Finished this game last night. 91 hours it took me, played on hard mode. Between this and Wukong, i've played 2 of the most challenging games b2b
What I didn't like about this game
1. Clunky overworld combat. After 91 hours, this is the only
real gripe i have with this game. I spent a ton of time level grinding and archetype leveling so i got a good feel of the overworld battling. The lock-on system is pretty useless imo, and some weapons are kind of annoying to use, especially if you wanna magla farm near those respawning crystals
2. (not really a gripe). The treasure chest monsters are bullshyt. they use a move that puts you to sleep and then they get critical hits. fukk those guys
3. (not really a gripe). Hulkenberg gotta be the least clutch character in the game. I swear to god, every time she has a chance to kill an enemy with an attack, she fukking misses! And when playing on Hard mode, where enemies get an extra turn icon, it's BRUTAL. like damn, bytch, hit the enemy! He's right there!
4. Enemies that can abuse the 4 turn icon skill. U gotta be kidding
What I like about the game:
1. Great story and great characters. Heismay and Eupha are my favorites. My rankings are as follows:
- Protag (unranked, he's cool tho. Doesnt have much personality, which is normal for these games by Atlus)
- Heismay
- Eupha
- Strohl
- Junah
- Hulkenberg
- Basilio (who i never used unless i had to. By the time we unlocked him, I was pretty much set on my team. He seems like a less good version of strohl)
2. the archetype system is so smooth and straightforward. Very well-thought out
3. The fact that EVERY character can use every archetype except for the exclusive "royal" types. Ofc, based on a character's stats some archetypes aren't the best for certain charcters. For example, strohl probably shouldn't be a mage. He's best suited for physical attackers because his attack stat is naturally high. Eupha and Junah are great choices for mages. But there are stats like agility and luck, that characters like Heismay may use. There are tons of possibilities to build your party. Ofc, by the end of it, I just went with the royal archetypes for each character.
4. Skill point allocation on the Protagonist is cool. You can build him however you want, based on the context of your team. So people who are into the teambuilding aspect of RPG's will love this feature.
5. Atlus deciding to have a currency for normal things like armor and weapons and another completely different one for anything magla/archetype related was such a great idea. I'm sure when P6 comes out, the QoL improvements that we saw in this game will be there.
6. The "follower" system is great because you aren't penalized for picking the wrong choice at the prompt. For example, in Persona 5, when you are speaking to a confidant and you have to pick 1 of 3 options at the prompt, if you don't pick the correct one, it will take longer to level up your confidant. In this game, it doesn't matter in terms of Follower level because each choice only affects the amount of magla you get at the end of the exchange. So you don't have to potentially visit your follower 2x to rank up if you chose the wrong response.
7. Touched on it below in the quoted post, but the skill inherit system makes the game very enjoyable to play, especially when you fight bosses in the mid to late game. The amount of work you had to get to get a persona to have "debilitate" in Persona 5 was ridiculous. Also, it cost so much money to withdraw persona's from the compendium and make room in your slots for it. It was such a hassle. In this game, you just have to level up your archetype and that skills is yours once you buy it with magla. Debilitate is one of the best skills in the game, so to get it and have it is huge
8. HARD mode is really difficult. The turn icon system is a perfect "gift and curse" feature. Enemies having one more full turn icon seems like a small change, but it can be the difference between winning a battle or spending your turn reviving your allies, especially when enemies hit harder. And it seems the AI is specifically trying to target weaknesses to get more turns. The same goes for missing. If you miss an attack, you lose 2 turn icons, and that can be what turns the battle around for your enemy.
All in all, this game is EXCELLENT. One of the best RPG's i've played since Persona 5 Royal. Atlus does it again. It's a
9.5/10 for me. I'm gonna play Regicide some point later. I need to finish Rebirth and Astrobot before the year ends. But as it stands right now, this is GOTY for me. Only Rebirth and Astrobot have a chance to top it.
