267 Reviews liked by Lead


Broke me with pure sweetness and heart, actually made me cry. Genuinely worth trying for anyone, this might be what you need in your life to help you through it all.

Above and Beyond Sweetness

In 2022, a friend of mine recommended me Our Life: Beginning’s and Always, his reasoning being that since I am bisexual that this could be something I might end up liking. Initially, I was kind of hesitant to give the game a try. From my outside perspective looking in, it’s a romance otome visual novel, which it’s already hard to get me hooked into visual novels like that. However, it’s free, so I swallowed my pride and started a playthrough.
Almost immediately, I was sucked into a sugary sweet slice of California in Sunset Bird, and before long, I finished an entire “life” of the game, then went back, and did another. What I found was one of the most comforting, fluffy games that shuts out the outside world and allows a moment of reprieve.
The premise of the game starts with your main character at the age of six, who finds a man moving in next door. The man wants the main character to take $20 to befriend his son. Take the money or not, you’ll encounter the star of the show, Cove Holden. Fairly quickly you befriend him and will begin the first “step” of the game, the summer of childhood.
Each step of life is one summer in one of three (or four if you buy the DLC) parts of life; childhood, adolescence, and adulthood. In each step, you are given select activities to experience, each one putting you in a different situation with either family or friends, but most will focus on your relationship with Cove.
Each event has different options for you to take, and while some of them are inconsequential, a lot do have some impact on how Cove will act or what you do will alter events later in the game. While I could argue that the selections do not always allow for every type of response, and some of those missing would be more reasonable than what you’re presented, I quite enjoyed playing and seeing what I could do with each option.
But what I saw throughout each step of the game, and what made me love it more, is how nice the people around you are. Whether it be your character’s sister, your two moms, Cove’s father Cliff, or any of the friends you make in each step, each are well written and feel human, even if the dramatic and gloomy points of the game or their characters never linger long. The town of Sunset Bird is one I came to love, because of the likable characters, and the pleasant vibes it brought in every step of the game.
Cove is the star of the show, and the game goes out of its way to make sure that you will grow to like him. His inner struggles are very human and gives reason to care about him. Throughout each step, the game will nudge the player towards a (optional but c’mon) romance with Cove, and it’s super sweet.
I’m trying not to say too much about all the details of the game specifically, as I think just playing it and finding out each thing for yourself is the best way to experience Our Life: Beginnings and Always. However, throughout my experience at least, I found myself emotionally invested with every character, and Cove himself has shot up to one of my favorite characters.
What I do want to highlight is the game’s writing. I touched up on it in the options you as the player are given, but it goes further than that. GB Patch’s writing for each stage of life is not only good, but really believable. At least in my time with the game, I never read a piece of dialogue and said, “a six-year-old wouldn’t say something like that” or “they’re teenagers, this is not how they act”. It’s all very well written, and that writing is a strong reason I kept playing.
But more importantly, and absolutely my favorite part, is the handling of queer writing. Our Life: Beginning and Always embraces LGBT+ themes very openly. For starters, you can make your player character whatever you want them to be, and just like any actual queer person, have their feelings and own self change in each step of the game. Want to start off as a male, but have your character discover to embrace being transgender or non-binary? Then it’s possible, and incorporated with actual care.
Even further, a lot of the cast in the game is also queer. The player character has two mothers, who married and adopted both the main character and your sister. Not once did I think this was a strange decision, it just felt extremely natural here. You’ll also have an openly transgender character as one of your friends. With DLC, two additional characters can be romanced in a same-sex relationship as Cove.
In a lot of games, I never really find myself satisfied with how queerness is portrayed. Every so often we’ll get a game that doesn’t shy away from queer themes, but also embraces them either upfront or subtlety. However, there are also plenty of shallow duds, which either play it safe, use it as a bad joke, or do not even try to make it feel “normal”, but rather a gimmick tacked on for brownie points. Here though, GB Patch has put care into making a game that’s not only inclusive, but well-meaning and comfortable. That’s the word, it’s comforting.
With how much I hear of gay jokes or flat out homophobia, it doesn’t really bother me, but rather annoys me. How do we still live in a time where someone's life and way of life can be so despised? Why did I have to spend so much of it ashamed of who I was, and how others around me would feel about my sexuality? It's lame, and this game knows that those feelings are lame. So, it’s nice that Our Life: Beginnings and Always just feels like a nice warm hug away from the nonsense and venom people today can spew.
Would I recommend Our Life: Beginnings and Always to everyone? Absolutely not. Unless you’re queer, really into slice of life and/or visual novels that just keep it sweet, this really isn’t going to do it for you. But what I found is one of my favorite games, a game so good and so sweet that it being free is a damn crime. A game that is comfort for when I want to step away from the negativity of the world or the negativity of myself and want to have a smile plastered on my face. I would go to say it’s one of the best visual novels out there, with the likes of VA-11 Hall-A. But above all else, one of the best examples of queer writing out there in video games. To me, that makes it something special. I've wanted to write about this game for so long, and it felt good to do so.
Grand Theft Auto VI and Monster Hunter Wilds will be on their knees when the sequel, Our Life: Now and Forever, drops in 2025. Truly, it will be game of the year, I just know it.

Happy to own this game in my possession now on PS5, and I am once again reminded why this game is considered a masterpiece as I replay it. I found myself unable to stop playing, despite having already beaten it last year.

The satisfying rhythm combat, endearing writing, and great music are seamlessly combined with stunning visuals that will stand the test of time. It's a special video game where everything comes together to make one of the best games of 2023 that Tango Gameworks should be proud of making it.

I'm so happy to see this game on other platforms for more people to play it. I can't recommend this enough!

Great adventure. The game is one of the biggest jumps in a sequel I've seen.
There is a lot to love here.

Things I loved:
- The cast is a amazing and definitely the game's biggest strength. So many standout moments and they all got moments to shine.
- The combat has evolved and it remains super engaging through out most of the playthrough.
- The amount of gameplay mechanics here are astonishing. So many mini games and tailored segments. Not all of them work but they swung for the fences so I appreciate they tried.
- The maps feel hand crafted and they all have unique sense of presence.
- Many traversal options, combat style and nice battles and side quests in the world. Towns were a highlight especially missed in so many recent games.

Things I didn't like:
- Execution of the story. I felt it was clunky and not impactful. Most of the game didn't have a moving main arch for the story.
- Many side activities were filler like the rocks, chocobo sniffing, etc
- We didn't get many new Materia or cool ones. I feel that's because of Remake used most of them. Also wish summon fights were in the world.
- Chadley and MAI.

Score: 9/10

This game gave me the best possible first impression into the SMT/Persona universe, and an experience that I will cherish for a long time. I was so addicted to this game from beginning to end, to an extent that only has happened for me for a select few games. As my first Persona game, I was not sure what to expect when it came to the balance of the RPG/combat sections and social sections, particularly considering I'm not a big fan of visual novels, but I found that I loved both parts equally. The gameplay loop is what kept me hooked the entire time, and I really love how in-depth the social side of things is. Some RPGS can feel like there is entirely no gameplay apart from the battles themselves, and this isn't always a bad thing, but I really like how the social part of Persona feels like a whole other game that compliments the battle system, which itself I was a huge fan of.

Persona fusion is such a fun mechanic, especially for someone that hasn't ever done it before, discovering all the personas and skills for the first time. The combat is easily some of my favorite turn-based combat in anything I have played. Each aspect, from downing, to Theurgies, to the variety of elements, buffs and debuffs, and potential customization from the fusion system, all compliments each other excellently. While I did have certain characters I used most frequently, I liked how easy it felt to be able to use all of the party members throughout the game (due in part to the Grand Clocks), with the exception of maybe on. Particularly thanks to the Theurgies, which I’m aware are a new mechanic in Reload, each party member truly feels like they have a particular niche.

Not too many of the social links particularly moved me but I was invested in the vast majority of them regardless, and the payoff for completing as many as I could was absolutely worth it. Themes of life and death are easily some of my favorites in media, as I love existentialism, and this game memorably and successfully implements them in each of the main characters and overarching story as a whole. There's so many great moments and lines of dialogue throughout, particularly near the end of the game, and overall messages that I'm sure will continue to stick with me.

This was such a great experience and I'm excited to play more Persona and SMT games in the future. I'm so glad this game was remade as to give myself motivation to experience it, and it has easily become one of my favorite games of all time. Any minor issues I might have with the game are nearly completely diminished for me by just how much fun I had and how memorable it has already become.

10/10

As a sequel, Metro: Last Light is undeniably a fascinating one. It's certainly more polished than 2033, while delivering some subtle improvements and modifications to the stealth-horror-action formula. It's absolutely gorgeous, maintaining the combination of creepiness and poignance through its environments, atmosphere and lighting. And it further expands the world of Metro with striking moments and world-building.

At the same time, in the three years since 4A Games unleashed Metro 2033 upon the world, I feel like they took some wrong lessons from contemporary AAA titles. Metro: Last Light is a good game, but as it edges closer to some of the trends that began to pop up around 2033's release, I can't help but feel a little conflicted.

Everything good about 2033 is still here, though. Last Light is a wholly atmospheric affair with intense action and claustrophobic dread. The guns work just as good if not better, and stealth has been further refined with better utilization of its lighting mechanic. Level design has also improved considerably, with even more elaborate stages and even a tiny bit more exploration for resources and other secrets.

Many of the small touches that made 2033 so personal and lifelike are also still here. Artyom's mask will shatter if he takes too much damage in radioactive areas, and he needs to replace it alongside more oxygen when the time necessitates it. You can also clean your visor when it's dirty, and light up your match to burn spider webs or scare off certain enemies. It's those little elements that make the survival feel all the more real. There's nothing new here that wasn't in 2033, but it's all done so well.

At the same time, it's clear 4A or whoever paying for them got some cold feet about 2033's more unforgiving (if still far more manageable than, say, STALKER) nature. It's already evident when you're allowed to pick between a more survival-focused difficulty and a more action-oriented one. Nothing wrong with it, before I continue. I think it's always great to give more options to players. But this does give us the first indication that Last Light's development was partly driven by making it a more 'marketable' title.

There is more affinity for set-pieces here, a little more explosions in the road. The story is more straightforward in its presentation. It's certainly more chatty than 2033. About 80% of the campaign is actually spent being with an ally NPC by your side. Not a bad thing necessarily, but some of the horror and animosity of the setting does lose a bit of itself in the process. The game is also a lot more blatant in other ways of keeping players engaged. There are some eye-candy moments in the game, you can even take a lap dance lol. Games are allowed to have some fun in them, but in Last Light's case this comes off as more forceful and juvenile in comparison to the rest of the game.

And as well all know, survival-horror games can't do boss fights well. FPSs also can't do boss fights well. And as a survival-horror shooter, Last Light has a few of them. There is some great build-up to some of them, but the end result is all the same. It's rather meandering and clunky; neither the arenas nor Artyom's controls are too suited for such encounters. And I'd much rather those times to have been spent on more exciting combat arenas or horror sections that allow better use of Artyom's abilities.

As far as the story goes, it's decent. The environments tell the narrative much better than the actually spoken dialogue, but the overall story arc of Artyom seeking either redemption or damnation for his actions in the previous game is compelling and touching enough to work. Of particular note, Artyom's visits to mass graves of damned souls are especially memorable and haunting.

Well, that's Metro: Last Light. I do like this game. A lot. In some aspects it a much improved successor to 2033. At the same time, it willingly falls into trappings of then-modern trends that its predecessors wisely ignored or remained ignorant of. Either way, this only makes Last Light more fascinating as a video game, and it still accomplishes some of its lofty ambitions to present a truly harrowing yet hopeful tale of redemption even when the world around of you dies. So how can I hate it?

Life is Strange and Night in the Woods had a dino-baby and I loved it! Truly we are blessed to have queer folk in this world. Beautiful coming of age story during the end times, when so much is out of our control, and we see all the more clearly the importance of our connections to those we love. The only reason this isn't a 5 star from me is because for much of the game it seems like you're making choices that can shape how much your character will accept certain decisions their friends make, but the game seems to force drama in the latter parts regardless of your decisions. Even so, the ensuing friendship make-up sequences were really touching and I dug the soundtrack which I felt elevated the scenes in a really good way. If you like the high school indie vibes of the original Life is Strange you'll know what I'm talking about; and it's also got playable musical segments a-la Night in the Woods but more mechanically engaging in a way I thought was pretty cool. This game seems to have some of the production value I felt was sorely missing during my playthrough of Stray Gods. You could say that the animation here is flash animation level stuff, but I still felt the art was gorgeous to look at, and I felt that it helped to elevate the game above the typical still images we get from most visual novels. Apparently there was some kind of 4chan driven anti-LBGT "parody" game made of this and I really hope that's not what's driving down the average rating on here, because I really thought this game was a treat!

This review contains spoilers

For half a decade, I resisted diving into Red Dead Redemption 2, troubled by the circumstances surrounding its genesis. Learning about the reports of labor exploitation and crunch leading up to its release left me deeply disheartened by the working conditions endured by its developers.

Despite my lingering reservations, I eventually found myself pulled towards the game during a lull in recent releases. Now, having finally immersed myself in Red Dead Redemption 2, I'm grateful for the experience as it is one of the medium’s crowning achievements and a grand, maximalist work of art with one of the most fully realized worlds and some of the best character writing the medium has to offer.

While much has been said about Red Dead Redemption 2's expansive world and its protagonist, Arthur Morgan, I deliberately distanced myself from discussions about the game, allowing my experience to remain fresh.

Describing the world of Red Dead Redemption 2 as "alive" might seem cliche, but it truly embodies a sense of authenticity rarely achieved in open-world games. The world feels genuinely inhabited and organic, surpassing the typical interactive environments found in most games.

This authenticity is the result of numerous intricately woven elements. From the ambient soundtrack and immersive sound effects to the dynamic interactions between characters, coupled with captivating locations and meticulously crafted topography, every aspect harmonizes to create an unparalleled level of immersion.

Simply navigating this game’s environments was a delightful sensory experience. What's more, the world often responds to the player in subtle yet meaningful ways.

In one instance early in the game, I encountered a man in distress, crying out for help after being bitten by a snake. Offering him a health tonic saved his life and earned me his gratitude.

Hours later, while wandering through Valentine, I unexpectedly crossed paths with him again outside the gunsmith's shop. He thanked me for my earlier assistance and generously offered to cover a purchase at the shop.

This encounter was just one of numerous instances where the game acknowledged my actions and later rewarded me with interactions that reflected them, further enhancing the authenticity and believability of its world.

In that sense, it’s one of the least “videogamey” video games I have ever played. Rarely do things in the open world feel prescribed or like you’re tackling checklists, even when you are, such as when you’re hunting one of the game's dozen or so legendary animals or legendary fish.

Some may malign the microsystems in the game that lend a light simulation feel, such as the need to sleep, cook, and eat food. But they all tie back to how you engage with this world.

All of this starkly contrasts the game’s biggest flaw, its mission design. I understand that Rockstar wants to create these bombastic, cinematic, setpiece-driven missions for the player to experience. However, they are seemingly terrified of the player missing out on the carefully choreographed moments. The result is often a frustratingly restrictive mission design that penalizes even slight deviations from the intended experience.

Despite its unnecessarily rigid structure, the mission captivates players with its cinematic presentation, drawing them into the heart of the action.

One example of this is near the end of the game, where I was escorting John Marston during an ambush. Some enemies popped up atop a nearby hill, and I wanted to charge into them with my shotgun to make their little Pinkerton heads explode like overcooked pizza rolls.

Then came the frustration of encountering a fail state that seemed entirely unjustified. The game abruptly informed me that John had perished because I had strayed too far from him, even though I was just a mere 15 feet away.

Another exasperating moment occurred during a covert infiltration of an Army fort alongside Charles. The game instructed me to eliminate soldiers using a bow and arrow silently, but I opted to employ my tomahawk for stealth takedowns instead. Yet, when I approached a lone soldier facing away from me and dispatched him, the game unexpectedly triggered a fail state, citing my supposed detection.

These examples may sound trivial and arbitrary–because they are– but they highlight a significant flaw in the game's design. While many missions and setpieces are undeniably captivating, the underlying structure is marred by these inexplicable constraints, undermining the sense of freedom that the open world otherwise offers to players.

So, if half of the game is so compromised, why am I giving this five stars? Because Red Dead Redemption 2’s biggest triumph is its thought-provoking narrative and incredible character writing.

Red Dead Redemption 2 is ultimately about the death of the yeoman fantasy at the hands of Manifest Destiny and a crumbling way of life for the characters within this world. These are not “good people” in the traditional sense because they rob and kill to make ends meet. They are outlaws in the truest sense of the word, even if–most–Van Der Linde gang members have a sense of honor.

However, as the American state becomes increasingly powerful at the behest of the advancement of capitalism as the dominant economic system, the walls begin to close around them.

The Van Der Linde gang's evolution is stark; initially targeting outlaws, they shift focus to anyone capable of providing the necessary resources for survival. Dutch, the gang's leader, assumes the role of a paternal figure for many, having rescued them from dire circumstances. He wields his revered authority to shield his chosen family, yet his desperation to evade their looming fate intensifies as the game progresses.

In this changing world, there's no place left for the likes of the Van Der Linde gang. Their options narrow to either conforming to the relentless march of the progressing American state or facing annihilation by it. Consequently, Dutch repeatedly seeks one last job, a final endeavor to secure the gang's escape to distant, almost mythical lands like Tahiti.

Arthur painfully recognizes the gang's plummeting prospects and Dutch's unraveling sanity. With each passing moment, Dutch's decisions grow more reckless, leading the gang on a destructive path as they hop from one place to another, endlessly chasing the elusive promise of "one last job” and leaving chaos in their wake.

Yet Arthur and the others continue to follow Dutch, despite their better judgment, because they all love and feel indebted to him even if they know Dutch is likely and unknowingly leading them all to their demise.

The game also astutely observes that the new order replacing the era of outlaws may be even more rotten and corrupt. Under a regime fueled by unchecked capitalism and rampant labor exploitation, the scant remnants of freedom vanish, leaving individuals ensnared in a system that prioritizes profit over human dignity.

Arthur Morgan may well be one of this medium's most nuanced, endearing, and fascinating characters. I was initially drawn in by his rugged cowboy charisma, but over the course of the game, I found myself deeply attached to this mountain of a man.

The game excels in forging a deep connection with Arthur, immersing players in his internal struggles through poignant monologues and meaningful actions. Few games achieve such a profound insight into the protagonist's psyche as this one does with Arthur Morgan.

From the outset, Arthur grapples with inner turmoil, questioning the trajectory of his life, the morality of his deeds, and his purpose in the world.

It's evident that Arthur carries the burden of his past atrocities, which increasingly gnaw at him as he ages. There is a good man within Arthur, but he’s committed grim acts to persist on a path that feels more like destiny than choice. One poignant example is his relationship with Mary, his love interest, whose presence in various side quests underscores the impossibility for Arthur to break free from his tumultuous past and embrace a semblance of normalcy.

Although the game features a morality system ranging from dishonorable to honorable, portraying Arthur as dishonorable feels at odds with the narrative's portrayal of him in a chivalrous light despite his morally ambiguous actions, such as shaking down poor farmers for debt repayment.

As Arthur struggles with this internal dichotomy, he often pushes it to the back of his mind, focusing solely on the day-to-day struggle for survival. However, everything changes later in the game when he receives a devastating diagnosis: an illness that will inevitably lead to his demise: tuberculosis.

Arthur is then compelled to confront the morality of his past actions and their impact on others in the face of his own mortality. Many of the side quests from earlier chapters climax during this period, with Arthur opting to forego the harmful deeds he once would have committed to ease the burdens of those around him.

A poignant example of this transformation is his interaction with Mrs. Downes, a farmer's widow from whom Arthur extorted money earlier in the game. Mrs. Downes succumbs to the same illness that afflicts Arthur, and their encounter serves as a turning point for him. Witnessing her desperate situation, Arthur is overcome with guilt and decides to provide her and her son enough money to escape their hardships. He refrains from seeking forgiveness, feeling unworthy of it.

Although Arthur uses his diagnosis and finite time to help others, he still feels unworthy of redemption.

This marks a significant shift in Arthur's journey towards redemption. No longer able to justify his past actions, he strives to pursue a more righteous path, even if it means going against his former duties as an enforcer for the gang.

Arthur's resolve to help John, who has a family to care for, symbolizes his commitment to breaking free from the gang's destructive cycle once and for all. By this stage, Arthur's disillusionment with Dutch has peaked, and unquestioning loyalty has been replaced by a clear-eyed recognition of Dutch's reckless and senseless actions.

The tipping point comes when Dutch manipulates a group of Lakota natives into a futile diversion, sparking a needless conflict with the US Army, and publicly executes an oil baron without remorse. These actions further cement Arthur's conviction to sever ties with Dutch and his misguided leadership.

Despite being aware of his inevitable demise, Arthur sees John as a beacon of hope, someone with a future worth fighting for. His terminal diagnosis now brings him a sense of clarity and purpose. Unlike those who are uncertain about their fate, Arthur views his impending death as a gift—a catalyst for self-reflection and embarking on a new, righteous path.

Arthur's journey reaches its climax as he aids John in breaking free from the grip of Dutch's manipulative schemes.

In a climactic setpiece, the Pinkertons, relentless pursuers who have been tracking the gang throughout the game, finally close in on them. Both Arthur and John find themselves betrayed and exploited by Dutch during this chase, mere pawns in his relentless pursuit of escape. This pivotal moment marks Arthur’s final redemption, as he sacrifices the final moments of his life to give John and his family enough time to escape.

Arthur passes his hat on to John moments before his death. Knowing his time has come to an end, he finds solace in the knowledge that John and his family will persevere in the face of his imminent demise.

The game’s epilogue has the player taking control of John, grappling with his own identity crisis as he navigates life on the run with his family, unable to break free from the specter of violence looming over them—a haunting echo of Dutch's legacy.

Yet, amidst the turmoil, John finds solace in the memory of his dear friend Arthur, whose selfless sacrifice is a guiding light. Inspired by Arthur's noble example, John resolves to leave the past behind and forge a new path built on the foundation of peace and family.

Although he has long passed, Arthur's indelible presence lingers throughout the epilogue, his actions shaping the very fabric of John's newfound existence. This touching connection is captured in a scene where the player, controlling John, meticulously constructs a house, each frame infused with the symbolic presence of a Blue Jay—a subtle yet profound homage to Arthur's enduring legacy.

In certain folklore traditions, Blue Jays hold symbolic significance as protectors or guardians, believed to be spirits of those who have passed on, watching over and safeguarding their loved ones. It’s not the most subtle symbolism, but it is a deeply heartfelt one nonetheless.

The game concludes with John successfully escaping the lifelong turmoil he and his family endured, all thanks to Arthur's profound influence and the lasting impact of his actions on John's life. However, the conclusion is tinged with a bittersweet realization of the tragic events awaiting John in Red Dead Redemption.

Red Dead Redemption 2 is a monumental achievement in both vision and execution. Its immersive open world and compelling narrative transcend many of its shortcomings, such as its flawed mission design. However, it also serves as a sobering reminder of failed leadership, given the labor exploitation that marred its creation—an irony that echoes the game's portrayal of the exploitative nature of capitalism.

While I frequently criticize the current landscape of AAA gaming, which often prioritizes production values over innovation, resulting in skyrocketing budgets and an unsustainable model, I still believe there's a place for grand, maximalist experiences like Red Dead Redemption 2 in the industry–ones that use their massive budgets to expand upon the ambition of the creators. However, not every game should aim for this scale or direction, as doing so contributes to many of the issues plaguing the industry today.

Furthermore, it should prompt us to reflect on the significance of productive labor. When employees are pushed to the brink, logging upwards of 90-hour workweeks and even sleeping under their desks, one has to question the true productivity of such extreme measures. How many problems stemmed from overworked staff, necessitating additional labor to rectify issues—a cycle that likely prolonged development timelines and escalated costs?

There were assuredly ways that Red Dead Redemption 2 could have been the same as it is, with better conditions for its workers, and in fact, it could have been better for it. It’s truly a testament to the will of its creators and their collective vision that, unlike many of the games created under similar conditions, it was released as a triumph.

I think that if you’re someone like me who has put off playing Red Dead Redemption 2 because of your disdain for the circumstances surrounding its creation and the current state of AAA gaming, you should still give it a shot because you will experience something that the developers put their literal blood, sweat, and tears into and the result is a deeply moving and unforgettable experience.

After watching the credits roll, I took a few more hours simply to exist in this world. There wasn’t much left to “do,” but even days later, I found myself wanting to return to that world just to live within it. That’s about the highest praise I can give to an open-world experience. It also left me with a giant Arthur Morgan-sized hole in my heart.

Death of a Shadow

There are two fights in this game, both against the same enemy, that I believe perfectly encapsulate the things I find myself loving with a burning passion and the worst parts of the entire experience respectively; one is a frenetic ‘’you die if you stay still’’ challenge that acts as the perfect exam for jumping and dodging, a movement test if you will, and it does that while creating an incredibly fun encounter that makes your heart race in a pretty simple but appropriate arena, and just when you think it’s over, it surprises you with a brand new set of moves that dive you the perfect chance to make your parry and guard skills shine as well as use what you may have learned about spacing in the last phase. It’s an unexpected yet perfect fight which the game had been quietly building up through its mechanics and the area that you traversed to get to it… And then the second time around you randomly encounter in a much more cramped, less interesting arena where the camera really likes to go to the great beyond —more than usual I mean — and I has NO new moves and it doesn’t get interesting in any way, in fact it’s second phase is fighting another enemy with the moves that it had at first at the same time.
It may sound like it has the potential to be a cool fight, and maybe it does.
In practice it just isn’t.


Some of the faults of Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice come from the fact, despite playing and functioning in entirely different ways, it never breaks is ties with the Souls series. The enemy AI behavior and camera are essentially the same, and if the latter was already a point of contention in the best of cases and the reason many stopped playing in previous games, in here shit is fucked up. This is not a camera that was designed for encounters this hectic nor for a combat so fast paced, and even if most of time works, when it doesn’t it feels like an entire enemy of its own; it’s not weird to get backed into a corner when fighting some bosses or losing sight of a really big one in the open field, and if that happens then prepare to pray to every singular member of the FromSoft team, ‘cause the chance of you getting out of that situation without a giant slash across your entire body is pretty damn low. It is not a constant, but it happens way to many times for it to not be a pretty big issue, and the amount of times I’ve NEARLY lost entire fights because of it is a horror story in itself. Basically what I’m trying to say is, if you see a mini-boss in a rectangular arena,RUN.

Regarding the AI tho… maybe I’m getting a bit ahead of myself, but I want to make clear that when it comes to one-to-one combat, this game excels in so many ways that if I tried to explain it this review would be way longer than it probably is going to be already. It’s an exciting and terrifying dance where the enemy may decide the beat, but you are the one taking steps, and fights flow like water down the stream… but Sekiro isn’t entirely a combat focused game. Stealth makes up a huge portion of the game and there is no limit to the amount of options, paths and strategies you can take, and it’s pretty fun!.. except that it really doesn’t feel like it flows as well. The AI is extremely rudimentary, and enemies can be in three different states: clueless, on alert and on battle; they are predictable as they are completely impossible to understand, they always act and reset to their original position even if you killed half of the camp you are in, which kills a bit of the tension when you are always more mobile than any of them, so going away and returning is a constant safe option that never really punishes you aside of enemies getting their health back (which doesn’t really matter for non-bosses since enemies die in one hit if you mortal-strike them) and it sometimes feels like getting spotted is a total gamble that depends on some weird-ass enemy placement or just plain inconsistency. It feels oddly clunky, and granted, it only feels like that when you do something wrong, but I also really think that a liiiiiiiiiiiiittle more complex AI and things like more traps and more persistent enemies would have made it far more punishing but satisfying. One thing it does help is that because enemies act INCREDIBLY aggressive, fighting more than one rando at a time feels like actual hell, so going in sword blazing is never a feasible option, and that is a smart way to encourage getting rid of enemies individually… except that sometimes the game does force you to fight groups of enemies directly and it’s the sloppiest most unfun thing ever but you know what I think I’m gonna shut up now…

The artificiality is only reinforced by how the actual characters themselves act in big moments, you may be in the middle of a fight or an entire castle is being conquered right as you speak, doesn’t matter, even characters withing the building won’ say a word about… odd is the word I can really think of for it, it’s just too odd…

It really doesn’t help that quite a few of the optional content feels more like a chore. Getting exp and money for the items can be a really big time consuming process near the end, but I guess that comes in the package with it having RPG elements, and said elements are indeed pretty good so I can look past that. But fighting the Headless, doing some of the more impossibly obtuse quests and getting all of the prosthetics upgrades however, that’s a bit harder to ignore… they are amazing parts of the game contextually, but actually getting them is a huge investment that can be the most mind-numbing thing ever, even if the reward itself is more often than not worth it.
And funny that I mention the obtusity of the quests, ‘cause that reminds me of the narrative… oh, the narrative…

Seems you’ve grown… if just a little

I can’t recall being so torn about a story as I am on Sekiro’s, in big part because I actually fucking love it so much. The land of Ashina, its darkest of catacombs and its highest of peaks, is is a world that made me wish to be able to learn more about it even after spending nearly 30 hours on it. Is a deeply rich, highly folklore inspired tale of mysteries and tragedies, of smallest victories and massive losses, and its cast makes a huge part of that. Meeting the Sculptor and seeing the clear but deeply hidden sadness it hides made me immediately invested, and from them it never stopped the pace. The weird-ass merchants you meet along the way, the impossible to not love allies—like Emma, Kotaro or the Divine Child — and every single one of the major foes you fight. Some don’t even need to say a word, their design and animations already tell a story on its own, confirmed by some of the items you can fins, but generally, it speaks and if you can drink sake with them, it’s a character worth meeting… but at the center of it all, there’s a Shinobi.

The protagonist isn’t a mere unnamed assassin, nor is it a representation of us as players. The main character of this story is Wolf. It is Sekiro… one problem tho: most of the time he isn’t really a character.

By that I don’t mean that ‘’Oh he doesn’t speak much so he’s barebones xdddddd’’ no, that’s actually an endearing trait of his that I loved each time a character pointed out, it humanizes him and levels him down from what otherwise would be an unstoppable killing machine, but aside from that, the only thing I can say for sure about Wolf is that… he’s…. loyal to Kuro, I guess?... oh wait no, nevermind, there’s an ending where you can betray everyone including him HUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUH?????!

Wolf gets completely screwed over by the fact he’s the main character of game with a couple different options and that lets you kills some NPCs, so we get this conflict where we get a clear version of the character in a scattered cinematics and the intro, but it never gets explored meaningfully and it can all feel screwed if you just acted a bit whacky and decided to sometimes be the purest angel imaginable or a complete psychopath at the flip of a switch. Which it may not be as big of a deal as making it out to be, Sekiro isn’t an expansive, dialogue reach RPG in the first place, but there are times where the game does really try do some cool-ass stuff. I made fun of it before for the sake of a joke, but the decision you can make of either defining your father, the Owl, or joining him is incredibly compelling both ways, one that makes perfect sense depending on how you view Sekiro and a surpringly super meaningful choice, but in contrast to that we get thing like fighting the Owl two times, both fights amazing and some of my favorites in the entire game mind you, but never achieve an ounce of the impact they could have simply because Wolf is one stoic bastard and we had only really seen the Owl like… one time before the fight.

Characters like Isshin, Emma and the Sculptor seem to bounce well of Wolf, but a ton of the more interesting moments are ones you have to go out of your way to reach, and they don’t feel really that personal; it’s just feels like the gang telling you stuff that it’s REALLY interesting, but it gets speed up or brushed aside, and sometimes just an excuse for a fight that you don’t even begin to comprehend it until it’s over (they really did my guy the Sculptor dirty, man…) so the only really meaningful collection between characters we have is the duo of Wolf and Master Kuro… which to be fair is my favorite of the game.

Kuro is a super curious spin on a immortal character, especially coming from FromSoftware’s previous work, and his showings of Kindness for Wolf like cooking rice balls and Wolf’s diligence to protect him felt like a curious Father-Son bonding moments I wasn’t expecting to see, and felt worth hunting for and seeing. I’m glad that bond that gets stronger as the game goes is the one that moves the game, because I feel it’s a genuine moment of true direct narrative being perfectly showcased and not just another wall of text you read after killing a boss. I just wish that for once we got the full narrative and more character driven-moments, but at least what is there, what it’s for us to see and play, it’s excellent…


…huh…


... it’s funny… that’s a statement that goes for the rest of the game too…


Hesitation is Defeat

Three words from the mouth of an old legend.

I didn’t know it when I first heard them, but those three words were going to echo in my mind from then and onwards, and even before… I just didn’t understand them yet.
The highs of Sekiro are so high I could swear they broke my goddamn roof. This is not a game about ‘’getting it’’, it’s about understanding it. It takes a while for sure, there’s a reason the game makes a fight for you to lose and one of the major mechanics is having more than one life. Experimentation and learning is the backbone of the game, both in the long term and in the moment while a fight to the death, but it’s not only through battling that you’ll gain experience.

You are made for this world, even if it’s hellbent to screw you; Wolf’s mobility and arsenal is simple, but the amount of possibilities opened up by the zones and how the enemies act doesn’t make it binary, in fact quite the opposite; your mind and reflexes are constantly tested, you need to think on your toes while you approach it slowly, and then you’ll maybe be able to gain an advantage and a better view of the area or a perspective on a fight. Whichever the case, it feels like silk, Wolf has always a bit of delay when starting its actions (except for blocking, that’s instant no matter what) but it’s constantly delayed, and when you start blasting or jumping or grappling-hooking, the only think that’ll be able to stop you will be a sneaky enemy or a mistake of your on. Few things feel as satisfactory as breaking an enemy’s posture or getting the drop on a mini-boss, fin fact, no… none really compares, nor that I can think of at least.

When everything is going right, the combat of Sekiro is king of the accursed universe. I described it before as a dance, but that does for every little action, every decision like taking an item or using a prothesis in the right time is just another brand-new way to go around this deadly waltz, avoiding fear and poison, sometimes going even underwater, it doesn’t matter, it always feels satisfying, you are always in control, you just have to not let them take it away from you.

I complimented Ashina before, but aside from looking astonishing, the lay out of every single zone that encompasses the kingdom is jaw dropping. Not that it’s just ‘’well designed’’, it’s that I cannot think of a single room that feels out of place or badly put together, let alone an area. It never feels unnatural, and in the best of cases I wished I could be transported right into them, the build up in each of them and the surprises they hold a treat to be experience. The Divine Kingdom, Ashina Castle and Senpo Temple are not just my favorite areas in the game, they are some of my favorite areas in ANY game, FromSoft even managed to pull off a Fores Fog and Poison Swamp and make them amazing! The bastards actually did it!

They are only enriched by the small or most impressive moments: a knight from a far away land walking out of a corner, a soothing melody hiding the dark truth of an old village, a small hill full of pinwheels that act as a reminder of a dark truth yet to be known… or just a dude falling at full speed onto you while screaming his lungs out.

I wanted to make special mention to the Great Shinobi Owl fight, I mentioned before it was great, but the reason why I think that is that it grounds this world even more; a boss that uses cheap unexpected tricks unpredictable in every way and that even uses your tactics against you… it’s like fighting a mirror, which not only tells a bit of the relationship both characters have more than any dialogue, it feels so satisfying to, after facing warriors of thunder and mist, after looking into the eyes of beast and hiding from giant gods, have a fight where everything you know about yourself and the enemies you have battled till now is tested… a fight where you cannot hesitate.

This review could have been all about talking about the boss encounters, and you know, maybe that’s a write-up for another time, but for now I can only state the obvious. Sekiro’s combat is joy, it’s stress, it’s a learning process, from beginning to the very last sword slash, even at it’s worst, 90% of my deaths were because I doubted, because I didn’t do a Mikiri counter or broke my guard, those were deaths that I felt responsible for… but with abilities to use and tricks to employ, you’ll always have at least another chance…

Also, the other 10% was at Demon of Hatred seriously FUCK that boss, it isn’t even the one I died the most to (I think) and I still despise it, get back your annoying ass to Devil May Cry 2!


Return

I tried Sekiro for the first time back in 2020. You can imagine it didn’t go so well.
4 years later I still see the problems that I could feel back then, and the fact most of that not-so-good content is optional doesn’t really make it more justified, and things like the camera are just undefendable… but, and this may seem rich coming from the guy spent the entire first 1000 words talking about everything wrong with the game… I still adore Sekiro. It’s flaws do get in the way of me loving it like so many others di, but after 4 years, being rapped by its world and visuals, fascinated by it’s combat and celebrating each victory like no other, excited to discover and learn even more… and to end up victorious in the end, that’s a feeling I don’t think a game will make me feel again, at least not for a long time.

The last of Ashina are unique, special, and so are the challenges it holds… challenges I surpassed, even when I really didn’t think I do, ‘cause for every 20 deaths at some random Mini Boss in the early game, there’s a Genichiro defeat at the fourth try. Falling again and again, and the in the end to not hesitate… that’s what Sekiro is about.

And when it teaches it well, it’s wonderful.

This is my first time with Persona 3 in any capacity. My only experience with the series is completing vanilla Persona 5.
P3R is great remake for first timers like me who don't want to go back to older combat systems and quality of life issues.
The persona calendar system is such a unique thing in gaming I enjoy diving into those game once a while. Each decision feels meaningful. Choosing your friends knowing there are some you won't be able to max -playing blindly- made me pick and choose who I want to know more of. The background music and stylish visuals made the whole 90 hours journey a treat.

Things I liked:
- Great cast of characters especially the party. I liked the entire party and everyone in the dorm I enjoyed spending time with.
- The combat is a lot of fun. Finding weaknesses, managing SP, Theurgy and all the systems didn't get old.
- Some of the the social links really stood out like Akinari. And I will remember some of those for a good time
- The music was great and I will listen to the OST for a long time.

Things I didn't like as much
- Tartarus was a bit long, I wish it was half its length. Many levels were just one corridor. Not sure what's the point.
- Some social links were forgettable.
- Night time became quickly boring cause it had only 2 social links and the stats were buffed by October. Wish they added more social links there.

i could tell you about all the shortcomings this remake has, from lack of difficulty compared to the original, to the prerendered cutscenes lacking bite in some areas, to the removal of femc, ect.

none of those really mattered to me by the time i finished. the original persona 3 is one of the most important games of my life, a game that ended up changing how i viewed life and my own existence in it. reload was never, ever going to be anything less than 5 stars from me if they managed to stick the landing.

well, i'm typing this through tears after spending the last 30 minutes sobbing after the ending played, so yeah they stuck the landing. every emotional beat from the original hit me just as hard as they did when i was 15, and that's all i ever wanted. everything else i got was just a bonus.

memento mori

Full Moon Full Life

94 hours lead to this moment of re-experiencing that final 1 hour of me just non-stop crying especially in the last 15 minutes of the game. This game specifically means a lot to me and it getting this beautiful remake made with love means a lot to my heart.

Replaying this reminded me of this of how much of its characters and themes resonate with me and I still think about it to this day even though it's been years since I've played the original. It almost felt like a whole different experience, knowing what was going to happen, being older now playing this with a different mindset in my current life and still it has me thinking about it to this day especially playing this remake. I knew what was going to be happening towards the end of the game, but I still broke down in tears.

Even after finishing this game 2 hours ago, writing this while my mind is still fresh off it is just insane, it's so difficult to describe how much I love this specific game in the series so much. Even being older now experiencing this, there’s a lot going in my head on what I’m thinking about on persona 3, that makes me feel like I’m playing it for the first time again, going through all these emotions and the journey of this game all over again. Even after finishing writing this review that helps me spread out my thoughts, I will still be thinking about this game because of how much it has affected me and because of how much I love it. There is just so much to talk about from the beginning months to the end game months, the social links you do every time and how it corresponds with the story overtime and the characters joining SEES, etc. Aigis arc throughout this whole game and experiencing it again, this whole story arc in general. Getting to talk about Aigis and think about her even more would distract me for hours on end because of how much I love her. Aigis is one of my favorite characters ever and is my whole heart. Being able to have so much self-growth, to grow beyond her own insecurities and failures, to be able to start living life.

This game just speaks to you on everything, the relationships you make through life, the hardships you go through, the mental thought process on the complexity of life and much more represented through its themes and characters. Death is always present in our life that happens and can be without warning and not just that but our own personal commitment to our own life. We all deal with it but it's different in how we all respond to it and how it affects our lives. Being able to look forward and to keep going despite hardships and whatever we are going through in life with all our different situations.

The ending scene they remade in reload was much more intimate, affectionate and very emotional. I loved every second of it and cried my heart out. I fucking love this game man.

"Not everything needs to be for some greater purpose. Just caring about someone can be enough. That's all we need to give our lives meaning..."

Memories Of You

This is to Skyrim what Fallout: New Vegas is to Fallout 3. This is one of the best RPGs in recent memory. The story gave me a genuine existential crisis due to how well the themes of surrealism and existentialism were written and executed.

The world is gorgeous with in-depth and alien lore. A world that feels simultaneously like a living, breathing, and grounded grimdark fantasy world; while also as magical, fantastical, and whimsical as a German fairy tale. Similar to Morrowind you are thrown in as an "outlander" and have to learn the culture with your player character. The combat and character building is elevated beyond base Bethesda-esque gameplay by a new XP and freeform class system. You can make such unique builds based around so many different things, from collecting unique souls to summon as undead companions you build to crafting oil pots to make people ragdoll like Dark Messiah of Might and Magic. Armor, weapons, and enchantments are more complex too with unique sets handplaced throughout the world, pieces found in every dungeon. Magic is unique, deeply powerful but with drawbacks. I also enjoyed the interesting arcane fever and perk system.

Dungeons are my least favorite part of most RPGs, in Bethesda games they become slogs especially. So samey and boring with nothing unique, but in Enderal they are absolutely fantastic. Aesthetically I may go as far to say they are the best dungeons I've ever seen in a video game. The flora and fauna, complex and gargantuan ruins and structures looking more like a FromSoftware area than a Bethesda engine game, etc. Dungeons are more detailed and unique feeling while feeling worthwhile. As I mentioned earlier most dungeons have at least a single handplaced unique item of a set. There are also mysterious magical symbols that give you XP, Ice Claws which raise your carrying capacity, and worthwhile crafting blueprints. Cities and world design in Enderal is some of the best and most detailed, shoulder to shoulder with Novigrad in the Witcher and Baldur's Gate. The world also benefits from a genuine feeling of realism, an entire huge area of tons of farms that feel realistically laid out and visually stunning. Different biomes and regions. Etc.

Side quests as well as the main quest are memorable and interesting and some of the best in the genre up there with the best of Oblivion's, Baldur's Gate 2's, and Witcher 3's. They are full of both realistic and compelling characters as well as wacky and hilariously unique ones. Several characters I will remember years later. And there are many long questlines based around diverse central characters, all of them memorable with different paths the player can lead them on. (My favorites being Tharael, Esme, Jespar, and Calia). One quest genuinely had me weeping like nothing else. Just. Wow. The game also effortlessly pulls of fantastic horror, possibly the best I've seen horror done in a fantasy RPG. With compelling visuals and audio, haunting writing, and memorably dark stories.

The voice acting is very impressive as well, some are professional quality, a few here and there aren't spectacular but overall there is a good quality to them all. Some are absolutely standout though. The music is beautiful, it feels like if you mixed Spirited Away's melancholic breezy music with the adventurous spirit of Morrowind/Oblivion's soundtrack! The bard songs are amazing. If you like medieval/fantasy bardic songs this is a treasure trove for them, better than those found in base Skyrim. My favorite bard's song is the Aged Man, which is absolutely haunting.

The writing is some of the best in the business, up there with the classics like Planescape (in my humble opinion). I've even ordered the main writer's book, Dreams of the Dying! I will be reading it once I finish this playthrough. I wish him and this whole team the best, and gaming studios please get on top of hiring these people!

I'm going through my second playthrough now, my first on the special edition. I already have tens of hours of this on the Skyrim Classic version, fantastically made mod, better than Skyrim itself in many regards. I would also say this is the true successor to Morrowind. Play it. It's free if you have Skyrim. And if you don't have Skyrim, buy it for this.

This remake single handedly took a game that I just thought was a very good PS2 RPG and turned it into something really special. I don't think it's my favorite in the Persona series still, but everything this remake adds to the character development, the narrative, the music, and the gameplay makes all the best parts of Persona 3 sing.

I get that it isn't technically definitive. It's missing FeMC and all the content that came with that, and The Answer (Before it gets released as DLC, I hope they overhaul the gameplay!)

But this is basically the "Journey" in it's best form. I'll not going to talk about any real negatives in this review because they are all pointless nitpicks.

Linked episodes? All kino and give the male cast the development they really needed in the original game. Surprisingly well written too.

Tartarus? It's actually fun. I still slightly prefer Persona 5's handcrafted dungeons but P3R does the whole procedural generation thing a lot better, and all the Tartarus blocks look gorgeous.

Even the gardening/cooking/watching TV/walking Koromaru sections give the characters a lot more time together. Fully voiced too.

Theurgies are a great addition to the gameplay. I can see some people finding it to be a bit too easy on normal but harder difficulties do exist. Shift is a great addition to combat too, making normal battles less of a chore, while still retaining the challenge a boss should pose.

As for the voice acting... It's a better dub. The old dub isn't bad but this dub feels better directed, and all the characters have voices that are either incredibly similar to their original one, or fit the same vibe. The only odd one out is Akihiko, but I feel like Alejandro did a fantastic job with his performance and probably has more nuance than Liam's original peformance... though I will say I do feel like 2024 Liam could have pulled it off as well. I blame the lack of variety in his voice on the direction and not Liam himself.

Every menu looks stylish and its fun to browse through, similar to Persona 5. It doesn't look like Persona 5 though... it's just a stylish menu.

I was originally someone who was worried about this remake. The change in the English voice cast, and the idea that a few things might've been axed. But everything in this remake only stands to elevate the game. The expanded ending is really something special too. Everything added to Persona 3 Reload doesn't lose the feel of the original, and only enhances the gameplay and the story's narrative themes. 10/10 experience.

This review will mainly be evaluating Persona 3 Reload as a remake. I replayed and wrote a review on Persona 3 FES late last year, specifically so I could best compare it to Reload. If you’re interested in my thoughts on that version of the game, you can check out the review here. I do consider it to be a companion piece to this review, but it is rather long, and not at all required to understand my thoughts regarding Reload. This review also turned out to be rather lengthy, so don’t feel obligated to read both.

Persona 3 has always been a pretty contentious game amongst fans of the series. The story is generally well-loved, but almost everything regarding its gameplay and structure have always had a mixed reception. It doesn’t help that there are multiple versions of the game that have been released over the years, with content exclusive to each version, as well as their own pros and cons. Persona 3 FES was a second version of the game that released on the PlayStation 2, and included an additional campaign known as The Answer, which served as an epilogue to the original story. It also had several minor changes and additions to the original game, which was now referred to as The Journey. Then, there was Persona 3 Portable for the PlayStation Portable, which introduced its own unique additions, including a female protagonist that had exclusive new story content to her. However, to compensate for being on a platform with weaker hardware, many elements of the original game had to be changed or scaled back. Several 3D environments were removed, anime cutscenes were replaced with in-engine ones, and it lacked The Answer altogether. As such, there was no “definitive” version of Persona 3, one that included all of the content introduced in FES and Portable without any of the drawbacks of either version. This is what made the notion of a full-on modern day remake of Persona 3 an exciting prospect.

For better, and in some cases worse, Persona 3 Reload is an extremely faithful remake. It maintains the core structure of the original game, and it delights and surprises with its own excellent new additions and quality of life changes to the story, combat, Persona fusions, social links, and Tartarus. In other ways, it feels lacking in certain regards, specifically the presentation of certain areas in the game. It does incorporate various features that were introduced in both FES and Portable, but it currently doesn’t include the biggest draws of both titles: The Answer and the female protagonist. While The Answer will be an upcoming DLC release, the staff has sadly confirmed that FeMC will not be added. The lack of FeMC is a huge bummer, and making The Answer DLC when the game already costs $70 is not at all a good look. Though I have to admit: in all honesty, I can’t really see a world where something like The Answer isn't made into DLC in the current video game business landscape. I’m not defending the decision to make The Answer DLC, it's just a sad fact of the industry. If The Answer being DLC and the absence of FeMC is enough to convince you that the game isn’t worth it, well, I think that’s a reasonable position to have. Despite this, however, I do think that Reload still provides an excellent time thanks to those aforementioned additions and quality of life changes that genuinely enrich the original game.

The additions that were by far my absolute favorite were the ones that dealt with the story. The male party members did not have social links in the original game, so Reload introduces new “Link Episodes”, which function similarly to social links and give more insight into how the events of the story are affecting these characters. I think they’re written excellently, and fit very naturally within the structure of the game and its narrative. Shinjiro’s in particular is especially moving given the context of his role in the story. You can also do activities with your party members when you return to the dorm in the evening, such as growing plants on the dorm’s rooftop, studying together, watching TV, or making food in the kitchen. These hangouts feature special dialogue where you bond with your friends, and they also provide additional gameplay bonuses, such as increasing your social stats or providing exclusive recovery and support items. Persona 3 has one of my favorite video game casts of all time, and being able to spend more time with the cast like this was an absolute delight and very heartwarming.

The rest of the main story doesn’t really see much in terms of drastic changes. Everything unfolds the same way it does in the original. However, there is one change to the story that I am not a fan of. Yukari is noticeably a lot nicer and far less stand-offish compared to how she was portrayed in the original. They didn’t make any major changes to her lines as far as I could tell, but she’s a lot less angry and aggressive in her delivery. When she chastises Junpei for example, she sounds disappointed and tired as opposed to irritated or annoyed. I’m not sure if this is more in-line with what was intended by her creators or not, but I’d be shocked if it was. I understand a lot of people have gripes with Yukari’s attitude in the original game, but I think that’s missing the point. Yukari gradually overcoming her bitchiness, opening up, and becoming close friends with the people she had problems with was a big part of her development as a character, and I think that minimizing that aspect of her personality was a mistake.

Combat has been heavily modified. In response to the backlash of being unable to directly control party members in the PlayStation 2 versions of Persona 3, Persona 4 re-introduced the ability to do so, and Atlus have kept this option in all of the releases/revisions for every mainline game in the series ever since, including here in Reload. The tactics system has always been a controversial and heavily debated topic, with people constantly arguing over whether or not the system even worked properly. I discussed this in more detail in my review of FES, but to reiterate my opinion here: I thought that the tactics system in FES generally worked as intended outside of minor instances. I actually like the tactics system a lot, and I thought that it made the characters feel a bit more real. However, the security of being able to pick and choose which skills to use at any time was the reason why I never used the tactics system again since direct commands were introduced in Persona 4.

Long time Persona modder MeovvCAT has explained in a couple of Tweets that the tactics system was heavily gutted in Persona 4 and hasn’t functioned properly in pretty much any Persona game ever since. I think that is why there’s an overall negative perception towards the tactics system. MeovvCAT has also mentioned here that problems with the tactics system have carried over to Reload as well, and while the vast majority of the people who play these games use direct commands, I don’t think that it’s too controversial to say that I think the tactics system should still be fixed, and the fact that it hasn’t in Reload after there have been problems with it for so many years is pretty disappointing. I do miss how the AI party members in FES felt like they had a sense of individuality, but I was still able to immensely enjoy combat in Reload with the direct commands regardless.

In comparison to FES, combat in Reload feels significantly easier. I typically play games on normal difficulty, but for Reload, I actually cranked it up to hard and was able to get through it just fine. It was still challenging at points, but I think playing through FES a few months ago actually prepared me very well for Reload’s hard mode. The Shift mechanic, which is equivalent to the Baton Pass from Persona 5, goes a long way towards making fights easier. At the same time though, it’s really satisfying using this mechanic to keep the opponent from being able to do anything. What I feel is the most notable addition to combat are the new Therugy attacks. These are big cinematic special attacks that the cast can perform which are extremely strong, especially if the Therugy has an element the enemy is weak to, because it can knock the enemy down and leave them open for an All-Out Attack. They can trivialize bosses on normal, but I found that they were absolutely necessary against red Shadows and bosses on hard. They’re also beautifully animated and a great spectacle to watch.

Fusing Personas has largely been simplified. You’re no longer capable of fusing more than two Personas at a time. You can now search to see what you can create with the Personas you currently have. There are still special Personas in the game like Thanatos that you can create by fusing a set of certain Personas together, and the game now tells you what Personas are needed to create these more powerful special Personas, and what level you need to be at before you can make them. Honestly, I can’t see these changes as anything but improvements. While it wasn’t too hard to get by with the original system, I think that these changes make it more encouraging and less of a headache to experiment with fusing. In FES, it felt like fusing specific Personas was impossible unless you had a guide handy because of the overwhelming amount of different types of combinations. In Reload, I felt a lot more encouraged to go out and make these special Personas in particular since now I know what to look for and when.

The only changes Social Links see are that they’re fully voiced, and you can now complete female characters’ Social Links without dating them. This was a very welcome change and I’m glad they added it. The rest of the Social Links are pretty much the same, including the more infamous ones like Kenji and “Maya”. I feel like these probably could’ve been changed, but it is what it is. They’re a product of their time, and you technically don’t have to do them.

Tartarus functions in much the same fashion, but it’s been given a much needed facelift. Each block of Tartarus now has its own small group of floor layouts, as opposed to FES, which felt like it used the same small number of layouts throughout the whole game. Tartarus has also been supplemented with a lot of new features and events that make the climb a lot less monotonous. Since this review is already as long as it is, I’m not going to list them all, but these new events are introduced gradually as you make it higher and higher in Tartarus. I think spreading them out the way the game does goes a long way towards enriching Tartarus and making it feel a lot less repetitive. It’s still not quite clear how much you should grind in Tartarus before you fight the boss at the end of the month, but you now have the option to go back to a specific date if you find yourself stuck.

While the game does mostly look great with its new combat animations and its tremendously sleek UI, the game’s presentation is lacking in a few areas. The lighting in general looks very off, and this was a very common complaint amongst Reload’s most vocal detractors. The game as a whole just looks very bright, and while I do agree that it doesn’t look especially good, you can simply turn the game’s brightness down, which fixes the issue. I’m not going to lie, I find this complaint to be very overblown. What I don’t think is overblown however, is how the game handles NPC crowds. I think that areas where there are a lot of NPCs like the school and Club Escapade don’t look good at all. The NPCs don’t have facial features and barely animate. It looks especially bad in Club Escapade where everyone just looks like they’re frozen in time, barely moving or dancing at all. This is more of a minor complaint in the grand scheme of things, as there aren’t very many crowded areas in Persona 3, but I do think it is something worth acknowledging.

I’m probably in the minority, but I never felt that Persona 3 really needed a full-on remake. FES used to be one of my favorite games of all time, despite being a little rough around the edges. The thing is, Reload manages to smooth most of those edges out. I don’t feel like Reload as a whole is significantly better than FES, but I really do love what it adds to supplement the original experience, especially the new story content. Reload manages to be a great new version of Persona 3 to enjoy. It does suck that The Answer is a DLC expansion and that FeMC won't be coming to the game at all, but Reload's own unique additions really made me happy, and I think this version has enough heart that it justifies its existence.