Arguably one of the most anticipated upcoming JRPGs is Shin Megami Tensei 5, the next entry in Atlus’ long running occult paranormal franchise, and the first HD entry in the series (as well as the first console game since Nocturne came out on PS2 all those years ago).
Shin Megami Tensei 5 was announced at the Nintendo Switch event a year ago now, and we got confirmation of it via a proper reveal trailer late last year; that apart, news on the new game has been thin on the ground. It seems as though the game, though announced fairly early, is still a ways off.
In an interview with 4Gamer, producer Kazuyuki Yamai discussed how full scale production on the game finally seems to be underway, with a development team of the appropriate size having been assembled to work on the title.
“At the start, the production of this project only had a few people at its core, with more and more people gradually becoming involved. Although this number is still increasing, I feel that the production staff has come together considerably to a point—and reaching a milestone—where we can say we’ve started full-scale development.”
Yamai-san also discussed how the new game not only has to straddle the kind of playability that the last few games in the series had (thanks to them being on portable game systems), but also the kind of impressive immersion that people expect from console games.
Shin Megami Tensei 5 is due out… well, at some point. It’s pretty clear it’s not coming any time soon. The game will launch exclusively on the Nintendo Switch.
[translated by Persona Central]