played this and persona 3 dancing, which are basically the same game. giving this one half a star more and the review because it ran better on my computer. sorry p3, the songs in p3 were better and more interesting, but also, p3 had worse voice acting, so i still enjoyed playing it less. idk. p3 just had worse vibes like they would not do this. sees should not have fun. i would honestly not mind if both games were remade or added to with royals/strikers and reload content because look. theyre fun rhythm games and they have my best friends in them. addicted to goro akechi will power. thank you

literally just finished the game, rambly thoughts ahead. the game is fun. definitely more fun than i had playing p3p, although both left me feeling fatigued. maybe that's thematically appropriate. i was definitely ready for this game to be over, but i did enjoy it. so, tartarus is a better experience than it used to be, although it gets boring after a while. well, what doesn't get boring. you could say things about the ai being stripped and characters being controllable, but portable also did that, so i can't really complain. more good additions include the linked episodes for male party members, although i could really do with replacing some of the social links because there's just a lot. and many of the social links are lacking. i understand wanting to create an "authentic" experience, but the things taken away make me wonder why some of the social links didn't get reworked or at the very least, more fleshed out. it felt like some of them would have three lines and you're done, just like the original. not to mention how a good half of them at the very least would have the character completely change their outlook halfway through and thank you profusely, as if you had ANY say.. which all the persona games do, but with the tiny amount of time you spend with some of these people, it just felt WILD. the majority of character work was great though, takaya and strega as a whole being a noticeable improvement that i wouldnt have even put on my list of things i wanted from this game, but they were really strong!

so that's what the game added and did well. what the game removed is... kind of disappointing. 1, femc. well cant complain she was added later i guess, but the amount of times i sat there arms crossed saying "if this was femc it would be sooo much better" like okay, im biased with aigis, im always gonna prefer lesbianism to no lesbianism, and i can just relate more to femc but i also think there's a lot of strengths that femc has. mitsuru social link is much better with femc, for one, as well as just the general dynamic between her and the party members. (Not ken though... lol... credit where credit is due, ken is great in this game. really like him. some bad vibes in femcs route) i also generally like her social links better, which i don't think is a controversial opinion. saori and rio come back to me. this is the persona game where women are written best, so forgive me for wanting to see more women! it's just sad that we don't have her at launch and will probably have to pay more money for her as dlc.

Speaking of dlc, where's the answer?! the most inaccessible gameplay wise part of the game, with a deeply compelling story and satisfying conclusions to the characters' arcs, especially yukari and aigis... it makes me mad that it's not even announced yet, (although the leaker has confirmed it, but maybe they're lying about this one thing? lol. we know its coming but it doenst make it easier to choke down waiting and paying more money.) so most people have to resort to piracy to get the awesome end chapter of this game, if they even know it exists at all...! if they can even tolerate the repetitive and difficult gameplay in the first place. i dont want to make it seem like it's wrong to enjoy or not enjoy the answer, but not having it is missing out on a lot... and even if it didnt get difficulty options, just Having It On The Same Platform is a lot. well, go play it or watch the scenes on youtube. it's good.

one last thing whose exclusion pissed me off is the tired mechanic. seriously, that really drilled in that you were so fucking tired all the time! as someone who is tired all the time, im missing my representation... But seriously, what's the point of letting you sleep in class when it'll just level up your courage, which is easier to get than academics? why go to the nurse's office for more useless courage? and what happened to resetting the game to stay sick and maximize your courage gains? I know i just said that courage was useless, but if you actually had a reason to go to and know about the nurse's office before your courage is maxed since theres so many other ways to do it, it would be a lot better! like, you needed to game the system because of your lack of free time, but now there's even so much more time in the evenings... Well, we can't have gamers hating the main character like they hated morgana, lol! It just screams insecurity at the main conceit of the game, and making it less unique to appeal to more people. which SUCKS!! LET'S GATEKEEP!! unless it's the answer, which should be accessible to all, LOL. okay i understand im pearl clutching at some things and preaching inclusivity at others, but if it's so unapproachable because of the strict schedule, dont play it. If you're stressed, follow a guide. turn the difficulty down, no one's keeping track. this game just feels really easy. combat's easy, it's easy to get all the social links, it's easy to max out your social stats. hell, i romanced yukari and aigis at the same time... I felt bad at first, but i promised the yukari that lives in my head that it would strengthen the narrative in the end... and there were no consequences...? at least not that i saw...? perhaps cheating with aigis specifically has no consequences, but it was just strange considering the text that appeared telling me to think it through because i already had a relationship.

one last thing i want to mention is ryoji. what were they thinking...?! well, atlus is neither confirming nor denying the homophobia allegations... man. well i like that he got more screentime and i did actually like him this time around, but he is more kaworu than ever, and a lot of it left a bitter taste in my mouth. well thats the fujoshi lifestyle for you