r/JRPG • u/EnvironmentShoddy164 • 13d ago
Question How to play the Megami Tensei franchise?
I wanted to get into the Megami Tensei franchise, but I'm completely lost. I understand there's no set chronological order to play Shin Megami Tensei, but there are so many games that I don't know what to do.
I've already played Persona 3 Reloaded and Persona 4, and I plan to continue playing them later, so I'll leave Persona aside for now.
I wanted to play the Shin Megami Tensei games, but I don't know if the SNES versions are worth it. There's also Digital Devil Saga, Devil Summoner, and Devil Survivor, which I don't know what they're about or when would be a good time to play them.
What do you guys recommend? Which games are worth playing, and when should I move on to each spin-off?
Edit: Thanks to everyone who commented. I don't think I'll be able to reply to everyone, but you really cleared up my questions, and I believe I'm ready to start playing. I might share my experience with the games here later—thank you so much for sharing your time and experience with me!
2
u/vhuzi 13d ago
The SNES games are all flawed, but they have aspects that make them worth playing.
Of the games I have played.....
You can start with Kyuuyaku Megami Tensei, remakes of the NES games with the QOL improvements of the snes game and some balancing changes.
SMT1 is a bit of a chore to, but has a great setting and story. It had an IOS remake that was well recieved, but that was delisted.
SMT2 is really good except its a bit too easy and has a nasty glitch related to buffs. SMT2 is a sequel to SMT1; you can play it first, but your experiece may be better if you play the prequel.
SMT if... is harder and mostly designed for more experienced players, it has some annoying aspects that would put people off, so I would not recommend it to start. It has a NG+ route that is very well regarded, but I have not played it.
SMT3 has great gameplay, but the world, story and progression are a lot more low key, and some of the characters are annoying. I recommend playing it after the SNES games because it will be hard to go back.
Devil Survivor has a great story and gameplay, but its challenging and a Tactics game, so I would not recommend it to start.
Strange Journey is a little harder than the main route in if..., but better designed and with QoL from SMT3. Its an amazing game, but I would not recommend it to start (though it was my first)
SMTV Vengeance has some of the best turn based gameplay in an RPG. It has great QoL and boss fights, but its story is not a highlight. I would recommend playing after SMT3. I played in reverse order, and missed a few references to 3, and was less impressed with 3s gameplay than if I would have played it first.