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[Sub_Level]

Anybody here playing this? Didn’t see an OT. I know it probably didn’t sell that well

Finally got around to starting it and really liking it so far. The art direction has grown on me despite being put off at the reveal trailer. And despite the game’s title, this is indeed Soul Hackers 5. You got your COMP’s, your Kuzunohas, your cyber waifus, etc. Hard difficulty does indeed seem to be the move, it feels like the actual Normal mode.

The English cast is doing a good job so far too. They don’t use honorifics like the Persona games. I don’t mind subtitled use of honorifics like the Yakuza games, but English actors literally saying “Yukiko-senpai” just sounds weird imo just say Yukiko.

PSA: DISABLE TIPS IN THE OPTIONS MENU TO IMPROVE LOAD TIMES

 

[Isa]

I am! Its been a good time so far, I've been busy this week though, so I'm waiting to dive back in over the weekend. I'm only about 8hrs into it so far though. I was going to play in Japanese, but a lot of little things aren't subtitled so I switched back to English. I find myself doing all the sidequests lol, I said I wouldn't because I want a shorter experience but its been scratching an itch I normally don't have lol.

 

[Danjin44]

I'm also really enjoying my time with the game, I'm playing game on hard difficulty from get go and liked the combat, I would even say the game is much better balanced compare to Persona 5 because that game was still super easy even on hard difficulty.

As for its aesthetics, I'm fan of Shirow Miwa's character design so had no problem with game's artstyle. In my opinion this game no where near as good as SMT5 but still really fun MegaTen game.

 

[TwiztidElf]

Sad to see this and the review thread sliding so quickly here. Page 4.
Anyhow, 10 hours in, and I'm really enjoying this one. Dungeons, combat, story, style are all top notch as expected.

 

[MudoSkills]

I'm really loving it, and it's giving me exactly what I expected it to. I'm a out 16 hours in on hard, trying to do every side quest and Recruitment every demon I come across in the field and it's still providing a good challenge.

Although I javen't seen any of it beyond the first mission, by all accounts The Lost Numbers is a really chunky DLC, and worth the price.

I also picked up the demon DLC and it's a bit screwy - you can summon them all immediately from the compendium which is utterly game breaking (I'm just fusing them as I get to the right level) but it also fucks with the fusion search results.

 

[Sub_Level]

I'm really loving it, and it's giving me exactly what I expected it to. I'm a out 16 hours in on hard, trying to do every side quest and Recruitment every demon I come across in the field and it's still providing a good challenge.

Although I javen't seen any of it beyond the first mission, by all accounts The Lost Numbers is a really chunky DLC, and worth the price.

I also picked up the demon DLC and it's a bit screwy - you can summon them all immediately from the compendium which is utterly game breaking (I'm just fusing them as I get to the right level) but it also fucks with the fusion search results.

I personally passed on the DLC after watching this vid from Nyarly. He enjoyed the game but said to skip.



Basically according to him:
- the costume DLC is kinda priced high at $12 and doesn’t show outside of battles.
- the Lost Numbers DLC has a massive difficulty spike at the end, possibly meant to incentivize players to buy the grinding boost DLC.
- the extra demons break the game

 

[Graciaus]

I am 33 hours in and about to either quit or take a break. The more I play the more the flaws annoy me. I enjoyed the beginning but around 20 hours just not feeling it anymore.

 

[Dirk Benedict]

I grinded to level 40 about 10 hours in. I dunno, Had a lot of shit to do and did the grinding in between errands. Lol. I'm probably overleveled. Story is kind of interesting and the artwork is cool. It's like Persona lite with some SMT sprinkled on top.

 

[TintoConCasera]

I''m missing the party since I have other games I want to finish first, but positive feedback here as convinced me on giving this one a chance after all the negatives I read on the internet.

How's the story thematically? Does it fit with the usual dark and more serious themes of the mainline SMT games? Or is more like the usual JRPG with power of friendship stuff?

 

[anthony2690]

I've been playing this, about 36 hours into the game.

Whilst I'm quite enjoying the game overall, I am getting tired of frequent enemy encounters that are under my level and barely give any exp and the awful/dull dungeon design.

Thankfully at the final dungeon, sadly it's a slog to navigate (just like the later axis dungeons)

Are the dungeons this annoying/dull in persona 5? Because I'm not sure I can stomach another similar game this year. (May hold on that one till next year now)

Also story is okay, a bit nonsensical, but the characters are likable.

Only other Atlus games I've played Tokyo Mirage sessions and shin megami digital devil saga (I finished neither and thought the dungeon design wasn't too great on them either)

I'm pretty mixed despite enjoying myself with the game.

Pro Tip: turn off loading screen tips in the settings for MUCH faster loading, as the load times are pretty artificial so you can read the tips.

 

[Kiya's Guard]

For some reason I thought this was related to the SMT franchise

 

[Pasta la Vista]

For some reason I thought this was related to the SMT franchise

It is.

 

[Sub_Level]

Are the dungeons this annoying/dull in persona 5? Because I'm not sure I can stomach another similar game this year. (May hold on that one till next year now)

Naw, the Persona 5 dungeons are much better designed. Soul Hackers 2 is more like the dungeons you’d find in Digital Devil Saga. The final dungeon in DDS1 is 10 hours long lol

I'm pretty mixed despite enjoying Pro Tip: turn off loading screen tips in the settings for MUCH faster loading, as the load times are pretty artificial so you can read the tips.

I literally came in here to post this. It looks like the devs programmed a minimum time the tip should appear on screen even when the game has already loaded the area.

For some reason I thought this was related to the SMT franchise

Its an smt game from the Devil Summoner subseries (like how Persona is a subseries). The games overall include

1. Devil Summoner (Sega Saturn, PSP)
2. Devil Summoner: Soul Hackers (Sega Saturn, PS1, 3DS)
3. Devil Summoner: Raidou Kuzunoha vs The Soulless Army (PS2)
4. Devil Summoner 2: Raidou Kuzunoha vs King Abaddon (PS2)
5. Soul Hackers 2

The titles are horrible lol but hopefully you get the idea. The Raidou games are mostly their own thing while this game is a sequel to the original Soul Hackers. It is the fifth Devil Summoner game.

 

[Sub_Level]

I like how the ‘social links’ in this game so far are just knocking down cold ones at a bar probably a budget constraint more than anything but its funny.

Someone on the writing team really likes beer and I’m here for it.

 

[MudoSkills]

Risky enemies are a real hassle on Hard. If I've just got to a dungeon and have the MP for a knock down drag-out fight I'll give it a go but I keep having them pop up in tight spaces when everyone is running on empty.

My advice would be to save before you take one on. If it goes badly it can be a real quick death, and it won't be there when you load your game.

 

[Dirk Benedict]

Risky enemies are a real hassle on Hard. If I've just got to a dungeon and have the MP for a knock down drag-out fight I'll give it a go but I keep having them pop up in tight spaces when everyone is running on empty.

My advice would be to save before you take one on. If it goes badly it can be a real quick death, and it won't be there when you load your game.

Saving in an RPG is basically Insurance.

 

[nocsi]

Sup

 

[anthony2690]

Sup

How long did that take you to do? That's what I need in my party, you're pretty much untouchable XD

 

[Danjin44]

That quest boss who disguise himself as Black Frost was something! I finally managed to beat it but god damn those Succubus that keep using paralysis on your party was troublesome.

 

[anthony2690]

Anywhere to grind level ups from 70 onwards?

I'm 71 and it is a slog, I'm trying to become overpowered for the final boss on hard and level up more so I fuse these much higher level demons?

Or do I just have to drop the £3.99 for the exp/money booster thing? To save myself 20 odd hours of grinding.

I've done all side quests, except dark night rises as I can't find him :l

 

[Mr.ODST]

Anywhere to grind level ups from 70 onwards?

I'm 71 and it is a slog, I'm trying to become overpowered for the final boss on hard and level up more so I fuse these much higher level demons?

Or do I just have to drop the £3.99 for the exp/money booster thing? To save myself 20 odd hours of grinding.

I've done all side quests, except dark night rises as I can't find him :l

How does it run on Series X? (Im guessing that's your platform) Tempted to purchase

 

[anthony2690]

How does it run on Series X? (Im guessing that's your platform) Tempted to purchase

Silky smooth, 60fps, not had a single issue in 43hours playtime
You can also zoom the camera out so your character isn't so close to the screen, like shown in all gameplay previews.
& Lastly I wouldn't bother with the lost numbers dlc, not worth the £8 at all imo, the bonus dungeon you get is embarrassing (it's literally:
- - - - -
l - + -l
- - - - -

For 15 floors.

 

[drganon]

Im about 20 hours in. Still liking the game so far. Its cool playing an atlus game where the character you play ( Ringo) has a voice and personality.

 

[Dirk Benedict]

Silky smooth, 60fps, not had a single issue in 43hours playtime
You can also zoom the camera out so your character isn't so close to the screen, like shown in all gameplay previews.
& Lastly I wouldn't bother with the lost numbers dlc, not worth the £8 at all imo, the bonus dungeon you get is embarrassing (it's literally:
- - - - -
l - + -l
- - - - -

For 15 floors.

That sounds lazy... but a lot of the time, Atlus dungeon design is simplistic in nature.

 

[Sub_Level]

CONFIRM

23 hours in, this game has more subways than Fallout 3. Still enjoyin it however.

 

[Rambone]

Enjoying the game so far. Feels like the Tokyo Mirage Sessions team has improved since TMS came out.

 

[adamsapple]

I'm pretty sure I'm at the end-game. It feels like this is a much shorter game with a muuuuuch smaller scope than say Persona 5. I'm OK with that...

 

[Danjin44]

I'm pretty sure I'm at the end-game. It feels like this is a much shorter game with a muuuuuch smaller scope than say Persona 5. I'm OK with that...

It basically similar to original Soul Hacker, that game wasn’t exactly long game compared to other MegaTen games.

 

[adamsapple]

Ok. I've beaten the game. It's a nice little game but definitely didn't get 1/10th of the production budget of a mainline Persona game. I haven't really played a lot of the recent SMT games so I can't say with experience if they are more or like this same length/production.

The final boss, as you would expect, had a couple of bullshit moves but it wouldn't be a JRPG without that now would it. No regrets for playing this on Easy

 

[MudoSkills]

The DLC superboss is fucking bullshit. I'm gonna save it for NG+ with fully upgraded Comps, and get on with finishing the game instead.

 

[Sub_Level]

The DLC superboss is fucking bullshit. I'm gonna save it for NG+ with fully upgraded Comps, and get on with finishing the game instead.

Yeah I heard the dlc boss was basically designed to incentivize players to buy the boosting dlc.

 

[MudoSkills]

Grinding isn't any kind of hassle. The DLC dungeon has really high level mobs and the Risky enemies drop a tonne of exp - and you can up the appearance rate using food.

It's not getting to max level that's the problem - it's getting the right skills together! I like the challenge but want to finish my first run. I'll come back with the S level mystiques unlocked (particularly the ones that increase damage output and add pierce effect).

 

[MudoSkills]

Now that virtually everyone interested in this game has likely played it to completion, they've announced a fairly major patch with some QoL features: https://atlus.com/upcoming-patch-update-for-soul-hackers-2/

 

[Xeaker]

I tried the demo and played for 1 hour.
But there is so much talking and talking and talking.
Feels like I am playing a Virtual Novel. Will this keep going through the whole game or is it only in the beginning?

 

[anthony2690]

Now that virtually everyone interested in this game has likely played it to completion, they've announced a fairly major patch with some QoL features: https://atlus.com/upcoming-patch-update-for-soul-hackers-2/

Oh man, this would've made the game so much better, it pretty addresses most my issued with the game (minus how much time you spend in subways)

I'll probably clear up my last few acheivements with this update if I have the time revisit the game

 

[Sub_Level]

Now that virtually everyone interested in this game has likely played it to completion, they've announced a fairly major patch with some QoL features: https://atlus.com/upcoming-patch-update-for-soul-hackers-2/

Thats just plain weird. Im still 30 hours in and haven’t beaten it yet, but I’m not gonna wait for the patch.

I tried the demo and played for 1 hour.
But there is so much talking and talking and talking.
Feels like I am playing a Virtual Novel. Will this keep going through the whole game or is it only in the beginning?

The cutscenes are not overwhelming at all, its 90% dungeon crawling. The beginning of the game has a little more cutscenes than normal, yeah.

 

[lostinblue]

How does this compare to Persona 5, for someone that considered Persona 5 to be shit but loves Shin Megami Tensei and Persona in general?

Is this a return to form or sloppy seconds?

I tried the demo and played for 1 hour.
But there is so much talking and talking and talking.
Feels like I am playing a Virtual Novel. Will this keep going through the whole game or is it only in the beginning?

Uh oh.

That's Persona 5 pit. Is it interesting at least, or are they just hammering a point home as if it's meant for retards in 10 different ways?

 

[Chukhopops]

Now that virtually everyone interested in this game has likely played it to completion, they've announced a fairly major patch with some QoL features: https://atlus.com/upcoming-patch-update-for-soul-hackers-2/

I bought it but didn’t get to play it much yet so I’m happy, too bad it’s a month away from now.

Being able to run and go straight to shops will be nice for sure.

 

[Sub_Level]

How does this compare to Persona 5, for someone that considered Persona 5 to be shit but loves Shin Megami Tensei and Persona in general?

Is this a return to form or sloppy seconds?

Doesn’t have half the production values of Persona 5. Its a fun, comfy game but made on a shoestring budget.

 

[Xeaker]

The cutscenes are not overwhelming at all, its 90% dungeon crawling. The beginning of the game has a little more cutscenes than normal, yeah.

Guess I trust you with this and buy it then

 

[AmuroChan]

I beat the game a couple weeks ago. I liked the story and the characters. The gameplay and dungeons were the weak parts of the game imo.

 

[Sub_Level]

Guess I trust you with this and buy it then

Just as a warning, the budget is really low. The game could have been on PS2 (and actually, both Nocturne and DDS had better dungeons than this game). If that doesn’t bother you, go for it. The characters are really cool.

 

[Graciaus]

How does this compare to Persona 5, for someone that considered Persona 5 to be shit but loves Shin Megami Tensei and Persona in general?

Is this a return to form or sloppy seconds?

Persona 5 is the weakest of 3-5 (IMO) but SH2 is just an average game in every regard. The characters, story, battle system, dungeons, exploration and literally everything about the game are just mediocre. The upcoming patch will give it the much needed QOL update but that isn't going to fix the fundamentals. Wait for a big sale if you wanna jump in.

 

[lostinblue]

Persona 5 is the weakest of 3-5 (IMO) but SH2 is just an average game in every regard. The characters, story, battle system, dungeons, exploration and literally everything about the game are just mediocre. The upcoming patch will give it the much needed QOL update but that isn't going to fix the fundamentals. Wait for a big sale if you wanna jump in.

I think I'll skip it altogether if that's the case. With so much to pick from I don't think I have time for anything mediocre.

But I wish it wasn't the case.

 

[nocsi]

How long did that take you to do? That's what I need in my party, you're pretty much untouchable XD

Use the fusion calculator.

 

[anthony2690]

Use the fusion calculator.

I've since beat the game on hard since that post haha but thank you for the response, even if a month later

 

[Mobile Suit Gooch]

I'll say this.

Ringo is my favorite MegaTen protag since Yu. Also, because of her, Atlus should do more voiced protags. Tired of being a self-insert observer of things.

 

[JayK47]

Started this a few days ago. Enjoying it so far. All of the characters are great. I kind of like that it is a simpler version of Persona.

 

[Sub_Level]

Started this a few days ago. Enjoying it so far. All of the characters are great. I kind of like that it is a simpler version of Persona.

Thats how I felt. But the extremely low budget really gets noticable after 20+ hours.

 

[JayK47]

Just when I thought it was over, it keeps on going. The, what I am hoping is, last dungeon is a pain to navigate. They really know how to milk every inch of a level with these puzzles.