Secondly, this post is merely a review done by me, my honest opinion of the game, and may hold spoilers for those who never played to the end of the game.
Thirdly, this review is done recently after finishing the female main character (FeMC) route.
Enjoy this photo-filled review!
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First Impression
I'm not too sure how I ended up playing this game. As in, the particular reason of why I even put this game into my PSP to try. It was last year, during my second year serving NS. I saw one of my friends playing this game, and I remember the screen being something like that:
I asked him what kind of game that was. He said it was some RPG game, and honestly I was never really a big fan of RPG games, especially on PSP. I played Valkyrie Profile: Lenneth a long time ago, and I did not like it. And that kind of made all RPG games an instant turn-off for me. So there I was, looking at the screen of the classroom, and wondered what kind of lame game that was. I mean, you are not even controlling a character in there. Moving your analog merely moved your cursor around the screen. What kind of stupid game was that? My friend told me there would be fights and stuff, but I didn't stay long enough to even check it out.
And I think I ended up taking the game from him. Or maybe I downloaded it myself. Either way, I put it into my PSP, gave it a try, and I never stopped until I reached the end. Because I realized that this game was really, really awesome(for lack of a better term). It was just...perfection. No flaws I could possibly think of.
The Story
I recall the first cutscene. It showed a girl pointing a gun at her head, probably trying to commit suicide. And the first thing that came across my mind was, this game has a suicidal bitch? What kind of twisted game is this? Is everyone going to start committing suicide? But I persevered. And played on.
The game starts with your character reaching Iwatodai, some town in Japan. The clock strikes midnight, and suddenly the world turns creepy. Then you head to your new dormitory to bump into the suicide girl and the other tenants. Soon, you are thrown into the world of Persona, learning about the Dark Hour and shadows. Basically, there are 25 hours in one day, the Dark Hour being that extra hour after midnight that only you and certain people remain awake in. You go to school, meeting new friends, yet trying to take out the 12 big shadows that appear, one at every full moon. You learn about the origins of the Dark Hour and that tall, weird building called Tartarus that appears only during that time.
I have to admit, the game has a pretty flexible and interesting storyline. While most of the fun tends to lie in the gameplay in games, the story in this game is just as good. You experience romance, friendship, death, school life... and of course there are unexpected plot twists that really impressed me. The story is really rich, and it keeps you going, not wanting to stop. And like all games, this game has a rather happy ending!
Gameplay
It's interesting how this game brings you through almost every single day of your main character for one whole year, which is how many days? That's a lot of days. Which is pretty cool. And since you're a school student, there are exam periods and holidays too. You even get to celebrate Christmas in-game.
This game is kind of divided into two. By day, you are just a student who has to worry about everyday stuff like exams and friends. By night, you are part of the S.E.E.S. team, exploring Tartarus and killing shadows. So, in a way, this game is like a simulation and dungeon-crawling game. Two-in-one, huh?
During the day, you attend school 6 days a week, going for CCA activities and hanging out with people to maximize your social links(I'll cover that later). There is one for each of 22 Arcana. There are days when everyone wants to find you, and a few days when you have nobody to hang out with. By hanging out with people, you get to learn more about them and, in a way, go through a mini-story regarding them. One example is a student who is in love with a teacher in school, and by hanging out with him you kind of see how it all turns out in the end.
Of course, when school's out you actually get to explore Iwatodai. You can choose to head to the police station to claim your rewards for saving people and purchase cool weapons and gear, go to the shrine and pray for good fortune, or simply head down to the karaoke to sing your heart out and boost your confidence.
As you go through your year in Gekkoukan High, you also need to build up your character. Studying helps increase your intelligence, you need to work up your courage in order to do certain stuff, and a certain "someone" needs you to be charming enough to hang out with her.
When the clock strikes midnight, you enter the Dark Hour. The shadows come out and play, and so do you. You will head down to your school, which is now the really tall Tartarus building, and that's where your dungeon-crawling begins. In a team of four, you and your allies explore the building, constantly going higher to reach the top. Along the way you meet small shadows and some bigger ones that are like "mini-bosses". That's where the fighting begins.
Now, you fight shadows with two things: your weapon and your persona. Think of it as Pokemon, just that Ash can choose to use his Pikachu or the weapon he is holding(maybe a Pokedex?) to attack the wild pokemon. Your choice of attack depends on your enemies' weaknesses. Each shadow and ally have their own weakness and strength elements. For instance, some enemies have a weakness for fire attacks which I can exploit, while some actually can absorb your fire attacks and use the damage to heal instead.
Because your character is "special", he has a total of around 170 different personas open to him. But new personas can only be obtained either through shuffle time or fusing multiple personas that you have. This is where your social links actually come in. By progressing in a particular social link, you are able to make more personas of that Arcana. In this game, Arcana is a "category", like Fool, Empress, Strength, Fortune, Hanged Man, etc. As mentioned earlier, there are 22 different types Arcana. Fusing your lower level personas will bring about bigger, stronger ones to do your bidding.
I have to admit, I initially did not like the personas. They didn't really look cool or anything, and some looked quite revolting. One even looks like a giant penis. Like, seriously. But I got used to them eventually... by using those that looked nicer.
You can teach your personas new skills, and make them wield the right skills you want. Each persona can carry 10 skills with them each time, so learning a new one required replacing a current one. Which reminds me of Pokemon... In fact, while you can carry 6 Pokemon with you each time, you can carry up to 10 personas each time in this game. But have some space available in case you pick up some personas while exploring Tartarus.
With you and your allies being able to reach a maximum level of 99, it is up to you whether you want to grind you way to that level, or simply play to the end of the game without caring about that. You don't actually need to be level 99 to complete the game, but at level 99 your health and stamina bar will be 999! Compared to the prior highest of 500(?) at lvl 98.
Oh, and there are really funny costumes you can equip your characters with! Maid outfits, swimwear, tuxedos... equip them to your team and chat with them in Tartarus for some amusement! Heck, even the team you choose has some funny conversations!
While this game can be action-packed and fun, some of the fun lies in the daytime storyline itself. One instance is the hot spring incident, which you players would enjoy. You can also have romance, if you decide on who you want to chase. I ended up chasing Yukari, who was that suicide girl in the beginning. Who would have guessed? But there are at least 3 other romance options I know of in the game, which means it is up to you who you want your character to get into a relationship with.
The End?
When you complete the game, you can choose to start a new game using your completed game, which means your equipment and personas would be brought over. You can choose to tackle the game at a higher difficulty, or try the female main character route. The FeMC is a new feature only for Persona 3 Portable, and there are various changes in the gameplay and storyline itself which makes it worth playing for people who completed the male route and want to experience new characters and possible storylines.
After completing the game the first time, I wanted to play the game again using the FeMC, but I ended up playing another game that came out at that time: Valkyria Chronicles II. And that is another f***ing awesome game that I shall do a long review in future, because it deserves it. It was only this year that I decided to play the FeMC route, probably because of the Persona 4: The Animation and also I missed the game. Played it, got level 99, went to unlock as many new personas as possible, and trained my members to all be level 99 too. Hardcore, yes. So?
If you ever have a PSP, or PS2, do grab this game if you like RPG, dungeon-crawling, or dating simulation games. Or if you simply want a really good game. Play this, and you won't regret it.
