Persona 3 Reload Review – Perfect and fitting Persona Reload for new and old fans

Here’s my Persona 3 Reload Review which is now available in stores for various consoles including the PS5, PS4, Xbox One, Xbox Series X / S and PC via Steam! The game is developed by P-Studio and ATLUS and was released February 2024. This RPG was directed by Takuya Yamaguchi and written by Daizaburo Nonoue. Music was composed by Atsushi Kitajoh and Shoji Meguro!

I have to admit that I’m not “yet” a BIG Fan of the Persona games. So far I did get obsessed for quite a bit with Persona 5 and I have a copy of the game for Playstation 4 as well as Persona 5 Royal on the Nintendo Switch. So while I am used to the UI and interface for the P5R game, I can’t say I’ve had anything to do with P3 or P3R for that matter. So you can definitely read my excited for this game in this review.

What I do know however is that the game got some major overhaul from the developers who wanted to created a superior version of 2006 game with all the aesthetics and vibe of a modern game. From my readings before diving into the game I know that game’s art and art direction got some major overhaul thanks to Shigenori Soejima. Other parts of the game have also been updated or changed including the character designs, the music and even the vocal tracks performed throughout the game.

 

BACKGROUND

The game is official a remake of 2006’s Persona 3 and follows the high school student who returns to his home city 10 years after the death of his parents. As he gets involved with the supernatural occurrences in his area, he is recruited to join the Specialized Extracurricular Execution Squad (S.E.E.S.), a group of like-minded Persona users. As a team, they join forces to fight the Shadows and ultimately discover the mystery around the so-called “Dark Hour”.

Just like other Persona games, Persona 3 Reload is a story of imperfect people finding the strength and the power to fight the imperfections in their tiny world. It’s a classic tale with a darker twist for this game and if you’re new to the game then you’ll probably be on the edge of your seat but if you’ve played the game before it’s a nice stroll down memory lane. Regardless, it’s a fantastic story with just the right amount of twists and turns and a lot of heavy drama sprinkled with nice visuals and awesome music.

 

CHARACTERS

A remake of Persona 3 was oft-requested by fans following the series’ push towards global popularity thanks to the success of Persona 5 (2016), as was officially acknowledged by Atlus themselves. Reload began development in 2019,[1] while its production was first reported on in April 2023 ahead of the game’s announcement in June 2023. Reload faithfully remakes the story of the original release of Persona 3, with various graphical and functional updates that bring the game in parity with the series’ later installments.  oversaw overhauled art direction by Tomohiro Kumagai, updated character designs by Azusa Shimada, and new and arranged music by Atsushi Kitajoh and Shoji Meguro with vocal tracks performed by Azumi Takahashi and Lotus Juice.

MUSIC

One of the things that Persona has been synonymous with is the good quality music it provides. I’ll have to cite my previous experience as the peg for the discerning music for the game so I am really pleased that it’s on the same level as P5. Dare I say even better. As a newbie, I’m all for the repetitive nature of the tracks for the game. Not only does it hammer the songs in my head which I really welcome, but it’s also very distinct; so much so that when I see the P3R posters in the mall I can’t help but hum the theme. The nice mix for the main battle theme which features some hip-hop flavor helps pepper the game even more.

And then there’s the classic Velvet Room theme which is timeless and appealing.

VISUALS

The game has this charming look to it and that easily makes it such a nice game to play with for 70 hours or more. Everything looks modern despite the OG game already being almost 20 years old. In short, the developers did one hell of a job in making this feel relevant and modern from the SEES Dorm to Tartarus.

It also helps that we get beautifully animated cutscenes that they’ve already perfected since Persona 5.

 

PERSONAS

Love the different personas that are available in this game whether it’s the lower-class personas to the stronger ones at higher levels. I was expecting these creatures to look roughly like what they appeared in Persona 5 but I was wrong, they were definitely in a class of their own. I also liked that they recycled the designs for some of the personas/enemies from P5. It provides a sense of continuity to the game as well as provides familiar players with an idea of what each persona does just by looking at them.

One of the fun aspects of Personas in Persona 3 Reload is the MC’s ability to swap out Personas to use in combat. Just like in the past games, P3R lets your MC (main character) swap out a persona in use during his turn in battle. This comes in handy when dealing with enemies with different weaknesses. Being able to strategize when to swap and what type of attack can dictate the outcome of the battle.

You can also grow your Persona’s level as you progress up through Tartarus. While you may want to stick with the MC’s main Persona Orpheus, its a better idea to diversify and pick as early as possible what Persona to bring. Raising your persona can also be a little bit easy by visiting the Velvet Room where you can fuse

Mini Games

There’s a ton of things that you can do to improve your characters in Persona 3 Reload. The MC has to attend school and has some time between fighting shadows and getting some sleep. In between you need to improve some key aspects that will also help unlock more things as you progress through the story. The main three elements you can focus on are social stats namely your Charm, Academics  and Courage.

Going to work, answering questions correctly, being a good guy throughout the game helps improve your social stats.

Combat

Combat happens through different locales in the game but at the start, it’s usually in the place called Tartarus. A team of four characters walk around the dungeons where you continuously look for the staircase leading up all the while battling different monsters and opening treasures. A quick strike on unsuspecting enemies will give you the advantage but in some cases, the shadows can also ambush you and you end up in a predicament.

Fighting follows the standard RPG approach. You enter into an enemy encounter you have your turns and for each character they will have a choice of actions whether to:

• Attack
• Use a persona
• Use an Item
• Defend / Guard

 

There’s a fun element in combat called Shifting

This happens when you successfully weaken or stun the enemy that you are awarded another moment to attack. This is the game’s version of the “Baton Pass” from Persona 5. It’s now up to you whether you want to pass the attack or continue pummeling the poor monsters. This makes sense at the get-go but will help you as you fight tougher opponents the higher you go up Tartarus. Plus it also develops your strategic thinking especially when you enter combat and you are sorely mismatched. I actually found myself several times being able to survive fighting stronger shadows with Shift.

Using Personas is also a fun aspect and one that makes for some crazy moments.

Social Links

Another fun aspect that I’m already familiar with thanks to P5 is social links. Basically, through each day you are given the chance to choose to interact and go on different activities with different characters. Some characters are members of your team while others are random characters like the old folks running the used books store or your pretty upbeat classmate Kenji Tomochika. Choosing to develop and grow your friendships opens new skills and levels for your social links and Persona.

Growth will also provide some neat bonuses that you can use either in combat, during Tower raids and exploration or while walking around during the normal waking hours.

While not really part of the social links, you can also grow your characteristics which helps also both in battle and outside. You can raise your COURAGE, CHARISMA and ACADEMICS. This is actually pretty easy compared to Persona 5 which had like 4 things to grow.

Keeping your attention and not dozing off during class can help improve your standing tremendously. So always choose to stay awake in class. Oh and the quizzes are also in this game but not as frequent as in the last major AAA Persona game.

FINAL THOUGHTS AND VERDICT

I thoroughly enjoyed Persona 3 Reload and I can confidently say that I am very much at home with this franchise and it’s a nice game that can last you through an entire day. The characterization is fresh and fun and the animation is just top notch. Growing your character isn’t as tiring as you’d think and the social stuff and growing your different personas can be a handful but still manageable. ATLUS and SEGA crafted a beautiful story with this “reloaded” version of Persona 3 and I cannot wait for what they plan to do with older Persona games.

9/10

Persona 3 Reload is now out in stores as well as on digital format for PC via Steam.  Please follow and like Tefanboyseo on Twitter and Instagram!