A crime was recently committed on Respawning when Javier reviewed Shin Megami Tensei 3: Nocturne’s recent HD remix and he committed the absolute atrocity of having a different opinion to me and giving the title a measly 6/10.
So I have taken it upon myself to flex my ownership rights and rectify this score and do a mini re-review of the title that I love so much.
Firstly, Javier had the absolute audacity to mention Shin Megami Tensei 3 with the Persona series? Seriously?! There is absolutely nothing to compare here? I mean okay so the demons are basically all the same as the Persona’s and you can merge them together to create new demons and the combat is basically the same but otherwise these two games couldn’t be more dissimilar… I mean not even the logo of the first Persona game is similar…
Okay MAYBE I spoke out of turn with this one but whilst it’s perfectly okay to draw upon other games that fall under the Megami Tensei umbrella, I think that SMT3 brings a more adult theme to the table including a much higher difficulty curve that’s not welcoming to many newcomers to JRPGs or to the series.
I will stop joking about now and just exclaim my love for this game.
I played SMT 3 when it originally came out and was enticed by the title due to the “featuring Dante” sticker that was, in retrospect, weirdly placed on the cover of the game but having binge played the majority of the Megami Tensei titles at this point I was relieved to see that I could choose to have Raidou appear in my game because as much as I love Dante, the context of having the Devil Summoner himself appear in my game made me substantially happier.
For returning fans, you will be delighted to hear that everything that was included in the Maniax version of the title has been added to the HD remaster of the title including new labyrinths and the “True Demon” ending.
When it comes to the combat in SMT3, returning fans will feel comfortably at home with the nail bitingly difficult turn based JRPG combat making a triumphant return, however for those who get turned off by the difficulty of these games – an easy mode has now been added allowing you to enjoy the incredible storyline with some relative ease. Easy mode is a DLC pack but it is also free so download at your leisure.
I think the only thing I completely disagreed with Javier on is the criticism of the storyline and whilst I appreciate he is perfectly entitled to his own opinion on the title, I personally feel that the story in Nocturne is incredibly gripping, thought provoking and told on an epic scale that had me enthralled from start to finish when I first played it and all over again recently as I dive into the HD remaster.
I do appreciate that the “HD” remaster portion of this title could use a few extra licks of paint to be a true HD remastered title, however I have recently compared the two versions loaded up on my HD tv and I can say with much definitive opinion that I feel the leap between the PS2 and Switch versions is incredible to my tiny mind and whilst they aren’t jumps in a scale of games such as Bioshock or the Uncharted remasters, I do feel this is worthy of the HD Remaster name due to a lot of sharpening and finessing the games graphics has undergone:
Most if it is shadows and lighting but that’s enough for me.
So with all this in mind, I totally understand why Javier gave SMT3 the score he did and I wholeheartedly understand that this game is not for newcomers to the Megami Tensei series outside of Persona. I do agree that the Persona comparisons should be made with the title but for me, a veteran of the series…
I simply must give Shin Megami Tensei 3: Nocturne a 10/10
So there we go, that’s my opinion on the HD remaster of Shin Megami Tensei 3: Nocturne, everyone is entitled to their own opinion and we aren’t scared of reviewing the same title from multiple perspectives here at Respawning. Especially if those opinions are so wildly different!
What do you think of this title? Let us know in the comments below.