Nocturne is original, challenging, intriguing and has a great narrative, making it a great RPG to mix things up
GRAPHICS:
There are a few big pros to the graphics, but some notable flaws. What is great is that this is a solid looking game to this day. It uses a kind of cel-shade to great effect, and characters and demons look great. It also has very neatly made landscapes and areas in general, and never feels unoriginal, often throwing things at you that you wouldn't expect. The bad side is that movement for the characters can often look extremely silly and just bad, like when a character waves their arms, it looks bad. But these moments are few and far between and, overall, Nocturne is still a pretty good looking PS2 game to this day. 3.8/5
SOUND:
The series as a whole is know for its great music nowadays, and this game definitely doesn't disapoint. The soundtrack is mostly composed of electronic tracks, that never sound too silly or goofy on any place, and always creates a great mood for battles and exploration, be it subtle or a more rock out battle. One thing that is notably absent from this game is voice acting. Even Final Fantasy X, which came out almost 3 years before this one had it (even though it is questionable if the voice acting was good, but I digress). It is kind of a shame, since there is a lot to read in the game, and some scene could have been extremely powerfull if they had the right voices. But alas, what we have in the sound departament is good, even if the grunts from demons can get annoying after a while. 4/5
STORY:
This game takes place on modern day Japan. You play a a teenager who is on his way to see his teacher on the hospital with some friends. However, once you get there, the world ends. I mean literally; the only people who survive are the ones in the hospital. The thing is, that the end of the world was cause by a natural cycle of death and rebirth of the world. Your goal in the game, is to shape how the world should be, depending on who you align yourself with.
The premise may seem weird at first, but it is really original and intriguing. How can I make the world be? Well, there are more 7 endings, so there are a few ways you can make it. You can either make an alliance with a Reason from one of your friends or do it your own way. It makes for some interesting phylosofical points in the game, and the story really wants you to think: was our world any good? Should we change everything?
And as the story progresses, it just keeps getting better. You get to learn exactaly what caused the end of the world, what is your place in it, and think a bit before making decisions. Characters, even though they are few, still make an impression, and the demons you come across also have some personality, at times quite interesting, at times rather funny.
I do have to say, a few endings are a bit disapointing, but it still makes for an adventure like no other. It is a smart, well constructed narrative, that will have you interested and curious all the time. 5/5
GAMEPLAY:
The game is an RPG. As the protagonist (called Demi-Fiend in the game), you have to make your way in the Vortex World, trying to be strong as possible so you can confront the being that controls it, Kagutsuchi, and shape the world like you want.
To do so, you'll have to make use of one of the series traditions: demon conversation. In any battle (that is not a boss), you can talk to your enemy demons to recruit them into your party. You can then use them, or fuse them into even more powerfull beings. The system is made so that you cannot recruit demons stronger than your level, neither fuse those. It is an interesting system, but feels a bit too simple from the one in Persona 1, which in turn was too complicated. It didn't quite reach the sweet spot, since it is really simple to get them: just get to their level and talk to them. Sure, some races do not join with you, and sometime you can answer their question wrong and lose all you wasted on it, but it still is not a hassle at all. Not saying that is a bad thing, since getting different demons is always very fun, but still.
Fusing demons to make a stronger one is just as it sounds like: select two demons and get a new one. You have, however, to be carefull with the skills you pass, since you may have something really good, and want to pass, but you will have to stay there in the fusion for a long time. But it is very much worth to have a demon as strong as you can. You can have up to three demons in your party, and it makes for some interesting combinations, and mixing up the parties is always a lot of fun and something that will keep you coming to this game.
But enough about the demons. How about the main character? You can shape him however you like, by ingesting Magatamas, which give you your abilities. They can be fire elemental, ice elemental, healers and so on. It creates an incredibly deep amount of customisation of the main character, as you can shape him howeer you want. It does suck that he can only have 8 skills, but it still is really fun to vary his moveset.
The battles themselves are a big highlight. It uses a system where you have the amount of turns equal to the amount of party member you have (e.g: 4 party members, 4 turns). But if you get a critical or hit an enemy's weakness, you get an extra turn. So, in total, you can hit up to 8 times in a phase. But that doesn't make the battles any easier, since the enemies use the same system, and there can be more than just 4 enemies at one (up to 7), and some battles can get really intense when you get hit with a weakness. The battles overall are challenging and you really have to think what is the best thing to do and how to aproach them, so they are very strategic. Dungeons, which are a main part of the game, are expertly designed as well. They are varied, contain some interesting puzzles and are normaly pretty apropriately sized (with the exception of the last one, which takes forever).
There are also two last things to add. One is an optional dungeon, where, after 5 huge, puzzle-like dungeons, you battle one of the final bosses for the "True Demon" ending. And second is that, there, you can recruit Dante, from the Devil May Cry series. I'm dead serious. You run after him a couple of times in the game, and towards the end you can get him to your party. Pretty awesome reward for such ass-kicking dungeons. In fact, the game has some turns that reward you very well, like with a new, very strong Magatama, so it is always good to try out something new.
5/5
OVERALL:
Shin Megami Tensei: Nocturne is a bloody good time. It is very fun, very immersive and there is always something new to see after you beat it once. It truly is worth checking out for any fan of RPGs.
The good:
-Great art direction
-Soundtrack is pretty awesome
-Story is original and intriguing
-Having demons as party members is awesome
-A lot of ways to customize your characters
-Rewards you very well for your hard trouble
The bad:
-No voice acting
-Some stiff animations
-Some bonus content can be really difficult