One of the hardest SMT games out there, let alone JRPGs, but beating it is doable without an “excessive” amount of grinding. I beat it at Lv 84 Mag/Vit build MC, with a Lv 78 Huang Long, Lv 76 Thor, and Lv 83 Trumpteer, all acquired with minimal use of Sources and no Mitama/Elemental boosting. I still put excessive in quotes though, as it did require a LOT of battling with little to no running away as I was traversing the sectors. The final fight was tense and worthy of the game’s last encounter, but that boss has completely fucked attacks and behaviors. Mother’s Kiss being capable of hitting 3-8 times and damn near always hitting 7 or 8 times. MA just outright KILLING your MC with the only defense being a one-time use accessory. Really wish they could’ve achieved this level of difficulty without having to resort to this level of cheapness.
Good plot overall with a nice cast of characters, though I wasn’t crazy about SJ’s rendition of Law and Chaos; both the theologies and the heroes themselves. Jimenez starts off perfectly realistic and likable, which makes his tragic fall carry some weight to it. Though after the transformation, its hard to imagine anyone genuinely siding with his ideology with how unhinged he becomes. Zelenin’s a whole other can of worms, considering how transparent it is that she’s being used by the angels, and just how useless she is throughout the story. Law ends up being even more unappealing than usual as a result. Neutral, as per usual, ends up being the ‘common sense’ ending, and I wish we could get some SMT games that try to play with these ideologies in more interesting ways.
Lastly, the dungeon crawling itself is about as varied and engaging as 1st person dungeon crawlers get. One-way doors, conveyor belts, warps, hidden doors, etc. If you got the patience for it, its surprisingly fun to slowly uncover a map all the way through. Combat-wise, SJ definitely falls short of Nocturne, DeSu, and IV/IV:A. The Demon Co-Op system isn't anywhere near as engaging as Press Turn or Extra Turn, and actually pigeonholes you to a limited amount of demons to fuse for/recruit. Some demons even punish you for favoring a given alignment in battle, which just sucks even more. And thank god this was one of the last SMT games that stuck to that archaic fusion system where you couldn't pick the specific skills you wanted to inherit. Clicking in and out to get the skill combo you want was mind-numbing.
Cool SMT game with engaging dungeon crawling and solid story. Stiff difficulty curve but weak combat. Not my favorite SMT, doubt I'd ever play it again.
Good plot overall with a nice cast of characters, though I wasn’t crazy about SJ’s rendition of Law and Chaos; both the theologies and the heroes themselves. Jimenez starts off perfectly realistic and likable, which makes his tragic fall carry some weight to it. Though after the transformation, its hard to imagine anyone genuinely siding with his ideology with how unhinged he becomes. Zelenin’s a whole other can of worms, considering how transparent it is that she’s being used by the angels, and just how useless she is throughout the story. Law ends up being even more unappealing than usual as a result. Neutral, as per usual, ends up being the ‘common sense’ ending, and I wish we could get some SMT games that try to play with these ideologies in more interesting ways.
Lastly, the dungeon crawling itself is about as varied and engaging as 1st person dungeon crawlers get. One-way doors, conveyor belts, warps, hidden doors, etc. If you got the patience for it, its surprisingly fun to slowly uncover a map all the way through. Combat-wise, SJ definitely falls short of Nocturne, DeSu, and IV/IV:A. The Demon Co-Op system isn't anywhere near as engaging as Press Turn or Extra Turn, and actually pigeonholes you to a limited amount of demons to fuse for/recruit. Some demons even punish you for favoring a given alignment in battle, which just sucks even more. And thank god this was one of the last SMT games that stuck to that archaic fusion system where you couldn't pick the specific skills you wanted to inherit. Clicking in and out to get the skill combo you want was mind-numbing.
Cool SMT game with engaging dungeon crawling and solid story. Stiff difficulty curve but weak combat. Not my favorite SMT, doubt I'd ever play it again.