As a subsequent entry It falls from the graceful plateau that is 3, and that's even after giving it a novelty buffer since 3 was my first persona. The setting, cast, plot and ending is markedly worse imo.

The cast is a letdown honestly. For example, I thought Junpei was lacking but compared to Yoskue he's a saint. Same with the others, even teddie started off well but he fell off as I moved forward with the game. The TV setting isn't half as cool as the dark hour, the tower did much better as a dungeon as well. Even the velvet elevator looked cooler than the limo.

To give its due, it introduced good QOL additions. Like the quicksave (IK it's a re-release improvement) and the fusion search which made experimenting much more inviting.

It ends on an odd low note (even the "good" ending) which crowns it as a enjoyable letdown. Even in little details like completing social links, the game throws a lot of bullshit at you, and that's infuriating that even when social links was my highest priority I didn't like how little progress it gives you unless you fixate on a specific link.

I doubt it'll ever rise from being the worst persona I tried, but it's still a persona game all in all. Try it if you're interested, but honestly my recommendation is that you're not missing out if you decide to skip it.