this whole post went from valid debate to a bunch of screaming whining children all calling each other stupid for having an opinion *slow clap* way to make a good impression on the gaming community
Personally, I'm a huge fan of the Persona series (although looking at the other comments, people despise it, too), and I am finding it awesome, and a very unique and enjoyable gameplay experience.
FOR ME.
If I had to be honest here, the gameplay DOES suck in several ways.
1. The difficulty and gameplay
This game is unforgiving at times, and party A.I. can be stupid (what else do you expect from A.I., though?) on more than enough occasions. The battle system was pretty good, I thought. The idea of having an additional move after knocking down an enemy, and the enemy being able to do the same to you was pretty cool to me at the time, and still is. And the SAME FREAKING DUNGEON FOR THE ENTIRE GAME I wasn't too happy about that, either. In the beginning of the game, I thought Tartarus was just an early-game dungeon that I'd literally go there for the tutorial and never come back. But nope. I had to go back there over... and over... and over again! Eh. I got over it.
Seriously, though. Once you play through a decent portion of the game, you'll find yourself able to pace yourself and get used to how you play the game. Grinding will be minimal, and you can balance it with activities outside of battling.
2. The repetition of the game
Let me just say this; I COMPLETELY understand anyone who says this game is repetitive sometimes, or all the time. Tartarus is pretty bland and boring, for sure. Climbing through the same boring, randomly-generated tower gets monotonous pretty damn quickly, and the same battles over and over again aren't helping. As for social links... I have yet to see a concept like this in any other RPG yet (or maybe I just don't play enough of them). They add an interesting gameplay mechanic to the game, and you can really see the characters develop as you progress their social link. Sure, having the same formula for each day (i.e. go to school, hang out w/ social link, sing karaoke in the evening) might turn people off the game (understandably) but I'm not really bothered by that.
3. Uhh... Music? Or plot? I dunno.
Music? I didn't really get it at first, but it wasn't like I minded it. In fact, after awhile, I started to really enjoy it, in the game or on my MP3. Some songs, especially close to the end of the game (if you're gonna play that far), are really nice and memorable. The progressive-style themes of Tartarus and a dungeon in the epilogue included in FES sound boring and kind of bad, but later in the game, you can change the dungeon theme to several others whenever you want. All you have to do is make it to that point in the game...
Plot? When you get to the end, sh*t gets serious, dude. It IS pretty lackluster when you first start off, but it gets really good if you progress enough. Even though the protagonist is silent, he still feels pretty cool to me (also emo-looking, but I fell like that sometimes, too XD), and I feel the protagonist creates some nice bonds with others that most people WISH they could have with other people.
4. Other random stuff
If you play a Persona game, expect a "Frakking Endless Story", at least in the introduction. That is DEFINITELY a bad thing about these games; they take too damn long to start. Have your finger/thumb on the X button and get ready to button-mash for a few hours, because literally all you get is dialogue. The anime cutscenes sort of clash with the feel of the game (going from simple polygons on screen to anime cutscenes) and they are confusing at times, but most are explained later in the game (or you can draw your own conclusions if you want) and make complete sense if why the developers bothered to show you the cutscene.
This game is LONG. Like, REALLY LONG. Anyone reading this should have plenty of time on their hands, since you'll be sitting in front of a television for 70+ hours, at least.
5. Conclusion
Persona is a great game series, but obviously not for anyone. Looking back, this series has very many outstanding and significant flaws, but people can look past them and enjoy the good parts of the game. That's WHY this series has a strong fanbase to begin with. Your review makes some excellent points, but you could easily argue that the game is much better than you make it seem. In the end, it is unique among RPGs/JRPGs and certainly not everyone can enjoy it. But, for those who do enjoy it, it's an awesome game.
(Also, I'm completely aware of the fact that I'm posting this on a nearly-4-year-old review, but I felt the need to give my thoughts and opinion as well. Besides, you said you still read these reviews, so I'm hoping you'll read this one too.)
Nice post. I'm playing this right now. I'm a growing fan of the series, having played every previous issue and some later ones, so my point of view is kind of different. But there's nothing wrong written here.
Also, thanks for the skit capture. I made use of it. Despite I don't specially like Norma.
I will have to agree on the battle system parts from Persona 3. F.E.S. didn't fix anything, and even nerfed a few things, from the original (which is what I play, screw the extra content, I like my gimmicks.) Persona 4, however, did well to fix this problem, along with a couple others.
I believe the reason this game has such a concrete progression structure is to challenge the player to get as much done as they can in order to have the strongest team with the best S. Links. Also to assume a role of another person/character. While the protagonist isn't voiced (Probably for the better.) it still lets you convey choices and such which affect your experience and progression in the game. While this -is- a JRPG, I do not consider it to be the same type of JRPG as Final Fantasy (which I abhor. But we won't go into that). These two games share many core gameplay aesthetics, but the games are vastly different in core gameplay mechanics. Day-by-day progression in Persona makes it a very different game than FF. You don't plan for your next night in FF, because there isn't one unless the story actually makes the time progress itself. Quite a bit different.
A review is not a very constructive one when you have to hold a cardboard cutout of another game over it to analyze what it does or doesn't have. Games are different from each other. Even if they're both a "JRPG."
Not all games are for everyone. As much as we may want to think so. The degrees of abnegation a player desires can determine what game they want to play as much as their desire for conquest, a solid story, or any other number of things people seek in games. Persona 3 fit my bill perfectly, it didn't fit yours. That's all there is to it.
200+ hours in P3, 240+ in P4. Zero hours in any Final Fantasy game (aside from the one or two I gave a few of them) No regrets here.
The only wishlist I would add to Borderlands 2 is if the map is larger, just like the one in GTA5. Just kinda feel the current map in Borderlands is kinda restricted to the storyline.
while made by Raven software it was over seen by Id games. it seems id,activision , and raven studios share staff. so in a way it was made by id or at least someone in the family. (art directer for id games Quake to also worked on halo 4 (((Kenneth Scott)))
as far as Rage goes I liked it but there were problems with it. I am used to real times lights and physics from doom 3/quake 4. there was nothing like that in rage but since it was all one map it would have taken a very powerful gaming rig to play it. still i enjoy id games from a tech stand point as a coder and game developer.
When i played it with the gun attatchments (bought separatly) as well as with the nunchuk i find it hard to aim because the camera view moves side to side and swivels as i aim. Am i the only one? i think it would have been easier to control the movements all with the nunchuk and not have the character turn around when aiming.
This was one of my personal favorites.
I can totally see your point and you did make some valid points. Tartarus is fairly annoying and at times boring. I enjoy it though because after my fourth time, yes four times this is the only game that I have ever replayed more than once, it is simple. This game also keeps me coming back for more because I love the storyline to pieces.
And I didn't think the voice acting was that bad. Not as bad as other games I've saw like the English dub of .hack. Seriously, it's terrible. I had to switch the dialogue to Japanese (thank the lord for the option). The music though is terrible for most Persona games. The only decent track is "Heartful Cry" and that's only in the Answer. It gives me a good laugh though and personally, I don't care too much. If it's such a big deal there IS a volume control button on your TV. WOWZER. Really, if you are going to complain about it, you can always listen to other music while you play. That's what I typically do during long training sessions at Tartarus.
I thought the whole point of an RPG (aka A ROLE PLAYING GAME) way to be able to make your own decisions? Isn't that what ROLE PLAYING is? Maybe this is in a broad sense, but the game does allow you to make almost all decisions by yourself. And, while the battle style can also be annoying, isn't it more realistic? In real life you can't control the people around you. It gives the game a sense of realism in it. I was kind of bored the first couple months of my first play-through but, now I really love it. I spent 130 hours on it total, and it doesn't seem like you even made it past the first few months of the game unless you speed through it without paying attention to the plot. I love longer games because spending 30 bucks on a game you beat in 50 hours is kind bland. Plus the fact that this is such a big game, there's always something more to do.
This is all my personal opinion and I can totally see why you may dislike it though. It's kind of a boring game to some and most people like Persona 4 better. Personally, this is my favorite in the series because of the darker undertones. This one was like "DEATH, DEATH, DEATH, GOTTA DO MY SOCIAL LINKS" while Persona 4 was like, "YAY FRIENDSHIP FRIENDSHIP LET'S BE FRIENDS" I love that game too, but it's so freaking happy. I still really like Persona 4 though because it is a whole different spin to the Persona series though, it's just not my favorite.
(Might get some hate for this, but personally I hated FFX and it is my least favorite in the Final Fantasy series. To me, Tidus was so annoying and the characters, other than Yuna, did not really develop. The plot twists were so easily guessed and c'mon really? The ending? It was frustrating and really not much fun. The battle style was good like all Final Fantasy games but IX was so much better plot-wise. Also, I have only played Suikoden IV for a short time at a friends house and I liked it though, so I may pick up the others if they are similar to it.)
Because we aren't discussing of it as a game of general mean, we're specifically talking about Jrpg here. Try to compare this game's battle system with any other Rpg will make it look really bad. You like garbage, it's your choice, but saying rubbish is great just makes no sense.
From the view of a long time rpg player, I'd say this game failed in rpg genre, but definitely succeeded in visual novel and dating sim category. You like the latter genres then of course this game suits you well, but don't , just please don't praise it as a good rpg.
OK, why the hell is everyone shouting about this? Persona is the best game ever. The battle system is awesome and the bosses are great. Nobody should ever hate this game. I know I won't. I will love it as my fav game forever. I worship nyx and i have changed my name to Mistoki Nagasai as that's what I called my character in P3P. There!!!
The games 2 easy 4 me, I need 2 play a game like Final Fantasy! BECUZ THAT'S THE ONLY RPG THAT SHOULD EVER BE COMPARED TO OTHERS. No. It's not. Not all games are the same, if they were,it'd be terrible. P3 adds a very distinct category in RPGs. Which is good. A game with story 100 hours long and an ending that makes you sob is quite frankly a very well written story. I would suggest to people who hate P3 to play more Final Fantasy and never stray out to find a diamond in the rough like p3 was.
Brings back fresh memories (just finsihed the game a few days ago)... I'd just wish you had turned that film grain off. Otherwise, great work ! Let's do the same for Me2 and Me3 ! :))
YES. Pudding monsters was a flat, by-the-numbers puzzle game. There were some cute moments when the monsters looked at you, or winced when you screwed up, but you're right that it's just dull.
I wonder how many RPGs have you guys played to draw that conclusion. I've been playing JRPGs from SNES era until now, and among all these games this one could only find a place in mid-tier at best.
Agree, RPGs were never all about just fighting or story alone, there must be a nice harmonisation of both in order to make a good RPG.
Screw lamers who play games just to know about plot, go grab a novel or watch an anime, that's what you want. If battling isn't something you want to enjoy, stay away from this genre.
Screw suckers who play JRPGs just for the gameplay, you're perfectly suited for FPS or fighting games. JRPGs are even much different to WRPGs due to deep story, characters background and sometimes even history of the game is very prominent.
If I had to give a score, Person 3 would get 8 or 9 out of ten for its story, pretty interesting that is.
however, I'd give only 1-2 points for the battle system. Not hard but way tooo boriiinggggg, much worse than most jrpgs out there.
this whole post went from valid debate to a bunch of screaming whining children all calling each other stupid for having an opinion *slow clap* way to make a good impression on the gaming community
Personally, I'm a huge fan of the Persona series (although looking at the other comments, people despise it, too), and I am finding it awesome, and a very unique and enjoyable gameplay experience.
FOR ME.
If I had to be honest here, the gameplay DOES suck in several ways.
1. The difficulty and gameplay
This game is unforgiving at times, and party A.I. can be stupid (what else do you expect from A.I., though?) on more than enough occasions. The battle system was pretty good, I thought. The idea of having an additional move after knocking down an enemy, and the enemy being able to do the same to you was pretty cool to me at the time, and still is. And the SAME FREAKING DUNGEON FOR THE ENTIRE GAME I wasn't too happy about that, either. In the beginning of the game, I thought Tartarus was just an early-game dungeon that I'd literally go there for the tutorial and never come back. But nope. I had to go back there over... and over... and over again! Eh. I got over it.
Seriously, though. Once you play through a decent portion of the game, you'll find yourself able to pace yourself and get used to how you play the game. Grinding will be minimal, and you can balance it with activities outside of battling.
2. The repetition of the game
Let me just say this; I COMPLETELY understand anyone who says this game is repetitive sometimes, or all the time. Tartarus is pretty bland and boring, for sure. Climbing through the same boring, randomly-generated tower gets monotonous pretty damn quickly, and the same battles over and over again aren't helping. As for social links... I have yet to see a concept like this in any other RPG yet (or maybe I just don't play enough of them). They add an interesting gameplay mechanic to the game, and you can really see the characters develop as you progress their social link. Sure, having the same formula for each day (i.e. go to school, hang out w/ social link, sing karaoke in the evening) might turn people off the game (understandably) but I'm not really bothered by that.
3. Uhh... Music? Or plot? I dunno.
Music? I didn't really get it at first, but it wasn't like I minded it. In fact, after awhile, I started to really enjoy it, in the game or on my MP3. Some songs, especially close to the end of the game (if you're gonna play that far), are really nice and memorable. The progressive-style themes of Tartarus and a dungeon in the epilogue included in FES sound boring and kind of bad, but later in the game, you can change the dungeon theme to several others whenever you want. All you have to do is make it to that point in the game...
Plot? When you get to the end, sh*t gets serious, dude. It IS pretty lackluster when you first start off, but it gets really good if you progress enough. Even though the protagonist is silent, he still feels pretty cool to me (also emo-looking, but I fell like that sometimes, too XD), and I feel the protagonist creates some nice bonds with others that most people WISH they could have with other people.
4. Other random stuff
If you play a Persona game, expect a "Frakking Endless Story", at least in the introduction. That is DEFINITELY a bad thing about these games; they take too damn long to start. Have your finger/thumb on the X button and get ready to button-mash for a few hours, because literally all you get is dialogue. The anime cutscenes sort of clash with the feel of the game (going from simple polygons on screen to anime cutscenes) and they are confusing at times, but most are explained later in the game (or you can draw your own conclusions if you want) and make complete sense if why the developers bothered to show you the cutscene.
This game is LONG. Like, REALLY LONG. Anyone reading this should have plenty of time on their hands, since you'll be sitting in front of a television for 70+ hours, at least.
5. Conclusion
Persona is a great game series, but obviously not for anyone. Looking back, this series has very many outstanding and significant flaws, but people can look past them and enjoy the good parts of the game. That's WHY this series has a strong fanbase to begin with. Your review makes some excellent points, but you could easily argue that the game is much better than you make it seem. In the end, it is unique among RPGs/JRPGs and certainly not everyone can enjoy it. But, for those who do enjoy it, it's an awesome game.
(Also, I'm completely aware of the fact that I'm posting this on a nearly-4-year-old review, but I felt the need to give my thoughts and opinion as well. Besides, you said you still read these reviews, so I'm hoping you'll read this one too.)
these are japanese and beta screenshoots
Nice post. I'm playing this right now. I'm a growing fan of the series, having played every previous issue and some later ones, so my point of view is kind of different. But there's nothing wrong written here.
Also, thanks for the skit capture. I made use of it. Despite I don't specially like Norma.
i really love you films and games i wash i cloud see you.
I will have to agree on the battle system parts from Persona 3. F.E.S. didn't fix anything, and even nerfed a few things, from the original (which is what I play, screw the extra content, I like my gimmicks.) Persona 4, however, did well to fix this problem, along with a couple others.
I believe the reason this game has such a concrete progression structure is to challenge the player to get as much done as they can in order to have the strongest team with the best S. Links. Also to assume a role of another person/character. While the protagonist isn't voiced (Probably for the better.) it still lets you convey choices and such which affect your experience and progression in the game. While this -is- a JRPG, I do not consider it to be the same type of JRPG as Final Fantasy (which I abhor. But we won't go into that). These two games share many core gameplay aesthetics, but the games are vastly different in core gameplay mechanics. Day-by-day progression in Persona makes it a very different game than FF. You don't plan for your next night in FF, because there isn't one unless the story actually makes the time progress itself. Quite a bit different.
A review is not a very constructive one when you have to hold a cardboard cutout of another game over it to analyze what it does or doesn't have. Games are different from each other. Even if they're both a "JRPG."
Not all games are for everyone. As much as we may want to think so. The degrees of abnegation a player desires can determine what game they want to play as much as their desire for conquest, a solid story, or any other number of things people seek in games. Persona 3 fit my bill perfectly, it didn't fit yours. That's all there is to it.
200+ hours in P3, 240+ in P4. Zero hours in any Final Fantasy game (aside from the one or two I gave a few of them) No regrets here.
The only wishlist I would add to Borderlands 2 is if the map is larger, just like the one in GTA5. Just kinda feel the current map in Borderlands is kinda restricted to the storyline.
while made by Raven software it was over seen by Id games. it seems id,activision , and raven studios share staff. so in a way it was made by id or at least someone in the family. (art directer for id games Quake to also worked on halo 4 (((Kenneth Scott)))
as far as Rage goes I liked it but there were problems with it. I am used to real times lights and physics from doom 3/quake 4. there was nothing like that in rage but since it was all one map it would have taken a very powerful gaming rig to play it. still i enjoy id games from a tech stand point as a coder and game developer.
When i played it with the gun attatchments (bought separatly) as well as with the nunchuk i find it hard to aim because the camera view moves side to side and swivels as i aim. Am i the only one? i think it would have been easier to control the movements all with the nunchuk and not have the character turn around when aiming.
Batman: Arkham Asylum black mask
Not sure it kicks street fighters arse but it looks fun enough. Cheers for the post
This was one of my personal favorites.
I can totally see your point and you did make some valid points. Tartarus is fairly annoying and at times boring. I enjoy it though because after my fourth time, yes four times this is the only game that I have ever replayed more than once, it is simple. This game also keeps me coming back for more because I love the storyline to pieces.
And I didn't think the voice acting was that bad. Not as bad as other games I've saw like the English dub of .hack. Seriously, it's terrible. I had to switch the dialogue to Japanese (thank the lord for the option). The music though is terrible for most Persona games. The only decent track is "Heartful Cry" and that's only in the Answer. It gives me a good laugh though and personally, I don't care too much. If it's such a big deal there IS a volume control button on your TV. WOWZER. Really, if you are going to complain about it, you can always listen to other music while you play. That's what I typically do during long training sessions at Tartarus.
I thought the whole point of an RPG (aka A ROLE PLAYING GAME) way to be able to make your own decisions? Isn't that what ROLE PLAYING is? Maybe this is in a broad sense, but the game does allow you to make almost all decisions by yourself. And, while the battle style can also be annoying, isn't it more realistic? In real life you can't control the people around you. It gives the game a sense of realism in it. I was kind of bored the first couple months of my first play-through but, now I really love it. I spent 130 hours on it total, and it doesn't seem like you even made it past the first few months of the game unless you speed through it without paying attention to the plot. I love longer games because spending 30 bucks on a game you beat in 50 hours is kind bland. Plus the fact that this is such a big game, there's always something more to do.
This is all my personal opinion and I can totally see why you may dislike it though. It's kind of a boring game to some and most people like Persona 4 better. Personally, this is my favorite in the series because of the darker undertones. This one was like "DEATH, DEATH, DEATH, GOTTA DO MY SOCIAL LINKS" while Persona 4 was like, "YAY FRIENDSHIP FRIENDSHIP LET'S BE FRIENDS" I love that game too, but it's so freaking happy. I still really like Persona 4 though because it is a whole different spin to the Persona series though, it's just not my favorite.
(Might get some hate for this, but personally I hated FFX and it is my least favorite in the Final Fantasy series. To me, Tidus was so annoying and the characters, other than Yuna, did not really develop. The plot twists were so easily guessed and c'mon really? The ending? It was frustrating and really not much fun. The battle style was good like all Final Fantasy games but IX was so much better plot-wise. Also, I have only played Suikoden IV for a short time at a friends house and I liked it though, so I may pick up the others if they are similar to it.)
Because we aren't discussing of it as a game of general mean, we're specifically talking about Jrpg here. Try to compare this game's battle system with any other Rpg will make it look really bad. You like garbage, it's your choice, but saying rubbish is great just makes no sense.
From the view of a long time rpg player, I'd say this game failed in rpg genre, but definitely succeeded in visual novel and dating sim category. You like the latter genres then of course this game suits you well, but don't , just please don't praise it as a good rpg.
OK, why the hell is everyone shouting about this? Persona is the best game ever. The battle system is awesome and the bosses are great. Nobody should ever hate this game. I know I won't. I will love it as my fav game forever. I worship nyx and i have changed my name to Mistoki Nagasai as that's what I called my character in P3P. There!!!
NO! FES has no DIRECT COMMAND! Look it up or play it Moron!
The games 2 easy 4 me, I need 2 play a game like Final Fantasy! BECUZ THAT'S THE ONLY RPG THAT SHOULD EVER BE COMPARED TO OTHERS. No. It's not. Not all games are the same, if they were,it'd be terrible. P3 adds a very distinct category in RPGs. Which is good. A game with story 100 hours long and an ending that makes you sob is quite frankly a very well written story. I would suggest to people who hate P3 to play more Final Fantasy and never stray out to find a diamond in the rough like p3 was.
Brings back fresh memories (just finsihed the game a few days ago)... I'd just wish you had turned that film grain off. Otherwise, great work ! Let's do the same for Me2 and Me3 ! :))
You didn't play x-2 did you? Cause he gets revived and they love happily ever after.
YES. Pudding monsters was a flat, by-the-numbers puzzle game. There were some cute moments when the monsters looked at you, or winced when you screwed up, but you're right that it's just dull.
I wonder how many RPGs have you guys played to draw that conclusion. I've been playing JRPGs from SNES era until now, and among all these games this one could only find a place in mid-tier at best.
Agree, RPGs were never all about just fighting or story alone, there must be a nice harmonisation of both in order to make a good RPG.
Screw lamers who play games just to know about plot, go grab a novel or watch an anime, that's what you want. If battling isn't something you want to enjoy, stay away from this genre.
Screw suckers who play JRPGs just for the gameplay, you're perfectly suited for FPS or fighting games. JRPGs are even much different to WRPGs due to deep story, characters background and sometimes even history of the game is very prominent.
If I had to give a score, Person 3 would get 8 or 9 out of ten for its story, pretty interesting that is.
however, I'd give only 1-2 points for the battle system. Not hard but way tooo boriiinggggg, much worse than most jrpgs out there.
he sucks? no you suck
Oh sorry not P3P FES... It's P3 FES... he he he...
this guy play P3P FES... Of cause got "Direct Command"...-_-'
It's definitely rubbish of a rpg.
Might be leader in dating sim genre though.
F*** you Atlus.