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Hardcore Gaming 101 Presents: The Unofficial Guide to Shin Megami Tensei and Persona
UNOFFICIAL AND UNAUTHORIZED! Beginning as a 1986 science fiction/horror novel, Megami Tensei has since grown to become one of the most expansive Japanese RPG series of all time, comprising of over thirty titles in variety of subgenres. As the original "monster collecting" game, the heroes converse with hundreds of demons across various world mythologies and convince them to join their cause. While early entries focused on exploring post-apocalyptic Tokyo, the series has branched out in several different directions, putting you in the role of demon-hunting detectives and high school students, across other spinoffs like Devil Summoner, Persona, and Devil Survivor. This book catalogs all of them and untangles the web of the this complicated but fascinating series, reviewing many Japanese-only entries as well as other incredibly obscure titles within the series.
- GenresVideo GamesGaming
191 pages, Kindle Edition
Published November 11, 2020
About the author
Kurt Kalata
51 books19 followersKurt Kalata has been writing about video games for twenty years. In addition to founding retro game website Hardcore Gaming 101 in 2003, he previously started fan sites The Castlevania Dungeon and The Contra HQ. He has also contributed to several other websites, including 1up, Gamasutra, and Siliconera. He has edited and published over fifteen books through the Hardcore Gaming 101 website, including The Guide to Classic Graphic Adventures and The 200 Best Video Games of All Time, and has contributed to several other retro themed books, including The Untold History of Japanese Game Developers, Unseen64’s Video Games You’ll Never Play, and The Overstreet Guide to Collecting Video Games. He lives in New Jersey, USA, with his wife, daughter, and two cats.
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
November 24, 2021
Having recently completed Persona 5, my interest in the SMT franchise was piqued - and as a result I picked up this HG101 book to provide some newcomer guidance.
The book is written with a clear sense of fluency in the Shin Megami Tensei lore and lineup. It's well researched, sure, but its also complimented with experiential anecdotes that only true fans of the series could showcase. And despite my initial trepidation of diving head-first into one of the most bizarre yet beloved franchises in the industry's history, the book did a remarkable job holding my hand through the entire catalogue. It eased me in, and at the end, gently let go.
This is a reference book - no question. There aren't many 'behind-the-curtains' facts and figures, but rather a detailed dive of the story, significance, gameplay mechanics, music, ports - and a reminder of the headspace we, as gamers, were in at the time of the release. Each game is given 2-6 pages to shine, all of them accompanied by screenshots and box art to bring life to the text. Admittedly though, even with the aide of the screenshots, had to take several YouTube breaks in between to better grasp some of the explanations.
Rather than taking the obvious chronological route, the book is compiled in a way that groups each set of spin-offs into an over-arching section. The Digital Devil Story entries to start, followed by the SMT entries. Then Persona. Soul Hackers. Devil Summoner. The list goes on. Each section entirely digestible without overwhelming a newcomer like myself with a deluge of branching paths to try to keep track of.
Overall I'm walking away feeling infinitely more fluent in the series - which was the goal. And I "may" have purchased a few of the games along the way. The next time I'm standing amongst a group of SMT die-hards (a scenario that I've convinced myself will happen someday in order to justify the read), I probably won't have any mind-blowing facts to wow the crowd; but at least I'll be able to keep up with the conversation.
The book is written with a clear sense of fluency in the Shin Megami Tensei lore and lineup. It's well researched, sure, but its also complimented with experiential anecdotes that only true fans of the series could showcase. And despite my initial trepidation of diving head-first into one of the most bizarre yet beloved franchises in the industry's history, the book did a remarkable job holding my hand through the entire catalogue. It eased me in, and at the end, gently let go.
This is a reference book - no question. There aren't many 'behind-the-curtains' facts and figures, but rather a detailed dive of the story, significance, gameplay mechanics, music, ports - and a reminder of the headspace we, as gamers, were in at the time of the release. Each game is given 2-6 pages to shine, all of them accompanied by screenshots and box art to bring life to the text. Admittedly though, even with the aide of the screenshots, had to take several YouTube breaks in between to better grasp some of the explanations.
Rather than taking the obvious chronological route, the book is compiled in a way that groups each set of spin-offs into an over-arching section. The Digital Devil Story entries to start, followed by the SMT entries. Then Persona. Soul Hackers. Devil Summoner. The list goes on. Each section entirely digestible without overwhelming a newcomer like myself with a deluge of branching paths to try to keep track of.
Overall I'm walking away feeling infinitely more fluent in the series - which was the goal. And I "may" have purchased a few of the games along the way. The next time I'm standing amongst a group of SMT die-hards (a scenario that I've convinced myself will happen someday in order to justify the read), I probably won't have any mind-blowing facts to wow the crowd; but at least I'll be able to keep up with the conversation.
March 16, 2021
Shin Megami Tensei is my favorite RPG series, so when I stumbled across this book, it was an instant buy. And while I was hoping for a little more info on the development process behind some of these games, there's still a treasure trove of info here on the entire series--including the most obscure entries. And each page is replete with full-color screenshots and photos. Though it's not as in-depth as some other books about games and their histories that I've read, the sheer scope of titles covered makes up for that. A great read if you're a fan who wants to know more about how this surprisingly prolific series got to where it is today.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews