Persona 3 is part of the popular Megami Tensi media franchise whose first game dates back to 1987. Its series is well known for combining the interactivity of a social simulator with an action role playing game. Think The Sims meets dungeon crawler. While this might seem like a compelling combination, note this game was originally released in 2006 for the Playstation 2, so suffice to say the amount of interaction that you can actually achieve is limited. While the remake i.e. Reloaded version released in February 2024 was updated to the latest Unreal Engine and features a new voice cast for the English release, it seems the developers decided not to change or add to the core content which I feel let’s down the potential of the game. The reception to the game is generally positive however some players criticized the repetitive nature of the game play. Other limitations like not being able to save during conversations make this game difficult to square if you are the type that likes to try all dialogue options.

 

There’s a lot of dialogue and player’s choices are so important to the plot as well as adding to your character’s growth. So, as a way to help players redo choices, Atlus introduced a rollback feature called Rewind which can be found in the Settings menu. Rewind is just shorthand for auto-saves. If saving were easier to begin with, there probably wouldn’t be a need for this feature but I digress. Other quality improvements include, auto-progression, and a fast forward to allow players the ability to skip those long talks and transitions.

 

The difficulty of this game isn’t so much managing the grind but dealing with a multi-faceted narrative that borderline on psychosis. While this game is considered sci-fi, the story combines philosophy, religion, and occultism. All the things a normal teenager is thinking about I’m sure. (-.-) Weird associations notwithstanding, the game has all of the familiar hallmarks of a Japanese RPG circa 2006. Side scrolling stages, bubble text with dialogue that’s only partially voiced, leading you to have to read. Now, I know what you’re thinking; what’s wrong with having to read some? Well, I play video games so I don’t have to read anything.

 

I didn’t experience any technical glitches while playing and the overall game play is about what you’d expect. The interactions with NPCs are an entertaining mix of hormonal angst, adolescent confusion, and a sprinkle of sexual tension. The combat’s turn based system is polished and easy to use however I do have to mention the disturbing nature in which you call upon your Persona. Your Persona is essentially an avatar that’s imbued with special abilities and buffs. You activate this by holding a special gun, or SEER gun, to your head and pulling the trigger. Apparently, you are blowing your brains out figuratively, and that’s what causes your Persona to appear. This depiction or exposition of suicide is not exactly new in Japanese culture but the visual of it might be a little too disturbing by western culture standards. I would not recommend this game to anyone under 18.