Persona 3 Reload Review
The Arcana is the means by which all is revealed...
The best Persona game is back (again) with its most definitive edition. It’s time to burn your dread one last time with Persona 3 Reload.
Persona 3 is a game with a long history and legacy. Originally released in 2006 as Shin Megai Tensei: Persona 3, technically making it a spinoff of the mainline Shin Megami Tensei franchise like its predecessors, it represented a significant break from them in terms of gameplay, thematics, and style. So much so, that no Persona game was ever marketed with the Shin Megami Tensei brand again. Its success ensured the release of a more complete version, Persona 3 FES, which contained quality of life improvements along with a new playable epilogue called “The Answer” a year later. This was followed by the release of Persona 3 Portable, another updated version with even more quality of life changes and the option to play through the story as an alternate, female main character. Which brings us to today, and the release of Persona 3 Reload, a complete remake of the original title on the order of Final Fantasy VII Remake.
If you’re looking for a review of this game, this is it: Persona 3 Reload may not include everything that you wanted (it notably lacks the option to play as the female main character and The Answer epilogue, though the latter is coming as DLC), but this is not only the best version of Persona 3 to play (and it’s not even close), but it’s also the best Persona game. I do not make a habit of replaying games (even my favorites!), and yet this was the fourth time that I’ve experienced the journey of Persona 3 to its end. It’s simply that masterful.
Everything that was added to Persona 3 Reload is amazing, from the incredible new opening song Full Moon Full Life – which is easily the best Persona song yet, and this is not a debate – to the closure that the new social link epilogues bring (particularly to The Sun and The Hermit, IYKYK). Obviously, things like graphics have been updated and the gameplay is now much more in alignment with the direction that the later games in the series took, especially Persona 5. Exploration is no longer such a grind (no more fatigue in Tartarus, yay!), all characters now have powerful ultimate attack moves, Shuffle Time can grant you useful bonuses, you can choose not to become romantically entangled with your female friends… the list of changes goes on and on.
Most importantly, however, is that the main story narrative remains unchanged outside of a handful of new scenes that better flesh out some of its elements. Persona 3 is a game about searching for an answer to life’s greatest question, about the importance of forming connections with those around you to mutually enrich each other’s lives, and about boldly facing down the one certainty in life: that it ends. It tells a dark and haunting, deeply mature and fulfilling story about the duality of life and death, and it hits just as hard as it did when it first came out.
On the other hand, Persona 3 is also a deeply silly game in which its cast brings forth their personae by symbolically committing suicide, where a literal Shiba Inu dog joins your party and wields a kunai while flipping acrobatically through the air to fight manifestations of negative human emotions, and where the ability to summon the literal messenger of the gods to do battle on your behalf is meaningless in the face of the power of gun. It is a game of stark contrast that juxtaposes grimdark imagery of a bloodstained world in which normal people transmogrify into coffins with upbeat hip-hop jams where a woman repeats “baby, baby, baby, baby, baby” before the beat drops.
Persona 3 Reload is the definitive version of Persona 3 and it’s final re-release (Atlas swears). For veteran fans, the care and love that went into recreating Tatsumi Port Island and the Dark Hour is clearly apparent and you will fall in love all over again. First-time players should prepare to be in for a treat as they undergo the Fool’s journey in search of their own answer.
Persona 3 Reload
Completed March 7, 2024
Overall
★★★★★
FAQ
What is Persona 3 Reload?
Persona 3 Reload is a Japanese-style roleplaying game with elements taken from life simulators, visual novels, and dungeon-crawlers. It is a from-the-ground-up remake of Persona 3, which was originally released in 2006 and formed the template by which later games in the Persona series were made.
It is available for PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, PC, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.
Do I need to have played other Persona games to understand it?
Nope! It is a fully standalone title, though you may catch references to other games in the Persona series or it’s broader parent series Shin Megami Tensei.
How much does Persona 3 Reload cost?
As of March 8, 2024:
How long is Persona 3 Reload?
It took me roughly 100 hours to finish a 100% complete playthrough of the game, which included maxing out all social links, experiencing every linked episode, completing every side quest, and unlocking every achievement.
Have you ever played Persona 3 Reload? Let us know what you think in the comments below!
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