An excellent remake of a beautiful game.

For years the fans have been requesting a remake and I think we all had different reasons as to why. My main wish in a remake was to implement the improved gameplay changes made to the series in P4 and built upon in P5. Reload absolutely delivers in this regard and results in my favourite combat in the series.

I like that Theurgy takes the showtime special moves from P5R but gives the player visual info on when these moves can be used in addition to letting them be saved for subsequent turns or even battles. The only downside of this mechanic is that the meter tends to build quite fast, and saving the meter for boss battles on all your party members is extremely overpowered and can trivialize these moments. They’re still extremely satisfying to pull off though and I would love to see these further refined.

My favourite addition to combat though is how they’ve changed the navigator role. By giving Fuuka her own SP meter and suite of moves that can be used in both battle and dungeon navigation, it not only adds another resource to manage, but it makes them feel closer connected to the party as a valuable member.

The music of Persona is so important to me, and like many others I felt trepidation about the new vocalist and arrangements. I think in many cases the new versions are excellent and an improvement. The Tartarus boss battle themes don’t land though. I think they just lost some edge. That being said, the new original songs are excellent.

For many players this game failed to deliver the definitive version of P3, but for me this isn’t the case. The lack of the female protagonist is disappointing for sure but not a deal breaker personally. The Answer coming later as a DLC is a little ridiculous but I’ll pass judgment on that when it drops later this year. I still think this is the definitive version though. Combat is fast and fluid with tons of QoL improvements, you get the improved presentation and full 3D gameplay, all the social links are voiced now etc. Unless playing as the female protagonist is absolutely critical for you, this is the version to play.

I love this game. The cast of characters are unforgettable and the performances are great. It’s the type of game that sticks with you for years and despite having played the other versions many times, I still cried like a baby when the credits hit.

A really fun expansion even as a roguelite hater. Wish there were a few more objective types here but what’s presented is fun. I appreciate that you can set the difficulty level to what you’re looking to get out of it. If you want to make it as challenging as possible you can do a no hacks run and pick hard stages, but if you want a relaxing time you can choose easier stages and build your character quickly. Pretty short if you just want to clear it once but there’s reason to go back to unlock content for use in multiplayer. Easy recommendation.