I am certainly not a stranger to the Persona series, and had already played Persona 3 on my ps2 about two years ago. I’m going to let you know now that what I am reviewing is what I have played of p3p so far as the fmc Minako. Also. I’m listening to the “During the test…” music from the game because it makes me feel productive :D
The Persona franchise made by Atlus is usually composed of the same elements: teenagers fighting while also attending school. In Persona 3, you are the main character who has just arrived to Port Island. You’ll be starting school at Gekkoukan High School. Oh. And you’re parents have been dead for awhile. So yeah, no parental issues. Normal main character. However, as you start school, you begin to realize not all is as it seems, and you soon figure out there is an hour hidden after midnight called the Dark Hour. You, with your high school club known as SEES, must figure out the mysteries of the Dark Hour, the Shadows that appear during the Dark Hour, and the odd place known as Tartarus where the Shadows nest. But don’t worry. You just have to do all this AND catch a few dates while studying as well.
I ran across p3 from a review on X-play, and of course, not listening to them decided to buy the game. Boy. Was I RIGHT not to listen to them. This game has it all. The RPG element is clearly there, as how you interact with people truly does determine how much time it takes for you to progress in a relationship. Then there is a good battle system in which tactics take priority rather than brute strength. There are also other qualities to this game that make it the masterpiece it is: The music composed by Shoji Meguro with vocals by Yumi Kawamura make me so excited about my days, I can’t stop listening to it! The catchy jazz and impressive rapping skills just catch my breath. The story itself is very complex, with multiple twists and gasp moments that will seriously make you consider life itself as you go through this journey with characters you quickly learn to love. God knows I still think about that ending to this day.
However, that is the general review of the game, and I am here to review the portable version. So, on to it I go!!!
I immediately was excited to hear there was an fmc for the portable version, simply because I was a girl and just wanted to get into Shinji’s pants. However, I was a little skeptically when I started going through the game. It seemed they added a few stereotypical comments at the end of the normal conversations from the original game and that was it. An example would be when Ikutsuki adviced me to go to bed, and then finished with “You wouldn’t want to ruin your complexion.” I thought this would happen the entire game, in which case I would have been seriously disappointed in it. Not to mention how differently Junpei treated me now that I was a girl (“You pick her to be the leader??? But, she’s a girl!” omg Junpei come over here, I’ll show you why he picked me over you >:|) However, this quickly changed as they integrated more qualities of a girl into the story development. While I’m never one to like Yukari, I actually got to understand her better as a gal-pal than I ever did as her boyfriend when I was the guy mc (Just TRY talking to her while in a relationship, she is SO ANNOYING.) Also, despite how differently Junpei treated me, I got to learn about his past quicker than I did as the male mc. The story really does change a bit when interacting with people as a female character. I got a new friend from my athletics club, and apparently all the boys want me. Oh boy, which one should I pick??? lalala AKIHIKOSHINJIROAKIHIKOSHINJIRO.
Hahaha, now to get back on subject, let’s go into the fighting gameplay. While in Tartarus, it’s the same deal as before: you go in and fight some baddies until you reach a block, in which you’re finished fighting until the Full Moon battle. However, some of the gameplay has been changed because this is a newer version of the original p3. I’ve also played Persona 4, so I noticed right away how they incorporated some of the battle style from p4 into p3p. You have double team attacks, and when you or an enemy gets knocked down, it doesn’t take a whole turn to get back up. You can also get dizzy if they hit your weak point twice, and vice versa for the enemy. There is also a nifty thing where you can take command of your allies during battle to choose their attacks, which I love OH SO MUCH. Yukari will no longer be acting stupid, thank you very much :D
As this is on the psp, some graphics have been changed. While moving around the island during the day, you no longer get to see your person running about and talking to people. And when events happen, it really is similar to a story-telling game in which you see the scenery, but don’t actually see what is going on. The text tells you if characters move or do some sort of action, but mostly it’s up to the imagination. I’m torn by this, because I was so used to seeing what was happening in the original p3. I quickly adapted though. Plus, it’s much easier to run around town by simply pressing square and choosing where to go.
The new music made just for the fmc is amazing. At first, I totally missed the old music, but once again I adapted and once again couldn’t wait to go to school (That music just makes you WANT to go to school… in game XD) Anyhow, what music I REALLY WANT TO MENTION is the fmc battle music. I love that music. The second I hear it play I went to my comp and downloaded it onto my ipod. Just hearing “I’m not a princess, not a cutie-girlfriend oh no…” made me smile and go “Yeah. That’s awesome.” And then when Misturu threatened Junpei with basically “If you even dare to think about looking down on her just because she’s a woman…” I was all like “Boy. YOU JUST GOT TOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOLD OH SNAP >:D”
Needless to say, Persona 3 is an amazing game, and p3p just adds on to how amazing the storytelling and gameplay is incorporated. Whether girl or boy, you will enjoy yourself with this exceptional game of high caliber.
