[danny devito i get it gif]
let me start by saying that this was my first full experience with persona 3. i tried getting into the original years ago, but the mountain of jank and shit gameplay mechanics turned me off from it pretty quickly and i dropped it before the second boss. i don't have a real frame of reference between the original and the remake, so this review's only gonna be focusing on reload. i know there's probably some people upset about the new additions (or prefered the old gameplay for whatever fucking reason), but i'm not taking that into account.
that being said. i get it now.
this shit is an absolute masterpiece. i'm extremely thankful for this remake for letting me actually experience the incredible story that was locked behind dogshit gameplay mechanics that i couldn't get past. THAT'S how you fucking remaster a game - actually make an effort to update the old jank and iron out the flaws instead of just adding one new scene or porting it to a different console. even without having played the original all the way through, from what i've heard this game just utterly demolishes it.
first off, gameplay. i am a MASSIVE nerd about rpg mechanics, and i'll admit my tastes are really finnicky. and admittedly, p3r doesn't do much out of the ordinary from your usual persona/SMT game. sure, having different physical attack types and big flashy theurgies are super fun, but it's nothing revolutionary. but the thing is that it doesn't need to be revolutionary - it just needs to work. just by taking the shitty, unwieldy battle system of p3 and replacing it with a more modern system that actually works immediately makes this game a thousand times better. that's all it needs! they didn't need to rehaul anything for it to be great, but the new additions they did make are still super fun.
and to be totally honest, i didn't really mind the gameplay loop of tartarus at all. it's definitely repetitive, but seeking out rare shadows, monad doors, or trying to access the level up clock took the edge off and gave me something to always look forward to. even once i reached the endgame and spent hours trying to get sun tarots, i didn't outright hate it. the moment-to-moment gameplay isn't super spectacular, but i think i prefer it to p5's hyper-scripted palaces where i'm watching a cutscene every five minutes.
even on a higher difficulty the gameplay felt fun, though it definitely got even better once i got to a high enough level and started seeking out ultimate personas - finally having a reason to plan out actual busted builds and work towards specific fusions felt awesome. again, it's nothing spectacular, but it doesn't need to be. just by not being a total dumpster fire, it removes the barrier for entry and allows me to experience the actual goated part of the game - the story.
god DAMN y'all. i always knew this shit was good, but i didn't expect it to affect me so deeply. sure, it's not always as flashy as dramatic as p5, but that game doesn't have shit on this. the range of emotions i went through while playing was unreal. 10/4 made me cry. chidori made me cry. all of january made me sad beyond words. both akinari AND his mom made me sob uncontrollably. and every second from the moment you beat nyx to the credits is non-stop waterworks. sure, there are some arcs that aren't as good as others, but from the most part this game kept me engaged from beginning to end. if i had somehow dodged spoilers for almost two decades before going into this one, i don't think i'd ever recover.
this is easily the best cast in any persona game, full stop. having their character progression be linked to the actual story is so much better than being locked behind social links, and that way they actually get well-developed beyond their introduction. sure, not all of that development is even (fuuka doesn't get a whole lot past her persona evolving, and even that doesn't feel as impactful), but for a main cast of this size i think they did the best they could. not to mention, the voice cast is incredible and breathes SO much life into this game. i swear, the praise i've seen for even secondary voice roles (yuko specifically) has been unreal, and very well-deserved.
this may be a bit of a hotter take, but the cast of social links is probably the best of any modern persona game too. sure, not all of them are super impactful (ie maya and tanaka are definitely meant to be funny rather than serious), but almost all of them are winners in some way or another. the only exceptions being kenji and nozomi, who made me want to rip my head off. a few of them take a while to really get going, but even so. p5's dumb ass can't compare at all to the Chad Akinari.
i don't even need to talk about the aesthetics/soundtrack - that's the one thing persona consistently nails, and this game is no different. yes, the new version of mass destruction and iwatodai dorm aren't as great, but who cares! shit slaps! the entire intro cutscene is fantastic, the menus are sick, and hearing DISTURBING THE PEEEEEEACE every 30 seconds NEVER got old.
it's not perfect - obviously. every game has flaws, and this one's no different - but i don't think there was a single one that made me more than mildly annoyed. i could absolutely nitpick - fuuka gets almost no development (like i said), akihiko is a REALLY shitty party member, the game costs 70 bucks (and the dlc pricing is even worse), and worst of all (imo) chidori's revival seems like some REALLY weird wish fulfillment that doesn't really fit in with the game's themes. like they do it decently well and it's not a bad scene, it's just. why. it was in the older versions too though (and according to p4au it's apparently canon) so i'll let it slide. who am i to refuse junpei the goth gf of his dreams?
persona 3 is such an important game - and i'm so glad i finally got to really understand why. with other persona games i usually just roll my eyes as they try to bumble through themes of "society is bad" and "accept that you're probably into dudes", but i really get it now. its focus on finding reasons to live through the bonds you make, the way that different characters find reasons to keep going despite being face to face with genuine hopelessness, SO many different intertwined storylines about love, revenge, and finding your own place in the world... s'good. usually i hate getting so sappy and corny over video games, but if any game deserves it it's this one. i think only a handful of games have made me feel like i need to take a deep, long look at my life like this one does (and not spend so much time stressing over playing backlog games i hate just for the sake of being done with them. not that this applies to p3r though, obviously).
persona's always going to be a weird series. yes, it's big and ambitious and popular for a reason, but the shadow of wacko shit like Dating High School Girls and having a social link where a teacher wants to fuck you is always there. especially now as an adult, it feels weird to play these games. but p3r's messages are so strong that i'm able to push past that, and i'm really glad i did. i'm so thankful that i got to finally experience this game, and i'm fucking distraught now that it's over.
not to be corny, but. akinari's mom told me to tell the people i care about that i love them. so to all of you with me on this specific internet page, telling me how this game helped you out of a dark time or shaped your outlook on life, i'm so glad that i finally get to join you. thank you for sharing this small, yet impactful piece of yourself with me.
i <--read downward!!
luv
u
let me start by saying that this was my first full experience with persona 3. i tried getting into the original years ago, but the mountain of jank and shit gameplay mechanics turned me off from it pretty quickly and i dropped it before the second boss. i don't have a real frame of reference between the original and the remake, so this review's only gonna be focusing on reload. i know there's probably some people upset about the new additions (or prefered the old gameplay for whatever fucking reason), but i'm not taking that into account.
that being said. i get it now.
this shit is an absolute masterpiece. i'm extremely thankful for this remake for letting me actually experience the incredible story that was locked behind dogshit gameplay mechanics that i couldn't get past. THAT'S how you fucking remaster a game - actually make an effort to update the old jank and iron out the flaws instead of just adding one new scene or porting it to a different console. even without having played the original all the way through, from what i've heard this game just utterly demolishes it.
first off, gameplay. i am a MASSIVE nerd about rpg mechanics, and i'll admit my tastes are really finnicky. and admittedly, p3r doesn't do much out of the ordinary from your usual persona/SMT game. sure, having different physical attack types and big flashy theurgies are super fun, but it's nothing revolutionary. but the thing is that it doesn't need to be revolutionary - it just needs to work. just by taking the shitty, unwieldy battle system of p3 and replacing it with a more modern system that actually works immediately makes this game a thousand times better. that's all it needs! they didn't need to rehaul anything for it to be great, but the new additions they did make are still super fun.
and to be totally honest, i didn't really mind the gameplay loop of tartarus at all. it's definitely repetitive, but seeking out rare shadows, monad doors, or trying to access the level up clock took the edge off and gave me something to always look forward to. even once i reached the endgame and spent hours trying to get sun tarots, i didn't outright hate it. the moment-to-moment gameplay isn't super spectacular, but i think i prefer it to p5's hyper-scripted palaces where i'm watching a cutscene every five minutes.
even on a higher difficulty the gameplay felt fun, though it definitely got even better once i got to a high enough level and started seeking out ultimate personas - finally having a reason to plan out actual busted builds and work towards specific fusions felt awesome. again, it's nothing spectacular, but it doesn't need to be. just by not being a total dumpster fire, it removes the barrier for entry and allows me to experience the actual goated part of the game - the story.
god DAMN y'all. i always knew this shit was good, but i didn't expect it to affect me so deeply. sure, it's not always as flashy as dramatic as p5, but that game doesn't have shit on this. the range of emotions i went through while playing was unreal. 10/4 made me cry. chidori made me cry. all of january made me sad beyond words. both akinari AND his mom made me sob uncontrollably. and every second from the moment you beat nyx to the credits is non-stop waterworks. sure, there are some arcs that aren't as good as others, but from the most part this game kept me engaged from beginning to end. if i had somehow dodged spoilers for almost two decades before going into this one, i don't think i'd ever recover.
this is easily the best cast in any persona game, full stop. having their character progression be linked to the actual story is so much better than being locked behind social links, and that way they actually get well-developed beyond their introduction. sure, not all of that development is even (fuuka doesn't get a whole lot past her persona evolving, and even that doesn't feel as impactful), but for a main cast of this size i think they did the best they could. not to mention, the voice cast is incredible and breathes SO much life into this game. i swear, the praise i've seen for even secondary voice roles (yuko specifically) has been unreal, and very well-deserved.
this may be a bit of a hotter take, but the cast of social links is probably the best of any modern persona game too. sure, not all of them are super impactful (ie maya and tanaka are definitely meant to be funny rather than serious), but almost all of them are winners in some way or another. the only exceptions being kenji and nozomi, who made me want to rip my head off. a few of them take a while to really get going, but even so. p5's dumb ass can't compare at all to the Chad Akinari.
i don't even need to talk about the aesthetics/soundtrack - that's the one thing persona consistently nails, and this game is no different. yes, the new version of mass destruction and iwatodai dorm aren't as great, but who cares! shit slaps! the entire intro cutscene is fantastic, the menus are sick, and hearing DISTURBING THE PEEEEEEACE every 30 seconds NEVER got old.
it's not perfect - obviously. every game has flaws, and this one's no different - but i don't think there was a single one that made me more than mildly annoyed. i could absolutely nitpick - fuuka gets almost no development (like i said), akihiko is a REALLY shitty party member, the game costs 70 bucks (and the dlc pricing is even worse), and worst of all (imo) chidori's revival seems like some REALLY weird wish fulfillment that doesn't really fit in with the game's themes. like they do it decently well and it's not a bad scene, it's just. why. it was in the older versions too though (and according to p4au it's apparently canon) so i'll let it slide. who am i to refuse junpei the goth gf of his dreams?
persona 3 is such an important game - and i'm so glad i finally got to really understand why. with other persona games i usually just roll my eyes as they try to bumble through themes of "society is bad" and "accept that you're probably into dudes", but i really get it now. its focus on finding reasons to live through the bonds you make, the way that different characters find reasons to keep going despite being face to face with genuine hopelessness, SO many different intertwined storylines about love, revenge, and finding your own place in the world... s'good. usually i hate getting so sappy and corny over video games, but if any game deserves it it's this one. i think only a handful of games have made me feel like i need to take a deep, long look at my life like this one does (and not spend so much time stressing over playing backlog games i hate just for the sake of being done with them. not that this applies to p3r though, obviously).
persona's always going to be a weird series. yes, it's big and ambitious and popular for a reason, but the shadow of wacko shit like Dating High School Girls and having a social link where a teacher wants to fuck you is always there. especially now as an adult, it feels weird to play these games. but p3r's messages are so strong that i'm able to push past that, and i'm really glad i did. i'm so thankful that i got to finally experience this game, and i'm fucking distraught now that it's over.
not to be corny, but. akinari's mom told me to tell the people i care about that i love them. so to all of you with me on this specific internet page, telling me how this game helped you out of a dark time or shaped your outlook on life, i'm so glad that i finally get to join you. thank you for sharing this small, yet impactful piece of yourself with me.
i <--read downward!!
luv
u