Honestly, if I'd written this review immediately after finishing the game, it would have been an instant 5 stars, no question.
Now that a few months have passed, though? I'm disappointed to say that it didn't leave as much of a long-term impact as I'd hoped.
The game is an extremely clear-cut Good vs. Evil narrative, to its detriment in many instances. Many of the villains are comically evil, and the overarching conspiracy feels almost... cheap, looking back.
And while the third semester added by Royal was definitely a mixed bag, at least it had some substance to its moral discussion. The most emotional moment for me was actually in seeing the contrast between the two endings in the third semester, seeing how those endings compared to one another. The contrast between them made for a much more satisfying conclusion to each character's arc, having them choose to fight for a world with their trauma and accept that part of themselves, even when faced with the option to have it erased. Fighting for an objectively worse reality and acknowledging the trauma and darkness in their lives, rather than forgetting about it amidst the 'found-family' of the Phantom Thieves. Other than that, though, the story wasn't really anything that special or groundbreaking, other than the novel idea of using supernatural powers to punish evil in positions of power.
What I will say in this game's favor is that the style is unmatched, to the point where I would almost recommend it just for that. As someone interested in game design, the interfaces, visuals, and soundtrack were genuinely fascinating. It's a AAA game that's crafted with an indie game level of passion, and that's something I haven't really seen before.
I had an absolute blast with Persona 5 when I played it, but it consumed an immense amount of my free time to complete. Unless someone was already really interested in trying it I would struggle to recommend the game, as 100+ hours is just too much now that I look back and see how little of it actually stuck with me.
Do I regret playing it? Not at all, no. It was actually a really unique experience. But would I recommend it casually? Definitely not. Only try it if you have a lot of time at your fingertips and are already very invested in the premise.
Now that a few months have passed, though? I'm disappointed to say that it didn't leave as much of a long-term impact as I'd hoped.
The game is an extremely clear-cut Good vs. Evil narrative, to its detriment in many instances. Many of the villains are comically evil, and the overarching conspiracy feels almost... cheap, looking back.
And while the third semester added by Royal was definitely a mixed bag, at least it had some substance to its moral discussion. The most emotional moment for me was actually in seeing the contrast between the two endings in the third semester, seeing how those endings compared to one another. The contrast between them made for a much more satisfying conclusion to each character's arc, having them choose to fight for a world with their trauma and accept that part of themselves, even when faced with the option to have it erased. Fighting for an objectively worse reality and acknowledging the trauma and darkness in their lives, rather than forgetting about it amidst the 'found-family' of the Phantom Thieves. Other than that, though, the story wasn't really anything that special or groundbreaking, other than the novel idea of using supernatural powers to punish evil in positions of power.
What I will say in this game's favor is that the style is unmatched, to the point where I would almost recommend it just for that. As someone interested in game design, the interfaces, visuals, and soundtrack were genuinely fascinating. It's a AAA game that's crafted with an indie game level of passion, and that's something I haven't really seen before.
I had an absolute blast with Persona 5 when I played it, but it consumed an immense amount of my free time to complete. Unless someone was already really interested in trying it I would struggle to recommend the game, as 100+ hours is just too much now that I look back and see how little of it actually stuck with me.
Do I regret playing it? Not at all, no. It was actually a really unique experience. But would I recommend it casually? Definitely not. Only try it if you have a lot of time at your fingertips and are already very invested in the premise.