Damn.
I've played Persona 4 Golden and 5 before this game, and always heard of what a gem this game is, and it really does deliver. Persona 3 Reload has a lot of issues, but for all it's flaws, it has one of the most elegant stories in JRPGs I've ever seen. Too be fair this was a comfort game for my otherwise traumatic front third of the year, but honestly, I'm fine with that.
To not draw too many comparisons, if Persona 4 Golden has a good mix of story and gameplay, and Persona 5 is a little better in gameplay, but less hard-hitting in story, Persona 3 is the opposite pendulum swing to me. It's a game that makes up for it's rather simplistic and crude gameplay that has clearly struggled to become modern, with a rich narrative and characters that now rank among my favorites in the series.
I do not have the authority in JRPGs to really go into depths here, but for me, the game is a generally great experience, but was massively dragged down by it's central dungeon being a monumental drag and the combat not really being used to it's fullest effect. I was early-on gonna give the game that extra .5 just out of how much I was enjoying it, but around the 20-40 hour mark the game becomes a very long slog, especially so in the dungeon delving. Playing on Hard was laughably easy for me (as Persona 4 Golden is my mental standard for hard in these games) but I'll be sure to give NG+ a solid shot with the hardest difficulty at some point.
Simply, I love it, great experience overall, and would really recommend to newcomers to JRPGs as a temper test, to really weed out those who can find themselves loving the genre.
However, for me, this game is going to hold in my mind for awhile, it really helped me escape from a toxic and dark headspace, so I'm giving it my love despite the gameplay flaws I think shine through the otherwise bulletproof game.
I've played Persona 4 Golden and 5 before this game, and always heard of what a gem this game is, and it really does deliver. Persona 3 Reload has a lot of issues, but for all it's flaws, it has one of the most elegant stories in JRPGs I've ever seen. Too be fair this was a comfort game for my otherwise traumatic front third of the year, but honestly, I'm fine with that.
To not draw too many comparisons, if Persona 4 Golden has a good mix of story and gameplay, and Persona 5 is a little better in gameplay, but less hard-hitting in story, Persona 3 is the opposite pendulum swing to me. It's a game that makes up for it's rather simplistic and crude gameplay that has clearly struggled to become modern, with a rich narrative and characters that now rank among my favorites in the series.
I do not have the authority in JRPGs to really go into depths here, but for me, the game is a generally great experience, but was massively dragged down by it's central dungeon being a monumental drag and the combat not really being used to it's fullest effect. I was early-on gonna give the game that extra .5 just out of how much I was enjoying it, but around the 20-40 hour mark the game becomes a very long slog, especially so in the dungeon delving. Playing on Hard was laughably easy for me (as Persona 4 Golden is my mental standard for hard in these games) but I'll be sure to give NG+ a solid shot with the hardest difficulty at some point.
Simply, I love it, great experience overall, and would really recommend to newcomers to JRPGs as a temper test, to really weed out those who can find themselves loving the genre.
However, for me, this game is going to hold in my mind for awhile, it really helped me escape from a toxic and dark headspace, so I'm giving it my love despite the gameplay flaws I think shine through the otherwise bulletproof game.