And yet it's all so familiar at the same time; the normal attack animations are true to form, the battle portraits are identical, and how your crew blast themselves in the head with an Evoker remains the sickest and best in-lore way to summon a persona. The fresh aesthetics and stylings more akin to Persona 5 also make these characters cooler than I could've ever imagined them to be.

Chasing the truth behind the Dark Hour, the existence of personas, and the rising cases of Apathy Syndrome that’s overtaken the world like a widespread pandemic creates an unmistakable existential dread that lingers over this world.

I absolutely love this game. As a person who played both the original fes and portable, I can definitely recommend both new comers to the persona franchise, and OG's who have been curious about the remake. I loved it, and I can't wait for The Answer.

The structure and progression within Tartarus has not been altered from the original game whatsoever, but has been expanded with more environmental variety to encourage exploration, and sports unique visual effects accomplished by the game's use of Unreal Engine 4, such as improved lighting. The fatigue mechanic has been completely removed to reflect subsequent entries, making it so that the party is unable to tire during exploration, thus pelo longer affecting their battle performance. Each floor within Tartarus also houses breakable objects in the form of fire effigies that can be swung at to obtain hidden treasure and items.

Embark on a one-of-a-kind adventure taking you from the tranquil countryside surrounded by majestic wilderness to lively cities flanked by mysterious caves and treacherous canyons.

My biggest and most personal gripe with Persona 3 Reload is that if the main character falls in battle, it's game over, and you have to begin again from your last save point or restart the battle you persona 3 reload gameplay died in from the beginning. This ‘game over’ condition has been a mainstay in the Persona series (and its big brother franchise, Shin Megami Tensei) and I’m disappointed to see it is still here as it’s a nonsensical and cheap way to artificially increase the difficulty. It goes against the ‘power of friendship’ message the Persona series is based on.

You will manage your time between school lessons, socializing with your peers, and fighting against monsters to prepare for stronger threats.

This is where building Social Links becomes a crucial part of the gameplay loop. Social Links can provide bonuses allowing you to instantly level up Personas when fusing them in the Velvet Room or unlock new recipes to create powerful Personas you won’t find from destroying Shadows.

Exp: Experience. Used to level up. There is pelo way to confirm how the Exp system works as of this version of the guide, but here is what is assumed to be the Exp system.

The battle system uses the tried and true turn-based Shin Megami Tensei from every Persona game. You need to use attacks enemies are weak against to enable your team to dogpile in and beat them to a pulp with an all-out attack.

The character models are richly detailed, and the cutscenes and battle special effects animations are well-done and flashy, with vibrant and eye-catching environments. Tartarus, in particular, received the most significant visual enhancement, as each major section of the dungeon is now richly detailed with unique architecture, map layouts, and art styles to make them look more distinct, alleviating repetition while exploring them.

All that time you spend with these characters in Reload, learning about them and going through a typical day together, shows the value of a normal life. But they weren’t brought together by choice; at critical moments in the story, their complicated histories create a believable tension that boils over, sometimes harboring resentment for each other and doubting their trust.

I was so glad the Fatigue system had been removed for Persona 3 Reload. This meant that as long as I had enough healing supplies to keep my characters’ health and Spirit Points full, I could spend as much time as I wanted in Tartarus without worrying about arbitrary systems forcing me to leave.

Overall, I really enjoyed all the gameplay improvements and additions Persona 3 Reload has brought. It’s made combat more enjoyable and less stressful since I don’t have to worry about AI making decisions for my comrades.