How Shin Megami Tensei V’s Alignment System Works (SMT V)

A distinctive feature in the series, the Alignment System also marks its presence in Shin Megami Tensei V: Vengeance (SMT V). Here’s how the alignment system works in Shin Megami Tensei V (SMT V).

Everything You Need to Know About the Shin Megami Tensei V (SMT V) Alignment System

Every decision counts in SMT titles. Alignments are a main feature of the series, divided into Law, Neutral, or Chaos. They determine aspects such as quest rewards, Demons you can fuse and, most importantly, the endings you get. Those games often have multiple endings depending on which alignment you pick, and it’s no different in Vengeance.

Decisions you make in dialogue or in certain quests will affect your alignment. A good example is the Apsaras and Leanan Sidhe quest found early in the game, where you can choose to support either side. They are clear representatives of Law vs Chaos, respectively, and similar quests where you must pick a side appear throughout the rest of the game.

As for dialogue choices, it can be a bit trickier. Law options are usually the most rightful, selfless dialogue options where you choose to help others just because “it’s the right thing to do,” while Chaos options are often selfish, violent, or even rude dialogue choices. Neutral is a mix of both but is also represented by uncertain responses like “I don’t know…” or “I’m not sure…”.

Warning: The rest of this article contains spoilers.

The Canon of Vengeance has two endings, which are determined by whether you picked Law or Chaos options the most. Tao and Yoko also represent both alignments and will comment on your choices after completing quests, whenever they’re present. Pay attention to their comments to know if you’re on your desired path. If Tao agrees with you, it’s Law. If Yoko does, then it’s Chaos.

The Canon of Creation also features the system, but your ending is determined by a single choice at the end of the campaign. You do get a unique reward if you pick the same option as your current alignment, though. There are three regular endings here, plus a secret ending requiring a few side quests.

Which Alignment Should You Choose?

Objectively speaking, there’s no right choice here. All endings have their own interesting details and exclusive rewards. And morally speaking, Law isn’t always the good guys’ choice, and Chaos isn’t always the wrong thing to do. This grey area represents the complexity of society, so any choice is valid. Getting too many Law options but then starting to pick Chaos ones will put you on a Neutral path.

But when talking about rewards, Chaos has the best ones for a first run, so you might want to choose Chaos first. New Game+ cycles are always faster than the first run, so while you’ll still need to invest a few dozen hours, it won’t be as slow as it was before.

You can check your alignment by teleporting to Tokyo and paying attention to your character icon on the city map. If it spins clockwise, it’s Law. If it spins counterclockwise, it’s Chaos. If it wiggles back and forth, it means your alignment is Neutral.

As long as you’re not close to the final moments, there should always be enough quests to change your alignment at the last minute. Quests where you can pick sides or spare a Demon are very prominent and are the best for achieving the alignment you want.

Shin Megami Tensei V: Vengeance is available now.