Shin Megami Tensei V: Vengeance Critic Reviews

Shin Megami Tensei V: Vengeance accomplished exactly what I hoped for. It took the messy base game, made it look and play better, and expanded upon every single aspect. This results in a polished and finally complete experience worth (re)visiting. Shin Megami Tensei V: Vengeance reaches its full potential in almost every way possible and now confidently stands toe-to-toe with its predecessors.

Just as Persona 5 Royal added something meaningful enough to actually be worthwhile, without being a full sequel or changing anything that people liked about the first game, Shin Megami Tensei V: Vengeance really does deserve the moniker “ultimate version of the game.” You’re going to need a ridiculous amount of time to play it (again), but if you enjoyed it on any level the first time around, you’re going to love what the development team has done to it this time.

Shin Megami Tensei V: Vengeance eclipses its predecessor in every way, making it one of the best turn-based JPRGs of the year.

Thanks to a ton of changes, additions and improvements, Shin Megami Tensei V: Vengeance has gone from a great RPG to one of the best. Even if you played (and finished) it back in the day, it's worth returning to this wonderful post-apocalyptic world of demons, angels, and challenging turn-based combat.

Shin Megami Tensei V: Vengeance is easily the definitive version of the game. Almost every gameplay change is an improvement that makes the game more fun to play, and the addition of the new storyline means that even returning players have plenty of fresh encounters to experience. At its core, it is still the same game but polished and improved enough that I found the entire experience to be a delight. It's a must-have for fans of the franchise, and even those who prefer the more plot-heavy Persona titles will find a lot to enjoy in Vengeance.

Just as it was in 2021, Shin Megami Tensei V: Vengeance is positioned as a must-see game, and something that JRPG fans have to play no matter what, even in a year where this genre has not stopped giving us some of its best modern exponents.

Vengeance is undoubtedly the definitive and best way to play Shin Megami Tensei V, with a fantastic new narrative path and quality-of-life adjustments that are so good you wonder how the game was released without them. Featuring fantastic turn-based combat that constantly keeps you on your toes, and a darker tone to the world and narrative, you'd be missing out if you didn't decide to dive into Vengeance either for the first time or as someone who has already played the original game.

Shin Megami Tensei V: Vengeance brings plenty of additions to the table, including a separate narrative, new content, several quality-of-life updates, improved technical performance, and updated gameplay systems. It is a fantastically refined JRPG that seeks to achieve and expand far more than the original release did, as well as right many of its predecessor’s wrongs. This is the game’s second chance, and it’s well deserved.

Shin Megami Tensei V: Vengeance delivers an exceptional package. It can easily be considered one of the best RPGs of this generation.

Shin Megami Tensei V: Vengeance makes one of the best open-world RPGs around even better.

Shin Megami Tensei V: Vengeance is a brutal experience where every decision you make feels impactful. The world is brimming with personality, and the demons are fun to talk to and play with. Vengeance has a lot going for it, and the quality of life improvements make it one of the best JRPGs released on the PlayStation 5.

If you like Japanese RPGs and have never played them, I would say that Shin Megami Tensei V: Vengeance is a must-buy.

Shin Megami Tensei V: Vengeance adds numerous quality-of-life improvements and drastic changes to the story and exploration that make the original game seem outdated. Plus, since the original campaign is still available in the Path of Creation, you are technically getting two games in one package. The new characters give you more reasons to care about the narrative, the new exploration options are thrilling, and the Press Turn combat system is as rewarding as ever. The series’s eccentricities may not be for everyone, but no other franchise provides an experience quite like Shin Megami Tensei.

There’s simply nothing else on the market right now like this series – a tonally unhinged pop-cosmopolitan-apocrypha-anime-apocalyptic JRPG that plays like Pokemon on steroids. Just like the best SMT games, its plot is rich as syrup and just as opaque. Read too close into the nonsensical jumble of mythological creatures and themes and you’re sure to be nauseated. However, supposing you can appreciate the excess of everything and have played a few turned-based RPGs before, Vengeance is simply the most approachable and engrossing core Shin Megami Tensei game currently on the market and the best way to check out this weirdo series.

Atlus has done more than just a port with some improvements. Shin Megami Tensei V: Vengeance is a successful game that surpasses its predecessor, a challenge to the conventions of the SMT saga itself and a more accessible gateway for new players, but one that veterans will enjoy as well.

Everything that made Shin Megami Tensei V such a memorable and engaging experience remains in Vengeance, just tweaked and massaged into an even better game. It's easier to connect to the narrative--having the other human characters in your party and engaging in small talk with them go a long way to making the events happening around them feel more impactful--and the various adjustments to navigation, combat, and demon-herding let you focus more on savoring the dark atmosphere and the strategies of battle. If you didn't enter the tunnel to the underworld the first time around, this is the perfect opportunity to do so--and if you're a veteran of the war for the throne, there's plenty here to bring you back.

Vengeance is for Shin Megami Tensei V what Royal was for Persona 5 some years ago: the best possible version of one of the more refined and fascinating JRPGs of the last decade. This is the version to choose if you haven't played it before and the one to replay if you've already dived into the original title.

Impactful, deep, and visually mesmerizing, Shin Megami Tensei V: Vengeance is one of the best JRPGs in recent years. Its combat is addictive, and the progression system creates a desire to uncover everything in the extensive maps.

Shin Megami Tensei V: Vengeance arrives to become the definitive edition of Shin Megami Tensei V. Some of its changes may not be enough to fix the major problems of the original, but it does an incredible job of elevating it and bringing it that much closer to reaching its potential. ATLUS did it again and delivered a re-release that's worth checking out regardless of whether you finished the original game or if it's your first time playing it. Mind you: if you're an old-time Shin Megami Tensei fan, don't expect Vengance to be some sort of director's cut or a chance for the development team to deliver their original vision of the game. There's little in this new version that points in that direction, and it feels more like a 2.0 version made after hearing what critics and fans said about Shin Megami Tensei V. In other words, it's a product that improves in almost every aspect, but also doesn't redefine or revolutionize what we played in 2021.

Shin Megami Tensei V: Vengeance provides a definitive version of this fantastic JRPG. It is practically a brand-new game with an unparalleled story arc that provides us with countless more hours of gameplay and juicy content that enhances playability. It is not just a redesign for more powerful consoles and a few additions.