This game absolutely consumed me for 70 hours. I tried playing the original SMT V on Switch but bounced off it hard because of the performance issues. Back then I hadn’t played any Persona games either so the whole SMT formula was alien to me. After playing P4 and P5 Royal I understood what these games were about. When Vengeance came out with its new story content it felt like the perfect time to give it another shot. The performance still wasn’t perfect but something about it just felt so much better to play that I pushed through and got completely hooked.
Canon of Vengeance is the new route they added for this version. The Qadistu are these new antagonists that show up throughout the story and they actually feel important to what’s happening. Every region has story beats that make you care about the characters and world. The way the story builds to the ending really works.
They added Shinjuku and expanded Shinagawa and these areas are packed with stuff to find. Side quests everywhere. Glory caches hidden in spots you’d never think to look. Mini-bosses that will absolutely destroy you if you’re not ready. The Press Turn combat is still here and still perfect. Landing that full turn sweep with the right Magatsuhi skill at the perfect moment feels incredible. You feel like a god by the end. Building your demon team becomes an obsession. The expanded compendium has so many returning demons and fusing the perfect team with the right resistances and skills is addictive.
The soundtrack is stuck in my head months later. I’ve got tracks from this game in my regular playlist now. Those industrial choral pieces during boss fights get your blood pumping. The new tracks they added blend perfectly with the original music too.
The story hits different this time. All that stuff about power and choice and what makes someone human actually lands. By the time you reach the ending you’ve earned that feeling of becoming something beyond human. Walking through Da’at as this insanely powerful being with your perfect demon squad while that soundtrack blasts is a feeling I’m still chasing in other games.
Never got to experience the original story but Vengeance made me glad I waited. Worth every hour.