After completing the original SMT IV and getting the annoying neutral path, I thought to myself why not try this game out and see what it has to offer. Here are some of the things I liked and disliked about Shin Megami Tensei IV Apocalypse:
What I Liked:
-Quality fixes from original IV, everything from estoma ability, UI, and overall game build feels much more stable than IV, playing IV after Apocalypse will make you think IV has some sort of challenge handicap put on.
-Flynn!! Flynn finally gets full voice acting and his character as the reincarnated messiah shines ever brightly. I really like how they implemented Tokyo's views of Flynn after doing those annoying 19 tasks in IV. Along with his companion Isabeau, she is also the same manga loving nerd samurai... how could you not like Isabeau.
-Difficulty spike, this game offers 5 modes of difficulty and anything from conflict and up is pretty challenging, unlike IV where the first dungeon has enemies that one shot you, then the game ends up being easy later on. Apocalypse mode is for those who have endure ability only... because sometimes Nanashi will die to some BS.
-Exploration, due to the estoma and enemy detection rework, exploring the somewhat rebuilt Tokyo is great, you get to actually go around and notice every detail of ingame areas. Of course the world of Tokyo is still a apocalyptic mess, but atleast it looks less dangerous than before. Also noting that tokyo main overworld has bridges that connect to every part of the city, meaning you don't have to always use terminals or cross that ONE SPECIFIC TINY HOLE deep hidden to progress through story....
-Dungeon crawling, this game has the best dungeons that I've played yet, especially the Universe dungeon.
-Boss Fights, this game has some good boss fights, some will intimidate you a lot.
-Quest System Rework, now quests can be finished as you defeat/complete a task without having to obtain the task itself from an NPC or association.
Some things that I did NOT like:
-Limited Soundtrack, this game does have some good bangers but it uses 85% of IV's soundtrack... could have been more music added.
-Shallow story and dialog, I gave this game 3.5 stars because I really enjoyed the gameplay aspect, but when it comes to story and dialog... The main story can be weird and funky, it almost seems like they blended persona 5 and smt edginess together...
-Dependency on Neutral Ending, you either have to play the annoying original IV, or watch a playthrough in order to know what is going on in the game.
-Pick-A-Door Dungeon Design, the puzzle aspect of dungeons was really annoying as it gives you like 100 different doors to go through and if you pick wrong path or door you have to restart. Having to constantly check your map and memorize paths to proceed through story.
-Funky Main Character, Nanashi and dagda seem like a cheap character blend that they just whipped up in a rush, it just feels like there could've been more to them.
All in all, I did find myself playing this game for long periods of time, that is because the gameplay and exploration aspect was really neat, and story and music are manageable.
What I Liked:
-Quality fixes from original IV, everything from estoma ability, UI, and overall game build feels much more stable than IV, playing IV after Apocalypse will make you think IV has some sort of challenge handicap put on.
-Flynn!! Flynn finally gets full voice acting and his character as the reincarnated messiah shines ever brightly. I really like how they implemented Tokyo's views of Flynn after doing those annoying 19 tasks in IV. Along with his companion Isabeau, she is also the same manga loving nerd samurai... how could you not like Isabeau.
-Difficulty spike, this game offers 5 modes of difficulty and anything from conflict and up is pretty challenging, unlike IV where the first dungeon has enemies that one shot you, then the game ends up being easy later on. Apocalypse mode is for those who have endure ability only... because sometimes Nanashi will die to some BS.
-Exploration, due to the estoma and enemy detection rework, exploring the somewhat rebuilt Tokyo is great, you get to actually go around and notice every detail of ingame areas. Of course the world of Tokyo is still a apocalyptic mess, but atleast it looks less dangerous than before. Also noting that tokyo main overworld has bridges that connect to every part of the city, meaning you don't have to always use terminals or cross that ONE SPECIFIC TINY HOLE deep hidden to progress through story....
-Dungeon crawling, this game has the best dungeons that I've played yet, especially the Universe dungeon.
-Boss Fights, this game has some good boss fights, some will intimidate you a lot.
-Quest System Rework, now quests can be finished as you defeat/complete a task without having to obtain the task itself from an NPC or association.
Some things that I did NOT like:
-Limited Soundtrack, this game does have some good bangers but it uses 85% of IV's soundtrack... could have been more music added.
-Shallow story and dialog, I gave this game 3.5 stars because I really enjoyed the gameplay aspect, but when it comes to story and dialog... The main story can be weird and funky, it almost seems like they blended persona 5 and smt edginess together...
-Dependency on Neutral Ending, you either have to play the annoying original IV, or watch a playthrough in order to know what is going on in the game.
-Pick-A-Door Dungeon Design, the puzzle aspect of dungeons was really annoying as it gives you like 100 different doors to go through and if you pick wrong path or door you have to restart. Having to constantly check your map and memorize paths to proceed through story.
-Funky Main Character, Nanashi and dagda seem like a cheap character blend that they just whipped up in a rush, it just feels like there could've been more to them.
All in all, I did find myself playing this game for long periods of time, that is because the gameplay and exploration aspect was really neat, and story and music are manageable.