I wasn't very into Innocent Sin, but I had respect for it, I understood that me not being very into it was very personal, and I had some general fondness for the plot.
Eternal Punishment has the same issues (poor combat and dungeon design), but everything that was good about Innocent Sin is not present.
The plot is messy in Innocent Sin, but it felt like there were some trough-lines. Even if the plot didn't feel concise, the similar themes tied everything together. On the other hand, Eternal Punishment feels completely all over the place, with no common ground.
Even the rumor system feels much less grounded and part of the world of Eternal Punishment than it did in Innocent Sin, which is a shame since rumors are so essential to the game's identity.
I think at the heart of it Innocent Sin was good since it was the story of Tatsuya, Eikichi, Lisa, and Jun; Eternal Punishment is also that, but wrapped around a bunch of other things that feel pointless.
Maybe it's a bit rude to compare the two so closely, but it is a duology, and Eternal Punishment is at its best when it's just the second half of Innocent Sin— which it is for the last five minutes.
Also, to end on an incredibly petty note, making Maya a silent protagonist is terrible. Tatsuya as a silent protagonist was also terrible, so they made the smart move and made him an actual character—at the cost of Maya's character.
I very desperately wanted to like Persona 2 as a whole— I am a pretentious person, honestly— but I just do not see anything interesting in the story of Eternal Punishment until the literal last moments. I do respect that the game was willing to end on an imperfect and somber note.
Eternal Punishment has the same issues (poor combat and dungeon design), but everything that was good about Innocent Sin is not present.
The plot is messy in Innocent Sin, but it felt like there were some trough-lines. Even if the plot didn't feel concise, the similar themes tied everything together. On the other hand, Eternal Punishment feels completely all over the place, with no common ground.
Even the rumor system feels much less grounded and part of the world of Eternal Punishment than it did in Innocent Sin, which is a shame since rumors are so essential to the game's identity.
I think at the heart of it Innocent Sin was good since it was the story of Tatsuya, Eikichi, Lisa, and Jun; Eternal Punishment is also that, but wrapped around a bunch of other things that feel pointless.
Maybe it's a bit rude to compare the two so closely, but it is a duology, and Eternal Punishment is at its best when it's just the second half of Innocent Sin— which it is for the last five minutes.
Also, to end on an incredibly petty note, making Maya a silent protagonist is terrible. Tatsuya as a silent protagonist was also terrible, so they made the smart move and made him an actual character—at the cost of Maya's character.
I very desperately wanted to like Persona 2 as a whole— I am a pretentious person, honestly— but I just do not see anything interesting in the story of Eternal Punishment until the literal last moments. I do respect that the game was willing to end on an imperfect and somber note.