It is tough to replay older Persona video games after Persona 5. They nonetheless inform engrossing character-driven tales, however with Persona 5 — and Persona 5 Royal specifically — Atlus advanced the collection’ core gameplay loop to such an extent that earlier titles can really feel clunky and monotonous by comparability. And so we’ve Persona 3 Reload — a ground-up remake of the unique Persona 3, which goals to introduce an entire new technology of gamers to what was as soon as an inspirational PS2 RPG.
As a way to obtain this aim, Reload focuses on two key areas of enchancment: a whole visible rebuild, and big gameplay upgrades, each out and in of battle. The result’s a remake that falls virtually precisely according to the trendy sensibilities of Persona 5.
However earlier than we dig into the small print, let’s discuss concerning the recreation’s immaculate presentation. Reload retains the blue-leaning color scheme of the unique launch, however as talked about, every little thing has been remade (in Unreal Engine, no much less). This can be a really luxurious title; from the crisp character fashions to the attractive hand-drawn dialogue portraits, it is a visible delight, whereas particle and lighting results do some very heavy lifting when it comes to setting the sport’s moody tone. Even the menus, with their new, watery aesthetics, are a deal with to behold.
In a turn-based RPG the place you will be doing a whole lot of speaking and flicking via menus exterior of fight, presentation is so necessary — and Reload nails it. Is it higher trying than Persona 5? Graphically, surely — however we’re hesitant to say that it is extra fashionable. Reload is extremely neat and tidy — by no means soulless, however meticulous. In any case, it is an absolute feast for the eyes.
Once you’re not gawking on the recreation’s many shades of blue, Reload follows the identical story and construction because the title that it is primarily based upon. Set in 2009, you play as a younger man who’s shifting to a brand new college — however your arrival on Tatsumi Port Island occurs to coincide with a collection of supernatural occasions. As if the training system wasn’t annoying sufficient, you rapidly study that there is really a hidden time period that exists at midnight. This so-called ‘Darkish Hour’ is imperceptible to regular individuals — however those that have the ‘potential’ are aware whereas it is occurring.
Often, the Darkish Hour poses no menace, however there are creatures, named shadows, that take type throughout this time — and for no matter purpose, they’re rising stressed. Happily, you are not alone in having the aforementioned ‘potential’ — and so that you’re invited to affix the Specialised Extracurricular Execution Squad, or S.E.E.S. for brief. Collectively along with your new buddies, you are tasked with taking the battle to the shadows, and unravelling the mysteries of the Darkish Hour.
Conceptually, Persona 3 nonetheless has one of many coolest narrative foundations within the collection. You are basically a part of successful squad that hunts down demons whereas the world stays oblivious — and your searching floor is a terrifying tower known as Tartarus.
The plot can be loads darker than what you will discover in Persona 3’s successors. Proper from the beginning, there are apparent themes of loss of life and mortal consequence, and it makes for some gripping storytelling at instances. There’s an pleasurable melancholy to Persona 3 that subsequent Persona video games fell away from, however fortunately, Reload embraces the unique’s usually horror-tinged ambiance. If Persona 5 was a bit too Saturday morning cartoon on your tastes, then you definitely may discover the brooding tones of Persona 3 extra interesting.
Structurally, the sport’s mainly break up into two halves. The primary revolves round your day-to-day life, as you attend college, make buddies, discover the island metropolis, and enhance key traits of your persona. The second half of the discharge includes conquering the Darkish Hour — climbing Tartarus, battling shadows, and levelling up your social gathering. Nevertheless, in typical Persona vogue, the sport’s greatness lies in its skill to meld these two disparate halves to create a deeply satisfying complete.
As you forge extra significant connections with different characters, you are in a position to create extra highly effective personas — spirit-like entities that you simply summon with the intention to stand towards the shadows. And because the complete recreation runs on a calendar system — that means you can solely have interaction in a restricted variety of actions per day — you are inspired to reside a balanced and environment friendly life. At its core, Persona is about utilizing your free time correctly, and in Persona 3, that idea is probably extra necessary than ever, as on set dates, you will be pressured to partake in S.E.E.S. operations to thwart the shadow menace, and in flip, progress the principle story.
If such a gameplay construction sounds annoying, it is price noting that Reload makes many optimistic modifications to how managing your time really works. For starters, buddies and part-time job alternatives will textual content you (in your flip telephone!) once they’re out there — so that you now not need to comb the town for particular actions. What’s extra, there isn’t any longer a fatigue system, so you do not have to fret about social gathering members rising drained and even sick as you delve into Tartarus. Briefly, Reload streamlines the Persona 3 expertise, and whereas hardcore followers might argue that the alterations dilute the journey, the modifications are, once more, all in service of modernising Persona 3. And in that sense, Reload is a large success.
However Reload’s finest enhancements lie within the warmth of battle. Fight within the authentic launch had an inclination to tug, particularly later within the recreation when shadows would tout tediously giant well being bars. Reload addresses that grievance by adopting mechanics from Persona 5, permitting you to ‘shift’ between characters after hitting an enemy’s weak spot, whereas additionally including ‘gentle’ and ‘darkish’ components to the prevailing pool of magic assaults and resistances. Then there are Theurgy strategies — explosive character-specific tremendous assaults which might be constructed up over the course of fight. There are a great deal of extra minor tweaks below the hood as properly, however these headline modifications permit Persona 3’s fight to shine as soon as once more.
Reload’s turn-based encounters are sometimes a thrill, they usually’re all the time eye-poppingly fairly. All-new animations, art work cut-ins, and intuitive, one-button command menus make battles a spotlight of the expertise. In the meantime, the return of Shuffle Time provides a randomised component to every battle, supplying you with an opportunity to choose up some uncommon loot after claiming victory. It is all very moreish, to the purpose the place the grind for character ranges, gadgets, and new personas turns into devilishly addictive.
What about Tartarus itself, although? The shadow-infested tower has lengthy break up fan opinion, as its procedurally generated format can serve up some very samey exploration. Happily, Reload transforms Tartarus into a totally 3D labyrinth the place every block is visually distinct, and better of all, it throws a bunch of randomised components into the method of ascending the tower, ground by ground. Initially, there are treasure chests to find and particular shadows to hunt, however as the sport progresses, increasingly more options are unlocked. Monad Doorways, for instance, present elective battles towards lethal new bosses — surely certainly one of our favorite additions.
Tartarus continues to be repetitive by design, however these recent elements make the grind way more participating total, and when mixed with the quite a few updates to fight, that is most likely the best-designed dungeon crawling in a Persona recreation.
The enhancements do not cease there, although. As talked about, Reload sticks to the story of Persona 3, but it surely makes a transparent and efficient effort to flesh issues out — particularly the place major characters are involved. Within the authentic RPG, it was the S.E.E.S. members themselves that lacked depth, locking virtually all character growth behind key story scenes. Nevertheless, Reload allows you to hang around along with your fellow shadow-slayers regularly, participating in shared actions like gardening, cooking, and watching DVDs (2009, keep in mind). The narrative pacing feels far more cohesive because of all this socialising, and essential plot factors find yourself hitting more durable than ever.
Relating to the gameplay loop and the therapy of its core forged, Reload is definitely the most effective model of Persona 3 — but it surely’s nonetheless tough to name it definitive. That is as a result of the extra components of enhanced re-release Persona 3 FES and PSP port Persona 3 Transportable aren’t included — and so we’re nonetheless caught with 4 separate incarnations of what’s basically the identical recreation. Realizing Atlus, there’s all the time an opportunity that Reload itself will get a re-release down the road that would embody FES’ expanded story, or Transportable’s feminine major character — however we will solely evaluate what’s in entrance of us, and proper now, Reload is a close to important remake.