After almost 8 years of waiting and 4 years since its announcement, Atlus is gearing up to releaseShin Megami Tensei 5in 2021. Better yet, thanks to Nintendo’s backing, the game will bethe first simultaneous global launchin the publisher’s history, hopefully bringing an end to the nearly year-long wait between Japanese and worldwide releases of Atlus titles, as previously seen withPersona 5 Strikers.
While fans will be getting aShin Megami Tensei: NocturneHD remaster to hold them over in early 2021, there is still some time to go untilShin Megami Tensei 5makes its way to Nintendo Switch, leaving some time to speculate and hope for what innovations Atlus may bring toShin Megami Tensei 5, given that it is the studio’s first major RPG release since 2017’sPersona 5.
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A Unique Setting
One of the most unique elements ofShin Megami Tensei 4, the last mainline entry in the series on Nintendo 3DS, was the game’s opening hours, which took place in the fictional, fantasy-like Kingdom of Mikado. This served as a departure from the usual setting of Tokyo, which took the player a few hours to get to after the game’s narrative opened up. While nobody’s asking for aShin Megami Tenseigame to take place outside of Tokyo, featuring some newer locations for the player to travel to with more distinct visual styles would be something the dev could use to setShin Megami Tensei 5apart from other mainline entries in the franchise.
The game’s trailers so far have implied that, much like inShin Megami Tensei: Nocturne, Tokyo will take on a more desert-like visual aesthetic this time. This is reverting to the franchise’s typical visual approach to apocalyptic Japan, unlikeShin Megami Tensei 4and its sequel, which took place in a cyberpunk interpretations of Tokyo. Given the lack of any overworld footage, it’s hard to pin down the exact visual style ofShin Megami Tensei 5yet, so there is still hope that fans can see an interpretation of Tokyo unlike any the series has yet to tackle.
Fully Explorable Locations
During the PlayStation 2 era, Atlus made a lot of JRPGs, so it was understandable why each of these games would feature very closed off, reused locations outside of main dungeons: areas likeDigital Devil Saga’s closed-off, linear environmentsorPersona 4’s Inaba. WhileShin Megami Tensei 4continued this design philosophy, despite featuring more detailed worlds than its predecessors even on the Nintendo 3DS' hardware,Shin Megami Tensei 5has the opportunity to feature the most fleshed out world Atlus has ever built.
TheShin Megami Tenseigames are renowned for their bleak, isolating atmosphere and nowhere is that more apparent than each titles' oppressive and destroyed worlds. Now that Atlus has had experience building a JRPG reinterpretation of Tokyo’s iconic Shibuya crossing (to the point that some seem to think thatPersonacreated Shibuya) along with the rest ofPersona 5’s ever-changing, interconnected world, that experience can be expertly transferred toShin Megami Tensei 5to create the most realistic depiction of an apocalyptic Tokyo yet.
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Fresh SMT Characters
As previously stated, theShin Megami Tenseiseriesis mostly renown for its incredible sense of atmosphere, so franchise newcomers coming off ofPersona 5andPersona 5 Royalare in for disappointment if they come into Shin Megami Tensei 5 expecting social-sim and dating elements. DespitePersonastemming from theShin Megami Tenseiseries, they couldn’t be any more different in this regard. Despite this,SMTgames have managed to tell incredible stories in the past and Atlus only gets better with every entry.
WhileShin Megami Tensei 4included an immensely memorable cast in Isabeau, Jonathan, and Walter, and some of the franchise’s spin-offs such asDigital Devil Sagafeature some of the best stories in JRPGs,Shin Megami Tensei 5still has a lot it can improve on. While it’s safe not to expect a familiar group of party members similar to other JRPGs, eachSMTtitle usually includes some army, group, or cult trying to seize control of Tokyo amidst its apocalypse. Learning from others in its genre, Atlus has the opportunity to flesh out these factions causing a tangible internal conflict in the player similar toShin Megami Tensei: Nocturne’s if it takes some lessons from contemporary RPGs such asNieR: Automataand theSMT-inspiredUndertale.
Deeper Battle System for SMT
While theShin Megami Tenseiseries is known for its intense difficulty, made so by its relatively simplistic battle system,Persona 5 Royalhas proven that there is still a lot to be exploredwith adding new and interesting mechanics to this tried and true gameplay formula. Namely,Persona 5 Royal’s use of the Baton Pass system on top of the franchise’s usual press-turn battle system. While a feature such as Baton Pass may make battles a bit too streamlined for seasonedShin Megami Tenseifans, it sets a good precedent for how Atlus can continue to differentiatePersonaandShin Megami Tensei’s gameplay styles through clever mechanical differences, aside from the usual demon conversations and fusing, which the franchises now share to different extents.
Shin Megami Tensei 5is poised to bea great JRPG if Atlus plays its cards rightand could see huge success considering the popularity ofPersona 5in both Japan and overseas. Positioning the game as the studio’s first worldwide release in just the beginning of new possibilities available for how Atlus can introduce new fans and perfect theShin Megami Tenseiformula withShin Megami Tensei 5.
Shin Megami Tensei 5will release exclusively for Nintendo Switch in 2021.
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