Persona 5 Review

Player(s): 1
Platform(s): PlayStation4

It's really hard to write a review about a game I couldn't easily take screenshots of, and one that has an outright request to keep things as spoiler-free as possible from the developer, but I'm going to try.

Persona 5 is here to make you rethink the modern JRPG. It combines all the best features of the entire Persona franchise, adds new elements, and combines it all into a vastly stylish, extremely long, and very dark distillation of pure Japanese role playing game perfection. Persona 5 is interesting in what it isn't as much as what it is. It's not open world, it's not filled with loads of little side quests as we've become accustomed to in modern games, it's not an action RPG, it's not easily sped through. It is not for the faint of heart: there's time management, actual quizzes to pass, dating sim elements, long stretches of non-dungeon crawling, negotiation, turn based combat with boatload of party members to pick and choose from, and more. It is quite overwhelming, but so very deeply rewarding to play.

P5 is a glorious return of the franchise to home console. With easily 90+ hours of gameplay on a single playthrough, you'll not be at a loss for something to do. It's nice to see the game mix the more "visual novel/dating sim" aspects of Persona 3 and 4 with the "demon negotiation" of Persona 1 and 2 (and the Shin Megami Tensei franchise at large) in a way that's refreshing. It's also good to see a return to battling the franchise's myriad of well designed demons instead of the more generic shadows of P3 and 4.

Visually, the game is aesthetically stunning. The art hearkens to Catherine, and is heavily stylized even beyond Persona 4 Golden or Dancing All Night. The UI is so stylish, with fun animations to keep your attention. All Out Attacks that finish off the enemy are rewarded with more giddy finishing screens. The thieving outfits are just edgy enough without bordering into tryhard. Persona designs are beautifully realized and gorgeously colored. Even the demons have been updated with animations, some of them quite delightful.

P5 also adds some new features into the mix. First is that your social links are now "Confidants", and while leveling them up still gives you a wider variety of personas to fuse and bonus fusion experience, they also give you more tangible in-game benefits, such as a doctor selling a wider variety of healing items, or your teammates being able to do some extra actions in battle. It definitely makes pursuing confidant ranks more worthwhile, especially if you care less about persona fusing and collecting. There's also ways to train personas outside of battle, gaining them extra skills normally not obtainable.

So what’s the gist of what you’ll be doing? You’ll spend your time dungeon crawling, hanging out with friends, working on your social stats, and getting mad at your cat who always wants you to sleep. You’ll gain a newfound knowledge of shogi, get good at baseball, and hate adults some more. You scream at weird story reveals, and find yourself singing along to the soundtrack. And if you make it to the end, you’ll probably cry a little. 

The story takes place in bustling Tokyo, after the protagonist is sent to live there after an altercation. It was refreshing to play a Persona game where no one really likes you off the bat and the bonds you forge feel purposeful and meaningful. The map expands to dizzying depths as you go along, unlocking even MORE things to do and spend your time with. Story starts off dark, gets darker, then gets politically dark, and hoo boy the catharsis at the end is worth your 90 hours. Without going into it too much, imagine if Inception met House of Cards, with teenage drama mixed in. I promise it works real good.

The dungeon crawling is nicely segmented into two large parts: premade “palaces”, which have an ingame time limit to beat by, and Mementos, a sprawling randomized dungeon where the team can grind for items and personas, and fight minibosses. The palaces are wonderfully thought out, each with a unique theme, some with crazy puzzles, and are large and daunting but I never felt pressed for time trying to beat one within the game’s time limits. Word of advice, it’s better to try to clear them as you as you can, leaving your free time waiting for a palace’s resolution to be spent on confidants or social stat building. Mementos is a bit wilder, and chunks of it unlock as the story progresses. However, once it’s open it’s always waiting for you, if the “study and eat burgers and try to date the hot doctor” life wears you out. Each floor is randomly generated, and filled with monsters and treasures. Monsters in Mementos are even affected by the weather in the game, making it worthwhile to check the weather reports.

 However, this is not a game without its flaws. The localization is very uneven, both voice and text-wise. I highly recommend getting the Japanese voice patch, at least then the emotions depicted feel more solid. Almost all of the female confidant routes can result in dating, but none of the guys do. No gay relationships, no platonic friendships that start off as such. There’s some real bad depictions of gay men. The days can seem to drag on, and burnout is common for some of the more boring chunks of the game. I feel the payoff’s worth it, but I understand if you stop.

If you want more after the credits roll, there is a new game plus, carrying over your items, your social stats, your persona compendium, and a few other things. It will definitely make trying to max out every confidant link and get every persona much easier, if you’re the kind of person who wants to achieve those goals. 

I’ve waited for what seems like forever for this game to come out, and overall it was a solid hit. The mix of old and even older mechanics with brand new ones worked, the story was very interesting and most of it was presented in a super interesting way, the main characters fantastic. It was a memorable experience, and a shining example that a modern JRPG can be amazing. If future entries of the franchise carry on these mechanics, I will a happy player. 
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-Janette G

Persona 5 is available physically and digitally for PS3 and PS4 now. The PS4 version was played for this review.

Graphics: GREAT+
Sound: GREAT+
Gameplay: GREAT+
Value: AMAZING

OVERALL: GREAT+

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