I Don't Like SMT Soul Hackers

[@Tony4You]

Join the discord here: discord.gg/KfEKUZDnpn Leave any thoughts or video suggestions here!

[@WatcherPrime]

So... Would you say this game wasn't at all... "Spooky"?

[@jasonblundelldobebussing]

Raidou series.

[@KuroReisho]

I like how he says HE doesn’t like soul hackers instead of saying it’s a bad game

[@Tony4You]

Lol it's the least I could do. Less click bait for more honesty

[@cronoesify]

@@Tony4You its a bad game tho bro

[@FSVR54]

@@cronoesify It's a top 5 SMT game. Lay off the crack

[@bubbletea_]

i like this game, but it's no where close to being my favorite. it's pretty much almost an entirely atmospheric experience with it's dungeons, sound design, and fast paced battles with very snappy menu navigation. like persona 1 without the plot. it works well enough for someone like me. but for someone who values story as much as you, i can understand why you wouldn't like it. great video.

[@Tony4You]

Thanks big bubbletea. The criticisms are very central to me and my taste so I understand if people disagree and have different priorities. I'm glad people are watching all the way through and appreciating the critique

[@ahmedfalahy9337]

Regarding the Loyalty System, the player is rewarded if their demons is at max Loyalty. In battle, max loyalty demons perform better than usual. Wild demons do more physical damage Sly demons do more magic damage and higher accuracy *Kind demons may even step up to protect the protagonist from a deadly hit* And there is *mystic change* In a shop in Paradigm X, you can transform a max loyalty demon into an item. Only certain ones work Edit: Oh, and you can change a demon's personality using a sake. And if you are in a hurry to max a demon's loyalty, there is always gifts.

[@Sweetlesishere]

I notice he didn't like this comment but the one below it because it contradicts what he said in the video and just speed ran it

[@indranilroy4822]

Agreed although it does suck when your max loyalty demons disobey you even if it rarely happens. also my main gripe with the game was the magnetite system so i went through most of the dungeons with only my zoma summoned so as to avoid my magnetite falling too low

[@brandonmiller7389]

A lot of the characters get a lot more development if you re-enter the HQ after every cutscene/before every dungeon. There's a lot of foreshadowing too, and stuff like Yuichi asking for a hacker name from Six (that's why his hacker name is Yu-Ichi, and why on the news report outing the Spookies it says he has no codename. It's just a placeholder). I only really figured that out on my 2nd playthrough though, which really made me like the Spookies as a whole a lot more. On top of that, Soul Hackers really is more of a sequel to Devil Summoner than its own stand alone game. A lot of stuff makes a lot more sense after playing that game, like the Yatagarasu and Kyouji. You'd just have to know half decent Japanese (or mediocre, in my case) to actually be able to get anything out of it.

[@Tony4You]

That actually makes a lot of sense, I appreciate the comment. I might look deeper into the Devil Summoner franchise

[@uchytjes10]

I have never played the game itself, but everything about the art oozes that great med-to-late 90s cyberpunk aesthetic. It's dirty and full of hacked together junk. We so rarely get that nowadays with most near-future games having a super clean aesthetic, and that saddens me.

[@ShockStormRPG]

I replayed Soul Hackers and thought it had major flaws. I agree with you Tony4You Soul Hackers has major problems. I have no problem with old-school SMT. I enjoy SMT 1 and 2 a lot and don't mind first person view. With Soul Hackers I felt that it had massive balance problems. The protagonist is almost completely useless and Nemissa meanwhile is ridiculously overpowered. The demon loyalty system mechanic was very flawed and it made demons almost useless until you maxed out their loyalty since they would not listen to commands. As for the story, I felt the antagonists were very uninteresting and Yu Ichi got almost no character development. However, I did feel the setting of the game and playing as part of a group of hackers was awesome. I found the random battles very frustratingly balanced. Many of them I got bombarded with freezing status effects, instant death spells, being shocked by Zio and would sometimes game over without being able to even get a turn. It's a shame with SMT Soul Hackers since I think the music is so good and the setting is incredible. I agree with you Tony4You Soul Hackers has major problems.

[@urameshitrev1851]

I really enjoy Soul Hackers for it's dungeon design and pretty fun and fast paced combat, especially love it's goofy endgame content. I also really like it's atmosphere and art direction. My dissapointment is similar to yours being the characterization of the game is spread rather thin, like the only characters that felt really fleshed out to me were Hitomi / Nemissa, Six and Spooky. Rest of the Main cast feel just there, Antagonists besides Finnigan's goals felt too vague and the Vision quests are really cool but made me wish any of them were the Main Character instead of "The Hacker." All the Devil Summoner references too make me more upset Atlus hasnt given us a translation of it lol Overall a very solid game for me but I wouldnt say It was close to my favorites in this series. I hope Soul Hackers 2 does a better job with it's characterization.

[@jasonenns5076]

Soul Hackers II will probably be bad as well... But instead of just being bad, it is going to get worst. I said SMT V was going to be bad before it came out. I think Soul Hackers 2 will also be bad. I hope I am wrong, but I was given an ability to "smell" these things.

[@urameshitrev1851]

@@jasonenns5076 I'm more of a glass half full type of person, so I'm very optimistic, probably too optimistic but I prefer that lol

[@darkhorse744]

@@jasonenns5076 "Smell", what metric is that? I'd like to hear some actual reasoning rather than assumptions.

[@projectmessiah]

@@jasonenns5076 Smt v was fine though. Sure the plot was ass but it introduced some interesting lore and had great gameplay.

[@countryboyred]

@@jasonenns5076 SMT V wasn’t bad at all. I thought it was great. SMT has never been primarily about the plot- it’s a gameplay focused series. And the gameplay in SMT V was top notch. The level design, combat system, difficulty, monster designs, etc we’re all exceptional in my opinion.

[@edsainmuramasa4751]

seems you missed a few details that explain a lot- the phantom society has no distinct goal, it's just a way for summoners who want power to connect- you see this thru the hacked dds net emails, were they talk about their businesses, facilities, how you messed with them.. The ones you fight in this game happen to be helping/ covering for eachother. Rei Reiho is from the previous game, devil summoner, and she's from the Kuzunoha agency, not yatagarasu. Loyalty at max doesnt drop randomly, it drops if you repeat the same spell a lot in one fight, causing it to disobey - this only happened twice to me, ever.

[@kuraux56s59]

Its really odd how you have SMT If and Soul Hackers as one of your worsts, and not stuff like Ronde and the NES version of Digital Devil Monogatari Megami Tensei. And the complains of stuff about the Shadow Society and the Yatagarasu not being explained here, makes far more sense when you remember that the game's original Sega Saturn release was targeted to people who actually played the untranslated original Devil Summoner. Not the first time there is a series where details are missed due to a major piece being untranslated.

[@Tony4You]

I haven't played a lot of the absolutely terrible games, but I want to get around to it and my thoughts might change lol. I wish Atlus would translate these older games, but they probably never will. It's up to the fans

[@kuraux56s59]

@@Tony4You Still, regardless. I felt like this video had a bit of a "Passive-Aggressive" vibe.

[@tonin7228]

the yatagarasu and the phantom society are first mentioned in SH, they arent a thing at all in the first game (i can confirm since i've played it)

[@kuraux56s59]

@@tonin7228 ...Huh. I thought they were a thing in the first game for the longest time!

[@tonin7228]

@@kuraux56s59 yeah, SH actually did retcon the Kuzunohas into being part of the yatagarasu and the previous game's villain into being part of the phantom society, and since SH is much more popular than DS (for the simple fact one is available in english and the other is not) people tend to either forget or not know about this

[@benmcgiggles7655]

Soul hackers was probably my least favorite Megaten that I played so far, but I still dont think I'd go as far to say I disliked it. I absolutely could not stand six, but the rest of the characters I thought were ok to pretty good. I thought the story and setting weren't ground breaking, but they were still fun and interesting. I have to imagine this plot hit a lot harder in the 90's when the internet was a new thing. As for gameplay, I enjoyed it, though some of the later dungeons really tested my patience. Amami monolith was the absolute most frustrating dungeon I've ever played in a Megaten game, and I've beaten Strange Journey. (I liked SJ but holy cow some of those dungeons) I used to agree with you on the Demon Loyalty system, but once I understood how it worked, I actually really liked it. It makes the demons feel more like these dangerous creatures that you have to use carefully, rather than just being essentially another weapon. It also made me think more about party composition rather than just getting the strongest demons I can and making sure at least one of them heals. And Idk if i just got insanely lucky on my playthrough, but once my demons hit 5 loyalty, I never had them disobey me. I definitely don't think it should be the norm, but for that game specifically I thought it worked well. I enjoyed the video though, thank you for criticizing it fairly rather than just shitting on it.

[@krimsonkatt]

Just asking, did you play the original Strange Journey, or Redux? Because the new dungeons they added in Redux make the ones from the original game look like a joke, including Eranius and Grus. Empyrean Ascent can kiss my buttocks.

[@Tony4You]

That is extremely fair and I understand where you're coming from. I'm glad I didn't come across as a blind hater but I still very much dislike it. Thanks for watching nonetheless

[@benmcgiggles7655]

@@krimsonkatt I played the original, haven't beaten redux yet

[@hmmmmmm2336]

Honestly loved this game but this is a thoughtful take nonetheless tony, nice work :>

[@Tony4You]

Thanks! I appreciate it

[@salsamonkey65]

Even as a fan of this game, I appreciate hearing your thoughts. No game is going to appeal to everyone, and I definitely agree that the story leaves a lot to be desired. Keep making cool stuff man!

[@Tony4You]

Very happy people are appreciate the critique despite enjoying it. Thanks for watching

[@KoreyVortex]

okay to be fair nemissa a baddie af

[@MegidoMon]

The loyalty system in this game is what made me drop it. I can't stand it and I'm glad this is the only game it's in.

[@Leon-kg7ls]

I quite like Soul Hackers despite all of it's flaws. As one of the two first person entries in the series that i've played, other being Strange Journey, I have to say the one thing that really made me enjoy Soul Hackers more than Strange Journey was the how the dungeon designs were grounded in functionality and realism, rather than being nebulous and relatively intangible dungeon layouts. It's a small thing and probably shouldn't be enough for me to say I preferred my time with SH over SJ, but for some reason that was just something that was really important to me as I was playing. Though of course I give credit to SJ where it deserves it in terms of story and characters being far superior, it's definitely the Megaten game that I feel the greatest disconnect with much like you with SH. Great video btw!

[@Pystoria]

I definitely agree that a lot of the game's characters aren't as strong as they could've been, and what you said about the inconsistency in the Phantom Society's tone is something I hadn't noticed before. I think they definitely get more serious as the game progresses but it's still interesting to think about. I really love Soul Hackers though, it has a really comforting Saturday morning cartoon feeling to it and its atmosphere is fantastic

[@Sweetlesishere]

Saturday morning cartoon is something I agree with

[@UAshton5090]

You've got valid points. I felt much the same way at points going through this game, but I definitely loved this game still. I don't know how many other people are like this, but I value concepts and setups a lot more than most I feel. I couldn't remember much of the story for this game at all, but I still remember Amami City, Nemessa, and even the Spookies fondly to this day. Also, I loved the idea of the concept of Soul Hacking. Living someone else's final hours as a tool to gleam information is a cool as hell idea. Imagine if an SMT game gave you more liberal freedom to use it. Like what if we had a SMT investigations type game, like the Ace Attorney series, and soul hacking a victim to uncover facts about the incident in order to figure it out. Maybe you take out a boss who's involved in the affair and then you soul hack them to gain access to further information. Doubt Soul Hacker's 2 will have this level of complexity, as ad's I've seen seem to take the Soul Hacking concept in a completely different direction. Still looking forward to it though.

[@batato9626]

the smt investigations concept is kinda similar to ghost trick if you get rid of the rpg part

[@mammothplant]

Soul Hackers is literally my favorite game but I respect your opinion and it's really rare to see a youtuber express their opinion so respectfully rather that just passing it off as fact. Good video

[@jasonblundelldobebussing]

Now do why do you *love* Raidou Kuzunoha

[@mupumupu2842]

Hit the nail on the head honestly. I never fully understand the love for the setting as the story kinda bored me. I will say tho that Zoma fusion was a cool system that should return.

[@Tony4You]

Someone gets it! Appreciate the understanding I've been getting through the blowback. Thanks for watching

[@lebastion7812]

@@Tony4You This comments are just making me roll my eyes.

[@reiayanami2998]

Some counter points: Six didn't actually have a sister, the demon that wanted his soul created that false memory, Six realize after recover notion that he never had a sister but still feels the whole "trauma", thats why he recovers quickly, he feels bad but is a fake memory. Also the liquor system makes really easy and cheap to boost loyalty to max, at which point demons never disobey you even if they perform things that normally dislike. Soul hackers is a nice introduction to SMT: you could die very easily, but you can make a strategy against every single foe, tetra and makarakarn are absolutely BUSTED against most bosses including the final boss if its the physical one. I get that you didn't like it, i dont think is anyone's favorite, but the atmosphere and gameplay make it enjoyable, definitely not one of the worst smt. Sadly, i don't think SH2 is as cyberpunk neither gameplay similar, it feels more like a cyber persona thing. Not hyped for SH2 (dont make me start w the day 1 story dlc)

[@moister3727]

The story barely makes sense and the liquor system is easily exploitable. Having Max. Loyalty is easy if you farm both mag. and loyality, plus some objects that help to Max. Loyalty. Mix everything with the demon fusion system and some attacks that can't be inherited. Most of my demons went up learninng Support-type attacks by the end. Mostly relying on demon-specific attacks after fusion. It's a bit of a mess if you blend everything together.

[@roperaustraman4445]

I thought this game was tough as it was the first non-Persona SMT game I played all the way through, but I ultimately really loved the game. I beat it about a month ago, but I don’t remember anyone being called Yatagarasu in the game. I do think they did a poor job filling out some of the cast’s backstory, in the main plot, but I liked the optional dialogue you got with the Spookies throughout the game. I also liked Lunch, had he not stolen the computer chip from his dad then your team would have all potentially had their souls taken. This was just a happy accident but still it worked in the teams favor. Also the demons are not trying to torture Tomoko and Sic but rather convince them to stay in Paradigm X long enough for their souls to get consumed. This might not be explained the best but from talking with random NPCs you can pick up on that more. This was a great video and it is nice to hear contrasting opinions on this game from people who are Atlus fans.

[@Tony4You]

Hey thanks for enjoying despite the contrasting opinion. The Yatagarasu is the parent organization to the Kuzunoha essentially so I just said that one.

[@RigalicReign]

When you're stuck in the metaverse and a furry gives you advice to get out by watching elaborate snuff films in first person and your best friend gets a forced goth gf upgrade... Man the future is weird but surprisingly accurate... Jokes aside Soul Hackers is an ok game and I never finished it, life happened but far as soul hackers 2 could they make it anymore painful to look at my eyes are bleeding from the awful style and I'm getting worse Digimon cyber sleuth vibes

[@Tony4You]

Literally the game in a nutshell lol

[@RigalicReign]

@@Tony4You I've watched playthroughs but I think I only remember getting to the airport part of the game

[@fenrirlives2226]

Yeah I was a little surprised at the direction SH went. Getting to do the vision quests was cool, and I personally really like the Native American influence present, but man, it felt like there was a real lack of direction with the main plotline. Maybe this is why they're going in the direction they are with Soul Hackers 2? So your fellow Summoners will have more relevance? Personally, I would've preferred a story that was more episodic like a tv show connected by an over arching plot, but that's the way the cookie crumbles I guess!

[@teeth227]

great video tony(although i disagree so i will be unsubscribing and blocking you on all platforms, hope you understand)

[@Tony4You]

Understandable, have a nice day

[@eW91dHViZSBpcyBjZW5zb3JzaGlw]

BASED?

[@oriongear2499]

If there's one thing I'll say about Souls Hackers, it's that it's better than Soul Hackers 2.

[@absolutezerokyukyokami2288]

You know there is a good reason why Masahiro Sakurai didn't have a good role in the game he's too busy making Super Smash Brothers

[@Tony4You]

TRUE!

[@krimsonkatt]

This game came out before Smash 64 was even a thing lol. (I think?) Back when this game released on SEGA Saturn Sakurai was either working on Kirby Superstar, (original) Kirby's Dreamland 3, or Kirby 64. (the last Kirby game Sakurai would make besides Air Ride) Not Smash Bros.

[@absolutezerokyukyokami2288]

@@krimsonkatt ok lol

[@absolutezerokyukyokami2288]

@@krimsonkatt might have been a fan to the Kirby series then but it just seems so weird to have his name right there well to me though

[@veldtform]

@@krimsonkatt the leader of the Spookies is also named Masahiro Sakurai, I think he was just having a giggle

[@MoneyFolder]

Thank you Tony, I feel like I can finally come out of my hole and declare how much I do not like Soul Hackers. I swear to god everyone recommended this game to me but after like a dozen hours playing I just ended up dropping it. I really wanted to like it too.

[@Tony4You]

I speak for the people! Let your voice be heard!

[@Leo-kc2kp]

It was my first smt so it holds a special place for me, but even now, as I replay it, I still am enjoying it as much as the first time I played it and it still is one of my favorite (they're all my favorite)

[@Yuuretsu]

This game got me into SMT games. I had only played Persona games before this. The game has a special place in my heart even if the story is somewhat lacking and I'm optimistic about the sequel. Also, I'm always extremely skeptical about sponsorships but actaully bit the bullet on Buyee. Thanks for the affiliate link.

[@jellyface401]

But Soul Hackers has THE SMT Ghoticc GF by excellence. How can not Like? :V

[@jellyface401]

Tiamat

[@acedetective9542]

I do love Soul Hackers but I honestly expected more considering what everyone said about it

[@renren47618]

Meanwhile, this game instantly clicked on me because i love Cyberpunk and retrofuturism And honestly the best way to play through it is switching to a easier dificulty, because gameplay wise this game is a slog while story wise and visual wise it's one of my favorite Megaten games Unfortunately i feel like SH2 looks way too generic, not because of the visual, actually i liked it, my problem is that the gameplay feels more like Final Fantasy and the demons became summons but with some Digimon shit, a game called Devil Summoners not even having a lot of Devil summoning Also the story doesn't look to be unique or memorable at all, i think that it will be kinda generic and "whatever" Also as soon i looked to Nemissa i knew she would be my top 1 Megaten Waifu, even surpassing Chie, Takemi, Nuwa, Elizabeth and Ann for me

[@Tony4You]

Fair enough, I know people really jive with this game. Glad people could hear me out

[@freakyzed8467]

Haven't played it yet, so I will hold off watching for now, but ypu get a thumbs up and a comment to appease the algorithm, my MegaTen man!

[@Tony4You]

The hero I needed, thanks man

[@Jips907]

With the announcement of Soul hackers 2,I still wait in anticipation for a Devil survivor 3 to happen😤 Needs great storytelling,similar grid gameplay and possibly an interactive overworld like SMT: 4

[@Tony4You]

Soul Hackers was the last series I expected a sequel to, but it sets a good precedent at the very least. I still have hope for Raidou 3 and Devil Survivor 3

[@Mikhailnoise]

I never understood why people hyped up this game - especially since we all played it on the 3DS solely because it was constantly in the bargain bin.

[@mattk2708]

I really enjoy the game, but I totally understand your gripes with it. I think its length is a really big positive for me since, while I love me a 100+ hour epic tale, sometimes it's nice be be able to knock out a quick adventure of which you could do a lot worse than soul hackers.

[@nice-guyhunter4013]

I feel similarly. I don’t dislike it, I haven’t even beaten it yet. But although I’m pretty far, I don’t really have much motivation to finish it and I didn’t care about the spoilers in this video because the story peaked early on and hasn’t done a lot for me. Nemissa is great though.

[@Tony4You]

Pretty much summed up the game. Peaked early, Nemissa is good, no motivation to finish it. Sad but I bet a ton of other people had the same experience

[@godonomas]

I haven't played it. I have tried my hand at og devil summoner. Untranslated, it really takes me a while with my limited japanese. And thus have not finish it. Hell, I might need to start again. Though the loyalty system is something that really pushes against me playing the game seriously. I have beaten dds1 and almost finishing 2 in between. Lol Good video. Maybe some day I actually finish devil summoner 1 so that I can try soul hackers.

[@alexproudfootchannel]

Good video, you didn't have to give the brief description of things you did like given the point of the video but I found it to be a worthwhile and engaging addition to the overall piece. Great stuff man, keep it up.

[@Tony4You]

I try to do a criticism sandwich with good, bad, good, but I kinda went hard on the bad part lol

[@personaking7]

I just wish they show some love for the original demon summon

[@TheSwordsman100]

You have to give Spooky one thing though, he makes a great crossover fighting game series. =P Anyways great video!

[@Tony4You]

Shoulda added Nemissa for smash SMH

[@jasonblundelldobebussing]

Yeah, the game is kinda niche, but its OST is a banger. Especially "#X" track.

[@tonin7228]

Honestly, as someone who wasnt a fan of SH 1 either, Soul Hackers 2 looks to be fixing all of my problems with the original game, specially the fact the in 2 there seems to be a BIG focus on each party member, so im confident it wont suffer from problems in the character development department like SH 1 did. also, you should review the original Devil Summoner, i think its better than Soul Hackers in pretty much every way aside from graphics, you should really give it a try! (though beware that PPSSPP doesnt emulate the sound correctly, so you'll have to turn down the "reverb volume" option in the audio settings otherwise there will be an awful amount of distortion in the audio)

[@Tony4You]

I was really interested in the original Devil Summoner for sure, though without a translation playing it with a script seems less than ideal. Maybe some day I'll give it a try

[@dachking6657]

I got this notification while playing through the Amami Monolith haha. Definitely not one of my favorites, but I liked Nemissa and a few of the other characters enough.

[@TheLordmordecai]

Thank god I'm not the only one that feels this

[@NachtKaiser666]

Honestly I get where you're coming from, but none of it was a dealbreaker to me. The atmosphere, music and 1997 3D were all really satisfying an itch I didn't know I had when I played it last year. Other than the battle system, I'd go as far as to say I enjoyed it more than Nocturne but I get that this might be a controversial take.

[@Tony4You]

I get that and like I said, don't want to take anything away from people that enjoyed it. I wanted to give an alternate opinion and show I got hot takes too. We speak freely on this channel

[@NachtKaiser666]

@@Tony4You and this is why I'm a sub haha, I like hot takes when they're sincere (and don't harm anyone) It's an old game with old mechanics and the rest couldn't hook you, it's sad but you can't be blamed for it. I'm pretty sure I would've felt the same if the game was fantasy themed with high fantasy music and the typical good vs evil tropes of high fantasy were applied instead of the vaporwavish cyberpunk paint job Soul hackers has.

[@nhall129]

I think im just happy Soul Hackers is getting another chance I like a lot of aspects of the original game, but I’m ultimately pretty mixed on the game So im mainly excited about the sequel because i wanna see what they’ll do and if it’ll really hook me in this time I also just like them focusing on a less popular side-series, like Soul Hackers

[@Tony4You]

Here's hoping Atlus does a better job with the stellar world they made in Soul Hackers. The original had the atmosphere, but not much else

[@magnawaves]

I can't wait for the battle between Tony and Marsh, that will be my favorite SMT hands down

[@Tony4You]

Oh we got plenty to duke out lol, If... and Soul Hackers. The battle of the century

[@magnawaves]

@@Tony4You Just watch out man, I can tell you his weakness is being on the 8th floor of daedalus tower. Just dress up like a minotaur, he'll break down ez

[@TheChowderr]

I liked the game overall despite dropping once because six's sister kicked my ass hard a lot lmao Since the loyalty system can be cheated with gifts I didn't fell so strongly about it, but it was my first time encountering the magnetite system and it forced me to be wary of my demons and mostly only use John hacker, nemissa and maybe a healer

[@josesoto2342]

thanks for this. tried playing OG few months back and eventually forgot to continue

[@notyoursavior78]

As a full game experience it does fall flat at times and I don't think I'd want to ever actually play it again. I did absolutely just love the vibe and atmosphere of the game. So that alone easily carried me through the game. The music was so haunting at times sounding combined with some chill ambient vibes it was just so good. One thing though once I had max loyalty I don't remember ever having problems with my demons not doing what I wanted them to do. Maybe I had healing demons with the proper personality for healing. Once they were at least close to max loyalty very rarely do I recall them disobeying me. With that all being side I do like the game and like talking hearing about it. Really shocked that Soul Hackers 2 got made. It just seemed to come out of left field. Apparently enough people in some survey voted they wanted a second game? It just seems so strange.

[@Draconated]

I really enjoyed Soul Hackers, but like how you could understand why people might like it, I could see why others might not. I will admit the story and most of the side characters aren't very engaging, save for Nemissa being the standout example, but I think you undersold the rival relationship with Finnegan. You run into him a lot throughout the game, having multiple encounters and ultimately results in a badass final fight with him that you can choose to do one-on-one if you really want it to feel like a boss. I also really liked doing the vision quests, seeing the moments leading up to a character dying was interesting, and it was elevated even further by them having their own unique battle themes. What I really like about the game aside from the music and atmosphere is the gameplay, though. It's true there's an element of frustrating RNG due to the demon loyalty system, but it's easy to ignore when this game has such lightning fast, truly snappy combat. Seriously, it feels good to dungeon crawl, fighting stuff back to back, because it never takes long at all. A lot of other RPGs, even other mainline SMT games, are guilty of sluggishness and far too many random encounters, but with how fast they made everything, I never found myself annoyed at a fight. Nocturne is quite similar with its random battles, and that's another reason why I enjoy that game's combat system so much, despite the flaws it also has. Just my two cents, but it's nice to see your harsh criticisms as well. I can accept people not liking a game I adore if they can explain why properly, and you did so well here. Great video!

[@felman87]

You and I are in agreement here. I didn't care for Soul Hackers either. Considering how some of the plot isn't elaborated on, it made me wonder you needed to play some previous game to get it. I wasn't a fan of demon loyalty either, especially since SMT games require specific buffs and debuffs at times. So having a demon rather die than cast a spell makes no sense. Also not a fan of how Demons don't gain levels but whatever. Granted, even after not really caring all that much about the original, I'm still looking forward to Soul Hackers 2. I feel like a lot of my gripes with the original is just simply from it being a very old game. Demons don't level up because they didn't in the older titles either, so that was carried over in the remake. Characters are underdeveloped because having them be one-note was just how protagonists and antagonists were back then (I mean, how often did we fight some big bad who wanted to destroy the world just because they were evil?). So if Soul Hackers 2 implements modern SMT mechanics into its gameplay and fixes things up a bit, it can be an interesting game. The VR setting is perfect since it's a popular topic these days (as it was back in the mid 90s) with our headsets. Plus, it allows for some diverse areas to explore. Jumping in and out of paintings sounds weird but it's all in a video game, so who cares? I just wished Hackers 2 had a Switch port because I've grown accustomed to playing these games on the go. Almost all the recent SMT games have been on Nintendo's handheld, after all. DS, 3DS and Switch. It feels odd that this one isn't (especially since the original had been).

[@KageDarkAngel]

I kind of get what Tony is saying. I actually didn't like the loyalty system as it made making teams a bit difficult at times. And as cool as the story started it seemed like it was kind of falling apart a little as it progressed (although I will give it credit that it was still good) and having to see the demise of Nemissa, whom I pretty much grew to like and care about as the story progressed, kind of made me feel like I got cheated or something. I think the biggest thing I may have enjoyed the most was the extra content at the end of the game... although it was pretty tough and I still cannot beat a certain group of Devil Summoners at the end of it. All in all the game was a decent challenge, had great music, and (if you can get used to the Loyalty system) fast flowing combat (not to mention the fun slice of life things like the bank giving you interest on deposits and the little fun games to play). But with characters who either felt like they had no presence, had not enough time to develop, or just were there for convenience sake, the irksomeness of the Loyalty system, losing Nemissa, I kind of found little desire to replay it... even in New game+.

[@ricogt7092]

I think you gave the game fair criticism. Hopefully soul hackers 2 overcomes these issues great video!

[@Tony4You]

Thanks! I hope I didn't destroy my chances of getting a review copy lol

[@ricogt7092]

Hopefully not lol!!!

[@oriongear2499]

@@Tony4You I highly doubt Atlus is sending out review copies for a 12 year old 3DS game.

[@linksab9568]

You could say the game was not "Tony4Him"😂😂

[@sarundayo]

Soul Hacklers is a great game when you realize it plays like an anime. Not all plots have to be revealed, and not everyone will have a memorable personality, but that's ok. For me this game shines the most in its story, and sure, it's convoluted at times, but that's what you'd expect from a movie where everything happens too fast to explain, but we go along with it. As you said, it's the Cyberpunk theme here that alures players into its world, murky and gritty story, with super natural elements (just like Japanese people love a good scary story). Also features designs from Kaneko himself, which I gotta say, I do enjoy his style much much better than the newer Persona style used going forwaed. Not a great game by any means, but amongst my favorites.

[@100Servings]

Soul Hackers wasn't that bad. I beta tested IMAGINE. There's even worse games if you play the Japanese entries. RONDE, anyone?

[@denzellzepeda4275]

Just finished this earlier and got my hands from the real smt game the story yes its lacking ngl but the atmosphere got me hooked

[@chompy7126]

Dang, and my brother just got this game. He's gonna flip when he sees this. Gonna come back and watch this later.

[@Tony4You]

Don't ,mean to ruin anything for anyone lol, I still hope people like this game! I just couldn't

[@chompy7126]

@@Tony4You it's all good. Love the vids man.

[@dongodongo12]

smt is kinda over for me, soul hackers has everything i love about smt, music character designs, environment, i haven played it yet but im planning to and i will probably love it, im not watching the video because i don't want to have anything affect my opinion. but if atlus is gonna keep going in the direction they are headed, smt and its spinnoffs are not gonna be what i want. soul hackers 2 will probably decide that for me, the smt i love ended with smt 4 although i thoroughly enjoyed apocalypse its not the smt i fell in love with.

[@MinatotheGreenLantern]

Fair enough

[@eW91dHViZSBpcyBjZW5zb3JzaGlw]

You know Tony i disagree with many of your likes and alingments. (Law is worst alignment to me, Neutral all day everyday), but i agree with you here strangely. I watched a movie of this on buffmaister's channel and i wasnt drawn to the story. It seemed to slapped together honestly. And didnt have a natural flow to the story like Devil Survivor or DS-2. The only thing I liked is that Nemissa, Kinap, Manitou are Moowis are all spirits from North American Indian mythology and the only game that exists I know of that features their pantheon. Pretty based I might say!!! Great video. Kinda glad I did not unsub. Cheers.

[@Tony4You]

A W is a W, thanks for watching

[@ForeverKite42]

i recall not liking this game either. I bought the special edition and resold it back to GameStop very shorty afterward. My memory is getting pasted the Dark Summoner Vision Quest and over all losing interest in the game. Glad to see that over-all i didn't miss much.

[@joshdavis8381]

Honestly, I always felt alone in not liking Soul Hackers in the various fan groups I'm part of. I hardly see anyone say anything negative about it (or Digital Devil Saga, for that matter). So in a weird way, I'm glad you made this video, because I feel like "Fianlly! Someone else sees why this game isn't all that great!" lol I just found the story to be incoherent, and once it ended, I just felt glad that the game was done. The gameplay was kind of fun to experiment with, what with the demon personalities, but it also made the game feel too random, in a series that already relies on a fair degree of randomness. It's not the worst game I've ever played, but it is a weak SMT game, and so I can't help but be ambivalent about Soul Hackers 2....

[@StarPebblit]

I don't care for SH myself but I don't dislike it either. I'm entirely neutral on the game. I'd rather play this and SMT if... than DeSu2 though. DeSu2 is the worst game I'VE played in the series so far (haven't touched NINE or ronde). That said, I agree with a lot of what you've said. SH in general is pretty dry, and I feel the characters are only there because Atlus said 'we can't have an empty game so let's just make up some characters and put them there'.

[@depp5275]

yea i'm not a big fan either, it's unfortunate this game will always be buried beneath the smt main game, persona, devil survivor, and raidou to some degree

[@DanteCrowlley]

I wonder if I'm the only one who plays MEGATEN with jp audio tho

[@ArshadZahid_nohandleideas]

Say hello to the weebs

[@classicalthrasher]

I love it overall-its systems can be fun, but I admit the later Megaten games are much more approachable. It is not too difficult, and I only dislike the quizzes-to be fair, in any game I hate being asked on knowledge "I should know", but it's not available in-game. The combat music is great! I got used to the loyalty system, as well as the magnetize system (Soul Hackers was my second Megaten game after SMTIV-I missed the original SJ release, and I only play Nintendo consoles, and only as portables, so I did not experience Nocturne until last year.) I had a good time, and every time I replay it it's fun, but the quizzes still annoy me, even more now. Story it's not bad, but I am more than happy with Etrian Odyssey games. Stories are nice, but not the most important aspect of a game for me (no offense intended.) Still a respectful and well-explained review. We can all have different likes and dislikes without being rude jerks.

[@camerons241]

My favorite Megaten youtuber hates my favorite Megaten game? To be torn between the two like a child watching Christmas movies while their parents are yelling about the divorce. I'll still hang onto every word but dang.

[@MinatotheGreenLantern]

Lol

[@MinatotheGreenLantern]

I know just how you feel dude 😂

[@Tony4You]

Sorry man. I was wrestling with making this video, but I have to give a more well rounded take on the series since I praise it so much.

[@miyamoto8733]

4:08 I didn't knew there was a crossover between SMT and the Fate series.

[@nr2676]

Yeah, Amami Monolith is one of most annoying dungeons in series. Even Eridanus from SJ is not that bad, because have a cool music. Monolith ? Backtracking ... Story pacing and character development (aside of Nemissa and Spookie) maybe is not great in Soul Hackers as u mentioned in video, but u must remember one fact - Soul Hackers was a Sega Saturn game. Most of Sega Saturn games were very short, even RPG's. Saturn was mostly a arcade games machine, when PSX had much more longer games, especially RPG's. Basically Soul Hackers was just to short game as for RPG.

[@krimsonkatt]

Honestly Eranius from Strange Journey is WAY too overblown with how hard/annoying it is. It's honestly pretty simplistic besides the teleport puzzle and even that isn't to tricky especially in Redux when you have guidance angel. (sub app that allows you to see where teleporters lead) Enemies there aren't too hard either especially since around that point is when you start getting the really good stuff skill-wise. You want to see terrible dungeons? Womb of Grief 5 and Empyrean Ascent want to have a word with you. Those dungeons make Eranius look like small fry. I literally had to use a guide for both of those. Eranius? Not so much. Yaldabaoth's Universe from 4 Apocalypse is just as bad as the latter ones and FAR worse than Eranius.

[@nr2676]

@@krimsonkatt Yeah you right, except Womb of Griefs - i love those dungeons and Eridanus is not that bad. My top 5 worst / annoying dungeons in SMT: 1. World of Sloth from SMT If (this dungeon is a hell) 2. Empyrean Ascent from SJ Redux (especially with post game bosses like Belzebub and Nebiros) 3. Grand Cathedral from SMT 1 (just slog and boring) 4. YHVH Universe from SMT IV Apo (just slog and boring + music is fucking annoying after first 15 minutes) 5. Amami Monolith from Soul Hackers 1 (a lot of backtracking and those Catodlepas with petrification, but puzzle is pretty good) But every SMT game have atleast one bad designed / annoying dungeon.

[@joseluiscamacho5168]

The Amami Monolith and the loyalty system wore me out. There were some really good story moments, though, and I love Nemissa. I do and will forever hate first person and random encounters whilst dungeon crawling, however, these things are really annoying and heavily degrade every MegaTen game I play that has them. With the exception of Persona Q and Q2, which were honestly amazing games in every aspect, it is always a cock to play games like this and I almost always just do it for the story. There is nothing worse than random encounters as you move forward, then random encounters as you’re trying to think about the puzzles, backtracking, and solving them. I wanted to pull my hair out. Anyway, I’m super hyped for Soul Hackers 2 because there are no random encounters and the battles look fun as hell. AND it’s 3rd person, which is the best part. And there doesn’t seem to be any of that loyalty bs. It looks great, really looking forward to it. Music is banging.

[@krimsonkatt]

IDK there's just something special and charming to me about first person dungeon crawlers. I love the feeling of filling out a blank map to a fully complete one and going from being completely lost to having complete mastery over your surroundings and where to go. This especially helped if the movement is super fluid like in SJR. Sad to see that there's not many games like that these days. I don't like Etrian Odyssey (the main series that still does this) because you have to build your own map manually and that sounds super tedious. I heard Digimon Story Cyber Sleuth has gameplay like this so I plan on playing that next once my SteamDeck arrives. I've also never minded random encounters, probably because I grew up on old school Pokemon (DS and 3DS games) and have been making RPG Maker games for almost a decade now. IDK I just prefer having forced encounters via just walking around instead of optional ones that you can avoid/run away from because it severely helps balancing. This is made even better if you can actually manipulate the encounter rate, raising the rate when you need to grind and lowering or completely removing random encounters if you're overleveled or trying to do a complex dungeon puzzle without interruptions. The first two Bravely Default games did this to a glorious result. Sad the removed that feature in the third one in order to have on screen encounters.

[@joseluiscamacho5168]

@@krimsonkatt That’s funny to hear you say that, because I actually really liked making the maps in PQ and PQ2, lol. I think it helps with the feeling of mastery over a dungeon, as you said. The reason I don’t like first person is because you have this awesome character design for the protagonist in the games, but then you are basically just playing as yourself because you can’t see the guy, you know? I love seeing the character art. Environment art is great, but I’m more of a character guy, myself. I like to see and control them-at LEAST like in SMT IV, where you explore 3rd person but combat in 1st. Also, for random encounters, I’d argue there is less skill involved in getting into an encounter/surviving it if it’s randomized. As I said, I finished Persona 1 yesterday, which is first person dungeon crawler with random encounters, and dude, like, some ailments in that game will hit you and you are unable to play while you get killed for free over 5 minutes of staring at your screen. That crap will happen to you regularly, in every dungeon aside from the first, if the enemy somehow gets an advantage over you through random encounters. It’s pretty much the same thing for Soul Hackers and I hate it. If the player had agency over which encounters they entered, then you’d be able to have at least a say in whether or not you will get a severe disadvantage in battle. As it is, there is no skill involved in the most prominent mechanic in the game, which is honestly nuts. Yeah, you can use items to make it suck less, but you also gotta level up and stuff, you know? It’s more interesting, for these reasons, imo, to let the player have the ability to affect whether or not they enter into combat. One good thing about random encounters is that you are constantly afraid for your life, because you know the game doesn’t care how much skill you have, lol, it will still mess you up. Still, you can keep that feeling up by making the Shadows/demons chase you at top speeds. Imagine if in Persona 5, the Palace Shadows could dash from corner to corner to reach you like you can them? That’d be a whole new level of fun, and you’d actually feel like you’re a thief with the popo on your ass. You’d have to get creative with the game mechanics to turn things to your advantage or escape. If you get outplayed, fine, I can totally accept losing in a game if I had a fighting chance, but if it was luck-based, I just want to shut off the game, lol.

[@Tony4You]

Good takes all around, here's hoping SH2 is good!

[@mareczek00713]

I mean, some like apples, some bananas. I liked it myself though I can see why many SMT fans dislike it - basically between philosophy of SMT ples the struggle between absolute law and absolute chaos and psychological analysis of functioning within society, jungian theories and non-dungeon side of the game Soul Hackers is simply different. Once you turn a blind eye to certain anachronisms stemming from this being a SNES remake and treat it like non-SMT game utilizing SMT mechanics and certain elements SMT games share it's enjoyable. Basically - depending on initial expectations SMT fan will either love or hate the game, you simply expected something else.

[@playtpusonkedamine9032]

I find it weird that most people got into SMT because of SMT 4 I played SMT nocturne first as a like 8 year old I only got up to Thor then quit

[@MP-hl8ty]

This is the only SMT game I didn’t like on the 3ds, it just felt too dated. I’m looking forward to Soul Hackers 2 though.

[@GoldFes]

Honestly, it's my least favorite SMT game I've played. But I still liked the gameplay to a degree. I haven't really encountered any SMT game I dislike.

[@Tony4You]

Testament to how great the series is. I beat this game so it wasn't completely unbearable yeah. I just felt strongly about this game for some reason. Maybe because the sequel is coming

[@franksturino9129]

I have no clue why they thought demon loyalty was a good idea

[@nr2676]

They propably tryed stop player from mindless spamming best moves from SMT 1 / SMT 2 / SMT If. I liked demon loyality system because it give some kind of personality to demons.

[@RadiantMantra]

I feel like playing Soul Hackers is like going back to Earthbound after playing Mother 3 first they each have their charm for sure, but vary in tone and narrative a decent bit

[@muffinzetta3670]

everyone that says they love soul hackers are liars because like 6 people played soul hackers

[@Charagodslayer666]

I have this physical but never got past the VR museum part. I just couldn't play anymore at that point. Would like to finish someday

[@Phraqzy]

Nice review, mainly about demon personality. I almost dropped this game

[@BandedMetagrossMeteorMash]

Game has good aesthetic design and music but thats it i dropped it like 10 or 15 hours in cause i wanted to see if it got better but i hated the gameplay experience so much

[@BandedMetagrossMeteorMash]

And the story was complete nothing

[@evanbuck9044]

I’m in the midst of a playthrough of the game before SH2 releases, so I haven’t seen beyond the intro of this video to avoid spoilers. However, I share some of the sentiment in that it’s not one of my favorites. I still enjoy it for what it is, but I am not really a fan of some of the game design choices, characters, and threadbare plot. That being said, I do look forward to beating it and seeing your video once I am done!

[@melancholyman369]

Funny how Atlus found a way to sell the same game to ppl multiple times, Nintendo and Atlus...Kings of the Hustle. Could never be me tho

[@GanonAutumn777]

The one thing that made me stop playing was the awful affinity system where the demon you recruit wont obey u until you fill the gauge.If u dont do so within the set amount of battle the demon just ditches u and run away,to my knowledge its the only smt game that does this(unless the og devil summoner on the saturn did it first idk) and i hate this system with a passion Which is a shame cuz omg i love the soundtrack and atmosphere so much

[@shinyanakagawa8241]

Devil Summoner games run the demon loyalty system, including Raidou games. The only difference is that in Raidou, the demons wont flee or disobey you if their loyalty points are low, they will just not recover your MAG (mp) or heal your hp for you during battle.

[@GanonAutumn777]

@@shinyanakagawa8241 i dont mind the way the other devil summoner games did it cuz it wasnt as noticably infuriating in raidou as it is in SH.

[@shinyanakagawa8241]

@@GanonAutumn777 to each of its own I guess. I never felt that the demon loyalty system hindered me that much. If anything, it actually helps me balance my team more than just having a party with random and mixed affinities that does not help me during battle at all.

[@Genethagenius]

I loved the original’s art design, and hate the new one’s. But I also really disliked the magnetite system and an so glad “SMT” has gotten rid of it.

[@espio33]

I enjoyed this game quite a bit, but it is not going to be a game for everyone for sure. I am rather hesitant on the newest entry, but will give it a shot.

[@dantemustdie00]

if anything, I'd say the best thing to come out of Soul Hackers and Devil Summoner before it, is the demon designs, the two games had some of the overall best demon designs in the whole series.

[@Tony4You]

Absolutely agree, tons of demons were designed for this game and they mostly look fantastic

[@rogercheetoofficial]

i remember when soul hackers 2 was revealed and people called it generic and it confused me, since in my opinion soul hackers 1's cyberpunk was also generic for the time and the best bits are in the mystical wacky stuff and the character designs, which is also a trend carried over to soul hackers 2 i really wish more was done with the story, the atmosphere is off the charts but they did so little with it, and i can only hope soul hackers 2 can build more on the phantom society since the seeds were planted in soul hackers

[@TheKnizzine]

I wouldnt really call soul hackers generic when talking about SMT it has a functional city hell a better one to live in than the Persona games

[@yuzuki3876]

Nemissa is hot tho

[@DarkJ1425]

What is my problem with Soul Hackers? Demons don't level up >huh? why? The game is playable just fine You are right. Unfortunatlly the issue will show its ugly head in the extra final dungeon - the one from Extra Game in the main title screen-. I will list down why I hate this dungeon: - The entire thing is a fan service for those whole played the original Devil Summoner which most likely not many people played it because it was never localized.. ok fine, just watch Marsh's video because he did pretty great job summarizing the plot. -The puzzles are..... dickish. Even some hints provided in game are flat out lies.... ok fine, just pull up GameFAQ guide or whatever and get through them. -You are not allowed to save anywhere.... ok that is not fine unless if you played it on emulation. What is the problem then? It is the damn final boss... um I am sorry I meant bosses The first one is THE Devil Summoner filter and will delete your team turn one.... what am I supposed to do? Turned out you need: Level up your charecter and Nemissa to 90+.. and this game is not EXP friendly as far as I know. Because demons never level up - my main problem -, you need to do fusion marathon to lv85+ demons and spend untold amount of MAG to get there. You need more MAG to buy Mitamas -after unlocking all Four throgh fusion- to batch up your team stats as high as you can. Even with this you are not 100% certian in winning becasue one of bosses will spam Bomb status then shoot a fire spell afterward OHKOing you in the process ....... AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA Great video... by the way there is a new ending kinda that only accessible through NG+ and you have to make a certain choice mid game to get that new ending

[@nr2676]

U can save everywhere in Soul Hackers (3DS version). Just buy and turn on chip (like in Strange Journey Redux).

[@DarkJ1425]

@@nr2676 expect for “extra game” dungeon. They disabled all save functionalities in there and they want you to do everything in one go. If you figured your team is no match for the ultimate bosses you have to give up, load your game, grind your team even more then do the entire thing again… screw this man

[@nr2676]

@@DarkJ1425 Yes this is bullshit :D

[@ltb1345]

I agree. I had pretty much the same experience with Soul Hackers, except I couldn't bring myself to finish it. It's shockingly mediocre compared to the other 3DS Megaten games.

[@niko8571]

Funny thing is that I hated the game when I first played it, but revisiting it back in March, I sorta liked it. I can agree that the characters could be a bit better.

[@Tony4You]

Maybe with unclouded eyes I would enjoy it more, but I have no impulse to revisit it anytime soon. Maybe after Soul Hackers 2

[@らいどう-c5m]

OHHH SHIIIT Here we go 👀

[@eastcoasttone3952]

I can't even lie, the story and characters sound mad boring lol

[@anibal5845]

I haven't finished the game, but then that might be the critique. I typically play two or three games at a time, but if a game doesn't hold my attention (I usually call it after eight hours) I drop it. Some games are so great that I play them multiple times within a year (like Devil Survivor or Three Houses or Wind Waker).

[@jasonblundelldobebussing]

But we like *YOU* THE TONY4YOU!

[@asakurawhyte4320]

Nemissa is the best.