When a demon invasion destroys Tokyo and threatens the very order of the world as we know it, the natural human response is to survive, attempt to exert influence on the situation, and, ideally, thrive. Shin Megami Tensei V boldly led the long-running series into the realm of open-world exploration, but like any first flight, it lost its balance around tricky turns, namely its writing.
Shin Megami Tensei V: Vengeance is a second coming, an attempt to improve its balance and hopefully attain a new personal best. Perfection may be out of reach for humans, but Shin Megami Tensei V: Vengeance aims for godhood in the face of its own limitations. And like the brilliant achievements that are made possible by pushing oneself to the limit, Vengeance turns out all the better for it, flaws and all.
Shin Megami Tensei V: Vengeance follows two major storylines: Canon of Creation, the story from the original Shin Megami Tensei V; and Canon of Vengeance, a story new to this iteration of the game. Both storylines incorporate the series’s tried and true Press Turn combat system with open-world exploration and a surprising amount of platforming. The platforming mechanics boil down to simple jumps and occasional ledge grabs, but they’re more than sufficient for Vengeance’s needs.
In fact, exploration is among Vengeance’s strongest areas. Vengeance implements its open-world setting seamlessly into its gameplay loop. It’s always worth exploring every nook and cranny of the four Tokyo wards players have access to, since there’s always something valuable to find. Miman are small guides that offer historical information before bestowing some points of Glory, Abscesses uncover Miracles that the player can use Glory to unlock, and vending machines dispense relics that can be sold for ever-useful money, just to name a few.
The intricate, maze-like areas and haunting beauty of the collapsing Tokyo—called “Da’at”—already beckons to be explored, but the added benefit of practical rewards means it’s always in the player’s best interests to take a look around.
God-Like Control Over Customization
Besides the main character—the Nahobino—the player’s party comprises of demons they recruit, either by talking to them in battle in a process called Demon Negotiation, or by fusing two or more demons together in a process called Demon Fusion.
Fused demons can inherit the skills of any of their fusion components, making them stronger and more versatile than their negotiated counterparts. This results in a drawback that has plagued the Shin Megami Tensei series for most of its lifespan: players can’t grow too attached to their teammates because they’ll inevitably “fall off” in usefulness and are better off used as fusion fodder. Shin Megami Tensei V remedies this challenge with plenty of methods to power up demons and keep them relevant throughout the game.
One such method comes through the Demon Haunts. Newly added to Vengeance, Demon Haunts are side locations where you can speak to the demons in your party and reserve, offering glimpses at their unique personalities and making it easier than ever to find appeal in them.
Not to worry, though, because the longer a demon remains in the player’s stock, the more times they’ll gain permanent stat boosts, learn random skills, or even give you items, including their Essence. Essences are consumable items that contain a demon’s default skills and can be used to teach any number of those skills to a single demon of choice.
Players can also use Essences to give skills to the Nahobino, opening up a vast degree of customization. Even as the game goes on, players have the freedom to adjust the Nahobino to suit their needs.
The Nahobino can also take on the weaknesses and resistances of a demon using their Essence, which is especially helpful when preparing for an upcoming boss battle. Nahobino customization is further enhanced by Miracles, passive skills that run the gamut from making demon negotiation easier, to increasing the number of demons players can keep at once, to decreasing the MP cost of skills of different elemental affinities.
The complete control players have over customizing the Nahobino and their demon entourage is nothing short of god-like, and the amazing tools players can find make it all the more enticing to explore Da’at.
Glorious Side Stories, Disappointing Main Story
Da’at also implements outstanding world-building in the form of subquests. For how desolate Da’at is, there’s no shortage of demons who need help with their troubles. The majority of Shin Megami Tensei V: Vengeance’s subquests are where the game’s writing is at its best. Some subquests require choosing one of two demons to assist, with the decision affecting your overall alignment.
The choices aren’t easy to make, at least in terms of story. Do you help the demon who wants to protect the weak in exchange for their undying loyalty, or do you support the demon who trains the strong as individuals but leaves the naturally weak to fend for themselves? There may be times when the demon you want to support gives quest completion rewards you don’t care for—for instance, if you’re building a magic-focused Nahobino, you’ll find the chaos-aligned subquests more enticing regardless of which alignment you want to focus on. But the character writing gives players something to think about in line with the game’s central ideas all the same.
The absolute best subquests are the multi-part stories. Countless subquests are part of a progression and have an overarching story and recurring characters. From helping a Mermaid restore peace to her friends to unraveling the truth behind the Egyptian gods’ motives and even helping an Incubus tie the knot with his Selkie sweetheart, these quests imbue the associated demons and their surrounding world with great depth.
It’s hard to pick a favorite demon when they’re given such pronounced personalities through Demon Haunt conversations and subquest stories. Demons new to Vengeance such as the protector against illness Amabie (who is also a simple country gal who wants to become an idol) also have their own dedicated subquests that enhance their appeal, elevating them as proper characters of their own.
Unfortunately, Shin Megami Tensei V’s main story doesn’t live up to the same standard as its charming sidequests. With the exception of newly-added subquests, the Canon of Creation storyline remains unchanged in Vengeance, and it’s this structure that lays a flawed foundation for the rest of the primary story. Shin Megami Tensei V follows in its predecessors’ footsteps by centering on morality alignments that influence the story’s outcome.
Law abides by rigid structures in which the “strong” protect the “weak” but power is highly centralized and nigh unquestionable. Chaos follows an “every person for themselves” approach, and without a central leading force, the “weak” naturally struggle to survive.
Shin Megami Tensei V maintains the traditional naming but doesn’t do enough to differentiate between the two alignments in the story proper. Rather than Chaos dismantling the hierarchy of the previous Law system, the Chaos system in Shin Megami Tensei V opts to make the Japanese gods the new central power to help protect a weakening Japan. Law means siding with Bethel and the Christian God and angels who already hold most of the world’s power. Instead of structured Law and unstructured Chaos, Shin Megami Tensei V treats Law as monotheism and Chaos as polytheism. The primary proponent of the Chaos alignment even admits as much in a new Canon of Vengeance scene, saying they “never thought to destroy the concept of order itself.”
Shin Megami Tensei V isn’t obligated to adhere to the series’s prior standards around Law and Chaos, but to make this change work, players have to care about the relevant characters and what they stand for. Tragically, it’s a stretch to call any of Canon of Creation’s characters “relevant.” They hardly appear throughout the game, opting to disappear for long stretches of time or die, even in their associated endings, making it a challenge to feel connected to any person or alignment.
To highlight this irrelevancy, all the “central characters” appear to re-introduce themselves and spell out their goals at the end of the game, right before the player chooses their desired ending as if they knew the player would need a reminder.
And yes, even though the game keeps track of alignment choices, the player still gets to choose which ending plays out. There is a drawback to choosing an ending that doesn’t correspond to your gameplay alignment—you won’t unlock the alignment-specific Miracle in New Game+—but it doesn’t feel like there should be any reason to allow the player to choose an ending when there are already alignment choices throughout the game.
Making an ending choice only seems sensible when it comes to differentiating the two Neutral options, but like the Law and Chaos alignments, nothing about Shin Megami Tensei V’s version of neutrality feels “neutral.” The key figure for the Neutral alignment makes starkly Chaos-inspired statements, including how those who can’t defend themselves are “better off dead anyway.” What’s even more egregious is how players unlock the True Neutral ending and what it represents.
To unlock the option to choose the True Neutral ending, players must complete multiple series of subquests. Some involve grueling boss battles, and most follow narratives that are far more intriguing than the main story. Players grow close to the heroic Fionn mac Cumhaill and the kind residents of the Fairy Village who help humans in their time of need, as well as learn how the Egyptian gods have also been helping a sickly human on their own.
As before, these subquests show the demons’ best sides and how they can live in harmony with humans. The goal of the True Neutral route should then align with the neutrality between demons and humans, right?
Surprise—the end goal of the True Neutral route is to eradicate all demons, making “a world for humans alone.” Just like how players choosing the ending makes the main story feel detached from the subquests, the disconnect between the humanity bestowed upon the demons and the true purpose of the True Neutral ending exemplifies just how little relevance the main story has upon the game’s overall experience.
Back With a Vengeance
The new Canon of Vengeance’s storyline attempts to tidy up Canon of Creation’s mishaps, and while it succeeds in some respects, it’s still, in the end, held back by the original’s structure.
Canon of Vengeance gives players more of what Shin Megami Tensei V does best: there’s more fantastic exploration in the form of a new open world area, replacing Canon of Creation’s third locale and offering enticing reasons to try both Canons. New subquests can also be found all throughout Da’at and Tokyo. The main story, however, struggles as it sticks to Canon of Creation’s general outline.
Returning character Tao is given many more opportunities to shine in Canon of Vengeance since she is much more active and involved. New character Yoko also sticks around long enough to establish herself as an appropriately influential character. Together, they help make the differences between Law and Chaos more pronounced while also offering their own personal nuance, getting players more invested in the alignments.
But the characters once again disappear in the fourth area to follow the same direction as Canon of Creation. Tao just barely maintains her character development, but Yoko isn’t so lucky. Yoko’s nuance gets lost during the time she’s off-screen, making for a disappointing end to a stronger beginning.
The player doesn’t get to choose the ending in Canon of Vengeance, the ending instead being a natural progression based on prior alignment choices, but it still occurs right at the very end of the playthrough, which weakens its overall impact. The attempts Canon of Vengeance makes to improve the entire game experience aren’t lost on players, but it ultimately solidifies that Shin Megami Tensei V: Vengeance’s primary strengths are in the areas outside of its main story.
A Divine Spark
Humans aren’t perfect but can still craft masterpieces—all it takes is a spark of brilliance. Shin Megami Tensei V: Vengeance has its rough patches, but is lit with sparks of brilliant light throughout, from strategic turn-based gameplay to awe-inspiring explorable zones. Shin Megami Tensei V: Vengeance is a glorious upgrade that is worth experiencing even for those who’ve already played the original, as even the returning storyline has its fair share of improvements. Its narrative flaws may be glaring, but the rest of the light it emanates heralds a glorious new direction for the series, and players would be remiss to look away.
- Immense amounts of skill customization.
- Outstanding open world locations.
- Gorgeous graphics and hauntingly memorable soundtrack.
- Fantastic character writing in countless subquests.
- Main story and characters don't live up to their subquest counterparts.
- Canon of Vengeance holds too firmly to Canon of Creation's structure near the end.
Published: Dec 30, 2024 12:53 pm