SHIN MEGAMI TENSEI THREAD

Seconded. I find Nocturne much better, or at least more interesting than 4, so if you enjoyed 4, you will likely love this, too, if not more. It has different pacing though.
It is probably "the" corner-stone, and one of the actual main series instead of spin-offs. And if we're talking demons, everyone will remember Daisoujou. He's just so goddamn useful for such a long period of time!

Since you have a 3DS - I can highly recommend Devil Survivor. (either overclocked, or the original for the DS)
The first one more than the second, because it is better story-wise, less fan-servicey, and has a little tighter battle-system (the passives become too strong in the second imho). It is like something between the usual SMTs and Persona feeling-wise, and it has gotten en examplary tactical battle-system. The only one I was dying to play more even after multiple playthroughs, and with that I mean 5 playthroughs. It is comparatively short, but with multiple vastly different storypaths augmenting each other. (and I mean the first vs second Devil Survivor, there are two. Overclocked adds some content)

Speaking of which - if you haven't played Persona 4 and 3 (they are spin-offs as well, or started out as), definitely give them a go. I personally find 4 the better of the two, but that is a matter of taste. They are different in gameplay and atmosphere, to be certain, but really great games.
1 and 2 are decent as well, but are a little too grind-heavy and generally a little thin for it. So those you can leave for later.

Afterwards comes Digital Devil Saga (1 + 2 are practically one game), they can feel very desolate and gloomy at first, but that changes slowly over time, and it has a wonderfully great balanced battle systems and changing the party into demons. It has a very elaborate meta-story in the story, and small details like every changing dialogue between events in all different areas (which you may miss if you don't go around and talk to your people)
It is my personal favorite in the series, but not everyone enjoys the overall atmosphere and initial slow pace as much. Or turning into demons and eating other people ..

Technically, Strange Journey for DS can also be considered main series, but while it is a decent first person dungeon crawler, it is subpar to other entries in the series, so leave that for later if you still want more. And if you enjoy first person dungeon crawling.
And then there is Devil Summoner .. I never got to play the second in my region, it is such an oddball of a game. It is admittedly not all that good, it is very flawed in fact, but I just loved the atmosphere.

.. hope that's still sizeable to take in!

Oh, and if you care, do explain or compare with Soul Hackers ~ I ordered the special edition back in the day, and it was the only game that was cashed in and destroyed by my lovely father. My 3DS was stolen sometimes afterwards, so it will take a while before I can play it, if at all. I am very curious what you guys think about it. Or how it holds up compared to other games in the series.

I loved Dancing All Night. But then again if Persona 4 was a person I would make love to it.

I've not played many Shin Megami Tensei games, I might give some of the ones listed here a try.

I've been eyeing up Persona 3 on the PSN store, but I think for the moment I might have to get something a little cheaper.

It isn't super strategic as in super difficult or ever-changing. You can apply simple systems, but I find it vastly satisfying and offers a plethora of sub-strategies, monster raising and fusing and all that fun stuff. I personally cannot stand difficult systems that offer no variation, active input other than trying out until you find what sticks, or ridiculously slow-paced super-safe combat in grid strategy RPG systems.
It is more that if you lack strategy .. you will ultimately fail. And that is what many people like. If you do it wrong, you should fail. If you do it right - with multiple paths possible - you should win.
I remember replaying Devil Survivor while someone else was playing it on some boards as well. He was struggling with Wendigo, at lvl 30, while I was going for a no-grind run (doing random battles to skill crack once) and was fine with lvl 14 or something. The range at which you can struggle or be fine with it is very wide and that is kool.

It generally is more about outside-battle planning than in-battle planning. That, and extra turn management. So, consideration for resource management, remembering and guessing enemy weaknesses, having good demons with you, keeping demons up to date, focusing on sth you can build around, be it crit chance or elemental weaknesses (I remember beating P3P on maniac - god they butchered the difficulty - with full crit buffs and ailments, trying to work around stuff with zero grinding).
It really is more about setting things up right. And that is something I really enjoy. Digital Devil Saga does this by having you swap between spells, for example. So for boss fights the bigger question was what spells to take with you rather than how to use these spells. I do have to say I love the press-turn combat system, though. You will need to look out for them as you pass turns around to maximize your turns, and that is fun as it is something you need to consider with the spell and party layout you have regardless of what exactly you do or are shooting for.
There are a few ways to play around in-fight as well (I for one really enjoyed going for ice spells and having the frozen crit-follow-up, or a buffed fire mage cannon) .. but again, something you think up beforehand and execute.
Having a firm grasp for how weaknesses work - via previous knowledge, attack pattern or design (with not always obvious ones), was a lot of fun to guess and I most often got it down.

How come DeSu 2 ranks higher than the first one though? I found the second one to be a little more imbalanced and requiring less planning and team-setup as you had fewer missions where you needed to actually reach and protect people among other things. I really had to adjust my party most random battles to achieve combination of speed or healing prowess while keeping my battle prowess alive. And then there's the mana managment.
But then I know I work completely different in terms of battle satisfaction than you do, apparantly. The usual long battles you go for in the few games I tried had me having to stop playing them.

Hmmmm. I would say it's an alright place to start, with the story concept fresh it should be a joy to play.
Definitely do pick up if you like to play on the go. It is built so you can save and quit anytime anywhere, the story is built in turn with smaller arcs.
If you are interested in a little bit of pokemon flair, or party setup it's not as good because there are too many different demons both possible and in possession at a time. The exploration and atmosphere is solid tho.

I think due to its compact and thus simpler design Devil Survivor is imho the most accessible to start (even Craze likes it, so it must be good! .. the second, anyway) - since it also is on the DS/3DS you may consider jumping onto that one first.
But I may be biased since it got me absolutely hooked.

I have to say Persona 3 is a great game. I only got halfway through it before my game stopped working completely but it was so much fun to me. I never had a chance to play 1, 2 or even 4 sadly.

They are much closer to Persona 2 than 3 or 4, demon negotiation similar to Persona 2 is in effect, but they are overall different in atmosphere and gameplay.
You usually summon demons (think persona) additionally to your main character, or you turn into them yourself in the case of Digital Devil Saga with a set party. The battles are much more honed though, and the atmosphere is usually a lil tighter, tenser and very intriguing.
If you enjoy P2 even a bit, I would give it a shot.
Just watch the Nocturne opening to compare and you will get the vibe immediately. Really, do it.




Storywise, Persona largely revolves around our different "personas" in life, that is, different facettes to our self, and who we represent or identify ourselves as in public and elsewhere.
The standard SMT (think SMT IV, Nocturne, Strange Journey, and Devil Survivor) revolve around law, chaos and neutral forces in the world - that being stability and order, change and the power of the individual, and something independent in the middle. It usually is a little more abstract and bleak, where Persona feels more personal, and tend to be more light-hearted (especially 3 and 4).
There are plenty post-apocalyptic or similar settings. Cyberpunk too?

Gameplay-wise, they are more dungeon-crawler than Persona 3 / 4 are (and practically on par with 1 and 2), they work differently, but also revolve around exploiting weaknesses.
No all-out attacks or knock-outs, in many cases with the press-turn battle system you can gain flat-turns that are shared by the party - you can also lose your turns. Managing them is a far bigger focus, so passing them on sometimes to the guys you need (losing half a turn), for example.
Managing demons is similar to managing personas, but there are a few gimmicks here and there. Like moon phases being present, they are affecting demon behaviour a little and a few things outside of it. It's like a clock.

That said, entries vary. Devil Summoner is the real oddball in all categories.
Devil Survivor feels like something between Persona and the usual SMT, and I can wholeheartedly recommend the two games. They are also most accessible, imho. But they are on the 3DS/DS, so you may not be able to pick them up if you don't own the console.

There are a few entries explained already, too. Really depends on what you are looking for or interested in.