Throughout my life playing video games, I’d say that for the majority of the time I’ve liked JRPGs more than any other genre. While games like Pokémon and Final Fantasy got me hooked on levelling up and taking turns to beat up enemies, it was Persona that really made my heart beat for RPGs. I’ll never forget that fateful summer I spent playing through Persona 4 on the PS2, delighting in the cosy rural setting and making friends with the residents of Inaba. Since then I’ve made sure to play all the modern Persona games, and last year Persona 3 Reload sent a happy bullet to my brain and kept me from playing anything else for weeks. It was the perfect Steam Deck game, and I was keen to see if it was also the perfect Switch 2 game on my new handheld of choice.
For many Persona 3 was the game that started it all, kicking off the modern era of the Persona series. Like all the other Persona games you play the role of the new kid in school, this time at Gekkoukan High. This would be enough of a stressful situation for any teen to deal with, but for you and a handful of others life is even more complicated. This is because you know a bizarre secret, that there’s a secret extra hour after midnight where most people transform into coffins and monsters known as Shadows go on the prowl.
This Midnight Hour has been causing many deaths, and when it’s discovered you too have the power to navigate this monster filled nightmare you’re recruited by student council president Mitsuru onto a special investigation team. Tasked with discovering the source of this phenomenon and exploring a big demonic tower that appears at midnight, you’re in for a hell of an adventure full of some serious twists that hit me like a gut punch.
The reason you’re able to (vaguely) safely go out during the Midnight Hour is because you have the power of the Persona, which is a sort of magical guardian angel that casts spells. In true edgy noughties fashion the way you do this is by shooting yourself in the head with a special gun called an evoker, which is a hell of a visual and still took me aback even on this second playthrough.
Battles against shadows are turn-based in Persona 3 Reload, and it’s easily one of the best examples of this brand of combat. You and your party members have different attacks and abilities you can use on your turn, but the real goal of battles is to hit the enemies’ weaknesses. By doing this you’ll be granted another turn, and this can continue for as long as you’re able to press the advantage. It’s so damn compelling, especially when you knock down a whole team of foes and are able to launch an all out attack for huge damage.
This is how the combat works on a basic level, but Persona 3 Reload is a difficult game with a whole lot more depth as you progress. Things like status effects that you probably just ignore in other RPGs are brutal in Persona games, and there are also instant death moves and damage-reflecting barriers you’ll have to survive – especially in boss battles. Thankfully you have extra tricks up your sleeve too, like Theurgy which are all new special attacks for this remake that you can charge in a variety of ways.
While the combat in Persona games is exceptional, it’s the social side of the game that really makes them unique in the wider world of JRPGs. When you aren’t exploring a massive randomised dungeon the game functions as a time management game, where you need to choose how you spend your evenings and weekends to best make new friends or improve different life skills. It’s the perfect tonal shift from the combat, and will also help you get stronger after midnight.
By hanging out with various characters you’ll develop something called a social link with them, and as you strengthen it you’ll also strengthen Personas of that type. This means when you get to making new demons using the intensive fusion system they’ll be massively powerful without any levelling up, and this will help a whole lot as the game progresses.
Not content with featuring fantastic combat and compelling life sim elements, Persona 3 Reload is also one of the most stylish games you’ll ever play. Every single menu you open or HUD element on display just oozes style, and is a treat to look at. The overall visuals aren’t quite as high fidelity on the Switch 2 as they are on the more powerful console options, but it’s still a gorgeous game. The soundtrack is probably the best in series history too, with so many songs I’d happily listen to every day for the rest of my nerdy life.
There are a few negative aspects to Persona 3 Reload though, albeit pretty minor ones. It doesn’t really give you enough time to connect with your party members compared to other games in the series, and your closest allies feel like strangers especially in the opening dozen hours. There’s the exception of Junpei who’s your bestie, but he’s an unlikeable pervert anyway and I tried to avoid him whenever possible. There’s also the main dungeon Tartarus which is a bit overwhelming and repetitive, despite the many improvements this version of the game brought to it.
More than all the other complaints though, it’s the Switch 2 version of the game specifically that’s disappointing. The game runs at 30fps at best, and because of poor frame pacing everything feels juddery and unpleasant. It’s a real shame because it means this port of the game is the worst way to play it, and even from a handheld perspective it’s much better on the Steam Deck. Thankfully as a turn-based RPG it’s still perfectly playable with a poorer framerate, but it definitely feels like it should run better.
While the Switch 2 isn’t the ideal place to play Persona 3 Reload, the game is still fantastic on this lovely handheld. With a fantastic story, sensational combat and a whole lot of improvements over the PS2 game, Persona 3 Reload is a must play JRPG for even passing fans of the genre.
