well not even have been there, along with the meaningless side, and even the main character. You could just as well have played as a player made default character. The gameplay    When IGN reviewed this game, they described it as "Persona without the soul" and received a lot of critique because of this. But were they actually spot on?

    The game barely has a story, and honestly might as well not even have been there, along with the meaningless side, and even the main character. You could just as well have played as a player made default character.

    The gameplay is the strong part of the game, it can be fun to exploit the enemies weakness and rack up your turns, but in the end I find myself missing the more impactful knockdown system of the persona games. And for a game which is supposed to live and die on it's gameplay, as you get further in, it ends up being more and more shallow, with the final 50% of the game revolving around buffing up your team, debuffing your enemies and just pounding them. As there's no way to respecialize your main character, you end up locking yourself into a playstyle quite early on, which at least for me got boring after I heard "ARAMASA" for the 2000th time.

    The game has 200+ demons, but after a while you realize that there's not really a lot to differentiate them, a level 65+ god Thor is really not much different from the level 19 fluffy Shiisa. There is physical attackers, Magical attackers, Buffers/healers, Debuffers, Status demons (pretty much useless on bosses). In these arcetypes most demons play exactly the same, with the exception of a few unique demons who possess incredibly powerful unique skills. The problem with these are that they are mostly just very slighly more powerful versions of other spells, and play the same way. But when there's exceptions such as with series veteran **** it becomes a big issue as said demon is very easy to create and is simply better than all other physical attackers up until the very lategame, and the same goes for the healer/buffer Idunn, who I also kept until the end of the game. I wish all characters had unique ways of being played like these characters, and that the game's difficulty was balanced around this. If you had to combine demons based around this, the gameplay would surely have been more interesting.

    The exploration side of the gameplay is okay, it is quite basic, but I found myself collecting all 200 of the little miman characters which give a bit of glory, which can be used to specialize your character. Honestly though, it was something I felt compelled into doing, rather than actually enjoying, as I found myself being quite underleveled at the end of each level, which leads me to another thing I'd like to critique, the difficulty. I played this game on hard difficulty, which was the maximum I could choose. The game was quite hard in the beginning. What often ends up happening is that a quest or a story event puts you into a battle you have no idea if you can handle or not. On hard difficulty, early on if an enemy is more than 2 levels higher than you it's a game over. And most of the time this is the case. Resulting in a guaranteed 2 minute reload.

    In order to deal with a situation like this, you have to grind and fuse demons which counter the boss encounter. This is really what this game's difficulty comes down to. You grind usually 2-3 levels and fuse appropriate demons which resists the elements the boss uses and which have skills which the boss is weak to. You can also buy items to help with this. Perhaps this sounds complicated to someone who has not played a lot of JRPGs, but this is actually quite trivial, and I believe most people who go through this game will have quite a similar journey, fusing similar demons for the bosses. I would have appreciated a deeper system in a game which is a niche, hardcore JRPG.

    Fusing and customizing your demons takes a lot of menuing and waiting, out of the ~63 hours or so it took for me to complete this game and what I believe was all the side content, 10+ hour will be spent in menues and loading screens.

    The game's music is good, I especially like how the battle music does not really start until someone strikes the first blow. But now having finished the game, I cannot really recall a single song the way I can with the charming soundtrakcs of the Persona games.

    Because of all this I'd rate this game a five out of ten, and conclude by saying that Persona without its soul really is an apt way of describing this game.

    Take persona, strip away all the characters, its story, its music and the side systems which build into it's combat and you are left with this hollow experience which will leave few satisfied.    … Expand
  68. thedaarkbatty
    Nov 13, 2021
    0
    The gameplay is legitimatly awful. It's just doing the same thing over and over again. Overall it's not the worst game I've ever played but i rate 0% to balance score out
  69. GenkiYokota
    Jan 27, 2022
    0
    The worst story and characters in the entire saga, and a horrible playable aspect and progress.
    I've had a lot of fun with previous SMT and Persona's, but this... "thing" is a bad joke.
  70. OmegaAP
    Jun 27, 2023
    0
    Having no party or a sub par story doesn’t do the game any favours however the combat is serviceable.
  71. Kkodss
    Nov 16, 2021
    0
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. The first area was really great. But then you finish it, and this is what follows:

    There is a pretty crude exposition dump, with a bizarre tone shift and an introduction of a new character that we're supposed to care about even though we just met her

    There is a high school 'dungeon' area which looks borderline PS1 in terms of look and textures, and runs at about 10fps

    The second large area is exactly the same as the first, only with a red filter, and a further performance hit, making the game run largely as a slideshow    … Expand
  72. lalahand
    Jan 1, 2022
    0
    Lower my rating to 0 because this game is sold for $32 in just one month. RIP for fans who bought at $60. Original rating is 5 because it is a very boring jrpg with outdated combat system and poor story.
  73. keshudioo
    Jan 15, 2023
    0
    I couldn't start enjoying the game because it's all loading screens, loading screens, loading screens... low fps, low resolution textures...
  74. LEMAZZATE
    Nov 18, 2021
    0
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Scusate ragazzi, vorrei farmi piacere 'sto gioco ma non c'è La Mecca. Grande occasione sprecata… Expand
  75. Minato-Arisato
    Nov 22, 2021
    0
    Como fan de la saga Megaten, este titulo es simplemente decepcionante.
    Una trama lenta que tarda mucho en iniciar, personajes carentes de carisma (algo inaudito en la serie) y ciertos problemas técnicos muy molestos. Hacen que sea una secuela muy difícil de recomendar.
    Casi prefiero decirle a los demás que solo prueben los anteriores, y que rehúyan de este. Atlus la arruino muy    Como fan de la saga Megaten, este titulo es simplemente decepcionante.
    Una trama lenta que tarda mucho en iniciar, personajes carentes de carisma (algo inaudito en la serie) y ciertos problemas técnicos muy molestos. Hacen que sea una secuela muy difícil de recomendar.
    Casi prefiero decirle a los demás que solo prueben los anteriores, y que rehúyan de este.
    Atlus la arruino muy seriamente con este.    … Expand
  76. MlghtyRengar_
    Jan 30, 2022
    0
    Very bad game, a total shame for the spirit of Megaten, plus the performance is terrible
  77. Sanick
    Feb 6, 2022
    0
    Consider my score a 4, but I'm rating lower to drag the overall rating closer to where I think it belongs. I'm a newcomer to the SMT series so I can't compare it to earlier entries.

    Pros: Battle System, RPG Mechanics (fusing and customizing demons, allocating stat points, etc.), soundtrack I had a lot of fun fusing demons and using essences to get strong members for my party. The    Consider my score a 4, but I'm rating lower to drag the overall rating closer to where I think it belongs. I'm a newcomer to the SMT series so I can't compare it to earlier entries.

    Pros: Battle System, RPG Mechanics (fusing and customizing demons, allocating stat points, etc.), soundtrack

    I had a lot of fun fusing demons and using essences to get strong members for my party. The customization mechanics alone occupied my time for hours on end.

    The battle system is very flexible and allows for many different strategies. Though, of course, all strategies devolve to using revive items and turtling when bosses hit you with those really fun party-wide nukes that ignore affinity and kill your demons from 100% health.

    There's a wide variety of high-energy rock tracks that play during battles, especially for boss and mini-boss battles. I never got tired of any single track. Except, strangely, the final boss fight, which just played some gloomy ambient sounds that brought the entire mood down. Talk about falling at the finish line.

    Cons: Setting, Plot, Characters, General Writing, Demon Negotiations

    All the writing in this game is just bad bad bad. The setting gets practically no discussion whatsoever, and the plot feels like it wasn't thought out at all and doesn't bother to explain anything of importance. Characters are either inconsequential, or come out of left-field with some extreme development that happened off-screen. But the characters are never interesting or compelling. I invested 90+ hours into a single playthrough, and though the combat and customization were fun, I expected more in the narrative department. I received F-tier writing. I also get the impression that prior knowledge of SMT titles may have been necessary to understand everything, essentially kicking me between the legs for making this my first SMT game.

    Demon Negotiations get their own section because I hate this part of the game with a fiery passion. When trying to get a demon to join your party they present you with some bizarre question. Depending on your answer, they may attack you immediately, flee the battle, or ask you another question. You almost always have to answer multiple questions "correctly" to get them to join you, and if you answer one wrong, you start all over. These questions are basically garbage personality riddles with no clear right answer, and caused me a ton of frustration. I don't think I'll ever think on the same wavelength as the devs so I'm just out of luck. I looked up fusion combinations online and stopped doing demon negotiations altogether. I just fused and fused and fused to get what I wanted. Screw this mechanic.

    Mixed: Visuals, Level Design

    Unfortunately, this game is on the Nintendo Switch, which seriously suffers in terms of graphic capabilities. This game could have looked way more impressive if it were on the PS4/5. Despite sacrifices in visual quality, a lot of people have reported poor performance. Personally, I rarely experienced stuttering or frame drops (but they did happen). The game ran smoothly, but many textures looked embarrassingly low-res for a modern game. Cutscenes ran noticeably below 30fps as well.

    The zones in this game are fairly expansive and lend themselves to exploration. However, this is made pretty inconvenient by the large number of enemies on the map, ready to launch you into a turn-based battle one after the other. It's a chore to battle them all, so you'll usually just end up trying to avoid them like they have cooties. Both these design choices just seem to get in each other's way and make the other one worse.

    I felt as though a lot of the zones were drab and dull. They were essentially all desolate wastelands. That's what they were supposed to be, but still, it didn't bring a lot of diversity. Any small sections which broke up the monotony were there and gone before you knew it, as you raced off to more sand dunes. I was especially surprised that the first zone was the most dull. Curiosity about what the heck is going on (due to literally no narration) will probably fuel players through the first zone just fine, but looking back, that place was very boring design-wise.

    Special call-out to the 3rd zone, which was absolute hell. There were so many different altitudes, and the map was worthless for representing the topography. But the zone itself was just far too complex with no clear path from one point to another. It just sucked. I probably beat the game a month later than I otherwise would have because it was so miserable to wander around that place.    … Expand
  78. butterletto
    Mar 8, 2022
    0
    People need to learn not be a fanboy, value their money and time and get a little smarter so that game developers improve themselves and make their games better in terms of everything!
  79. l0w
    Jul 1, 2023
    0
    I am an enjoyer of SMT3 in addition to Persona 3, 4 and 5. I wanted to like SMTV, but the performance on my Switch is terrible. I can't believe more people aren't talking about how chunky and poorly this game runs. As a Switch exclusive, it should not be running at 18 fps all the time, it just feels bad. Looks great otherwise, I'm no snob. It just has terrible game-feel on account of theI am an enjoyer of SMT3 in addition to Persona 3, 4 and 5. I wanted to like SMTV, but the performance on my Switch is terrible. I can't believe more people aren't talking about how chunky and poorly this game runs. As a Switch exclusive, it should not be running at 18 fps all the time, it just feels bad. Looks great otherwise, I'm no snob. It just has terrible game-feel on account of the heavy stuttering and syrupy unresponsiveness.… Expand
  80. FunMisery
    Jul 6, 2023
    0
    I don’t understand the positive reception. Smt games were never flawless, but they always had lots of redeeming features. This entry regressed beyond redemption with the introduction being a sweet combination of handholding, uninteresting writing and boring exploration. If you get past the boring introduction of this game you’ll get rewarded with lots of design decisions that unnecessarilyI don’t understand the positive reception. Smt games were never flawless, but they always had lots of redeeming features. This entry regressed beyond redemption with the introduction being a sweet combination of handholding, uninteresting writing and boring exploration. If you get past the boring introduction of this game you’ll get rewarded with lots of design decisions that unnecessarily decreases the quality of this game f.e. artificially rising the difficulty of encounters against demons of higher level than you. This game is amazing at making me want to play older smt games tho.… Expand
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Awards & Rankings

22
#22 Best Switch Game of 2021
6
#6 Most Discussed Switch Game of 2021

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
84

Generally favorable reviews - based on 98 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 89 out of 98
  2. Mixed: 9 out of 98
  3. Negative: 0 out of 98
  1. Nintendo Force Magazine
    Mar 7, 2022
    80
    What a journey! After eight years of waiting, the fifth installment of MegaTen is finally here, and it manages to deliver a satisfying experience. It may not have the deepest plot or most interesting cast of human characters, but it's fun, and I appreciate that it challenged me to think more about myself, my beliefs and how I view the world around me. And how many games can do that? [Issue #57 – January/February 2022, p. 76]
  2. Universo Nintendo
    Mar 5, 2022
    90
    SMTV brought everything I expected from a new chapter in the series of one of the first RPG games made, always renewing and innovating. We have an adventure that will make you stay for more than 40 hours hoping it doesn't end. It's really a great must-have for SMT fans and highly recommended for any RPG fan.
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  3. LEVEL (Czech Republic)
    Feb 18, 2022
    80
    Comparing with an adored Persona cannot be avoided, but it is still a quite different experience for a different audience. Great fights, growing demons, excelent graphics and atmosphere. This JRPG succeeded.
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