Shin Megami Tensei: Devil Summoner: Soul Hackers - Nintendo 3DS

Atlus rarely disappoints their fans. Whether with the "hardcore" MegTen/SMT gams or the supposed "only slightly less hardcore" Persona series, Atlus knows how to craft relatable characters, intriguing settings, and interesting plots rolled into amazing, and very addicting, RPGs.Over the years of course things have "streamlined" and while arguably maybe not so much as Bethesda, or just like Bethesda depending on where you stand, you can see the differences that began to change with SMT 3: Nocturne and the other ps2 SMT games(and while technically the off shoot Persona games may not be part of the SMT "line" of games, there are obvious connections that have that series branch off from SMT, much like the not-so-distant relative to the MegTen franchise that started in the 80s before SMT was even in the picture).Soul hackers is a great middle ground for those who wish to see that progression without having to be brutally destroyed by trying earlier S/MT...which I highly recommend at least trying after getting through Soul Hackers.The difficulty of DS:SH can be "hacked" in either direction( high difficulty, low difficulty, or "off" for a normal setting) which is mighty helpful for everyone without punishing anyone.As far as gameplay goes it is as engrossing as any SMT game. You follow along a cyberpunk, technologically advanced society with connections to the occult...demons. There have been many comparisons to Pokemon, but the similarities pretty much end at "collecting demons/monsters" and grinding to level up. However in both this and earlier SMT games, the demons do not level up, at least in the traditional senseThere is very rewarding loyalty system which usually ends(from 1-5) with your demons both respecting the orders you give and giving a nice(most of the time) bonus to damage given. Usually this is seen with a "loyalty" skill. There are different demon "identities" that affect how they react to you and how their loyalty raises. Without spoiling too much, a great example is the "wild" demons tend to prefer physical attacks, while "dumb" demands would rather you let them choose their attacks(watch out for demons with suicide/last resort skills...they are "dumb" demons afterall). As you play the game you'll find other types of demons and learn their idiosyncrasies. The game will also give hints along the way.In addition to this you have the common demon fusion system where you'll most likely be fusing and discarding demons at a higher rate in the game instead of grinding certain demons(beyond raising their loyalty).Another feature is the Zoma demon, which basically you craft yourself, and is somewhat similiar to the later games way of choose which skills a demon gets, and while you don't exactly pick and choose the skills a Zoma gets when you fuse it with another demon, it will absorb the skills of that demon. As you play you'll find other interesting ways the Zoma can be useful and there are many guides online dedicated just to the Zoma itself!Whether you are a newcomer to the entire series or have only played the ps2 era and beyond, there are some others things to keep in mind, this maybe considered a spoil to some....but the MC does not use magic and previous games followed this same formula. You can still put points into the magic skill(along with Str, agi, Intel, etc) but I wouldn't go beyond 10 or so and would especially focus on Strength and Endurance, and perhaps a few points into intelligence as it affects magic defense. The Female partner is the primary magic user(besides the demons of course) and was common before SMT III.In addition to the difficulty hack, there are other options to help new comers breeze through the game a bit more easily, such as the automap, however it may be more rewarding to do it yourself like in other dungeon crawling games...but totally up to you.I could go on. The story, by game standards at least, is very interesting and helps keep you playing in addition to the rewarding battle, fusion, skill system.I highly recommend this to any SMT fan! If you haven't played this or earlier S/MT games, but are waiting impatiently for SMT IV: Final or Persona 5 this could be a nice distraction.And to someone entirely new to SMT, but a big rpg buff I suggest taking a crack at it and join the MegaTen club.Take our your COMP and get demon hunting!

Ok, where do I start? The game has a considerable amount of features and the amount of demons is just staggering!I have never played a SMT/Persona game before besides the SMT: Imagine MMO a few years ago so I can't really compare it to others in the series so I don't have much to compare it to. It plays similar to Dragon Quest or Pokemon but the gameplay is faster and considerably more complex, it is easy to get overwhelmed and I can't see how anyone under the age of 16 could decipher it all, hell I am 24yrs old and it took me around 6 hours to fully figure it out.The game itself isn't hard at all on medium difficulty as long as you fuse your outgrown demons into stronger ones as you level up, I had a weak level 4 demon called a Knocker when I started and kept it until level 10 and by then enemies were 2 shotting it so I fused it with a fairy to make a fairy named Heqet that was level 9 and was back on track. So obviously every 3-5 levels you will need to fuse away to get anywhere. Once you get a grip of the mechanics the game gets much better. Prior to buying it I was worried about healing my character, saving, and about how your demons can die if you run out of Magnetite (demon fuel gained from battles and stuff) but it's much easier than it sounds, trust me!There are plenty of save spots all over and an item that lets you save anywhere if your an extra cautious person, healing spells cost very little mp and there are in-dungeon healing spots that are cheap if your demons run low on mp for healing spells, there is also a restaurant that you can use in town between missions as well so your never really stressed unless you fight a boss it seems. Magnetite is easily gained from killing/talking with demons and I have yet to have less than a thousand of it at any time and usually have plenty to stockpile in my bank just in case after half an hour of gameplay.The graphics aren't really that bad considering the age of the game and if you are interested in buying a game like this graphics are clearly not your priority anyways. My only real gripe is that demons are awfully tough to recruit and that demon natures can be bothersome, I especially hate it when I get a high damage demon that just wants to guard all the time. Another small issue is that my party will occasionally switch battle spots on their own leaving things less than desirable but as long as I make sure to swap them around before a boss fight I have no problems.Overall the game is great and better than Pokemon/Dragon Quest could ever be in my opinion, it also has it's own unique style, it almost looks like a sort of sci-fi gothic theme and they pull it off very well, it's easy to feel cramped and claustrophobic when your not in the overworld but I think that adds to the game instead of weakening it. You just never feel completely safe in a dungeon for some reason and I haven't really felt that to the same extent as this game delivers.It's hard to describe it but this game definitely delivers in the ambience department. It's very old school, I could definitely see this bridging the gap between easier turn based games and something like Wizardry which takes dated gameplay mechanics to a whole new dimension lol!The reason I gave it a 5 is because it really does everything right, sure the story isn't mindblowing but I think it's engaging enough and the game is fun, what else do you need? You could dock a point for graphics but seeing as it's a port of a game from 1997 I think it's easy to let that slide. ;)

Shin Megami Tensei is still a series that seems to get little attention or acknowledgement in the United States. Aside from Persona 3 and 4's explosion of popularity in the past few years, the primary titles in the long running franchise don't strike a chord with as many people as the socially influenced games in the SMT canon.Soul Hackers is a complex, intriguing experience that begs for your attention from the moment you start your first excursion into the game's introduction. As a person who cannot and will not ever truly appreciate the mind numbing premise of Pokemon, to feel emotionally attached and invested in the demons that you create friendships with in battle makes an engaging experience that I can't say I've seen replicated by anything outside of this series, and to win their loyalty by gift or by actions in combat makes it all the more interesting. The creature design, as always, is fantastic, and the characters are all memorable in their own ways, and they certainly are not a cliche for the genre.Considering how old this title is, this experience has a timelessness that I don't think is present in newer Japanese RPGs, and the first person dungeon exploration gives it an atmosphere all its own. While this game might not be for everyone, give it a chance and you might figure out what made this series a landmark in Japan, and what we're missing out on with the other games in the franchise that haven't been localized yet. So far I've put in about 6 hours, and not one has felt like the slightest waste of time, and that hasn't been the case for me in ages.