Following its initial announcement, this game was met with an outstanding and overbearing silence that echoed throughout the lands of the fanbase as absolutely no one alive was hyped for the prestigious release of Persona 5 Tactica.

Well- I lie. I WAS EXCITED! I was so hyped, I went to every DM for every friend who even remotely knew of Persona, telling them that "Persona 5 Fire Emblem finally exists!" I was wrong, but I wasn't right either. It was more "Persona 5 Mario + Rabbids," than anything, but it was a Persona 5 tactics game, and for that: I couldn't be happier.

Persona 5 Tactica is an odd strategy game. Rather than meticulously honing in on enemies and playing it safe throughout each battle, Tactica expects you to play aggressively, utilising skill advantages and 1 More's to decimate opponents, leaving them open so you can wipe the battlefield before a conflict can even begin. For this, the game can be admittedly exhilarating to play. You're always on the move, and when you get the hang of it, it becomes an absolute joy to play! Characters bounce off each other well, and each Side Quest teaches you what each character's toolkit offers, as well as how they might differ. Sooner or later, you begin realising which character works well for what scenario, and you lose yourself in the all-out revolution of war that this game tries its best to tell a tale of.

That was how it was for me, anyway. Being weak in this game is a major strength in battle. What you lack in OH-KOing enemies when being under-levelled, you make up for in being able to push them around the map, allowing you to crowd control a large group before sending them home with an All-Out Attack. It's incredibly satisfying to pull off, and even though I was worried about making certain missions impossible when I was over the level for certain ones: The game still provided me enough versatility to think around the box and use a different character's skills in new ways.

Mind you, everyone is diverse, but not everyone is fair - and I saw this is an issue in what was thankfully the best possible way. The one outlier in the main cast, being Yusuke, is thankfully just a REALLY good unit to have in every battle. With the right skills, he provides extra movement for every battle, and he quickly became a favourite for getting slow-coaches like Haru and Makoto across the map quickly without needing to waste turns positioning them. Speed is the main aim of the game, and regardless of the overall difficulty setting you're playing in, you're ultimately rushing to success with everyone on-board.

You must forgive me, though. Tactica is admittedly one of the few times in a Persona game where I was so incredibly enamoured by the gameplay, that I absolutely lost myself in it without first realising just how good the story could be. Is the story good? If you've played Persona 5's original campaign and the Strikers spin-off, you'll see the ending twist coming from beyond a mile away - and then you'll sigh in dissapointment as the game tries its best during the final few hours to get you on-board for the finale when you're absolutely ready to bash his head in like the ones before him in other games.

The story isn't amazing, but it's not horrible either. What makes it, "not horrible," though? Define it for me, Yoshistar!
Okay, fine. I will: Toshiro and Erina! These two bubbles of fear and absolute delight had me giggle a few times with how silly they could be! Tactica is implied to take place during winter of P5 Royal. The Phantoms Thieves don't develope. They've done doing that. You SAW THEM do that. No complaints here, okay? From here on, Toshiro takes the stage, and Erina joins alongside him!

The two rub off each other like skin and soap, ribbing on one another constantly while also providing aid in their faults. It's incredibly heart-warming to see, and during the final moments of seeing Toshiro coming to grips with who he is, you begin loving these characters for being the way they are. Toshiro for being a goof who has to accept his faults, and Erina for being the #badassgirlboss that doesn't take "no" for an answer. She represents the game's themes of Revolution perfectly, and to that end, the story of the game can be immensely engaging. It's a character-driven narrative, and the characters this time around are the goofballs, Toshiro, Toshiro, and Toshiro, with a side helping of Erina whenever the plot demands it. It's not perfect - but it's engaging, and I loved the game for it!

There are little things too, that I enjoyed about this game. I didn't mind the constant menu navigation because, as always, Persona 5's UI and themes of Revolution hit the nail on the head whenever you even THOUGHT of checking something out before a battle. You could get lost for HOURS fusing Personas in the Velvet Room if you're lucky (I was sadly, unlucky, though: When I had to sit in their for 40+ minutes for a PS achievements :/), and seeing bonus conversations only to THEN mix and match skills in the Skill Tree becomes dangerously addicting before every battle. Now... if only the game didn't notify me EVERY TIME even ONE of the units needed a tiny upgrade for SOMETHING RELATIVELY MINOR- D:

"Yes, I know Haru can get a small HP upgrade for 10 GP, game, but MAYBE I DON'T WANT IT! LET ME SAVE UP MORE DAMN IT- THE FLOOF NEEDS HER OVER-POWERED PSIO SKILL DAMN IT!!!!!"

AHEM-
Sorry about that.

So that's it? That's my only complaint?
Yeah.

I told you all before. I was one of the only few who was excited for Tactica's announcement. I was so excited, I waited for a sale and snagged it when the tide of prices was looking safe to surf on many months later. Call it cheap (it was on my wallet), but it worked. The game receiving such a lukewarm reception has likely damaged any resemblance of more Tactica-like games from ATLUS, which is a shame - but it does make me hopeful we could get Persona Q remasters one day. And even if I WAS the one singing this game's praises enough to Platinum the game on my PS account, I had an absolute joy doing it.

People are getting sick of the Phantom Thieves. They've hit a slump, and they're just not as good as they used to be. ATLUS love them just as much as we've apparently outgrown them, and that's the harsh reality of the world we live in. To that I say: Enjoy it while it lasts. I'm hoping one day people avert their eyes from the fatigue, and give Tactica the 1 More it deserves. It's not a masterpiece of a game, but it's not harmful either. Persona 5 Tactica is a game that excels in what it does, and is a joy to play from start-to-end to New Game+ and beyond. It's not perfect, but it's not a Persona game without polish - and you'll see that more if you ever ever decide to give it the glance it deserves.

The answer to creating the best DLC campaign was Splatoon all along. Where's my singing idols when I need them?

ATLUS heard our cries and whines about Kasumi and Akechi's lack of presence in Strikers and gave us them as paid DLC out of spite to us. What do I have to say about it? I'm thankful.

Repaint Your Heart (RPH) plays a slight bit differently to the main game. Enemies spread paint with each hit they do to the opposition, and generally it's a good idea to have as much of your coloured paint across the map, since it allows you to stagger enemies for a One More if they stand atop your side's colour - even if they're near a wall or corner. This changes things up from the main game, since you'll generally be abusing Akechi and Kasumi voltage's to help abuse game mechanics during tough calls, and even Joker's own one becomes much more useful when certain bosses later on are harder to hit with paint. It's a short campaign, but a lot of the levels got very creative as they went on. A lot of tactics games suffer their final bosses being too easy or too convoluted, but I found this finale a delight when faced with having to think outside the box to paint my way through to the end.

Story-wise, there are some contrived tidbits that no fan can ignore when booting up this campaign! Kasumi isn't herself from Royal's Third Semester, so she lacks a lot of the development that a lot of her fans love her for, and Akechi's joining up with Joker in the DLC story is also done at a delicate point in the timeline of the main game that really offsets things. The main characters who develop in RPH really come down to original characters, Luca and Guernica, and I did enjoy watching them. It was nice to have this side story showcase having a rebellious spirit in a new way, and I think Guernica was a really good shout into how it could be done for a negative end-goal, as opposed to the Phantom Thieves.

Even better was how the game's story doesn't make the symbolism as in-your-face as OG-P5. It's, to this day, one of the few annoyances I have with the original's narrative, and I was really happy to see no one point out the indication of the normal Street residents being rats to do with Guernica's past, or through Kasumi remembering something she dearly forgot towards the end of the campaign - if only for just a little bit. It was times like these I personally enjoyed picking up on things the things the game didn't otherwise tell me so that it could seem smart, and I think it made the setting of The Streets incredibly interesting from a symbolic point of view. I personally enjoy thinking back to a game's story constantly even after playing it, and RPH scratched that personal itch for me.

I won't beat around the bush. I enjoyed RPH more than I thought I would. I'm a sucker for Tactics games, so I was already hooked on Tactica's main-game, but acknowledging Royal was the cherry on the cake for me, and I'm glad they did so because it confuses the timeline of what's real in the P5-verse even more now (Strikers Royal should exist by the the way). I do still think you SHOULD ideally get this DLC if you've at least played through Royal's Third Semester for the most enjoyment, but the levels are incredibly varied and unique to accommodate less narratively-driven players.

It's a good DLC. Day 1 DLC was a little cringe, I'll be honest, but you can do what I did and wait for a sale before swooping in for it. If any of Tactica's DLC packs are worth getting - then this is the one!