Should you play SMTV before Shin Megami Tensei V Vengeance?

Shin Megami Tensei V Vengeance is the highly anticipated remaster of SMT V. RPG fans all over the world are eagerly awaiting SMT V Vengeance's release on PS5, Xbox X/S, and other major platforms. But with the hype, many are questioning whether they must play the original SMT V to play this modern remaster.

Shin Megami Tensei is an RPG gaming franchise by Atlus, which created the highly popular Persona series. The fifth mainline entry, SMT V, was one of the most acclaimed additions titles in the franchise, and with the upcoming remaster, it is natural to wonder if it’s still worth a playthrough. To answer your query, no, you don’t need to play SMT V to play Shin Megami Tensei V Vengeance.

---

Why you don’t need to play SMT V before Shin Megami Tensei V Vengeance?

It's not necessary to play SMT V to play the remaster (Image via Atlus)

The main reason why you don't need to play the original is that the remaster already features the story of the original Shin Megami Tensei V.

SMT V Vengeance has two primary story modes: “Canon of Creation” and “Canon of Vengeance”. The Canon of Creation is the original story campaign, whereas “Canon of Vengeance” is the modern story campaign exclusive to SMT V Vengeance.

By purchasing Shin Megami Tensei V Vengeance, you can play the Canon of Creation to get up to date with the original story. Playing the story campaign on the remaster is especially recommended because even while playing the older story, you will get to experience all the new features and QoL updates, such as the fusion moves and more.

On top of the better visuals, upgrades, and others, playing SMT V Vengeance is much more accessible because you can play the game on any of the major consoles, unlike the original, which is only limited to the Nintendo Switch. SMT V Vengeance also supports crossplay so you can also switch between consoles if you want.

These are all the reasons why we recommend waiting and playing the remaster to experience the story of the original SMT V.

---

Is Shin Megami Tensei V Vengeance open-world?

Explore the SMT V world with a new light in Vengeance (Image via Atlus)

SMT V Vengeance is a semi-open-world game. It follows the same path as the original SMT V, featuring an open-zone map rather than an open-world. However, the remaster adds various new updates and upgrades to the map, the most prominent among them being the removal of the mini-map from the player HUD.