Walkthrough

Your first steps in Shin Megami Tensei V: Vengeance! Learn about difficulty settings, early choices, and navigating the initial areas of Tokyo.

Alright, let's get started with Shin Megami Tensei V: Vengeance! First things first, you'll be prompted to pick a difficulty. This guide's written with Hard mode in mind, so you'll get the most out of the advice, but honestly, the tips here will help no matter what you choose.

Here's a quick rundown of the difficulties:

Difficulty	Details
Safety	This is basically a story mode. You can just button mash your way through, perfect if you're here for the narrative and not the challenge. (Comes as free DLC)
Casual	If you're new to games like this, Casual is a smooth ride. You might stumble a bit, but major setbacks are unlikely.
Normal	This is for players who enjoy Atlus JRPGs like SMT and Persona. You'll get a good balance of challenge and fun. (You can switch this difficulty on and off whenever you like)
Hard	This one's for the veterans who crave a serious challenge. Expect enemies to dodge and crit more often, and they'll have more HP. It's designed to really test your skills and maybe a bit of your luck. (You can only pick this when you start a new game, and while you can change it later, you can't switch back to Hard once you've changed it.)

After the opening scenes, you'll get to name your protagonist. Go ahead and give him a name you like!

Once you're in the classroom, take a moment to walk around and chat with everyone. After that, head towards the objective marker that pops up on your screen.

You'll see some more scenes, and then you'll be presented with a choice. These story dialogue choices can shift your alignment. Unlike older SMT games, this doesn't lock you into an ending just yet – that's a decision you make much later. However, aligning yourself with your chosen ending route will give you some nice bonuses down the line. We'll get into that more when it's crucial, but for now, just pick either option; it won't change what happens immediately.

When you regain control, you'll be on the city map. Feel free to chat with any green NPCs you see. Then, make your way to the station and head inside.

More scenes will play out, and you'll have control again. You can talk to the folks around or go straight for the objective. After listening to what the crowd has to say, return to your group, where only Miyazu will be left.

You'll face another choice here, but again, don't stress over it – your answer doesn't really matter at this point.

Head to the back of the station and move into the next area. You'll be prompted to save your game, so make sure you do that!

Now, on the world map, head north towards the Takanawa Tunnel and enter it. More scenes await you.

Just walk forward until you trigger another scene, and then another one that presents you with a choice you don't really have to think about.

And that's it – the game is officially starting!

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