Nintendo 3DS

[Lythium]

The extras are nice, but they're not that amazing. Probably not worth getting unless you're a collector.

Do you guys know if buffs and debuffs stack in this game?

 

[Rutger]

Buffs and debuffs stack up to three times. Attack(both phys and magic), defense, and Hit/Evade can all be buffed/debuffed up to three at the same time.

You can see your current buffs/debuffs by hitting X in battle. The game will not let you use a buff/debuff skill again if that stat is maxed for everyone it affects.


I also agree that you probably don't need to go out of your way to get the extras. It's nice, but nothing amazing. The artbook part of the guide is small, and Atlus has said the guide only covers about 40% of the game.

 

[ndayday]

Yeah guide is nice but nothing special. The CD tracks are almost all around 1 min in length with the exception of two (9 minutes and 3 minutes)

 

[Delta-cod]

SMT is such a horribly cruel game sometimes.

These mook reinforcements are the most obnoxious ways to get surprise party wiped ever.

 

[Lythium]

Buffs and debuffs stack up to three times. Attack(both phys and magic), defense, and Hit/Evade can all be buffed/debuffed up to three at the same time.

You can see your current buffs/debuffs by hitting X in battle. The game will not let you use a buff/debuff skill again if that stat is maxed for everyone it affects.

Ah, cool. That's what I thought, but I didn't know that I could see them in battle. That's neat, thanks!

So, I guess if I want to talk about SMT4, this is where I'll do it.

Spoiler

I just go to Tokyo~

Also, I want to play, but work.

 

[Rutger]

I wouldn't consider the fact that you go to Tokyo a spoiler, since it's mentioned on the back of the box.

Tokyo is the best, I'm enjoying it a lot more than the dead world of Nocturne, and the music is great. Though my progress is slow because I keep wanting to stop and do some demon fusions or a quest.

One of the best parts has been finding a demon's domain with a boss around level 40, and killing it while I am in my 20s.
Then getting only about 400 exp.
The random demons around it gave good exp though.

Getting a demon though a fusion accident with a skill that allowed me to go back and win my first battle with a fiend before he could even attack was great too.

 

[Delta-cod]

The exp gain has been kinda funny to me, lol.

I still have only gotten one fusion accident, which was the first fusion I did, which I feel is scripted.

I think the "Lost" status ailment is the greatest thing of all time.

 

[Minato]

Been playing a bit more today and I just unlocked the terminal at Ueno. I have to admit, when I first started I thought the game was just good but not great. Once I hit Tokyo though, I'm having a lot more fun and I can't wait to see what else this game offers. I dunno if it'll top Nocturne for me, but we'll see.

I haven't gotten too many game overs yet. Most of it was just from encountering two bosses and not having a suitable party.

 

[κomıc]

I'm starting to have trouble with the Minotaur. I'm guessing buffs and rebuffs are crucial to this game.

 

[Delta-cod]

I've gotten away with not using too many buffs by just exploiting weaknesses and hammering them over and over. But things are starting to have less weaknesses, so I'm thinking this might not last.

 

[κomıc]

Yeah, I figured weaknesses could get you by until a certain point. I'm going to look at the guide after work and figure out where to go.

Juggling Minecraft, Project X Zone, Earthbound, SMTIV and New Super Weegee U :3
Also have Oracle of Seasons untapped and probably will get to that after beating the games listed.

Barely leaves me time to practice for brawl tourneys lol

Anyhow, I'm really enjoying SMTIV. This talk of Tokyo excites my breasts.

 

[Delta-cod]

I believe the Minotaur has a weakness, but I forget what it was.

Oh, and definitely invest in the MP regen app. It's so friggin' good. Especially if you level it up. I feel like I have infinite MP it's so gooooooooooood.

 

[Lythium]

Minotaur is weak to ice, and nulls fire, light, and dark. I think he resists most ailments as well.

Buffs and debuffs are pretty good for any boss fight imo.

 

[Rutger]

It's also best to not have Walter assist you against Minotaur.

That's one thing I don't like about this game, not being able to choose which partner assists you. That and uncontrollable ambushes, such as the world map and red enemies, I feel like damage in this game was balanced with the fact that you have control over if you are ambushed for most fights.

Those are minor complaints though. It's rare that any of those cause a game over and I never feel like I lose too much progress thanks to being able to save anywhere. I'm loving everything else though, and I'm glad to see that it has fixed all of the little things that I disliked about Nocturne. I will not judge the game until I finish it, but if it continues as it has then it will probably end up one of my favorite games from Atlus.

 

[Lythium]

It's not a huge sticking point for me, but I wish the battles weren't first person, and I want more substance to my cutscenes. I feel like they could have squeezed so more more out with their graphics. Like I said, not a huge deal, but I feel like I'm playing a launch DS game.

 

[ndayday]

Yeah after the FEA cutscenes which were beautiful it's kind of jarring.

 

[Minato]

That's one thing I don't like about this game, not being able to choose which partner assists you. That and uncontrollable ambushes, such as the world map and red enemies, I feel like damage in this game was balanced with the fact that you have control over if you are ambushed for most fights.

My agility is rather high, so I don't get ambushed much on the map, luckily. lol
But yeah, there are times when the party can easily get wiped from just being ambushed.

It's not a huge sticking point for me, but I wish the battles weren't first person, and I want more substance to my cutscenes. I feel like they could have squeezed so more more out with their graphics. Like I said, not a huge deal, but I feel like I'm playing a launch DS game.

Well, it is Atlus, haha. They're pretty infamous for reusing assets. I still hope to see SMT getting a proper console mainline game again. SMTIV feels like such a solid title, it's disappointing that the game had a very limited budget.

 

[Rutger]

My agility is rather high, so I don't get ambushed much on the map, luckily. lol
But yeah, there are times when the party can easily get wiped from just being ambushed.

Agility affects that? Cool, I thought I was noticing less ambushes lately. I have been putting one point into agility every level up.

 

[Delta-cod]

My agility is rather high, so I don't get ambushed much on the map, luckily. lol
But yeah, there are times when the party can easily get wiped from just being ambushed.

The worst is ambush reinforcements.

Enemy reinforcements appeared! Enemy attacks first! Macabre used Blight! Macabre used Blight! Macabre used Blight!

EVERYONE IS DEAD.

Speaking of not being able to choose Guests, I believe Nozomi's entire purpose in the Samurai and Hunters United quest is to give the boss smirk. It was friggin' unbelievable. >_>

 

[Minato]

I love how I can use fundraise and ask a boss for money lol

Also, anyone know how elemental bullets work? Does it take both the property of shot and the element? Or does it only become just element?

 

[Delta-cod]

Not quite sure. It looks like they change the element of the "Shoot" command, since with non-elemental bullets, the type is listed as "Gun". I opted to keep a gun command seeing as how I have second level elemental spells anyways, and I just buy bullets that have status effects on them.

Not that I shoot much anyways. I pump nearly everything into Mg/Ag/Luck.

 

[Lythium]

Well, it is Atlus, haha. They're pretty infamous for reusing assets. I still hope to see SMT getting a proper console mainline game again. SMTIV feels like such a solid title, it's disappointing that the game had a very limited budget.

I know, but I can dream.

I love how I can use fundraise and ask a boss for money lol

Also, anyone know how elemental bullets work? Does it take both the property of shot and the element? Or does it only become just element?

The damage is based off your dexterity, but if you choose the aquans bullet, the ice attribute will override the gun's attacks, so it will only activate a weakness if the enemy is weak to ice, not gun. Also, you can't switch bullets mid-battle or anything, so if the enemy repels ice or something, SURPRISE.

 

[Rutger]

I finally got a demon with some good resistances. Black Frost that resists Phys & Gun, repels Fire, Drains Ice, and nulls Mudo skills. 388 HP, looks like a nice tank.
I can't wait until I start finding null skills.

I love how I can use fundraise and ask a boss for money lol

Haha, I haven't thought to use fundraiser on a boss before, is the money worth it/do you get any money?
I may try that on the next one.

 

[Minato]

The damage is based off your dexterity, but if you choose the aquans bullet, the ice attribute will override the gun's attacks, so it will only activate a weakness if the enemy is weak to ice, not gun. Also, you can't switch bullets mid-battle or anything, so if the enemy repels ice or something, SURPRISE.

Oh, thanks. I have Dex as my 3rd highest stat and practically ditched magic, so this is good to know.

Haha, I haven't thought to use fundraiser on a boss before, is the money worth it/do you get any money?
I may try that on the next one.

It's not worth it. The amount is the same as when you fundraise other enemies. So in a way it's wasting the MCs turn, or worst case, your whole party's, haha.

 

[Delta-cod]

Zhen just learned Fog Breath and whispered it to me.

Lowers the entire enemy party's attack/hit/avoid.

Happy face.

 

[κomıc]

It really sounds like ya'll are farther ahead than me. I've just recently reached a terminal. What do you guys suggest my level be at after beating the Minotaur?

 

[Delta-cod]

I think I was around level 20 by the time I hit Tokyo. I didn't seriously start leveling until making it there, since the EXP gain there is loads better than the gain from the demons in Naraku.

 

[Minato]

It really sounds like ya'll are farther ahead than me. I've just recently reached a terminal. What do you guys suggest my level be at after beating the Minotaur?

11 or 12 was my level. Make sure your party has Bufu. Then on your next set of turns, do buffs to raise your hit evasion and then one to raise your defense or lower the Minotaur's attacks. Then just keep doing Bufu and answering the conversations correctly and you'll do fine.

 

[sakuraZaKi]

Lol. When I reached

Spoiler

Shinjuku

I figured I was not supposed to be there yet or something, or is that fine? I was getting ~2k EXP off of fights. I was able to grind it out with actually no problems though. Just kept making new demons.

I think I finished the Minotaur around lv. 14 and got to Tokyo maybe around 16? I could've finished it earlier around Minato's level but I didn't use my debuffs/buffs as much. Lv. 26 right now with all the next level elemental spells mwahahahaha.

#teamMAG. I kinda screwed up my build wanting to go up to Str. For some reason I just switched to Magic and now have useless pts. on Str/Dex

Btw, is it just me, or does it feel weird when you strike the enemy? I feel like my depth perception isn't working because of the way the camera angle is in this game XD

 

[Minato]

Btw, is it just me, or does it feel weird when you strike the enemy? I feel like my depth perception isn't working because of the way the camera angle is in this game XD

So it wasn't just me lol. I just use the symbol/indicator now to time my X button.

 

[Delta-cod]

I vastly prefer magic to the other offensive stats because elemental abuse is great. If I hit an enemy's weakpoint with magic I do ~220 damage, practically 400 with smirk. And not many enemy's are weak to physical. =/

I HATE missing strikes, because I feel like if you're caught whiffing the enemy gets the first attack more frequently. Sometimes if I feel like I'm gonna miss/have a bad camera angle, I'll opt to just run into them and hope I don't get screwed.

 

[sakuraZaKi]

I actually opt to run the heck out of there, LOL.

Even though I save every min. on average...

 

[Delta-cod]

I hate it when I'm sorta going through a place I've been through before, not saving too frequently because I'm just dealing with mooks, and then I get ambushed by a mob and die. I really should save compulsively.

By the way, the most **** move in the game is Macca Beam. ****ers get one turn, and they opt to use Macca Beam twice.

Anyone have advice for the Hunter Tournament Prelims? I can't beat this stupid quest.

 

[Minato]

With my decent agility, I rarely get ambushed. If I do and I don't want to deal with the opponent, I'll just talk to the demon. I have a lot of slots, and in new areas, I'll have most of the demons that reside there (I also have them recruit others in that same battle with the app). Mobs are a problem still though. Luckily I have Critical Wave when it reaches my turn which easily gives me press turns.

I'm trying to find out where to go. I just crossed the bridge but it looks like I can't proceed to the new areas past here. I refuse to look up a guide though since I'm having tons of fun wandering around. Might as well catch up on exp finally.

 

[κomıc]

Was so close on giving up on the game last night when going up against Medusa, but decided to just truck on through and grind. Honestly, I feel like games that emphasize on grinding really detracts from the experience and enjoying the game. At times it seems like this game is hard for no good reason but to frustrate and keep you hooked in for hours (which is a good thing and bad thing).

I think the easy level up DLC is available for purchase but I'm definitely not going down that route. And I don't want to switch the difficulty to easy since SMTIV is designed to be hard and I want to have that sense of accomplishment playing the game the way it is supposed to be. But I'm glad Atlus is giving us players some more freedom and leniency on how we approach this game.

 

[Rutger]

I honestly don't think this game needs grinding. Level doesn't matter nearly as much as your skills, your resistances and weaknesses, and your demons. You can change all of the important things very easily, changing your skills and the max level you can fuse a demon would be the only things that requires exp.

Also, the game will get easier as it goes one, mostly because you will gain access to more things you can take advantage. Also, always make sure you have good demons and are using buffs/debuff, the Demon Fusion App should be your favorite thing.

 

[Lythium]

I'm liking SMT IV so far, but I wish it would go a little faster. Even after playing it for a few hours today, I feel like I've made very little progress. It's cool and good and all, I just hope it keeps my attention, considering there's a bunch of games coming out in August that I want to play.

 

[sakuraZaKi]

Yeah, I haven't done anything that resembles grinding, and even if I did, I didn't need to. You just need to learn how to use your skills effectively; attacking weaknesses and making good use of buffs/debuffs, as well as getting the latest and greatest demons you can get. This ain't no Persona. In regards to difficulty, usually when I get a Game Over it's by random reinforcements that attack first. The pre-battle striking takes some time to get used to though Especially with a sword. I switched to a spear and I haven't gone back LOL.

Once you get to a certain area in the beginning of the game everything else goes pretty fast, trust me. I found Naraku to be pretty slow too.

 

[Lythium]

I've been in Tokyo for a while now, but I'm just wandering around the different areas. I keep doing quests and stuff, but as far as advancing the plot goes, there's not a lot going on in that regard.

I'm getting a little bored, I guess!

 

[KayB]

I've been in Tokyo for a while now, but I'm just wandering around the different areas. I keep doing quests and stuff, but as far as advancing the plot goes, there's not a lot going on in that regard.

I'm getting a little bored, I guess!

I think its inevitable that you'll run into this kind of situation no matter what RPG you'll play tbh.