The Most Disappointing JRPG of 2022

I received an early review code for Soul Hackers 2, and that's one of the nicest things I can say about it.
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Music:
Butter Building - Kirby’s Epic Yarn
Sound Test - Shin Megami Tensei III: Nocturne
Oh It’s You - A Hat in Time
When Mother Was There - Persona 5
Common Battle (Town) - Shin Megami Tensei III: Nocturne
Battle Theme - Soul Hackers 2
Shinagawa (Konan 3rd Block) - Shin Megami Tensei V
Checker Dance - Deltarune
Shinsando - Soul Hackers 2
Boss Battle - Shin Megami Tensei III: Nocturne
Weapon Shop - Soul Hackers 2
DLC Theme BGM112 - Shin Megami Tensei V
Bloody Sneakers - Neon White
Map Theme - Shin Megami Tensei Dx2
Meteor Herd - Sonic Adventure 2
Sources:
Xenoblade 2 Combat Clip
• THINK YOU CAN TAKE ME ...

[@ddrrdd1010]

Conclusion: Altus can’t do a noob friendly game so Altus should continue to develop games with more complex mechanics and avoid oversimplifying the gameplay.

[@midasvijfwinkel6116]

@@iAmPimmiCue Thanks for re-stating the point

[@CrimRui]

Conclusion: not every game has to be triple A to be enjoyed and you should check the game out yourself and not let one person tell you if it's good or not.

[@shinigami9851]

Last bible is proof of it to. Its not worth it.

[@720pchannel]

Nah, they just need to keep SMT games as SMT and Persona games as Persona games. Persona games would benefit if they became more difficult though, but bringing down the complexity of SMT or Persona would be a mistake.

[@ruiK774]

​@@CrimRui Tbh I agree a lot with him watching let's plays (yeah I'm that meme of a persona 5 fan that can't even play the game lmao) it just feels kinda dead for me and feels like it's not paced well enough, I'm not asking it to be like persona or smt (I have played p1-p3) but it's just missing anything interesting with the characters, I'm guessing it's because the player doesn't get to hang out with them as much as persona games do (though persona games are slower in general with slice of life parts) and my least favorite part is that I like the character designs a lot but I don't really like the characters themselves (no hate, just doesn't feel right)

[@JR-rm4nw]

Those load times are fixed by going into the options and setting the tips to button press. I have no idea why that isn't the default since it makes the loading times like 1 second.

[@WokioWolfy]

Wait, does that meant that Atlus added artificial loading times in a game that can load their stuff super quickly?

[@minecraft500ful]

the artificial loading times are most likely a requirement because of the tips showing up on the loading screen as a way to allow players to have enough time to read the tip. Not the best reason but a reason nonetheless

[@yakkocmn]

i can't believe i lost an hour of my life for nothing

[@sodalangstson9438]

...there load time issue there alot loafing screen but on the console it only last 2 to 10 sec

[@G3RM3X617]

@@yakkocmn I never played them but I thought persona and smt were the same series? Like how elder scrolls, skyrim, and oblivion are all part of the same. series. If they are part of the same series then why do you talk about them as if they are different series?

[@jester1940]

After reading all the early reviews for the Soul hackers the main takeaway I had was that Atlus was overcorrecting the "too complicated" critique of JRPG's without really considering that the reason they've had so much success in the past is because there are quite a few people willing to learn how their games work. Gotta have that mass market appeal though

[@heroicgangster9981]

Kinda just wish they just made Tokyo Mirage Sessions 2, the battle system was flashy and I liked managing the turn order between party members and enemies a lot. Just make it less grindy and have actual english voices.

[@AdachiCabbage]

@@heroicgangster9981 Tokyo Mirage was a failure though, it barely sold around 35k in Japan and only 50k or so in the USA and people are going to relate it to censorship and other bad marketing.

[@_CrimsonBlade]

i preorder this on a playstation and now im finding out it on playstation plus premium which i already have wtf

[@mausebas]

This game really feels like the newer pokemon games, bad and on autopilot but enjoyable once you ignore it's flaws

[@DIEFORME173]

@@mausebas it isn’t really

[@liamsgreatbitgaming]

If… if they wanted it to appeal to newcomers why did they call it Soul Hackers _2_

[@yakkocmn]

a name so confusing and niche, i didn't even want to put it in the title

[@Whatthescallop1776]

Atlus seems so alien compared to the rest of us consumers. The story DLC, day one DLC, DLC bundles more expensive than the game itself. Reused stories and characters (Persona), Stories and characters with missed potential (SMT), Stories and characters with very little potential (Soul Hackers 2/SMT IV: Apocalypse). Excessive merchandising. Spinoff games to milk the shit out of Persona, including multiple Persona 5 crossovers in random mobile games, and the anime/manga variations that add very little to the game, especially Persona 4 Golden Persona 5 the Animation. This company doesn't feel like it's getting worse, but less understandable. The more decisions they make, the more it feels like it will set up for disappointment, with current main Megaten titles not doing well as they should. Persona 6 is in an extremely dangerous place, and if it ends up ruining Atlus due to their money-hungry business decisions, it could mean a horrible downfall for the company, like Konami.

[@smtandearthboundsuck8400]

They sabotaged this game so they could have an excuse to never work on games outside of mainline and Persona.

[@smtandearthboundsuck8400]

@@Whatthescallop1776 Lol they will treat Persona 6 with the utmost care, without a doubt. It’s their best cash cow, they won’t fumble it. And persona fans will eat it up no matter what so long as it doesn’t stray from its roots-even if it sucks.

[@gastonzumbo9860]

@@smtandearthboundsuck8400 i see someone hasn't taken their normal people pills today

[@gerardotejada2531]

Devil Survivor already merged Persona and Shin Megami Tensei. It had the social aspect of persona and the great depiction of apocalypse since SMT1

[@gebauzchris]

Persona already merged Persona and Shin Megami Tensei...

[@geisterwolf397]

@@gebauzchris no. SMT and Persona may be similar combat and enemy wise but story telling and thrmes are completly different.

[@gebauzchris]

@@geisterwolf397 What you say applies to more modern Persona games, but originally Persona was pretty much in line with typical SMT themes and atmosphere, esp the first one which was even a first person dungeon crawler.

[@geisterwolf397]

@@gebauzchris P1 yes. P2 was something pretty much unique. P3-P5 are what most people know Persona as.

[@ArshadZahid_nohandleideas]

Devil Survivor yes yes yes yes

[@Alibaba-le2ku]

Now why would you release this literally an hour after I bought it Edit: guys i got a physical edition 😭 it’s all good

[@alexisventura7191]

if its on steam, you can refund it if you have played less than 2 hours, or less than X days after purchase if its not, i would try to refund it anyway.

[@Alibaba-le2ku]

@@alexisventura7191 I’m actually enjoying it so far but if that changes I’ll trade it back in quick

[@PraiseLeTsun]

@@Alibaba-le2ku keep us updated mate

[@alexisventura7191]

@@Alibaba-le2ku sure, just make sure to give it back before 2 hours if you dont like it (and you bought it on steam) or else they wont give you anything back.

[@porridgeramen7220]

@@Alibaba-le2ku DON'T PLAY MORE THAN 2 HOURS!!

[@WankMk2]

Ok while I get where you're coming from, I stand by the fact that the constant shouting in xenoblade fights is the best part of the experience

[@luisdabest5396]

Couldn't have said it better myself

[@neelarai971]

THINKYOUCANTAKEMEDONTFORGETMEYOUREDONEBEHAVE

[@trashley5972]

It also admittedly works better in those becuase they are real time combat.

[@kei7540]

It's funnier in xenoblade and it's more like banter between the party so that helps too

[@TheBandoBandito]

Lanz wants something meatier.

[@thequietbisharp]

I’d just like to add that the unique frosts are in the original Soul Hackers too. And the way you get them is unique and applies to their lore. Seemingly that was lost in this sequel.

[@Helzuz]

I love just how many thumbnails there are with the gun pointing image lmao

[@yakkocmn]

it's my backup when i don't have any better ideas

[@studio_1]

You know, for as much flack as it gets, the idea of a game that uses SMT and Persona elements is actually most applicable to Tokyo Mirage Sessions. And I can safely say that game did WAY better with it. Didn’t even need to act like it was a main SMT game to do so.

[@crisonline143]

i agree, i love tms and its more appealing to newcomers too

[@deadpanpancake]

if theres anything good in TMS its the battle system, its honestly so fun

[@leifster7762]

Def need to play tms sometime

[@mza.2]

SH2 were made by the same guys who did TMS, buy that game is even better despite what it did to both SMT & FE fans

[@XDarkEcho]

Totally agree with this, while watching the video, the only thing I could think of was, "This is just TMS #FE, but worse, much worse." It's crazy how much they stripped from this game's origins, of the SMT title; to have such a braindead simplistic battling system, dungeons, and story. It really doesn't, in my opinion, deserve to hold the name of SMT.

[@juliasz.1017]

these battle encounters look so,,, lifeless

[@axionlightedge6108]

They really are. Its low budget bad game design when the trailers made it look so good

[@iantaakalla8180]

When all the battle design went to the trailers as it usually does

[@metaphobic]

Honestly, I'm getting fed up with developers aiming for mass appeal when we've got more than enough evidence to prove that this approach rarely works and is not why this sort of series gained notoriety in the first place...

[@platinummad4701]

Eh as someone who has never played an Atlus rpg I'm having a blast with Soul Hackers and plan to play more, just my 2 cent here.

[@metaphobic]

@@platinummad4701 I'm sure you are and I mean no offence, but I really don't think it's worth alienating your core audience.

[@platinummad4701]

@@metaphobic people use the word alienating for everything these days, it's such an offense they try to make a game for new players?

[@metaphobic]

@@platinummad4701 If it reduces the quality of the game for the fans that were already there, I'd say yes. I don't see how banking on potential new fans is better than banking on already existing ones. Unique and Great beats Generic and Decent, any day of the week.

[@metaphobic]

@@platinummad4701 Besides, what does it mean to make a game for "new players". If you try to cater to too many people the overall product always loses quality. That's a guarantee, because other games that focus on those aspects will inevitably do it better than you. Persona is great because it does it's own thing well. Same for SMT. The first Soul Hacker also had its own unique thing going on that made it great, but they've tried to go for the persona approach and muddied the waters instead of perfecting what was already great. The point is, if you want to make a game for new players: make a new game. If you want to make a good sequel, take what was good about the original, and expand on that. Don't just remix everything.

[@HidinginPublic]

Mostly fair tbh. Will say to nitpick tho, the assist doesn't actually choose a good recommended move. The only time I used it, it had me use an electric move on an enemy I hadn't seen before and that enemy reflected electricity and instakilled me lol. Also it could be that I was underleveled but I found the fights pretty challenging in early game if you use no DLC items (I was like 6lvls under the bosses but still)

[@HidinginPublic]

Oh also I would def play this again before I did a fresh run of nocturne. It was a fine experience the first time but I'm not sure If I wanna ever play nocturne again

[@gyrz19]

Assist only works once you know the enemies weakness. Otherwise its gonna just pick your highest damage attack.

[@RegalPixelKing]

It seems like the only great part of this game is the visuals. The character design pops, and I can tell there is some real talent behind it. And even though the city is basically boiled down to a bunch of annoying loading screens, when it comes to the neon glowy look of the city itself, it has a great cyberpunk feel. Even the shop keepers have designs so well done that any one of them can easily be a party member because they just look that good. But it does not matter how good a video game looks if the "game" part is not any fun.

[@El_Wanderer91]

Exactly! Very well said. I'm tired of "Look how pretty our game looks!". Ok, that's nice, but what about the most important part, the gameplay?

[@janericpaghubasan2930]

Well what's so bad about SH2 gameplay anyway?

[@RegalPixelKing]

@@janericpaghubasan2930 For a longer more in-depth answer, watch the video. For a TL;DW answer: It's not "bad" in the conventional since, it's more so just so bog standard that it's only as mechnically deep as FF1. With that said the dungeons are bad, they are samey and either overly maze-like or overly linear with no inbetween, recruiting monsters is a pain in the ass, and the dozens of needless loading screen outside of the dungeons do not help.

[@lowhp_comic]

@nuj b what worse way to make a sequel feel less like a sequel than to make the art styles inconsistent 😅

[@janericpaghubasan2930]

@@RegalPixelKing i feel like he's overall not fair about the combat system in this game if that's the right word (don't know about the whole review but there are things he says that didn't make sense.) haven't played the game yet but, watching Nyarly's review. not only is it night and day but also the combat seems more than the meets the eye.

[@furyrageguy5728]

What interested me in devil summoner and other megaten games was that weird, half dark, half lighthearted atmosphere. In Raidou 2 for example we try to solve the mystery of luck stealing locust. TMS and SH2 could be as well published under every other franchise name by NIS or Marvelous. And it’s just my personal whining, but SH2 gameplay seems stiff. Persona 5, Smt 5 heck, even TMS had pretty dynamic animations during battles.

[@heroicgangster9981]

YEAH!!!! The only thing that makes me interested in Soul Hackers 2 is some cool designs like the masked guy and the sabbath demon animations that look cheap as heck! Tokyo Mirage Sessions was basically Persona 4.5 imo in terms of how a battle system and animations could be for an SMT Persona game.

[@moley249]

oh my god there are some B A N G E R S in TMS

[@IrvineKinneas8882]

You know, the more i look at it the more i think soul hackers and devil summoner as a series did not deserve this. Soul hackers one was this snazzy soul/time travelling experience where we unveil a mass destruction through vr plan to destroy humanity by feeding the planet with negative emotions (iirc), and there was plenty of possessions too. Original devil summoner was mc dying and posessing body of a badass devil summoner kyouji, and then figuring out who's killing ppl and why. All while oozing and radiating style like it was a nuclear power plant

[@RoyalCrustle]

Funnily enough I just started SMT4 today again, after playing maybe an hour years ago when I bought it and got felt frustrated due to how hard it was. I'm having a great friggin time with it. It actually got fun once I was able to recruit a few demons (which I never managed back in the day).

[@xxSantiago623xx]

The music is amazing as well!

[@fordc.2831]

Yeah the first couple hours of that game are ruthless, but you really get a solid grasp of the game and its mechanics once you’ve clawed your way out. Fantastic game

[@El_Wanderer91]

Congratulations. You just got hooked by a game that is a masterpiece. Enjoy.

[@Fermin-hw5pd]

Oh yeah, Naraku _is_ an insane start, after a certain point you'll get a grasp on everything and will be able to play without dying (too much), it has some bs moments but it's also a very fun game

[@FSVR54]

Best JRPG of all time. There is no debate as far as I see it.

[@guyofminimalimportance7]

"Lowest Killstreak buys drinks" sounds like the type of line you'd see in an edgy newgrounds "anime" from 2011

[@kichiroumitsurugi4363]

Funny how SH1 has an intro that would fit this description exactly

[@joshthejuicy]

I feel your critique of the Sabbath system is a bit harsh. The extra effects and damage can add strategy for taking out groups of enemies or trying to make up for another party member's damage if they have to buff or heal that turn. Also If you're gonna hold the assist button as this flaw worth pointing out, you have to realize this has been in the series before as well. I remember off the top of my head Persona 5 had it in it's original release, and in the end of the day it only saves time. No sense to mock a quality of life feature for some people if it doesn't work for you. Also the fact they tried something different with negotiations isn't entirely a bad thing either, demon personalities is only mostly a thing in P5 and SMTV which other times it's just completely random chance. It is frustrating if you're looking for a specific demon, that I completely agree with. It can add a good chunk of time if you're looking for something you can't fuse easily. But the new method encourages you to explore and check every corner of a dungeon, so it adds to the exploration. Which I will add, yeah the dungeons are how they're like in 90% of the series. Even SMTV had similar dungeons with the Castle and the semi-final one. It's seen as part of the series identity as this point. Whether this is good or bad, like you said is up to contention. Ultimately it comes down to preference. Calling Soul Hackers 2 generic when it has a giant supercomputer under the ocean that is essentially stalking humanity for the sake of evolution along with it bringing stuff back from SH1 like the Phantom Society, the Kuzonha Clan from Devil Summoner and reimagined Vision Quest is at best disingenuous. The Phantom Society can be a bit of generic bad guys even in SH1, but their personality and designs make them memorable. Calling something "generically anime" really feels hollow when I don't see a high school in the main cast and instead it's a cast of 25+ year old people with their unique personalities and interactions with each other. I apologize for the unstructured ramblings and I do wanna say this: Your feelings are completely valid. If you don't like SH2 then you don't and I'm sorry this was such a let down for you man. But I do believe there were better ways to phrase your points and I do feel it's worth pointing out. Again: no ill will, and I wish you nothing but the best wishes in your endeavors.

[@moley249]

goofy aah

[@donteo508]

Couldn't have put it better myself.

[@gamingdormouse2677]

Totally agree, and we're talking about the same company that made a Hello Kitty game, not ever single game they bring out should be holded with expectations to beat P5 and such. Sometimes we just like continuing of classic games in PS5 quality.

[@pacoroto]

10/10, I'm 30 hours in the game and it's super fun and memorable.

[@Kingdom850]

@@gamingdormouse2677 Yeah but this like one of the very few instances in the series where it drops the SMT moniker in an attempt to distinguish itself, just like how Persona did. But then it does nothing interesting and is flat out boring in a lot of areas.

[@lucasbittencourtnogueira5858]

the sabbath seems like Strange Journey's weakness exploit system, except all party attacks instead of just same-alignment demons. And the flavored jack frosts already existed on SH1

[@pinonpine9460]

The first SH was a first person dungeon crawler. I knew it was going to be nothing like the OG from the beginning

[@blacktarsalmon6697]

You always show 13 sentinels but never talk about it. We need more people to know that it exists

[@TashimaNLee]

One of my favorite games of all time 😩 I’m about to replay it again just because it’s THAT good

[@yukaritakeba]

13 Sentinels is HIGHLY overlooked… The game deserves the praise it gets, and more people need to experience it.

[@mausebas]

13 sentinels really is the ghost trick of jrpgs

[@puer4787]

the goated goat game of goat, but unfortunately you can't talk about it without spoiling it

[@joseph2000117]

@@puer4787 Tactical time pause tower defense game with a non-linear story that is packed with Scifi elements is how I would describe it to someone who has no clue about. It and The House in Fata Morgana are the best games I've played in my life, and coincidently both have non-linear stories, a trans character, is fairly unknown and SPOILER has a happy ending

[@teanest8208]

"they gave me the game to review for free, thats pretty much the only good thing about playing it"

[@devildelirious8662]

"Accessibility" ruins games. Oh, forza can drive the car for you? Why the fuck are you playing a game then

[@hmmster]

There is a differance betwern accessability and difficulty that you fail to understand here, making a game accessable makes it quick to understand and go through reducing playtime but making for a better experience and having less accessability in a game doesn't make it harder, it just makes it less fun for example p4g nightmare difficulty mod poses a great challenge while not inconviencing the player, from the looks of it this games combat seems to be the opposite giving you something that will always make good decicions so you can turn your brain off and still managing to make preperation for fights a time waste. To put it in your example imagine you buy a forza and you want to drive it but trying to get the navigation to work is taking forever and its loading between each time you go onto a new screen and then the car just auto drives for you with help from manual input occasionally is what this game looks like with a relatively easy challenge because the game shows you the optimal moves that just takes forever to complete if you want to in anyway prepare for fights

[@AX-ROSE]

The whole Sabbath thing seems like if they took the Alignment Co-Ops from Strange Journey, then removed LITERALLY ALL STRATEGY that the system had with teambuilding. I was gonna pick this game up for my birthday, but I think I’ll just get something I’d actually enjoy.

[@heroicgangster9981]

Tokyo Mirage Sessions sounds like a good idea. Managing the weaknesses between party members and enemies on both sides. And also having control in the turns of your party members with high budget attack animations.

[@miwestraveler3986]

Lmao I thought the same, but forgot the alignment team building thing since I spammed neutral demons. Yes, including against Mem "kiss your demons of one alignment goodbye" Aleph. Which was a nasty but cool counter mechanic btw.

[@moley249]

get xenoblade 3 if you want a game that lives up to the hype, has great characters, and really fun combat unlike this dogshit

[@snailthelostcow63]

Atlus PLEASE Don’t be afraid to design a system that both punishes player and enemies alike Yes, we know it works for Persona but not everything needs to be a Persona game

[@kichiroumitsurugi4363]

@@snailthelostcow63 That said, NEVER bring back Smirk or instakill-only Hama/Mudo. Both were just cheap mechanics

[@heroicgangster9981]

It's a pretty aight Atlus rpg game imo, but like I would put Tokyo Mirage Sessions over Soul Hackers 2 any day. With all the new concepts in Soul Hackers 2, I was kind of bummed that it was not spectacular in any way other than the sabbath system. Tokyo Mirage Sessions is a good casual SMT game and had much productive ambition. Soul Hackers 2 just felt like it took from other SMT games, Persona, and Tokyo Mirage Sessions but it's... cheap.

[@Terranigma23]

The dungeons of Tokyo Mirage easily looks better than the one from Soul Hackers 2.

[@chizdip8192]

I'm pretty sure they only released this game due to the fact the P3P, P4G and P5R are coming out soon on PS5 and XBOX. Just something to keep people busy until than. Overall the game isn't bad, but certainly isn't great either

[@shinigami9851]

@@chizdip8192 along with the fact that the success of smt V gave them courage to explore some of there past games and not just be seen as the persona guys. Also something tells me Soul hacker 2’s budget was kinda small. Probably explains why this game is the way it is.

[@calebrobbins6406]

"The anime protagonist equivalent of unsalted crackers" had me rolling

[@no_uhs5249]

I’m so mad they removed talking to enemies it was my favorite part of the megami tensei series especially in last Bible

[@jonnye_8484]

Hear that Noah? Lowest killstreak buys drinks!

[@LiTLflor]

what do you use in your hair? also, is your normal curl pattern tighter or looser than you style it? thanks. :-)

[@Chadfill8348]

"Soul Hackers 2 is the most disappointing JRPG" Pokemon Scarlet and Violet: "Hold my beer"

[@SausageDaddy08]

Helpful tip for loading times: go to the config menu under system and turn off the “display tips” option. This gets rid of loading screen tips and reduces the PS5 load time to about 2 seconds between each area

[@lilyrubyify]

I really wanted this to be Devil Summoner's great comeback. That game was my introduction to Atlas and the whole SMT franchise, therefore it will always have a special place in my heart. It's also just one of the best freakin' cyberpunk themed JRPG I've ever played so there's also that... I'm so sad.

[@joem4317]

can someone tell me what the sound effect at 1:54 is? I recognize it but can’t tell where from

[@demon_souls4895]

So as a person who would be getting into the personal franchise when it releases on xbox in October would this be worth giving it a go even if a more dumb down experience?

[@SuperT380]

Man that's a shame, I was willing to overlook how it didn't really have much relation to the first Soul Hackers in it's systems/mechanics due to how stylized everything seemed to be and with hopes that the new/unique stuff would make up for it but this just looks painfully average at best :(

[@CrimRui]

Why not try it yourself? Many people enjoy the game.

[@aidankhaos7687]

Make your own opinions because it’s actually not a bad game.

[@SuperT380]

@@aidankhaos7687 I don't feel like spending 60 dollars to find out if a game I'm already iffy/not all too interested in is worth the time, especially when I've watched multiple videos from multiple people that are and aren't SMT fans that kinda all pitter out to the game just being ok or only very slightly above average at best

[@yoshikop9601]

@@SuperT380 Yea, it’s good decision. Atlus must see how awful this game and didn’t make second SH2. It’s really boring. I waiting SH2 and saw review but I thought, “nooo it’s can be so disappointing” but it is! Everything in this review is true. For information. My play time 38 hours. I make side quests and alleys dungeons and still don’t finish SH2. I can’t continue play this game because it’s boring T-T Now I’m little nervous about persona 6 ( P.S. sorry for mistakes I’m not native speaker, but I can’t not write about this game)

[@shiwakao]

at least nocturne had atmosphere meanwhile ironically soul hackers 2 is just soulless

[@BitchChill]

Define "Soulless" I'm tired of people using these non constructing buzzwords

[@malsocio]

@@BitchChill uninspired this game doesn't hold a candle to the look and atmosphere of the first game.

[@KyngD469]

@@BitchChill it means it feels generic. When you think of Nocturne, most people almost immediately think of oppressive, dark red, apocalyptic, high pressure, suffocating. SMT VI, a bit of that, but also a weird civilization that's some what comfortably nested in hell, while thinking about your choices to choose a false heaven or to burn the world to shit, or just wipe it all out. wtf is going on in Soul hackers 2? Neon lights and mini shorts? licking fingers and zoomer jokes?

[@Nucleoprotein]

You can disable loading screen setting them to "Hide" - they will not show at all, by default game waits for you to read the loading screen, there is option also to wait for button press. With "Hide" location change is like instant on PS5 with only a screen fade.

[@-Insert_name_here-]

Is there a hard mode that makes this games difficulty somewhat similar to the other SMTs?

[@boredhuman6512]

So far one review told me its eh pretty good, one of them told me its mediocre and this one is telling me its shit Sigh... guess I'm waiting for a sale I guess

[@celestialkitsune]

Well, the writing was on the wall, so to speak. Because even before the game came out, there was already controversy. With that day 1 DLC which was way too much.

[@heroicgangster9981]

I definitely would not play this game after playing Tokyo Mirage Sessions. Soul Hackers 2 just seems like Tokyo Mirage Sessions but cheaper. I love Tokyo Mirage Sessions and I was kind of hoping the people involved in those games would've made the game at least fun through the spectacle.

[@axionlightedge6108]

@@celestialkitsune Day 1 dlc is normal

[@BARALover96]

@@axionlightedge6108 it shoudnt be.

[@BrianOblivionB]

@@BARALover96 Inflation is a bitch, either higher prices, DLC, or half the budget. In this case two of those would be accurate.

[@GradMeat]

I was interested in buying this game but didn't to save money for other stuff. Instead I got devil survivor 1 overcloked on my 3ds before the eshop shut down and I'm glad I did.

[@DeepMoon45]

You're lucky you can get Overclocked on your eshop, It's not available on Australian eshops as well as the physical being impossible to obtain without spending a stupid amount of money and I've heard nothing but praise, some even saying it's the best of the smt franchise :(

[@GradMeat]

@@DeepMoon45 I was originally going to get the second game but it was too big for my 3ds. I know there's ways to emulate 3ds games but I've never done it before So I may just fork over 80 bucks for the second game if I have the money

[@DeepMoon45]

@@GradMeat I own the second game digital and it does take up a tonne of space. I'm probably going to have to resort to emulation for the first game but I've also never done so for 3DS either and don't love the idea but some games are only playable that way sadly, both Raidou games as well

[@GradMeat]

@@DeepMoon45 yea I get you. Second reason I got the first is because I heard it was easier to emulate the second one. Atleast for the emulator I found. Haven't used it yet though and I'm not9 sure I will until like 10-15 years form now and nintendo provides no alternative to buying these games

[@eightcoins4401]

Fuck, it shut down now?

[@Houdini42069]

0:16 Can you guys tell me which game is it?

[@tornekotaloon9732]

They changed so much from the original Soul Hackers, I knew I wouldn’t even touch this one before launch. It’s a shame, too. SH1 was so cool thematically and setting-wise. And the alignment based battle system was pretty cool. It was a hardcore game and they removed so much of the hardcore element.

[@yusufyasaf8010]

This is a sequel to a 20 year old game what did you expect lmao. Did you shit on persona 3 when it came out?

[@tornekotaloon9732]

@@yusufyasaf8010 Age of the game has nothing to do with drastically simplifying and dumbing down of core series mechanics. Persona 3 did something really interesting while updating some of 2's mechanics for the better. This game went the opposite direction and turned a series known for being hardcore and stylistically interesting into a generic, beginner level RPG. The setting and theming for this one is all over the place, as well.

[@fabolousjada5070]

@@tornekotaloon9732yes it does when the dev life probably changed and the games designers

[@Photogenic_Rat]

Surprisingly I am really enjoying the game, my only complaint is the annoying navigator and boring dungeons

[@darylb889]

Me too big SMT and Persona fan and still really enjoying the story

[@zilongma5067]

You guys are so lucky I want to play it so badly but my entire will being is telling me to finish all the other Atlus games but never finished because I have a bad habit of jumping games after I play like at least half of the game.

[@comment1353]

Same here. I enjoyed the game. The navigator audio not being something you can turn off and the boring dungeon design are the only negatives, imo. I liked everything else. The game is getting a little too much hate. I honestly feel like I got more out of it than SMT V, mostly cause SMT V hardly had a story and characters.

[@manvelmsurian9712]

The dungeons are not bad at all if you just rush through them and grind later if you need to.

[@user-de8bc2rr6m]

So literaly 60% of the game

[@Ketania]

Damn never heard yakko so angry at an jrpg before, sure the game is far from being great but it did something right. It's one the first protagonist in an atlus game that's not an self insert silent nobody and that's a pretty big step in a good direction, also I think it looks really good and actually nailed it with the visuals and it's theme

[@lucasbittencourtnogueira5858]

well, guess what game had a character that was not a silent protagonist in this whole franchise? Soul hackers 1

[@rouge49000]

@@lucasbittencourtnogueira5858 The main protagonist was silent from what I remember playing the game. Are you referring to Hitomi/Nemissa?

[@lucasbittencourtnogueira5858]

@@rouge49000 yes, i misused the word there. Should have said "main character" instead of protagonist, but then my point kinda becomes null, so...

[@mausebas]

Plus after a long time it's protagonists aren't teenagers

[@malsocio]

i too love bright colors and xenoblade characters

[@trickytristan1]

11:02 I assume that would be this games equivalent of alignment reps, and I feel like thats a result of trying not to lock players into an alignment too early, but its an overcorrection that makes alignment meaningless until the very end. This was also an issue with SMTV that alignment choices didn't matter at all until the alignment lock in the final dungeon. And like I get why the choice is made in the sense that, you want your players to be actively playing the game and not having to worry about what dialogue choices matter and make a difference vs which ones don't. Like you want to shy away from forcing players to have to pull up a guide and play from that, but it takes a way a lot of the differences that routes would have in other games. Its an unfortunate case of player choice being exchanged for the illusion of choice that SMT largely didn't have an issue with before.

[@timmer919hep]

i miss the cold, dark, grungy atmosphere of the original Devil Summoner/Soul Hackers. It made those games stand out more and gave them a creepy vibe. They were just so much more interesting to explore and take in all the little things. This just looks like persona.......again. I want things to be more SMT like. There's plenty of persona nowadays.

[@kichiroumitsurugi4363]

Yea, I just want something more bleak, and more muted color palettes for the cities and outfits and all that

[@machupichu18]

Funny you briefly showed Tokyo Mirage Sessions when you mentioned how everyone has their moments even Atlus considering Soul Hackers 2 is made by the TMS developers. Honestly explains a lot.

[@jasoninkurai5463]

It's even weirder cause most people I know who like both series were able to switch from say SMT V to Persona 5 or Persona 3 to SMT III. SMT and Persona work off each other despite being different in tone and structure thanks to combat still being Risk vs Reward. (even in easier titles like P5R or SMT IV) Kinda makes me wonder if they should of given SH2 an extra year and a bigger budget or just not made it at all.

[@jasoninkurai5463]

It also doesn't help that this game came out smack middle of SMT V's success and P5R's multiplatform release and, if I'm right, we might see SMT go multiplatform along with Persona, making SH2 go even more into the background and be forgotten.

[@callmezeldaonemoartime]

Loading tips purposefully make loading screens longer, you can disable them in the options and get 2 second load times

[@HighflyiinHardy]

Have you reviewed Tokyo Mirage Sessions by chance?

[@neku2741]

Last year is was SMT5 now its Soul Hacker 2. Atlus keep getting L after L. Did they fire the old writing team? Where's the people who wrote Strange Journey get those guys back.

[@nr2676]

Old writers and developers left Team Maniax (1st Development Departament) in middle developing SMT V (retirement). Some of them where merged to P-Studio/Studio Zero (2nd and 3rd Development Departament), propably because Persona is more profitable than SMT / Etrian Odyssey. Only novices left in Team Maniax after 2017, mostly people behind Devil Survivor 2, SMT IV Apocalypse, and Tokio Mirrage Sessions (people behind TMS and Devil Survivor 2 created Soul Hackers 2, people behind SMT IV Apocalypse and Etrian Odyssey created SMT V).

[@Rinienna]

...So anyone remember FFX which had an amazing amount of character dialogue perfectly implemented in a way that it was rarely repetitive even when grinding combat??? And instead you'd get character interactions every now and then and it felt like little good treats and not auditory murder?

[@Terranigma23]

The best way to describe this game "it's a Vita SMT game with less budget". 😅

[@newdivide9882]

Now that I think about it, I think you’re right about them trying to convince Persona players to get into SMT. Between this super stylish (Persona-like) look and the SMT-ish (toned way down) combat, AND putting this on PS consoles (where SMT hasn’t been for YEARS), I’d almost put money on this game being made to try and bridge SMT and Persona. Honestly a MASSIVE shame because the art is so incredibly gorgeous. I don’t think I’ve seen a single character yet from this game whose design I didn’t love

[@jensenraylight8011]

People are overreacting, everyone trashing this game, and after i played it myself, i enjoy it. i played persona from 1-5, devil survivor 1 & 2, Devil summoner 1 & 2, SMT mainline game. and i like the aesthetic, the vibe, the character design, it's refreshing, not to mention the Music is also good Atlus/sega rarely make SMT game, so a new title is very welcomed i just play it with open minded, and not to bend it into whatever it should be and not compared it into other SMT game, i'm used to a variety of mechanics from different SMT game that, i just let it happen, let the game be on its own. just enjoy the ride. it just i hope that Atlus/sega won't get discouraged from creating a new title, because the effort that their pour into this game shows

[@carlospitteri3146]

The main character design is pretty cool tho.

[@Technizor]

Soul Hackers 2's best feature was not supporting running at launch so you can stare at Ringo for hours.

[@dreux_]

generic really 🤷‍♂️

[@Dct_Alonze]

Does everything need to be perfect to you...

[@KyngD469]

Do you smile when the waiter hands you cold food after you've been waiting 40 minutes for it? You better say yes, others I have to ask "does everything need to be perfect for you...?"

[@Dct_Alonze]

@@KyngD469 🥴

[@kichiroumitsurugi4363]

YES. YES IT DOES HAVE TO BE

[@fartlordsmellytoe3690]

Play your shit anime game then.

[@acanfr]

Tip for the loading screen You can disable the tips and the loadings go from 10 to 1 second

[@iamawestruck7285]

Have you checked out the Freedom Planet Series?

[@sepheiba]

almost all game companies will become shit eventually, we can always find new better games by newer smaller companies instead of simping to Atlus's history, but instead judging every game as a whole and not letting the good company name or history (either big or small) change our opinions.

[@shinigami9851]

Its not like atlus is losing steam or anything. Most good game studios worth there salt that last as long if not longer than atlus release a few games below average sometimes. Looking at you last bible series!!!

[@lilliput_steps]

i really enjoy getting your perspective on Megami Tensei games. You’re a relatively experienced fan of SMT and Persona but you’re not one of the megaten gamers who are in so deep they can’t compliment or criticize the games fairly. As one in the latter camp, there are definitely moments when watching these reviews that i’m like “wow i must be a freak for not minding endless spirals and excessive menus” The constant voices blaring throughout the game, and the DLC nonsense however… that does not sound good.

[@rafaelrudd9700]

Just wandering what is the game showed at 0.16sec

[@derrinerrow4369]

I just finished the game and to me one of my biggest complaints is the slog of traversing the labyrinth like dungeons in the mid to late game. the barriers in Subway Line 14 were a little annoying to deal with but it was somewhat simple and at least you can get rid of it. but all the energy vortexes in the final dungeon's and the absurd number of teleporters in everyone's 3f and 4f in the soul matrix legit gave me a headache trying to remember where they all went so I just had to use a guide to find out which ones to take. I mainly pushed through to the end was because of how much I loved the characters though, they were just that good.

[@Losckeychan]

I really wanted this game to be good but I'm disappointed they've removed a lot of the things that made SMT iconic. I really liked what I played of the original Soul hackers and the aesthetics of this one looked gorgeous.

[@1SecondToLight]

btw, dude, play original Soul Hackers, it is a way fun, has few unique gimmicks (magnetite and demon personalities) and some nice battles. And despite plot being quite a simple, it actually works in its own settings

[@lillybareham1257]

Respect and understand the disappointment 100% x Personally, im just happy to have something new to play and I appreciate a lot of whats going on that the flaws kinda don't bother too much. I went in looking for a simple but fun JRPG experience to tide me over until some big releases I was interested in and this gave me exactly that. Still really respect the disappointment however and always love seeing a Yakko video pop up in my feed!

[@omensoffate]

I saw this game and just played dq 11 again lol

[@lillybareham1257]

@@omensoffate lmao

[@kev8202]

I might give this game a try in the future, right now i started the Trails of series and im loving every second

[@lillybareham1257]

@@kev8202 Aaaaa nice one! Gotta say Tales of Arise is really cool. Im just not a fan of the 3D Arena style combat JRPGs personally. Soul Hackers 2 is pretty cool but I can understand waiting. I very much see it as a simple adventure that is also acting as a testing ground for ideas and such. I recommend it but understand waiting.

[@kev8202]

@@lillybareham1257 it's def on the list for me to try because im a big turn based guy myself, prob will get ut after i finish all Trails of series

[@MightyOwl_01]

my friend was excited for this game for the past month or 2, he doesn't like smt much but when I asked how this game was, all he said was "I kinda want to go try smt again instead"

[@chriser5146]

persona 5 had the assist button aswell just saying

[@ArshadZahid_nohandleideas]

I don't think they're the same thing

[@aouzaint]

Literally anytime Yakko does a bit where its just him irl I always end up cackling, it's just too good. It's the perfect break between review (which is always done spectacularly and keeps me fully hooked) and gameplay (which is always perfectly timed) which honestly just makes it all so much better. Fucking great dude...

[@rcade6387]

I legit thought taking to demons was gonna unlock at some point or is that in the DLC?

[@painniap6623]

It would be intresting to know what you think about bravely default 2

[@keeysOST]

I think the biggest disappointment for me was the dungeon design. Like, I actually like Tartarus from P3, but this just looks lifeless. I was genuinely excited for this game before looking at gameplay of it, granted I might still pick it up eventually, but school made me broke anyways. Also, as a Xenoblade fan, the constant voice lines of the navigator are just too much, I'm even surprised I find them annoying.

[@chickennugget6684]

Tartarus atleast changes appearance and adds an instrument to the music every area. ..and now that i think about it, P3 has way more options with shadows in the dungeon, as getting the ambush takes strategy, rather than just pressing a button when the shadow gets near you (like soul hackers)

[@KenBladehart]

This game felt like it was made by the newer members of Atlus Someone check the credits and compare it to other recent games

[@DarkSkinDoffy]

The loading screens become pretty much nonexistent if you turn off the loading tips in the settings. Figured that out 10 hours into my playthrough 😅

[@NotSoEpicFacepalm]

I decided not to buy this game when I found out they stuck Mara behind a paywall.

[@iyonah3769]

The Navigator from SH2 is more annoying than Fuuka from P3 and Morgana mixed together LOL I thought Atlus learned their lesson after EVERYONE complained about how fucking annoying Morgana was in P5, old habits never die I guess

[@heroicgangster9981]

The Navigator is not even hot like Chrom from Tokyo Mirage Sessions. His design and voice is sexy.

[@JayceCH.]

I dont think they give a shit tbh. They keep giving us annoying mascots for no reaon.

[@_CrimsonBlade]

i think the japanese crowd loves mascot like morgana i like em to he not that annoying

[@iyonah3769]

@@_CrimsonBlade In japan a great majority of companies have mascots, even cities hace one, that could be why there's always a mascot in a lot of japanese games 🤔

[@moley249]

morgana be like: LOOKING F U C K I N G COOL JOKER!!!

[@tabris95]

I would love to see you do a video on other lesser known SMT games to try instead of this one

[@shyguywhite]

I need that Jack frost plushie!! where did you got it from?

[@Ghsbr]

Will you ever review the IV duology?

[@heroicgangster9981]

10:57 OH YEAH! Gonna pick up this game now, brings me back to my Tokyo Mirage Sessions days right there. (To make it clear, Tokyo Mirage Sessions fans don't really like the story but more so the character interactions, neat combat system, and spectacle. Just buy Tokyo Mirage Sessions if one wants an more anime-fied SMT game on Switch)

[@darienb1127]

I mean, if you buy the game and end up enjoying it then good for you dude.

[@moley249]

TMS is the bomb dude

[@chizdip8192]

It's a good game. It's basically just a very dumb down version of SMT and Persona. It has its flaws but the game is by no means bad. As someone that has played both series extensively, I'm enjoying it so far

[@jackat4]

The party banter sounds like you played 4 completely different KZbin videos at once. Good job Atlus Also saying "we all have our moments" while slightly showing conception gameplay is perfect

[@adam.e2154]

Sooooo, opinions on SMT IV?

[@jonnysac77]

Tbh, endless hell dungeons are just a part an expected part of the SMT experience for me, I don't that aspect of this game would phase me much especially after playing SMT 1 on the SNES and Strange Journey

[@dottalks8156]

Floor 8 Sector Delphinus, be like

[@cyd_hunter99]

At this point I've just been programmed to assume anything with a "neon tech sci-fi" design is shit. Which is a shame, cause I used to really like that design, but nowadays apparently that's all anyone thinks "sci fi" is.

[@pentexsucks43]

It's been absolutely watered down to hell. I used to adore the style, but now I actively avoid things using that setting/design

[@sevenchambers]

Watered down cyberpunk.

[@kichiroumitsurugi4363]

Yea, I personally preferred more muted color palettes and dystopian aesthetics anyway

[@DolphinTillTheEnd]

It's not like they can't make that sort of dungeon work, I loved strange journey, but of course it has the more solid smt gameplay as a baseline

[@kichiroumitsurugi4363]

SH2, in fact, steals a lot of SJR's mechanics in terms of combat

[@15_Lb_Baby]

Your description of this game reminds me a lot of Tokyo Mirage Sessions, a game where I finished reading a manga during the combat due to the sheer length of unskippable cut scenes during fights after hitting a weakness. Similar staff too, must be a bad game design habit of theirs lol

[@Razealuxe]

Or you know.....a traditional JRPG. JRPGs tend to either have slow combat or fast combat. They love having cutscenes in combat as well. It's how they are. The tales series does it. Final Fantasy does it. Hell even Dragon Quest does it. Cinematic attacks are fun....unless your one of those people who demand everything be constantly fast snappy and over with quickly. In which case why are you playing a JRPG at that point.

[@kenshin391]

Would you recommend this game to someone who's first time playing an Atlus JRPG?

[@lapsedilationdrive3943]

No. Just jump straight to persona 5 royal or SMT 5 if you have a switch.

[@kadosho02]

Tell that person to avoid this game with all costs

[@kichiroumitsurugi4363]

I wouldn't say so. Maybe as a sort of side option, but for a main option, I'd suggest SMT IV Apocalypse or DDS 2

[@kanganep3008]

Thank God for this review video which I've been waiting for you to cover this. I have mixed opinions with SH2 when I watched the early gameplay, considering SH2 is more expensive than both Persona 5 Vanilla and Royal in my country, I'll prolly wait for a price drop for this.

[@Names_Trin]

The assist button is as lazy as the auto mode in pokemon mystery dungeon DX idk why you would try and make a mechanic in your game that says hey our game is boring and we don't want you to think you could say to make the game more casual but I would say if someone is playing my game I want them to think about there actions not just auto it like a mobile game where's the satisfaction in that

[@borovac6259]

Just whating for Aurelion sol mini rework ,( i just want too se you're thoughts when it comes)

[@vicentegatica34]

About the kids menu thing... Should we talk to him about smt 1, 2 and if?

[@snecc266]

Meanwhile Library of Ruina with its 7 hour tutorial and verticle difficulty spike

[@bott73]

Besides small things like the navigator talking a bit too much, I fully disagree with just about everything you said. And I don't mean stuff like you didn't like the characters, but also the combat system. I'm really surprised that someone who didn't dislike neon whites story and characters would dislike this story and the characters. Now I'm only 12 hours into the game, so maybe I'll dislike the game more at the end, but for now it's easily a game I could recommend to anyone who likes turn based rpgs and anime. I liked the removal of light and dark spells, since random insta kills aren't fun to fight against and almost never usable against enemies that you would want to use them against. I really loves that status abilities did damage, made them good and used them way more than any other SMT game. I understand you can be annoyed at the assist button but, in general you already know what you want to do, so it's basically just a short cut. I think what this game does extremely well is having a full party of voice acted characters, including the main character, who is also female, which is stupidly rare in SMT. This review to me felt like a rushed angry reaction, or a bit like when people say persona is bad because they want people to play the "real" SMT games. I think SMT nocturn is the best game atlus has made, if played on hard mode, and besides this game being easier, talking a bit too much and being a completely different part of the franchise, I don't see what makes this game the worst jrpg of 2022 but so many other SMT games the best jrpgs ever

[@Danielss250]

From comments i'm reading here, it seems most ppl that are playing the game are liking it, while it's not on the level of others super hyped atlus games, they're still finding it fun enough. Also I find it strange that he says ppl don't need to be eased into the SMT games other than persona, seeing as he probably only forced himself to play nocturne to make a video on it, and didn't like it. And i'm glad you said that bit about hard mode, Nocturne is honestly not hard at all on normal seeing as you can very easily progress with very underleveled demons with sub optimal builds. The game is much more enjoyable on hard because it actually forces you to engage with all it's machanicc. You will struggle and die a lot but that is just a part of the process. Unfortunatelly most ppl these days don't like the struggle part in games at all.

[@tonyknighton4019]

@@Danielss250 Weak minded fools

[@BDbiogamer]

I was interrupted by an ad for Advil during the segment about the annoying navigator owl 😂

[@jarrellfamily1422]

Is the music at least good cause both shin megami tensei and persona are known for their great music especially persona

[@whydoistillusethissite8626]

I've been preoccupied with the Trails/Kiseki series of JRPGs so I couldn't dive into Soul Hackers 2 right away (love them btw, hoping to see a video about them someday) Still, it's kinda sad to hear that the game didn't live up to people's hype. I don't even think it was a Cyberpunk situation where the expectations were practically unattainable...

[@dantpointy436]

I'm not really surprised that they wanted to bridge SMT and Persona fans, they already did it before with the great side series of Devil Survivor 1 and 2(1 especially has an amazing atmosphere and great characters), but it's really sad to hear that they botched their 2nd attempt so badly

[@EvieMob]

yo yakkocmn second time asking dont feel threatened tho can you please do a game review on just shapes and beat i and a lot of others love the game and i find you notice things that i sorta don't, the story line is surprisingly inspirational for a cube game and the music hits HARD (altho i know you have high standards) (2)

[@staticshock4239]

I just wish this wasn't a $60 game with $30 dlc. I thought about getting it but I've been preoccupied with Xenoblade Chronicles 3 (my game of the year so far). Plus I'm about to start Shin Megami Tensei 4 for the first time which I heard great things about it.

[@kriminal7009]

1:48 SMT has always been more about philosophical questions and trying to make the player think; they want to present all ways of reformation fairly and they want the players’ genuine answers to their prompts. Often times characters are sidelined in order to get more pure answers from the player. Persona is about exploring people; it’s about the critiques of the current society in addition to exploring complex emotions and trama of others. Each entry goes for a slightly different theme, makes you think, but overall doesn’t ask the player too heavy of questions in comparison. While being similar combat-wise, both of these series have different asks and expectations from the player. It’s the reason they are separate to this date. To me there is nothing wrong with that.

[@heroicgangster9981]

And Tokyo Mirage Sessions is about the passion of being creative and passionate. Even if the game is not like SMT or Persona, I like the craft the game had put into it.

[@kriminal7009]

@@heroicgangster9981 I agree. When I play Nocturne, I think of how I think a world should be governed/made (although I always feel weird when these games have a secret ending, because it encourages players to think that way even if I think in Nocturne it’s the most valid one) and when I play Persona 5 I see all the injustices of the current system and feel the need to fight back and rebel. These don’t need to be mixed together; it would be hard to achieve both mechanically. Not impossible, but imo, it wouldn’t be as good.

[@kichiroumitsurugi4363]

@@kriminal7009 Devil Survivor exists

[@ArshadZahid_nohandleideas]

@@kichiroumitsurugi4363 that's not all I think Devil Survivor should be known for, I do think that it does enough of its own stuff to be more than "SRPG SMT with a hint of Persona", but like who cares literally anything goes for game better than Soul Hacky Too