Shin Megami Tensei V: Vengeance review - Back and better than ever

Most re-releases bring improved visuals or simply land the game on a new platform, but Shin Megami Tensei V: Vengeance arrives as a complete overhaul, presenting the definitive experience of a game that came out nearly three years prior.

While it's clear that Persona has cemented its place as Atlus' primary series since the release of its fifth entry, Shin Megami Tensei - the series Persona was born from - remains still central to the identity of the studio, and hugely important to its dedicated fanbase.

Despite coming at Vengeance as a newcomer, having not played SMT V in its original release exclusively on Nintendo Switch, I can clearly see the significant improvements that this version wields, and it really does feel like a worthy entry into a series with so much history.

Taking a darker turn

If you're coming into Shin Megami Tensei having only played Persona titles before (or even with this being your first Atlus title) you might be taken aback at how much darker and grungier the series is compared to its contemporaries.

The 'trope', per se, of many RPGs culminating in a fight against God is subverted here in the sense that you're instantly thrust into a post-apocalyptic Tokyo wasteland where demons, agents of evil, and angels war over what's left.

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It's innately less driven by a strict narrative, and instead fuelled by complex gameplay systems, but there is still plenty to latch on to from a story perspective here. Don't go in expecting the same daily rhythms of Persona life though, as there are much more pressing matters at hand for our central cast of characters!

Having not played the original it's tricky to know how much the narrative really diverges and shifts, but the introductions of new character Yoko Himamura and the Qadištu - a demon quartet driven by vengeance - both remain central to the story to the point where I imagine it would feel like a complete rewrite.

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Thankfully the choice is still there to go down the original narrative path, but from what I've experienced I don't see why you'd want to, as the new 'Canon of Vengeance' story is fantastic, and filled with plenty of twists and engaging characters.

Some of them might boil down to simple fetch quests, but I also found much of the side content to be so much fun. One particular set of side quests involving an Oni with anger management issues and a group of Halphas looking for relief from the sun was a joy to watch play out, but just talking to the various demons almost always felt worthwhile.

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Top-tier turn-based combat

Even if you don't really gel with the narrative though, there's so much to uncover in SMT V when it comes to its deep mechanics. At its heart, Shin Megami Tensei offers similar turn-based combat to the Persona series, but in my eyes creates an environment for greater flexibility, customisation, and complexity.

When boiled down to the basics, all you need to do is attack enemy weaknesses and avoid having your own exploited. Doing so allows you to take advantage of the 'Press Turn' system, which gives you an extra turn if you manage to hit an enemy's weak point or strike a critical attack.

It's not all fun and games though as missing an attack removes two slots from your Press Turn counter, often throwing it back to the enemy or messing up your (previously) well-laid strategy.

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While it might appear simple from afar it is challenging to master, and requires careful planning and astute proactivity, especially if you want to take down any of the bosses. Oftentimes I found myself having to adjust my lineups mid-fight, switching out demons for more suitable options while ensuring that I'm not left exposed at the end of my run of turns.

Before you can even start to strategise though you'll need to ensure that your lineup of demons is up to scratch. You can either convince enemies you face in the open world to join your ranks or fuse demons together to create new and unique options. Beyond that, you can use Essences to infuse new abilities into your existing demons and fine-tune their abilities as they level up to create your ideal builds.

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The practice of fusing to create new demons is as fun as always too, and it's so easy to lose time constantly regenerating your lineup to create new demons you didn't even know existed. Vengeance also specifically adds over 40 new demons into the fold, so you've got even more to play with now - and who knows, maybe you'll find some new favourites!

Quality of life overload

It feels rather silly to talk about many of the new additions in Shin Megami Tensei V's Vengeance 'revision' as 'quality of life' updates, as they amount to what can be construed as a completely new game in essence.

Going beyond a few new conveniences, these additions and adjustments make Vengeance one of the clearest 'definitive' editions of a game I've seen in recent memory, almost to the point where you wonder how the game was released without them in the first place.

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Beyond the new story path which is enough to justify a release on its own, there are countless improvements and expansions to the combat system that add so much depth to the moment-to-moment experience.

Demons now have 'Innate Skills', which act passively in the background to boost specific effects or enhance stats, and do a lot to help each demon that you recruit or fuse feel wholly unique. You can also now activate special Magatsuhi skills that pair demons together based on their type, wielding powerful results if you use them correctly.

Guest characters are also now an available option, letting you fight alongside some of your human companions during parts of the story. I can't imagine the game without this frankly, as it adds another layer of strategy as guests are also able to use items during battles.

The Demon Haunt is a new spot that you can use to socialise with your demons - although not all of them will be quite the sociable type! I loved popping in every now and then to see what new lines of dialogue my demons would have for me, and you can even give them gifts which increase your relationship, leading to stat increases down the line.

Magatsu Rails now populate the Netherworld, letting you quickly travel between two points and even discover new hard-to-reach areas. These were a huge convenience as I was playing, allowing me to quickly get around, while also granting a sense of exploration as new sub-areas became explorable.

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By far my most appreciated addition though, and something I beg to be included in all games going forward is the ability to save anywhere. Previously you would only be able to bank your progress at the limited number of Leyline Founts dotted around the map, but now you can save with the press of a button with almost no restrictions.

This removes an uncompromising amount of frustration, especially in a game where dying as the main character leads to a game over, and affords much greater freedom when it comes to experimentation as you can just return to a recent save if things go wrong.

Some might think that this diminishes a lot of the game's difficulty, which is a key appeal for many, but I didn't find that at all. Difficulty, after all, is in the strategy and management of battles, and having to rerun significant chunks of the game simply because you died isn't 'difficult' but instead just annoying.

The Verdict

Despite never playing the game in its original form, I have no doubt in my mind that Vengeance is the definitive and significantly superior version. The new 'Canon of Vengeance' narrative path offers an enthralling and dark narrative with new characters and antagonists alike, and the staggering number of new additions is so impressive that you question why they weren't there in the first place.

4.5/5

Reviewed on PlayStation 5. Code provided by the publisher.