TheMegami Tenseifranchise is an odd beast. It has a cyclical nature to it that’s been fostered on purpose: Both theShin Megami Tenseigames, and the many spin-off franchise that it’s spawned (especially thePersonagames) have a long habit of building on traditions. They share similar player move abilities, enemy designs, plot elements, and more. It’s easy tocompare theShin Megami Tenseigamesto each other, but sometimes there’s special occasions where they’re particularly similar. That’s happening right now withShin Megami Tensei 5,an upcoming Nintendo Switch exclusive, which has a lot in common withShin Megami Tensei 3: Nocturne.
It couldn’t be more appropriate thatShin Megami Tensei 3: Nocturne HD Remastergot released in the same year asShin Megami Tensei 5,which is planned to release in October 2021. Both games are turning points in the franchise after Atlus took an extended hiatus from mainlineShin Megami Tenseientries. They’re also both places in the franchise’s history where Atlus took it upon itself to update and innovate. These games are siblings already, but they’re closer than most due to to their importance as points of progress forShin Megami Tensei. SMT3: Nocturneredefined the series before, and it’s possible thatShin Megami Tensei 5will do so again.
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Shin Megami Tensei 3: Nocturne’s Major Changes
A lot of the changes that took place inShin Megami Tensei 3: Nocturnehappened thanks to a major shift in platform. The majority ofMegami Tenseigames developed up to that point, including the first twoShin Megami Tenseigames, were released for the NES and the SNES, which meant that the graphical potential of the franchise was limited to the time period.
Everything changed in the early 2000s when Atlus picked the franchise back up after a few years.Shin Megami Tensei 3: Nocturnereleasedon the PlayStation 2, which was vastly more powerful graphically than the franchise’s previous platforms. That means, rather than low-pixel 2D art,SMT3: Nocturnecould focus on detailed 3D renderings of characters, demons, and settings. The cel-shaded art ofSMT3completely changed the franchise’s aesthetics and made good use out of the PlayStation 2’s potential.
That’s only a few of the waysShin Megami Tenseichanged in its mainline entry. This was also when the franchise abandoned a first-person perspective and switched to third-person, giving players more space to look at the world around them, especially during battles. The enemies that players fought changed, too. WhileShin Megami Tenseialready borrowed a lotof lore concepts from Abrahamic religion,SMT 3: Nocturnewas when the games started including more demons based on things like Gnosticism, which remains extremely influential in laterMegami Tenseigames likePersona 5.
Fans had to wait nine years for the next numbered entry in theSMTfranchise, but it was well worth it. Thanks to its upgrades and innovations,Shin Megami Tensei 3was a huge commercial and critical success. It’s only one of many examples of times Atlus has been rewarded for putting new twists on its habitually traditional RPG franchises.
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Shin Megami Tensei 5 Can Change Things Too
A lot is changing betweenShin Megami Tensei 5and its predecessors. The last major games in the franchise —Shin Megami Tensei4,and its sequelShin Megami Tensei 4: Apocalypse— were both for the Nintendo 3DS. That meant that they were inevitably limited graphically compared to home consoles.The newestShin Megami Tensei 5traileralready indicates that the game comes with sharp graphics in the same art style thatShin Megami Tensei 3: Nocturnepioneered. It’s a big step up over its predecessor, which spent many years working within the hardware limitations of the 3DS.
Shin Megami Tensei 5also plans on making some changes to the series across the board, and the new trailers have teased that as well. The game’s developers have already explained that their vision for the game involves combining the best parts ofSMT3: NocturneandSMT4,including in the departments of demon training. Fusing and strengthening demons has always been crucial to theMegami Tenseigames, and Atlus has shown inPersona 5andPersona 5 Royal’s Velvet Roomsthat there’s still room for upgrades and innovations on this front.SMT5will surely be given a similar treatment.
There’s also already evidence of changes and upgrades in combat. For instance, the latest trailer encourages players to target an enemy’s weakness to get additional actions and extend turns into long combos, which is pretty reminiscent ofPersona’s One More system. It’s only natural that the franchise changes between entries to stay fresh, but it sounds more and more like Atlus is opening the door to drastic changes, just like it did withShin Megami Tensei 3.Atlus seems aware of itsburgeoning audience for theMegami Tenseigames, and wants to capitalize on that by improving on its star franchise as much as possible.
The Stairs to Shin Megami Tensei’s Future
In a way, it’s ironic thatShin Megami Tensei 5is getting so much attention and praise lately. Atlus hasn’t said nearly as much aboutits sister seriesPersonaas it promised it would last year.Personais in the middle of an important anniversary, but hasn’t gotten much acknowledgement. If the spotlight isn’t going to be onPersonaright now, then at least Atlus is doing everything it can to make sureShin Megami Tensei 5andShin Megami Tensei 3: Nocturne HD Remastercan thrive.
These two games are certainly thriving. They’ve been mainstays in Nintendo Directs for a little while now, and futureShin Megami Tenseigames could decide to keep sticking to Nintendo consoles, considering how many games Atlus is putting on the Switch lately. It’s a good sign for the franchise’s next potential steps. As always,Megami Tenseiis succeeding by learning from its past. If there’s any game thatSMT5should be imitating, it’s definitelySMT3: Nocturne,the franchise’s poster child for succeeding through risks and imagination.
With the game’s release only a few months away, hopefully Atlus will come back soon and explain in more detail what it plans onchanging forShin Megami Tensei 5.Fans are eager to see what this game can do for the rest of the series.
Shin Megami Tensei 5releases for Nintendo Switch on Jun 12, 2025.
