Shin Megami Tensei: Persona 3 FES

"They've done it again"

Last year, I blindly picked up the original Persona 3, not really knowing anything about it. I'd played Persona 2 before, but I hadn't heard anything about Persona 3 until I saw it on the shelf.

Plot: 10/10
Aside from the original games plotline, now called The Journey, there's a brand new story called The Answer, featuring Aigis, a party member from the original story. The story of The Journey remains the same, with a lot more sidequests and a new Social Link added in. Every night there is a hidden hour called "The Dark Hour" between 12:00 and 12:01 AM. At this time, many people without special abilities become coffins, and the world mutates and changes into a very dark and sinister place. Those who do not become coffins usually have the ability to summon a spirit know as a Persona, which can be used in combat to use magic and amplify other such skills. The game revolves around a group of high school students and their Persona as they try to find out the mystery of The Dark Hour and Tartarus, a 263 floor tower which serves as the main dungeon of the game. The Answer takes place around a month after the original story. The party finds their world stuck in a loop, with the same day repeating over and over. After a giant hole appears in the floor of the lobby of their dorm, they decide to enter it and look for a reason as to why the same day keeps occuring.

Gameplay: 10/10
Persona 3 is split into 2 main gameplay segments. It's half dungeon crawler, half dating-sim. During the day, you build relationships with other students by going to the mall with them, going to the movies, playing MMORPGs with them, and so on. By building these relationships you unlock Social Links which improve the stats of your fused Persona later in the game. Also during the day, you can raise some of your characters stats such as Courage, Academics, and Charisma, which have minor effects on your overall game such as which Social Links you have access to. The other half of the game occurs on either the days there are a full moon or the days you decide to go to Tartarus. The game randomly generates a floor with monsters and items and all of your other RPG goodies and basically sends you on your way. There is only one dungeon in the game, but it is so huge and varied and such a blast to go through you really don't even notice. Of course, the game doesn't let you go through the whole dungeon right from the start of the game, it breaks it up into segments and eventually by the end you are expected to be able to clear all 263 floors. Don't fear however, you have about 8 in-game months to do so. The battle system is fantastic as well, and very easy to get the hang of. Experimenting with different Persona fusions is also quite deep and should keep you entertained for the entire game. There are lots of new additions, such as previous buildings from the original that weren't accessible now are. There's a new weapon fusing ability, where you can fuse personas with weapons for devastating results. Theres 20 + new Persona added to the mix as well. The new Social Link, Aeon, also adds a bit more to the playtime. The Answer adds a new character, Metis, to the party, and occurs in a completely different dungeon.

Graphics: 9/10
There's quite a bit more variety than last time around, and the world seems somewhat more colorful and prettier. The new dungeon is pretty well designed, but it's nothing incredibly new to the RPG genre. The only thing holding the score back is that the cartoonish style may not be for everyone. This game is no Call of Duty 4 in terms of looks.

Sound: 9/10
The soundtrack in Persona 3 is fantastic. The battle music is awesome, which is a good thing, since you will be in battle quite a lot. The music that plays as you explore town and the school is catchy and will likely get stuck in your head whether you like it or not. Theirs quite a few new tracks added, some good, some meh, but none that are just "Oh my god, shut this off!" bad. The new story has the same voice actors returning to reprise their roles from the original release.

Control: 10/10
You shouldn't have a problem controlling the game at all. The tutorials explain everything to you very easily and nothing feels too complex to handle. X selects things, the analog moves your character. That's pretty much all you need to know to get started, you'll pick up things along the first hour or so and be a master in no time. Very simplistic controls that will cause you no problems whatsoever.

Other Things to Note:
This game is long. Very long. There's a new game plus, with three difficulties to pick from(easy, normal, hard). No matter which one you choose, you'll probably have a hard time if this is your first Shin Megami Tensei game. Imagine going through 10 floors of Tartarus and encountering an enemy which has an instant death spell. He gets the first turn because he back-attacked you and casts it on the hero. It connects, and the hero dies. Game over, hope you saved. The game won't baby you unless you play on Easy, in which you get 10 continues.

Reviewer's Score: 10/10, Originally Posted: 04/28/08

Game Release: Shin Megami Tensei: Persona 3 FES (US, 04/22/08)