I'm a little tired today but I haven't updated it awhile so I'm going to push through this. Today i'm going to do a game I just finished recently and really enjoyed; Persona 3 Portable. I had long been pushing the Persona series away because of its Mature rating label(which is rightfully placed trust me) but I finally went and got myself a copy of Persona 3 Portable because I wanted something fresh and new to play and boy did it deliver.
This is the 3rd version of this particular game and its exclusively for the PSP unlike the other two PS2 versions.
Story:
The story stays the same regardless of the gender you pick at the beginning to the game. Basically theres an extra hour in the day refereed to as the Dark Hour. During this time everyone transmogrifies into a coffin, except you and a select group of people. Also during the Dark Hour a giant tower called Tartarus emerges from your school. Your role in this story is to climb to the tops of Tartarus with your buddies and discover the secrets behind the Dark Hour while balancing a regular school life in the day.
Points: 9 Its a good combo
Characters:
Definitely the one of the best things of this game. All the characters, major and minor alike have distinct personalities and back story(some more than others). I don't want to go too deep into anyone because I don't want to spoil but the characters are a treat in this game that I won't soon forget.
Points: 10 All video game characters should be this awesome
Sound:
I'll have to admit, I didn't like the music at first. The mix of pop, jazz, and rock didn't really speak to me but after awhile it really grew on me and I wanted more. An interesting this is depending on which gender you play as in this game the soundtrack is completely different which was a nice touch when I switched over to a boy file after beating the game twice as a girl. The soundtrack is truly unique. The voice acting is also very well done in this game(Liam O'Brian *drool*). The only character that had a bad voice was Fuuka. My GOSH if your going to have her narrating battles at least have her sound slightly ALIVE. Alright, alright putting Fuuka aside everyone was cast well and sounds great. As for sound effects I saw/heard nothing wrong so lets move on
Points: 9 Friggen Fuuka
Mechanics:
YES. THIS IS THE KIND OF GAME I HAVE BEEN WAITING FOR. Okay so this game go through a cycle of one year. In the daytime you must go to school(except on Sundays and other holidays) and make friends. Doing so you will obtain social links that power up your Personas/get you more Persona fusions(more on this in a bit). Now in the nighttime you go to Tartarus and beat up Shadows(the enemies of this game) and get as far as you can to the top. School life itself plays like a visual novel where you interact with people and saying different things will change the outcome. Tartarus exploration on the other hand plays like a fantasy RPG. You will be placed on a floor and the Shadows will be placed throughout. You have the choice whether to battle them of not(YES!) but if they catch you BAM! Battle time. The battles are turn based but hardly boring, you won't be disappointed. Okay, right, Personas. A Persona is like a mirror of the character and are summoned out of you by shooting yourself in the head with an 'Evoker' a gun like object. Your Personas are your magic spells in this game, simple.
Points: 10 This is amazing <3
Graphics:
Again, these are well done too. While at school everything is flat and 2D (which works well) and exploring Tartarus is a full 3d environment. They blend well together and compete the game as a whole.
Lasting appeal:
I played this game through (almost) 3 times. Its that fun. My only beef with this game is that Tartarus gets a little redundant near the end of the game, just a little.
Points: 9 Fun times
Overall:
This was a good game despite all of its blood and foul language, I wouldn't recommend it to many of my friends though because this game may not be that enjoyable to them haha. Defiantly do not buy it for small children, nightmares will follow I guarantee it. It was a great combination of two genres and had me wanting more. I'm patiently awaiting the day we get a Persona 4 Portable because the rest of the series is now available on the PSP and its not. I can dream.
Points: 10 This was a great experience
TOTAL: 67/70
If your looking for something new and different give this game a try, just be wary of the Mature rating because its there for a reason.
-Anna
The point and click navigation has its own charm, I'd like to play others games where you explore areas with a cursor. The visual presentation and the music make the daytime segments really enjoyable despite the absence of direct character control. This is one of the few games I have played twice. Story is rock-solid and the setting fresh and immersive. If I had to make a top 5 psp games P3P would have a spot in tt.
ReplyDelete