Persona 5 was one of my most anticipated games of last year. I dodged information about the game like the plague, and now that I’ve finally bought a copy of the game and almost finished the second palace, I’m ready to discuss my thoughts so far.
The introductory animatic that loads every time you boot up the game was the first thing to catch my attention, it shows the various characters ice skating around highways and the game’s cityscape. In classic Persona fashion, catchy music accompanies the stylish intro.
After this the game wastes no time in explaining gameplay as your thrust into a dungeon. This is where you’re presented with the basic controls and rules of combat. I enjoyed this more so than the introduction of Persona 4, as in 4 the enemy was just some mist you couldn’t hit. Here, you can actually fight against a live target before being thrown into an actual dungeon, speaking of which…
Dungeons this time around are known as “palaces”. They are the manifestations of someone’s twisted desires. These palaces can take any environmental shape, be it castles, casinos, museums, etc. Within the heart of each lies a treasure that is the root cause of the individual’s desires. It is you and your allies (taking on the title of “Phantom Thieves”) job to steal this treasure to reform the hearts of the corrupt. This is the base plot of Persona 5 and it’s handled very well.
What I like storytelling wise is just about everything so far. Characters have excellent chemistry and the tone walks a line between light hearted and dark. This balance is important as it helps give Persona 5 a fresh standout feel, as it walks a line between the dark mortality of Persona 3 (from what I understand as someone who hasn’t played the game), and the lighthearted and often goofy nature of Persona 4. My favorite characters so far are Sojiro (your caretaker) and the disgraced track star Ryuji. While Sojiro has a rough exterior, you can sense he cares about the protagonist, and he has this suave charm that I enjoy. He reminds me of the player Yu memes if they combined with some of Dojima. Ryuji is always full of energy and enthusiasm, constantly excited about the implications of being a phantom thief. He reminds me a lot of Kanji mixed with Yosuke. For some reason, I find that his confidant link is the easiest to level than the others as of right now, and he does very well in battle.
Battles in Persona 5 are slightly different from Persona 4. Dungeons are no longer randomized and have a higher focus on stealth, as being spotted raises a palaces security level. If the level gets to 100% it’s game over. Another difference is that now dungeons cannot be solved in one sitting. Often times you will have to leave a dungeon to perform an action in the real world, so that a door or security measure can unlock.
In combat, you now have the option to use guns. Guns are more powerful than melee weapons but have a limited amount of ammo that you cannot refill without leaving the palace. Certain enemies are only weak to guns, so this adds a new level of strategy in battle. There is also a nuclear elemental ability, but I have yet to test it out. When you down all enemies you can either perform and all out attack, or talk to a shadow. Talking to the shadow gives you a chance to convince it to join you, or give you some money or an item. A part of me dislikes this as getting shadows to join can sometimes be difficult due to having to pick the correct dialogue options, also certain personas will be too high level to join you, making you sacrifice the experience you would have gotten from simply killing the enemy for nothing.
All in all, Persona 5 is becoming one of my favorite RPGs unsurprisingly. However, I know I’ve barely scratched the surface at my 20 hours. I’ll be back in time with a review of this game hopefully. In the meantime, what are your thoughts on Persona 5? Let me know in the comments below.
Thanks for reading!