Summary
Persona 3 Reloadrelishes in what makes modernPersonatremendously immersive: loads of activities throughout different times of the day across a calendar year. Part of these activities is optionally choosing to engage in romantic relationships, whether players wish to pursue one character or multiple, and the wayPersona 3 Reloaddecides to dole out romance is a bit of a slog until it all comes to a head with a lot of choices to be made.
Persona 3 Reloadis a faithful remake and therefore has a lot intact from its predecessor. This time around,Persona 3maintains somemodern sensibilities fromPersona 5. That said, there are a few advantages and disadvantages regardingPersona 3 Reload’s romances as it’s spread thin at times, while also being highly accommodating and rewarding depending on how players have decided to spend their free time between story beats.
Anyonediving coldly intoPersona 3 Reloadmay not presume that more characters become available to romance later on. Specifically,Persona 3 Reloadonly allows two potential romance options in the beginning with present female party members excluded.
The fact of the matter is that many players will be aware of theins and outs ofPersona 3 Reloadthanks to the original coming out in 2006, but the remake is now being introduced to many players who may not have gotten into the series beforePersona 5made as big of a splash as it did.Because players might be going into it believing that close party members can’t be romanced, there’s a ton of catching up to do with characters who only become available as romance options further into the game, which can have positive and negative effects on an oblivious and unguided first playthrough:
Pros:
Cons:
This can obviously be problematic if players were unknowingly under-leveled in a stat that corresponds with a particular character they were hoping to romance—Persona 3 Reloaddoes offer more than enough time for Social Stats to be earned, however, and all romantic Links being available earlier could’ve made that more difficult to achieve.
Now, since nearly all of the romances are dogpiled in the back half ofPersona 3 Reload, it can create an odd pacing issue if that’s a huge draw of the game for players. Essentially the front half of the game then seems like when players needed to be leveling up and increasing other Social Links. Of course,Persona 3has had more than enough time to marinate and many more players were likely going intoReloadknowing that party members Yukari, Mitsuru, Fuuka, and Aigis would all be viable options eventually.
Working towardCharm, Courage, and Academics statswith that in mind instead makes those endgame relationships far more fulfilling, so long as players have the time to spare. Thankfully, though, players don’t need to choose between one romance or another. All that’s left for them to do is decide who they wish to make a priority when they’re given the choice of who to hang out with and when.
Persona 3 Reload
WHERE TO PLAY
Step into the shoes of a transfer student thrust into an unexpected fate when entering the hour “hidden” between one day and the next. Awaken an incredible power and chase the mysteries of the Dark Hour, fight for your friends, and leave a mark on their memories forever.Persona 3 Reload is a captivating reimagining of the genre-defining RPG, reborn for the modern era.Experience the pivotal game of the Persona series faithfully remade with cutting-edge graphics, modernized quality-of-life features, and signature stylish UI. Fully immerse yourself in an emotional, gripping journey with new scenes, character interactions, and additional voiceover. Choose how to meaningfully spend each day through various activities from exploring the Port Island to forging genuine bonds with beloved characters. Build and command your optimal team to take down otherworldly Shadows and climb closer to the truth.
