Tokyo buried under a medieval kingdom, and demons that negotiate before they kill you.

First surprise: on gut feeling, with no criterion at all, Shin Megami Tensei IV only edges out a quarter of games. Then you look criterion by criterion and everything flips. Desert island, ahead of 98% of titles. Soundtrack, ahead of 98% too. Fun follows very high, ahead of 85% of games, though on few votes so treat it as a first signal. Gameplay, art direction and rediscovery hover around the middle. And connection stays low, ahead of under 20% of games. There is the real tension: a game you would take to a desert island without hesitating, but one you do not bond with, and do not pick on instinct.

That fits the series perfectly. Where a Persona makes you love its cast, SMT IV puts you in front of a system, an endless negotiation, a difficulty that never apologizes. It impresses more than it moves you.

So who is it for? For you if you like demanding turn based RPGs, demon fusion, a soundtrack that lives in your head and a game that holds hundreds of hours. Much less so if you want characters to bond with and a warm, immediate first contact.