Gaming Persona 3

[Magus]

[URL=http://ps2.ign.com/articles/694/694490p1.html]IGN Article[/URL]

[I][font=times new roman]Atlus has announced a new entry in its "Persona" branch of the Shin Megamitensei series. The latest issue of Famitsu has first details on Persona 3, which is in development for the PlayStation 2.

In Persona 3, you play as a 17 year-old boy who's just transferred schools. Immediately after entering his dormitory, the character comes under attack of a Shadow, a new enemy introduced in Persona 3. Shadows have the ability to summon Persona demons. After coming under attack, the main character inherits this ability as well.

The main character is unique amongst Persona users in that he has the ability to switch between Personas rather than just summoning a single creature. He ends up becoming leader of a special extracurricular force attempting to defeat Shadow. Other human characters, including fellow students Yukari Takeba and Junpei Iori, have the ability to summon a single Persona, and end up joining the group of Shadow fighters.

Persona 3 takes place in Minato Ku, a town consisting of a harbor area called Iwatodai and a man-made island called Port Island. Your school is located on the island while your dorm is located in Iwatodai.

You take control of the main character during each day of school, starting with arrival in the morning and ending in the afternoon as you head back to your dorm. Between classes, you can investigate the school grounds, and following the school day, you can do the same in town.

Players get to experience school life in Persona 3. The game lets you work through a year of in-game time. Most of your activities on weekdays take place following classes, but on weekends and holidays, you can make appointments with other characters in order to strengthen your relationships. The relationship with your "Comyu," short for "community," has an effect on your battle with the Shadow.

Even on days where you don't have an appointment, you're free to just wander around town, visiting shops as you like. This is true even during summer vacation. The game includes summer school, a summer sports meet, and other events for your time away from school.

Other characters go through school life as well. On the days prior to a big test, your allies will lock themselves away in their rooms and concentrate on studying, meaning they won't be able to help out in the fight against the Shadow. Characters will even get sick and miss classes.

This might seem like the makings of one of those Japanese school-based love simulation games, but Persona 3 provides the expected Megaten-inspired twists. The world of Persona 3 does not use a 24 hour clock. When the clock turns midnight, the world enters "Shadow Time." The Shadow roam the streets during this time, providing the perfect opportunity for you to do some exterminating.

Normal people who don't have Persona summoning abilities turn into coffins during Shadow time and lose all senses. Some do manage to make the transition in human form, and end up serving as targets for the Shadow, who like to feed on their spirits.

During Shadow Time, you and your party members get into battle with Shadow creatures. Battles begin by all party members making use of a pistol-shaped summon device to call out their Persona (this is unfortunately done by the characters aiming the device at themselves and firing). You can also opt to skip out on the Persona transformation and use weapons to directly fight the Shadow.

Emerge victorious from a battle, and you earn new Persona Cards. These cards hold your Persona summons. By taking two or more cards to the game's Persona Room, you can combine cards into a new Persona. While you lose the previous Personas, you earn a powerful new one in its place.

Directed by Katsura Hashino (director of Shin Megamitensei III Nocturne), and featuring character designs and art direction by Shigenori Soejima (character designs for Devil Summoner, art direction for Stella Deus), Persona 3 is set for Japanese release on 7/13. A US release has yet to be announced.[/I]

Old news, no doubt. This article was posted in March 2006 ;). In any case, this is my first time reading and hearing about the Persona series. I take it that this is another one of those rare gem games since I've never heard anyone mention the series before.

I also see that it's a spin-off of the Shin Megami Tensei series which I've been dying to get my hands on. ($60 for used games... There's gotta be a place that sells them cheaper.)

I'm quite interested in this game because of the Persona summoning itself. I read at gamespot that you have to [spoiler]shoot yourself in the head to summon a persona.[/spoiler] (spoilers for just incase measures) I didn't see any articles about the release date yet. I would post some screen shots, but I'll wait a bit for that.

I'm quite curious to hear opinions about the older games as well. Are they worth checking out? (that is if they're findable and atleast in the $20-$30 price range)[/font]

[Goodbye, Face]

[font=arial][size=1]I'm actually a big fan of the Persona and MegaTen series. Their earlier Persona games weren't all that great, especially the first one, it had such a horrible translation.

If you can pick up Persona 2: Innocent Sin for $20, it's probably worth it. Just take note that it's a low budget title even for when it first came out.

It may be more worthwhile to check out Shin Megami Tensei: Nocturne on eBay and put your $20-$30 to that. That game's one of the best games ever and will hopefully be worth the pricetag which apparently changes by the week. Devil Summoner just came out late last year I think, and there's probably still new copies available for that. All of the games are related to eachother, so it's not a big deal to go back and play the really old ones when there's newer ones out now that are better.[/font][/size]

[TheResplendent]

[FONT=Tahoma]SMT: Nocturne was the first game of the series I played. I havn't even heard of the series until i played that game, and since then I have procured the Persona games, and both DDS games. The series is awesome, as I said in a previous thread about these games though; Nocturne is my favorite just because the whole idea of persuading and fusing demons to join your team was a really cool concept to me. I couldn't wait to see what new demons I could make everytime I walked into the Cathedral of Shadows.

The DDS games are fun as well, almost as challenging as Nocturne was. It started off with a really good concept but kind of followed through a little lazily on it. There's much more that could have been done with the warring gangs and factions angle. I say the previous Personas and Nocturne should definitly be the top of your list to try and get a hold of, Phenom. Most of the games in the series are very challenging, not to an extreme point (although i will admit there were 2 boss fights in Nocturne that made me want to break my controller over my head, eat the parts and ask for seconds). But the wonderful thing about that is, a seemingly simple battle system really requires more strategy then you would think at first. The games have quite a lot of intricacies to offer ;P.

There are definitly ways around the high prices because of the game's rarity (concerning a couple of them), like how RaR already said you can get a few good prices on ebay, and even amazon has had some good prices every now and then. I used to follow the sales until I got them all.

I read up all about Persona 3 a while ago, seen the videos, etc. That along with Dawn of Mana will definitly be on my "to get" list for my PS2. [/FONT]

[Semjaza]

Stopped by here randomly today and saw this thread. I doubt I'd post otherwise, but seeing someone post a Megaten thread here other than, well, me, was enough to get me interested.

Persona 3 was scheduled for June. Atlus is now saying "Summer 07" and Gamestop/EB are saying July. I think July is a safe bet. Atlus recently sent out a newsletter saying they have a special edition planned, but wouldn't say what was in it yet. According to Gamestop/EB, you'll get a soundtrack and an artbook... so that's probably what Atlus is referring to.

I'd link to my Persona 3 section on my Megaten site (I guess this is advertising, but there's not really an alterative site for it), but it's not currently up. I've not finished redoing it all yet... but I had probably more info about the game there than any other English source. Should be soon, for those who want to know more about the game.

My main point of interest is whether or not the US version will include Fes. Fes is an expansion pack of sorts for Persona 3 and adds on quite a lot of stuff. Atlus USA hasn't said anything about it. In the past, I'd assume we'd not see it in the US, but recently Atlus USA and Atlus of Japan seem to be cooperating more and more... we're actually seeing examples of games from Atlus of Japan being announced for US release before they even hit Japanese stores. That NEVER happened even a couple years back.

So we'll see. I have an interview vaguely scheduled with them about the game, so if anyone has something they'd like to have asked let me know.

[Wondershot]

Well, I know this game hasn't been touched on in a while, but it releases in two days from now in the US and the EB in my area said that they'd be getting it two days after that. Therefore, I figured now was a good a time as any to get in my two cents.

Frankly, I've been looking forward to this game since early this year, so I have been really counting down the days for the last couple of weeks until this comes out. I haven't played any of the previous Persona games, but since having been introduced to Shin Megami Tensei: Nocturne (through news on these very boards, no less) I've been loving every iteration of the series. Also, since it's the first time I will be playing one of the legendary Persona games, I have reason to be excited.

What really gets me about this game is the idea that there will be more ways than fighting to level up. Apparently, time management during the day, when you have to form relationships with your classmates and in-battle allies, is as crucial to a successful playthrough as the actual combat. Depending on who you develop "Social Links" (as they are called in the N.A. version) with, different persona at your disposal may become stronger, so it becomes a matter of figuring out how your persona connect with the people at your school and making everyday decisions based on your findings. Apparently, after multiple playthroughs, it becomes possible to form friendships with absolutely everyone, powering up all your persona immensely. However, this supposedly takes patience and amazing time-management skills, something that should occupy people into 100% completion for a while.

Also, while Kazuma Kaneko of the other SMT games is not character designing this time around, the art style of P3 is something that impresses me quite a bit as well. It seems sort of like an anime in a lot of ways (character proportions, coloration, the fact that it includes anime cut scenes), but the sharp colors and unusual menu design (based on a lot of circles...A LOT) is something that I look forward to seeing more of. Also, one of my favorite game composers, Shoji Meguro, has written everything for this game, and I have to say it's some of his most entertaining work yet. Never before has an RPG battle tune made me want to get up and dance so badly as "Mass Destruction", and the title theme "Burn My Dread" is quite awe-inspiring as well...especially with the opening video.

Regarding news on the FES expansion, Atlus USA said no, apparently, no FES for the time being, but the speculation on the Internet is that hopefully a huge number of sales will change Atlus' mind, so despite a handful of whiners who say they won't be getting P3 because FES isn't coming, there is hope for the future. Besides, FES is just supposed to be more akin to a really long sidequest than anything, so people getting P3 here really won't be missing any story.

Also, regarding a Special Edition, apparently all copies of P3 come with a soundtrack and artbook, so really, it's more like an "international" edition since everyone who gets the game here will have these things available. I'm quite excited about getting to listen to some of the game's tunes on my CD player for a change.

Anyway, just thought I'd bring this topic back as the release date for the game looms overhead. Those of you who are getting it, let us know what your impressions are once you do. For those of you getting it two whole days before me, remember your spoiler tags!

[DeathKnight]

[color=crimson]Pre ordered mine a couple of weeks ago. I've waited for it for awhile, this and Growlanser 5 are the two games I'm waiting for this summer.

Will talk about it more post-release.[/color]

[Semjaza]

[quote name='Wondershot']Stuff[/QUOTE]

Boy, if I knew there was someone on this site that actually like Megaten as much as you apparently do I would have put something in my signature asking for staff for Digital Devil Database here lol.

In any case, the game is being delayed slightly:

[url]http://www.atlus.com/atlus_forum/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=116&sid=e1bb43ee4fa445d0980d1e8f53f56d45[/url]

It's going to miss the July 24th date. It's not hitting stores till August 14th now.

I just got my review copy in today, though, so I guess I can answer questions about it or whatever as I play it.

(Edit - Game's ****ing awesome by the way)

[Wondershot]

[quote name='Semjaza']Boy, if I knew there was someone on this site that actually like Megaten as much as you apparently do I would have put something in my signature asking for staff for Digital Devil Database here lol.[/QUOTE]

Well, admittedly you were my first source of information about SMT games, back when I read your topic here on SMT: Nocturne when it first came out. I tried it, loved the art style, loved the soundtrack, loved the gameplay, loved the story and the characters, loved the mythological imagery, loved the level design, loved the optional bosses, loved the ending(s)...in short, I was hooked, and I have played every game since as well as gone online to try and find more info on the SNES games. Really, I'd be happy to write for Digital Devil DB if you wanted me to.

Anyway, as far as the game goes...I guess waiting a little while longer wouldn't be so bad...except now it means I have less than three weeks to finish it before the next school year starts...oh, the stress.

There are a couple things I am curious about, though, before I play it. On the occasions when you're in class, is it true that [spoiler]the teachers usually ask you questions about incredibly obscure facts about Japanese history that most people in North America wouldn't know about?[/spoiler] Also, when exploring Tartarus, is it true that [spoiler]experience bonuses decrease the higher you ascend?[/spoiler]

Finally, what is the ratio, more or less, of time spent in school to time spent climbing Tartarus? I assume that Tartarus would take up more game time than school, but I am just wondering about these details. I know the spoiler tags probably aren't that necessary, but hey, I wouldn't want to ruin the surprise of any details.

[DeathKnight]

[color=crimson]Atlus must be really.. disappointed.. in the company that printed the first run of art books, I can't imagine how irritating that must be lol. I'm not particularly peeved but I do wonder how peeved they are at having such a popular product being delayed unnecessarily.

How is the difficulty in the game Tony?[/color]

[Semjaza]

[B]I added some new stuff to this post as of July 28th and August 5th to better answer your questions.[/B]

[quote name='Wondershot']Really, I'd be happy to write for Digital Devil DB if you wanted me to.[/quote]

Sure, feel free to IM me or PM me or whatever. Really, all I ask is that people write what they want and add to what they want... I have no demands or expectations there.

Anyway!

[quote name='Wondershot']There are a couple things I am curious about, though, before I play it. On the occasions when you're in class, is it true that [spoiler]the teachers usually ask you questions about incredibly obscure facts about Japanese history that most people in North America wouldn't know about?[/spoiler][/quote]

I'll spoiler this, but I didn't write anything that'll ruin anything for you:

[spoiler]If it's something you wouldn't know, the teacher usually prefaces it with the answer. It's mostly a game of paying attention. For example, a teacher mentions her favorite Japanese author, notices one of your friends not paying attention and asked who she was talking about. He bothers you for the answer. If you're playing the Japanese version, I'm sure this is handled differently...

There has been one that threw me off. The teacher asks what a Japanese word means in a sentence... but if you actually pay attention to the sentence, only one meaning makes any sense. There was one question about who was on what bill though and I don't know how anyone outside of Japan would really have ANY idea. It's easy enough to look it up.

There's other questions where you actually have to know things. The difference between the different eras of the Stone Age, for example... Which theory of a few is Einstein's, but I've not found any of them difficult...

There are midterms in the game that test if you've been paying attention to the questions teachers ask in the classes. Doing well affects your popularity and you get some nice items if you get first place.[/spoiler]

[quote name='Wondershot']Also, when exploring Tartarus, is it true that [spoiler]experience bonuses decrease the higher you ascend?[/spoiler][/quote]

[spoiler]Tartarus is divided up into blocks, each of which has a set number of floors in it. I'm not entirely sure where you heard this at, so maybe I'm misunderstanding... but as you go higher in the tower you fight different, more powerful monsters.

You definitely get more experience from them. In the first block the Shadow give so little experience that I was getting kind of worried, but it picks up near the end and definitely gets better in the second block. Plus, randomly after battles you get to choose cares (which are then shuffled) and sometimes you get one that gives you extra experience. As you get higher, the numbers on these cards raise (I'd assume up to 9, starts at 1 obviously).

Edit - I'd say this isn't really true, honestly. It depends on the enemy, obviously... but I think some people are confusing this with how many people you have in your party. For a while you only have 3, but when you have 4 experience has to be divided up more and thus decreases some... but if you keep going up in Tartarus, things are stronger and worth more experience to begin with.[/spoiler]

[quote name='Wondershot']Finally, what is the ratio, more or less, of time spent in school to time spent climbing Tartarus? I assume that Tartarus would take up more game time than school, but I am just wondering about these details. I know the spoiler tags probably aren't that necessary, but hey, I wouldn't want to ruin the surprise of any details.[/QUOTE]

At least so far, it's pretty balanced... and honestly, in many ways it's completely up to you. Other than for story segments (the first hour or so of the game is very linear to help you get adjusted, but after that you're given a lot of free time), I've never actually been [I]forced[/I] to do anything. If I want to hang out with a friend and build up my social skills (which give you Persona bonuses, but also just nice story/character interaction) or study at night instead of going to Tartarus, that's my decision.

You have to remember that depending on the day of the year, much of the school day will be skipped entirely unless something of interest comes up. There's day where you'll go to school and it will skip all the way to after school.

As you get stronger, though, you can spend a hell of a lot more time in there if you want. Even still, I'd say it's balanced... there's days when you can't go to Tartarus at all for various reasons.

[quote name='Deathknight']How is the difficulty in the game Tony?[/quote]

They don't seem pleased about it, but in the long run I think their decision is the best one. I've only seen one person get [I]really[/I] annoyed about it and that was on Joystiq's comments. Said he was canceling his pre-order, but he even seemed mad that there was no Japanese language track and that Fes wasn't included. I don't know how much you can expect lol.

As for difficulty:

My initial thought was that it was rather easy. This changes midway through the first areas, where the difficulty ramps up. I don't think it's impossible, but there's definitely a lot of strategy involved... If you're smart, you can attack the weaknesses of two different types of enemies (if not more) by just using your main character during one turn.

[Doublehex]

I have been a fan of the Shin Megami Tensei series ever since Goodbye, Face introduced me to [URL="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Digital_Devil_Saga"]Digital Devil Saga[/URL]. It was something of a love hate relationship. I loved the characters, the story, and the gameplay...but I hated that it was just one dungeon crawl after another.

Now, I've been keeping tracking of anything even [I]remotely[/I] SMT related ever since. You can expect that I've been excited over this title for a while.

Even though Kazuma Kaneko didn't design the characters, I still love how they were done. Don't ask me why. I just do.

At first, I wasn't quite so sure if I was in love with the school life aspect. After four years of high school, I am not excited to go back into that environment. But, after reading up on it, I am warming up on the idea.

Now, with the Invoker, that is the only part I am somewhat freaked out about. The fact that they point this gun into their heads, and pull the trigger to activate spells and summon personaes is somewhat disturbing to me.

Overall though, I can't wait for it. I only hope EB Games ships it to me tomorrow. If not, well, I'll get to play it eventually.

[Semjaza]

Atlus's shipping dates tend to be the date they give out. So, more than likely, it'll ship today and you'll get it tomorrow (assuming you had overnight delivery).

It's reviewing very well, which surprised me at first. Metacritic has it at an average of 88 out of 100. There's a surprising amount of 10s for the game so far.

Personally, I think it's excellent and I'm glad it's getting what it seems to deserve. I didn't write a review per se, but I do have my thoughts on it here ([url]http://www.digitaldevildb.com/games/persona3/d3_impressions.php[/url]) if anyone cares to read them.

[Charles]

Oh man, you didn't tell me there was an OtakuBoards thread about this, Semjaza. I don't know now; the game just suddenly became far too mainstream to be cool. It's probably all of the "samas" and "sans" that are attracting attention. I swear to God if I see one "^_^" smilie in this game, I'm going on a rampage.

[Semjaza]

[quote name='Charles']Oh man, you didn't tell me there was an OtakuBoards thread about this, Semjaza. I don't know now; the game just suddenly became far too mainstream to be cool. It's probably all of the "samas" and "sans" that are attracting attention. I swear to God if I see one "^_^" smilie in this game, I'm going on a rampage.[/QUOTE]

You never buy anything cool to begin with, so you're in luck.

You can talk with someone in a MMORPG in the game, so I'm sure you'll see that face somewhere along the way.

[vegeta rocker]

[quote name='Charles']Oh man, you didn't tell me there was an OtakuBoards thread about this, Semjaza. I don't know now; the game just suddenly became far too mainstream to be cool. It's probably all of the "samas" and "sans" that are attracting attention. I swear to God if I see one "^_^" smilie in this game, I'm going on a rampage.[/QUOTE]


I love the game and i am also not accustomed to a SMT game getting so much attention.

Persona 3 is soooo addicting, i actually just bought Persona 1 for my bf.
^_^

[silpheedpilot]

[SIZE="1"][COLOR="SlateGray"]With the risk of having you Japo RPG fanpeople rip me a new one I've never really been akin to the Shin Megami games because they were all so dystopian and drab with the possible exception of Devil Summoner which, while I liked, got old real quick

Either way, I saw my buddy had this game and decided to try it while we were all hanging out at his house. After pressing the goddamn X button for an hour and a half. (F You RPG genre) I finally was able to venture into the endless and ever changing dungeon you do all your fighting in: Tartarus and I was hooked.
The catchy soundtrack had me liking it from the beginning but it wasn't until you actually get to fight and experience the game to it's fullest when things come full circle and you start enjoying youself.

Even though the battle system looks generic it really keeps things fresh for me because I'm not into RPGs that try to redefine the genre by skewing the battle system up. (Still looking at you FF12)
I like the balance of the fighting you do by trying to weigh either physical attacking, shooting your emo head off to summon a Persona to cast a spell and generally making use of all tactics and exploiting the weaknesses of your enemies while trying to avoid letting them exploit your weakness. It's all really balanced and fun, if not the best part of Persona 3.
Exploring Tartarus also wears your buddies out and eventually you have to head out because your characters are doing more harm than good. In the time they're resting before they can go back and fight is when you can go and mess with the Social Links.

The Social Links are basically NPC interactions that strengthen the bonds between you and the types of Persona you can create and spending more time with a certain person will upgrade that Social Link and in turn make that type of Persona that much stronger.

The story is really convoluted where I'm at in the game so I can't say for sure if I really like it because it sounds like the typical anime fare which, while I have no problem with, I hope picks up some steam because it's really slow going.

All in all I'm really enjoying Persona 3 as of late. I think it's partly due to the fact I'm out of my RPG funk. Ya know. When RPGs just don't interest you because you don't have the time to invest or because none have come out that really interest you. That funk.[/COLOR][/SIZE]

[vegeta rocker]

silpheedpilot I love your BioShock avatar and banner!

And on another note about Persona 3, i do find one thing annoying, either one of the two chicks popping in constantly telling me whats going on during a battle.

Its cool every now and then but i don't need her gasping every damn time i take a turn.

[Wondershot]

Well, I've had this game in my possession for over a week now, and the reason I haven't posted anything about it yet is, well, the fact that I've been spending most of my time playing it.

This RPG, despite being fairly simple in overall gameplay mechanics, is still surprisingly addictive and a great way to kill a few hours at a time. Personally, I really like some of the changes that have been made to the battle system, in that while previous games would have a forseeable maximum number of turns available (usually 8 for Nocturne, and 6 for DDS1) the One More Turn system of P3 means that each person on the field could hypothetically have as many turns as there are opponents on the field, provided they keep exploiting weaknesses. Also, I like the All Out Attack system as well, and the manga-styled dust cloud of violence that appears still makes me crack up when I see it. Though some might be annoyed at the fact that only the main character of the party can be controlled, the other characters are certainly not useless, and you can assign them a variety of tactics and orders for their upcoming turns which allow them to function rather intelligently on their own. Also, I love the fact that no one character has to learn a useless "Analyze" skill and that it can be done automatically by your mission control-esque character within a couple of turns, and then done instantly right after. It's great for keeping track of what enemy is weak against what element, especially since most enemies are simply palette swaps of each other. The only things that really annoyed me were the fact that buffing "-kaja" and debuffing "-nda" skills now only target one person at a time, and are largely useless as a result to me now, and I was a little surprised to see Wind-element skills changed from "Zan" to "Garu". Not that the latter is so much a problem as it is a little confusing.

Also, the option to split up the party to better explore floors of Tartarus is usually effective if you want to get up the stairs quickly, so it means that exploring can be easy and you can devote more effort to simply grinding the enemies if you choose. I, for one, usually like charging straight up through floors of Tartarus to the nearest bosses without doing much fighting on the way up, and then grinding later on in preparation for the next wave of bosses. It works so far, but I have to admit that it can be a little tedious grinding previous floors so often, and that I usually get tired of doing so long before the characters do.

Also, the Social Link system is quite cool, since it can sometimes be of greater benefit than even grinding Tartarus, and though it can be a pain trying to figure out which Links to establish in preparation for future encounters, the story segments are usually at least somewhat entertaining to watch and the characters all interesting in one way or another. Seeing as how I use [spoiler]Magician[/spoiler] Persona the most, I have been trying to get ranks with [spoiler]Kenji[/spoiler], and, interestingly enough, I have a strong friendship with [spoiler]Kazushi[/spoiler] (Rank 9) despite the fact that I don't use [spoiler]Chariot[/spoiler] Persona very often. Also, I'm aggressively pursuing a relationship with [spoiler]Student Council Treasurer Chihiro[/spoiler] so as to make [spoiler]Justice[/spoiler] Persona stronger, and though I only use [spoiler]Hermit[/spoiler] Persona occasionally, I derive great amusement from talking to [spoiler]"Maya" on the MMORPG, and her attempts at leet-speak.[/spoiler] Also, the side story about the group's trip to [spoiler]Yakushima for summer break[/spoiler] was quite fun, especially seeing how Junpei reacted to everything over the course of the trip, and how he undertook his "operation" with greater fervor than when he has to fight Shadows.

All things considered, the only things I see wrong with the game are the fact that Tartarus gets kind of boring after a while when all you have to do is grind the same floors several times, and the fact that looking at the mini-map in the corner is much easier than looking down the halls of Tartarus itself, especially since you can see enemies on the map. Also, I get the feeling that soon I'll end up with more player characters than I will know what to do with, and that I won't be able to grind everyone or pay for everyone's stuff with equal frequency.

All things considered, though, this is a great RPG from a company that has a history of making great RPGs, and you'll find enough familiarity in the battle system and general gameplay concepts to be comfortable going in, yet have enough diversity and creativity in the gameplay mechanics to hold the interest of people looking for something different. The only sort of person I can see disliking the game is one who is into extreme complexity with RPGs or games in general (which I am...sometimes) and who will likely feel a sense of tedium set in within a couple of in-game months, as they grind the same floors of Tartarus each night over and over again while waiting for the next major plot point to occur.

And as for the mission control characters talking over fights. I like it. It makes the fights seem much more animated and lively even if the dialogue repeats itself quite often. Although, my favorite line still remains Junpei's battle cry when we start an All Out Attack.

Oh, and this should go without saying, but series composer Shoji Meguro is still awesome. The soundtrack that came with the game is a little sparse and omits a few of my favorite tracks, but it is worth repeated listens all the same.

[Dagger]

I just ordered this. I think I'm going to make it my winter game, though--right now I'm giving Odin Sphere a whirl.

Persona 3 shares quite a few actors with the Tales of the Abyss dub, which I enjoyed, so I'm looking forward to that aspect of it.

~Dagger~

[Doublehex]

I'm just curious, what did everyone name their character?

I named mine Fuzake Mawaru

[LIST]
[*]In Japanese, the term 'fuzakemawaru' stands for foolish one
[*]Which fits because the tarot card of the protaganist is the Fool.
[*]Additionally, the Fool represents change, either good or bad. The fact that the Protagonist can have more than one persona is a big change from normal.
[*]Plus, it just sounds like an awesome name :D[/LIST]

[Vigilance]

I never play this game before, so what is the storyline about? All I ever hear in this thread is how it is a good game to play, but not much about the storyline in it.

[Semjaza]

Every night at midnight something known as the Shadow Hour begins. Basically, at this point, monsters known as Shadows attack the surrounding areas. Most people are transmogrified into crystallized coffins, but those who are able to summon Persona remain fully conscious. Most of them just wind up being killed, but a special group of kids (their main difference being that they know how to summon Personas at will) at a local High School have formed a force with the help of the the head of extracurricular activities. Their mission is to find the source of the Shadow and defeat it.

It gets far deeper than this (tons of turns, hidden connections, additional enemies that have their own motives, etc), but it's a very entertaining story and the character development is excellent. I can't see anyone being disappointed with it, particularly given how dull console RPG stories usually are.

[B]PS, this game is being re-released [I]with [/I]the Fes expansion pack (two new stories, about 30 hours of gameplay) in the US for $29.99. If you have a PS2/PS3 and don't buy this, you're officially going to be thrown off a cliff.[/B]

[Sandy]

I bought this a few days ago (it was just released in Europe, without FES, of course), and I'm really loving it. The characters are very realistic but also very likable, the setting is intriguing and I love that the game offers more than just fighting.

I'm only at the end of May, so nothing much has happened yet, but I still feel like with every day that I can't spend on raising the Social Links is a wasted one. XP The calendar system is innovative, but it's also kind of restrictive, since you can do only one major thing per day - if you spend your evening outside as well, you'll lose your chance to explore the dungeon.

Speaking of which, having only one dungeon to fight in felt restrictive at first, but it's also a good thing since it shifts the focus on the story and the characters rather than grinding levels. I'm loving all the different types of Personas, and since I unlocked the compendium, I now get this "gotta catch'em all!" mentality. XD

I also find it interesting that although the game was translated, they stuck with the Japanese setting. It shows how different their school culture is to ours - just the fact that you gain popularity for being smart is strange to me. XD

A personal gribe of mine is that the main character's sexual orientation cannot be decided. I'd rather have him date the exchange student Bebe with his foppish fan than some ditzy schoolgirl. XP But I guess it cannot be helped in a world where heterosexuality is still the norm... [spoiler]Kudos to the makers of Bully for breaking that norm, though.[/spoiler]

But yes, I'm greatly enjoying Persona 3. It's the first game in the whole SMT-series I've played, and though it's very different from what I've grown used to seeing in RPGs, it's also very refreshing - and not too difficult, thankfully.

[DeathKnight]

[color=crimson]I got to level 40. I was sixty hours in. Then finals for last semester hit.

My game save was left alone and unloved in the cold, cold snow.

Now, as it is spring break, I have come out strong with a singular purpose: defeat Persona 3. I started over. I am 15 hours into it and have to say the game is much easier when you know what you are doing, haha. The first time I played I wandered dazed and confused through the town trying to find social links, shops, and the like, now I am buzzing through the whole thing like a true veteran.

I really hoped from before P3 was released that Fes would come here. There was a small group of people on the atlus forums who kept begging for the initial P3 release to be Fes, but it was not so - however, at least it is hopping over the Pacific to here at all.

Pre-ordered and eagerly anticipated, especially for the penis-monster persona.[/color]

[Semjaza]

[url]http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0014CN2H6?ie=UTF8[/url]

FES is in stores now.

For $30 you get a package of the original game and the new FES expansion with hours and hours of completely new content.
[B]
Thirty dollars.[/B] If you like console RPGs (or even if you don't, it's arguably the most interesting one in many years) and you don't buy this then there's just something wrong with you.