Shin Megami Tensei and Persona are very different games, but the past decade or so have morphed them into something culturally inseparable. Persona 5 and its spin-offs were unparalleled blockbusters, and arguably the biggest JRPGs of the past generation. They sold millions of copies and introduced thousands of players to a specific brand of turn-based adventure for the very first time. Its impact was unmistakable, with fans viewing the mixture of combat, relationships, and exploration as a formula that couldn&rsquo🌟;t be matched.
However, Persona began life with a slightly longer title - Shin Megami Tensei: Persona. It was itself a spin-off designed to capitalise on the popularity of its forebear, taking it in a compelling new direction that wasn’t obsessed with lofty religious themes or a miserable depiction of 🦄the apocalypse. Instead it was all about being a badass teenager with guns and shit.
Sure, these games could get dark, especially the first three, but Persona grew into a franchise that was obsessed with stylistic executio🍌n, becoming so iconic because of its distinct character designs and storytelling that was never afraid to touch on the socio-economic troubles of young people. It was counter culture in a genre that seldom sought to rebel, and thus it made a mark that remains to this day. To be perfectly honest, it left Shin Megami Tensei in the dust and never looked back, imbuing a bitterness into the fanbase that has existed for over a decade now. If I’m being real, it’s getting a little tiresome.
Yesterday saw the review embargo lift for 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:Shin Megami Tensei 5 and the reception was universally positive. The majority of critics, myself included, adored the game, describing it as the series’ strongest entry yet that consistently calls back to the past while moving forward with bold new enhancements. However, a number of reviews also made fairly obvious comparisons to 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:Persona 5, perceiving Shin Megami Tensei 5 to be a le🌟sser experience because it failed to capture the same level of chemistry between characters and its narrative was deliberatelyཧ obtuse.
If you’re coming to Shin Megami Tensei 5 for the first time off the back of Persona 5’s success, like a whole lot of people are, I think this comparison holds water. It isn’t necessarily a fair one in the grand scheme of things, but it’s relatable in a way that newcomers will understand, since not everyone will vibe with this game’s unforgiving difficulty and unorthodox approach to storytelling. I said as much in my review, Atlus has created a JRPG that isn’t made for a general audience, it is targeting a hardcore enthusiast that is willing to put in the work to learn its systems and emerge victorious after being beaten bloody time and time again. Reviews are a personal reflection of your time with an experience and how you felt coming out of the other side. Whether the prevailing thoughts are positive, negative, or a mixture of the two - it’s all valid. They’re two games in the same genre by the same developer that were originally part of the same series. It would be strange not to compare them.
Its bleak world reflects its unwavering challenge, and that’s a fundamental part of its appeal. I loved Shin Megami Tensei 5 to bits, but I can’t help but grimace at the discourse emerging in the wake of its positive reviews. Fans are happy to label journalists as casuals for not playing the game properly or never having played a real SMT game before, despite the wording having appeared in the Persona series right up until the fourth entry. It outgrew this lega♍cy and became its own thing, while maintaining an eternal attachment to the mechanics and themes that Shin Megami Tensei helped introduce so many decades ago. It’s an easier and more approachable game by its very design, choosing to tone down its older sibling’s more relentless aspects i🍸n favour of something anyone can sink into.
Comparisons to Persona are impossible to avoid in a modern landscape, and you’d be foolish to think otherwise. Calling Shin Megami Tensei 5 a worse game because it fails to live up to the majesty of Persona 5 is partially misguided because they are trying to be fundamentally different games, but they hail from the same place in terms of their world, mechanics, and overall execution. When I play Shin Megami Tensei 5, I can’t help but be reminded of Persona, and the same applies when things are switched around. I don’t think playing gatekeeper because more mainstream fans are uncovering your precious treasure for the first time is helping anyone - it’s how the medium becomes more enclosed and judgmental for no good reason. You can still play the games you love, and the success of this one ensures it won’t be going anywhere in the forese൲eable future, so please take a step back from your echochamber and consider that even if certain things aren’t made for everyone, you can’t fault them for having the curiosity to try things out.
Shin Megami Tensei 5 and Persona 5 are both amazing games with a place they’ve rightfully earne♛d, and the sooner we understand that the sooner we can stop flinging needless insults on social media. I reviewed the damn thing and appaꩲrently I still didn’t do it properly.
