i really wish Atlus gave those of us who bought it initially a discount or some carrot to buy it again beyond additional story, not giving them another $60. love your honesty and reviews as always!

I'll get Vengeance when it's on sale. I had no desire to spend full price on a reworked game I already own for Switch.

Knowing that there are more DLC you STILL have to pay after getting this makes me want to wait either this SMTVV go on sale or a complete edition will show up. I like Atlus games but man they ruthless on milking the IP with its re-releases version with a little add ons.

So I never finished the original, but I did get very far into it (without spoiling it for others, about 75 hours in and at a boss rush is when I quit). One thing I really appreciate about Vengeance in particular is the reworked leveling. I don't feel the need to grind like I did in the vanilla game, and it's making the game and pacing seem so much better in my opinion. I think I was at hour 12-15 when I beat the first real boss in the base game, and it was close to hour 8-9 in Vengeance. The game is just a smoother journey now I feel like.

I was just too overwhelmed with JRPG backlog when original came out, guess too many games paid off since I can get on PC now when I am ready. That works!

Thanks for your honest answer! If this had been DLC that allowed me to reuse my demons and stuff from the first playthrough (NG+ style), I would be into it. But yeah, I just don't have time to play through the whole game again from lv1. It's a shame, because I also really enjoyed the original, same as you. Atlus, please take note! We love your games, but you have to start having more respect for our time!

Thank you Alex, I got completely burnt out playing the first game and would have felt the same. Got enough to play anywas...

I'm planning to get in on steam but should I play the creation or vengeance first? I'm new to the series but love persona games.

I’m so used to Atlus this will be my first time playing it learned my lesson from Royal

Now this is the type of review that I want or wish people to do with more of these re releases because it's short sweet and then we move on. You don't need to explain to me in 11 minutes why this is good when you have to be very very fair and this review was very fair and touched on the small improvements. You mentioned that there is some improvements however it still carries the same stigma as the original game from three years ago, although I'm going to give Persona 3 reload slack because at least that is a real remake, not a re-release of persona 3 like what we had with persona 3 portable or persona 4 golden or Persona 5 royal or I guess by the SMT license as well SMT nocturne remaster. But I do see where you're coming from with the idea of it is ridiculous that they keep re releasing a lot of these games again and again instead of just moving forward but if these make money which they obviously do especially reload and apparently vengeance sold a whole bunch of more copies then they're probably gonna keep doing this until we're dead lol. Me personally I already had 0 interest in buying vengeance because other than the hot demon girls that they add in which is always a thing they keep doing with these games especially the new female character as another selling point on top of Nahobino finally getting a better form and Jack Frost having a new form himself, none of the new smaller changes that they finally fixed after 3 years is gonna make me change my mind that the original game I played 3 years ago was so boring despite going into it for 74 hours. Plus if this version only takes about 40 hours to get to the supposed brand new changes aside from some smaller ones in the OG story then I'm definitely not gonna be spending $60 on playing this game again especially since I didn't even like Da'at as a world to explore. In the end I would say that only if you really really liked the original game 3 years ago then it's fine for you since it is now on stronger platforms but I would personally say that if you never played the original game because it was on the switch like what my friend did because he did the smart thing and never bought the original game then it's fine for you to buy it. Me however I'm waiting until we get metaphor because to me that is way more important than another re-release of another Atlus game. Great small short review there Alex!

Never played smt only the persona series, should i play the smt V first before Vengeance? This new smt is sold out everywhere😢

The best thing that happened for me is that I didn't beat the first one. With the new Frame rate and the fixes to this game, gave it new life for me. 22 hrs in and it's hard for me to put it down.

I think it was worth it for me to double dip since I didn't finish the original release on Switch. The performance issues on Switch really put a damper on my enjoyment of the game. The Vengeance version on PC plays fantastic and much better on Steam Deck compared to Switch. Along with the QoL improvements, I look forward to seeing this game to the end.

Outstanding video. The extra content and new demons are great, but not enough to justify a repurchase/replay

all im gonna say is ive never played a jrpg and bought this as my first one lmao im loving it so far 70 hours in

It seems they fixed every single one of my complains, specially "Save anywhere" since I utterly hated its old school Game Over and time wasting backtracking to prevent it, I liked the combat but losing hours of progress out of a simple mistake or crash made me quit the game in the last zone but I just can't support Atlus not offering an upgrade path for vanilla owners, this isn't the 90s to 2010s anymore, I may get it when it gets dirt cheap if I haven't forgotten about it and will make sure to never buy another vanilla release from Atlus and instead wait for the "reworked" edition.

I think the two camps for this one are clearly explained by this helpful video. If you already did everything in SMTV on Switch, this is definitely going to be a hard sell unless you really want to experience everything SMTV. I, on the other hand, only got halfway through SMTV on Switch before getting overwhelmed with other games. Experiencing it with smoother performance, new QoL improvements, and a more engaging story has made every dollar for the new purchase feel worth it. Daat is so much more of a joy to explore for me on PS5. This feels like the version of SMTV I always wanted, minus the irritation of slow menus I experienced on Switch. I do feel a bit of FOMO about never finishing the original Canon of Creation storyline, but I watched those endings on KZfaq and that is helping me let it go and just enjoy the new storyline.

Didn’t play the original version and man this game runs so smoothly. Not exactly my type of gameplay so far but its prety interesting and challenging

It is very much a case by case assessment. For me, I absolutely loved the original and was just about to do a second play through, literally a few days before they announced Vengeance. That was enough of a justification to buy it. But it is true, that it is difficult to classify as a must buy, unless you’re a new player or a major fan of the OG game.

I own SMTV on switch but didnt really get into it very far maybe 10 hours. Im already 25 into canon of vengeance. Being able to save anywhere just removes so much tedium. Game is excellent and i love it at 144fps instead of 30

Excellent summary ❤ risky only played about 15 hours in the original SMTV so I’m actually looking forward to exploring vengeance. I’m just a little miffed that all of the original DLC from the first game was not included in vengeance 😈 as I previously purchased all the old DLC👻 sigh oh well, as a weird side not persona 5 royal was actually fairly boring for me🤔 and yes I did finish it

yeah see i never really played the original . i couldn't get into it because of the performance issues on switch. but yes that does sound like its going to be a pain to play both stories😅😅does this mean i should have started the new cannon instead?

I just wish Atlas would have given us a fun Platinum for it. The required 6 play-throughs is ridiculous to me.

I never played the base game, reviews for the game were mixed and I had just gotten into P5 Royal on my steam deck. Well, i was browsing the steam summer sale today and noticed that smt 5 Vengeance was on the my list of recommended games. Did some searching and found this video. From I read on steam, people LOVE the re-release and are saying its the best re-release atlus has ever done. There is a lot of praise for this game. So I would say, if you never played the base game, or are on the fence with SMT, I'd say pick this up. I plan on picking it up today.

I haven't played the original cause I didn't have Switch back then. Recently I bought it and decided to get SMTV but having bad previous experience with Atlus looked online, saw news about Vengeance and waited for it 😅 . So far I like it a lot, playing non stop so it is worth for me. But I can understand people who bought original game. I felt really bad when I bought Persona 5 for ps5 a couple of days before Royal released.

I'm mostly disappointed that I picked the game up day one, but put off playing it. Now I'm stuck making the decision to play the upgrade by paying more once again, or finally playing my own original copy with no upgrade path. The PS4 to PS5 Persona 5 Royal was offensive enough, where you can't even use your old saves. I guess I just hope Atlus someday overcomes this choice.

I watched smt5 for years and hate lv scaling (never buy or play). When smt5v released with qol and lv scaling was fixed. Insta bought 😂🎉

My feeling is it's great for first-timers, but too soon for most of us to re-play the whole game. I don't think I'll be ready to re-play SMTV again until at least 2030. So I'll be waiting to get Vengeance on sale, since I already (happily) spent $60 on SMTV Vanilla.

tl;dr i love smt 5 and vengeance is worth it for me who wanted to play more new content. i said i'd buy an extended version if it came out and it did. loved every minute of it. probably buying the dlc as well.

I think so I never played the original on switch I think if you already played it then yeah wait for a sale .

I want this on my PS5 but will defiantly be waiting for the day Wario post it for 20 or under as I just don't have time jump into it now and I did of course play original on switch on release

Atlus does FAR more to improve the game in this rerelease than any of their previous rereleases and yet THIS is the one you have an issue with? Lets be real and admit the rerelease model Atlus has been using is disgusting, but dont pretend it wasnt problematic until now. The average play time of vanilla Persona 5 is over 100 hours. Royal adds maybe 25 hours of new content with the large majority of the game being exactly the same. And Royal is arguably worse because the adjustments made absolutely kills the balancing making the game much easier than basically any ATLUS game released. Edit: Also please don't take this as an attack or anything Alex. You make great videos and I have nothing but respect for you. ❤️👍

I bought the switch collectors edition back in 2021 and was hyped for a new non-Persona game for over 15 years. What they did with the original was fantastic. What they did with this one, even better! It's not QoL of any of that crap that justifies the price to me. It's the effort of adding all this new content, a new difficulty and a reason to add even more replayability through new story modes. That and the added innate abilities, new fusions and the like is why I'm happy to spend more getting this game for a second time: the effort. If I buy this game it incentivises Atlus to out this amount of effort into any re-releases, upgrades, money grubs etc because it's the most superior improvements they have made on a game ever. There's an argument it should have been like this since the beginning, but it wasn't whether through good or vad intentions. As a gamer I'm just happy I can get more of the stuff I love playing without having to dish out hundreds on stupid live service games, or digital only etc. Atlus still feel "old-school" to me, so I'll support them up until they stop feeling that way. DDS remake when?

Worth it for me-and purchased for the *Switch* again (I only play portably anyway), 1st play through on *Canon of Creation* to boot, so basically re-playing the original with all the amazing changes. Haven't dipped into the Vengeance route yet, and am avoiding videos of it. So that means I am a fan of the original 100%-including the "bad" story-and still feel the $59.99 for my physical copy of Vengeance is not inly worth it, but also surpassed personal expectations. (It may run and look better know on the Switch-not sure, but seems that way.) We are all different. I disagree, or perhaps love SMT too much.

I like the new 'short & direct' format. Sometimes I had the feeling that critical tones in some reviews are a bit lacking here, so feel free to add more of them!

Ik save anywhere is controversial because some people think it kills dread and difficulty but I like the inclusion

I'm going to wait for a sale, I enjoy V despite its flaws but right now my game money will be on other games.

It's worth it but I still like nocturne more The base V got issue that i didn't buy and bought Vengeance which they improve in some ways But for people who start this series or V it's quite easy to hit a wall when you don't Ultize the mechanics 👍

I already bought the OG 1, ill play Vengeance but i wont pay for it so its worth it for me. 🤷🏾‍♂

I’m not feeling this entry the trophy guide is utterly horrendous. Plus ps reload + Agis dlc and the upcoming Metaphor: ReFantazio (PS5 I don’t want to burn myself out on atlas turn based.

I spend not more then 50€ as I bought SMT V for ~30€ and got the DLCs for -50%. I did not got far at the start because the dessert whas so boring and ugly. Well given that Vengeance went with Steelbook I decided to bite the bullet and what whas my experience? The game is not so different and totally different. But the biggest difference is the different in contrast. The low contrast from V put me more off then it should because it turned everything so depressive. But the new contrast of Vengeance is like someone put the fog away and now I really have fun. Anyway though the new DLCs I will not buy for full Price, I will now play Canon of Creation without DLC except Pre-Order one through and then I wait for my Vengeance Playthrough when the DLCs are down to -50%.

Played and completed, enjoyed the new story but didnt think it was a massive improvement . Most of the human characters get more development. Ichiro Dazai still gets minimal development. And i could have used a bit more story when we get the new nahobino form.

Nope. I allowed them to burn me like this twice before but not again. Atlus is my favorite rpg developer but I will never buy another of their games at full price unless it is an update of a game I do not have.

Yeah i skipped both of atlus's re-releases this year. Tired of them. Make new, GOOD games honestly.

All honesty don't mean to be critical about shin megami tensei v but this game felt very short it didn't really capitalize on the the energy that persona 5 had.cause in persona 5 you had stuff to do. It wasn't just side quest you had fun of interacting with the characters but this game just felt like a rushed simple plot with a confusing back and fourth story with a few side quest

I've gotten lucky with Atlus' re-releases I didn't have a PS4 when vanilla P5 came out soo I ended up playing Royal. I still don't own a switch soo I missed vanilla SMT V. However I do have a PS5 soo I'm probably gonna get Vengeance hahah. I just really really hope Atlus doesn't do this re-release stunt with what's suppose be their 3rd pillar Metaphor: Re-Fantazio. I am sooooo hyped for that game I pre ordered it already. But I'm with you Alex idk if gonna wana play a re-release of metaphor a couple years later just see some slight alterations in the story and tweaks to the combat. Anyway rant over love your videos my friend keep doing what you're doing. 🤘🏾🤘🏾