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Welcome... to the Velvet Room. What is Persona? Persona is a series of Japanese-style role-playing games developed and published by Atlus. Each game in the Persona series focuses on a group of friends (usually high school students) who fight demons and other supernatural monsters by summoning magical beings called "personas" from within their subconscious mind. Central to the Persona series is the idea that every person has different facets to their identity, different "masks" they wear to face life's challenges, and that each of these masks represents a part of the "real you." For the characters in the games, these facets or masks can manifest as personas, which are associated with the major arcana of the tarot deck and appear as mythological or literary figures, deities, and creatures from urban legends. In every game in the series, new personas are created in a dreamlike place called the Velvet Room, with the help of a long-nosed man named Igor and his various assistants. The Persona series started as a spin-off of Atlus's Megami Tensei series, focusing on more real-world inspired settings, Jungian psychology, and interpersonal relationships. While the Persona series takes place in a shared universe and features many common elements, each game tells a standalone story, and the games can be played in any order. The main games in the Persona series include: Persona - PS1 (1996, as Revelations: Persona in North America); PSP (2009) The game that started it all. Persona takes place in the fictional town of Mikage-cho. A group of high school students play "the Persona game," an urban legend that will supposedly show them their futures. Instead, four of them are struck by lightning and, while unconscious, meet the masked spirit guide Philemon, who tells them of the power of personas. They wisely go to the hospital for a check-up after this, and to visit their classmate, a sickly girl named Maki. While there, an earthquake happens, the hospital transforms into a labyrinth, and demons attack. The characters awaken to the power of their personas, and the adventure begins. This game has a couple of notable aspects. First, it is the only game in the series with two entirely separate story paths. The first, known as the SEBEC Route, sees the characters travel to an alternate reality version of Mikage-cho, along with an alternate version of Maki, to save the world from being erased by a wish-granting machine. The other, called the Snow Queen Quest, has you staying in the original Mikage-cho and contending with an evil creature from an urban legend called the Snow Queen. The second is the PS1 version's notorious American localization, released under the title Revelations: Persona as Atlus's attempt to start bringing the Megami Tensei series to the west. This version of the game cut the Snow Queen Quest and attempted to Americanize the setting and characters, to... let's go with "wacky" results. The good news is that the PSP rerelease has a faithful translation and restores the Snow Queen Quest. Play that version. Persona 2: Innocent Sin - PS1 (1999, Japan-only); PSP (2011) Persona 2: Eternal Punishment - PS1 (2000); PSP (2012, Japan-only) Persona 2 is actually two games: Innocent Sin and Eternal Punishment. Innocent Sin stars a boy named Tatsuya who attends high school in the fictional seaside city of Sumaru. The adventure begins when, after awakening to the power of their personas, Tatsuya and his friends discover that rumors that become popular around Sumaru have started coming true, including the rumor about a being called the Joker who grants wishes, but who exacts a terrible price. In their quest to stop the Joker, they also recruit two adult allies: a reporter named Maya, and Yukino, one of the party members from the original Persona. Eternal Punishment picks up after the end of Innocent Sin, with Maya taking the central protagonist role and a party of mostly adults for the only time in the series. Frustratingly, only half of the Persona 2 duology was released in English each time it was released. On the PS1, only the second half, Eternal Punishment, got localized, while on the PSP, only the first half did. That said, this does mean that you can play both halves in English. Persona 2 is a favorite of many long-time Persona fans and is very much worth a play. Persona 3 - PS2 (2007) Persona 3 FES - PS2 (2008) Persona 3 Portable - PSP (2010) Persona 3 Reload - PS4, PS5, Xbox, PC (2024) Persona 3 tells the story of a transfer student in the fictional city of Iwatodai who finds himself leading a team of persona-users called SEES (Special Extracurricular Execution Squad). SEES explores a phenomenon called the Dark Hour, a supernatural 25th hour of every day where most people are transmogrified into coffins. Only some people remain aware and able to fight the strange monsters called shadows that are emerging from Tartarus, a towering labyrinth that appears during the Dark Hour. SEES seeks to end the Dark Hour and stop shadows from preying on innocents. In a radical shift for the series, Persona 3 fuses life sim elements with dungeon crawling. Your character lives as a normal high school student during the day, developing relationships with those around him and his teammates, while exploring Tartarus and fighting shadows at night. You follow a daily schedule, choosing how to spend your time each day to increase your social stats, develop relationships (called Social Links, each associated with one of the major arcana and which help in creating new personas), and get enough battle experience to face the monthly boss shadows that appear. This life sim/dungeon crawler fusion has become the model for the Persona series, further iterated on in the future games. Persona 3 FES is an expanded rerelease of the original that came out a year later and features a playable epilogue chapter called "The Answer." Persona 3 Portable is a remake of the game for the PSP that tells the story in a more visual novel-like style and adds an entirely new route through the story starring a female protagonist. Persona 3 Reload is a modern remake released in 2024. Persona 4 - PS2 (2008) Persona 4 Golden - PS Vita (2012), PC (2020) In Persona 4, your main character is a transfer student from Tokyo who goes to live with his uncle and cousin in the small rural town of Inaba for a year while his parents are overseas for work. Soon after you arrive, you and your new friends try out an urban legend called the Midnight Channel which claims that if you stare at a TV at midnight while it's raining, you'll see your soulmate. Instead, it seems that people who appear on the Midnight Channel soon end up murdered. Not only that, your main character discovers he can use TVs as a portal to enter a strange world inside the TV, where he and his friends gain the power of personas and realize they can save people from being murdered. Persona 4 follows a similar structure to Persona 3, in which you live as a normal high school student while working with your friends to rescue kidnapping victims and solve the murder case. Persona 4 has a notably lighter tone than previous games in the series, despite being a serious murder mystery at its heart, with a strong focus on the main characters facing their inner demons, learning to accept their flaws, and figuring out their own identities. Persona 4 Golden is an expanded rerelease that was exclusive to the PS Vita until mid-2020, when it was released on PC. Golden features quality-of-life improvements, new story scenes and places to visit, and an extra dungeon that takes place towards the end of the game. Persona 5 - PS3/PS4 (2017) Persona 5 Royal - PS4 (2020) The latest main series game, Persona 5 begins with the main character being sent to Tokyo on a year-long probation after being arrested for assault (and nobody seems to care that he had a drat good reason). Soon after arriving in Tokyo, the protagonist discovers that an app on his phone allows him to enter the Metaverse, a world of the collective unconscious, where he and his friends meet a talking cat and learn that they can change the hearts of evil people by stealing a symbolic "treasure" from inside a person's personal Palace (a dungeon in the Metaverse created by their strong, twisted desires). They form the Phantom Thieves, a group dedicated to taking down criminals whose power and status lets them act like they're above the law, and begin to make a name for themselves as vigilantes. Persona 5 continues the life sim/dungeon crawler fusion that started with Persona 3, but features hand-designed dungeons with light stealth and puzzle elements, and an expanded social link system called Confidants, where your social contacts provide benefits that help you infiltrate Palaces or manage your time during the life sim segments. Persona 5 Royal is an expanded rerelease with more quality of life features and a refined, more tactical combat system, along with new places to visit, new activities, new characters, and an entirely new story arc that takes place after the end of the original game. Harrow fucked around with this message at 20:28 on Apr 18, 2024 |
# ? Feb 21, 2021 00:42 |
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# ? May 9, 2024 23:56 |
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Want to learn about spinoffs? Harlock's got you covered:Harlock posted:Merchandising! Merchandising! Where the real Persona money is made. Persona 5 Strikers - PS4, Switch, PC (2021) Persona 5 Strikers is a little different from the other spinoff games. This time, it's a road trip sequel to Persona 5 in the form of an action-RPG with musou elements. The Phantom Thieves embark on a road trip for summer vacation a few months after the end of Persona 5. It turns out someone else is stealing hearts all across Japan and the cops are blaming the Phantom Thieves, which leads to them getting roped into one more job. While it has a linear story more like an actual Persona game than a musou, it also has action-RPG combat that involves fighting hordes of enemies and switching between characters you control. Persona 5 Strikers also has its own dedicated thread right over here! Frequently Asked Questions I'm new to the series. Where should I start? (Updated 2024) While you can start with any game in the series, I'd personally recommend starting with either Persona 3 Reload or Persona 5 Royal. They're both great games with distinct styles, memorable characters, and excellent music, while having enough quality-of-life features that some of the series's more complex elements (like persona fusion and time management) can be eased into. Persona 4 Golden is also a good starting place, but might feel a little more dated than the two more recent games. But any game in the series is a good starting point and you'll find people who started with and were hooked by every one of them. Maybe the only one I wouldn't recommend as a starting point nowadays is the first game, which can be fairly rough as a newcomer, especially with its high random encounter rate. It's still a good game and worth playing (hell, it was the first one I played, and the Revelations: Persona version, at that!), but if you want to start with one of the older, non-life sim games, I'd recommend Persona 2 instead. Do I have to play all the games in order? Definitely not! With the exception of the Persona 2 duology, every game tells a completely standalone story. The games all take place in a shared world, but connections between them are almost always minor and never plot-critical. You can jump right in with any game and not be missing anything. Life Sim Tips and Tricks As stated before, the mainline Persona games after Persona 3 feature prominent life sim elements where you follow a daily schedule, attend school, and develop relationships with both your party members and other people around the game's setting. The time management and time limits can seem to be stressful at first, so this section has some tips to help you manage it.
Harrow fucked around with this message at 20:37 on Apr 18, 2024 |
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kanji is my friend
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# ? Feb 21, 2021 00:45 |
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Arist posted:kanji is my friend
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# ? Feb 21, 2021 00:46 |
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every time Kanji comes on screen he steals the show. top tier character absolutely.
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# ? Feb 21, 2021 00:53 |
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If you have ideas for FAQs and answers please suggest them. I'm gonna probably update the second post tomorrow morning with info about spinoffs and a "where should I start??" FAQ question.
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# ? Feb 21, 2021 00:57 |
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Great OP!
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# ? Feb 21, 2021 01:11 |
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Persona 2 Innocent Sin and Persona 4 Golden are my favorites. Turn-based combat is very good and as relevant today as it ever was. Amanda Winn-Lee voices Yukiko in P4, Haru in Devil Survivor Overclocked and Rei in original NGE. She is always the best. My initial thoughts.
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# ? Feb 21, 2021 01:18 |
No welcome to the velvet room message? its fine don’t change anything
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# ? Feb 21, 2021 01:22 |
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Spiffster posted:No welcome to the velvet room message? ah poo poo that's what's missing!!
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# ? Feb 21, 2021 01:23 |
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Maruki is my favorite
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# ? Feb 21, 2021 01:23 |
Chie is best girl.
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# ? Feb 21, 2021 01:27 |
tithin posted:Chie is best girl. She was until she revealed she wants to be a cop
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# ? Feb 21, 2021 01:29 |
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Added a couple questions to the FAQ. If you can think of others (or anything to add to the answers there) let me know!
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# ? Feb 21, 2021 01:32 |
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The velvet room is a reflection of the soul. That's why mine is in the form of this forum thread on a defunct website.
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# ? Feb 21, 2021 01:38 |
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That's a good lookin' op.
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# ? Feb 21, 2021 02:03 |
A question for the FAQ Can you max confidants/social links on your first play through? It is possible to do so but it will be stressful experience for first time players and those without a guide. If you don’t get them all on your first time there is always NG+ where you carry over stats and perks that can make your schedule a lot less stressful. As the P5 loading screen says “take your time” and just have fun
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# ? Feb 21, 2021 02:06 |
Spiffster posted:A question for the FAQ At least in P4 and P5 it's pretty important to at least try and max out your party members, they get some great combat benefits.
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# ? Feb 21, 2021 02:11 |
lunar detritus posted:At least in P4 and P5 it's pretty important to at least try and max out your party members, they get some great combat benefits. Looking at you Ryuji’s Royal instakills Still need to play 4 but I keep getting distracted by other games
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# ? Feb 21, 2021 02:14 |
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That's a good one, I'll add that when I'm back at my computer. It's definitely important to max party members in 4 and 5 and I'd recommend focusing on that if you're feeling overwhelmed. There's also one confidant in Royal that unlocks an entire extra month of the game and a different ending and it isn't immediately obvious that it's that important. Maybe something like: max your party members and if a character has a non-standard major arcana, try to max that too? With a link to a list of the normal Rider-Waite arcana for reference. For Persona 5-specific advice, the Fortune and Temperance confidants have very powerful perks that can help a ton with time management. Harrow fucked around with this message at 02:20 on Feb 21, 2021 |
# ? Feb 21, 2021 02:18 |
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lunar detritus posted:At least in P4 and P5 it's pretty important to at least try and max out your party members, they get some great combat benefits.
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# ? Feb 21, 2021 02:20 |
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Maxing the s links without a guide is totally doable without a guide in 4 and 5. 3, uh, good luck. Just chill out and have fun, these games are good times.
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# ? Feb 21, 2021 02:22 |
lunar detritus posted:She was until she revealed she wants to be a cop Well yeah, nobody's perfect...
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# ? Feb 21, 2021 02:23 |
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It's easier to max out 5's Social Links than 4's because there's more than two SLs that happen at night and half of them aren't tied to school.
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# ? Feb 21, 2021 02:26 |
Maybe mention something about increasing stats? It's pretty easy for someone playing for the first time to completely ignore them. I've seen a couple of let's players go ham working sidejobs because they think money is more important than getting good grades.
lunar detritus fucked around with this message at 02:30 on Feb 21, 2021 |
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# ? Feb 21, 2021 02:26 |
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maya is, good
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# ? Feb 21, 2021 02:27 |
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Maybe a section with life sim tips, then? Don't stress about maxing every social link, recommendations for social links to prioritize, and something about what social stats do and why they matter?
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# ? Feb 21, 2021 02:29 |
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Ground floor. I'm pretty new to Persona, got a steelbook copy of 5R last year, but it really hooked me and my wife, absolutely perfect pandemic food. We finished it without unlocking the postgame (because we figured maxing one character, which got us a special message, was enough, but we needed to actually really max a second one), so we'll eventually do NG+ for that and to do all the social links. In order to not burn out, we instead are playing P4G, thankfully super cheap on PC during a sale so I nabbed it, and it's also really fun. We do have some raised eyebrows at various scenes involving Kanji's sexuality and Naoto's gender identity, but we're willing to write it off as "Yosuke is the worst". I would say that a "before you play" for each game, especially the recommended ones, might be a good addition to the OP; that's mostly: - who to max out before which date in each game in order to not lose out on vast amounts of content - obscure conditions you need to fulfil in order to triggers endings/continue the story - as has been said, what not to stress out over I've seen some FAQs that recommend reloading whenever you don't get an extra random stat up for crafting lockpics in P5R, at a like 12% chance, and that's absurd, don't do that.
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# ? Feb 21, 2021 02:30 |
ROFL Octopus posted:Maxing the s links without a guide is totally doable without a guide in 4 and 5. 3, uh, good luck. I did it in 3 but hoooo boy did I cut it close. I was convinced I was gonna miss it. Compared to Royal when I messed up and didn’t max out temperance before a certain point and was locked out of advancing them for a bit due to story and school related stuff. Thought that was gonna Kill my max run but I ended up spending the last months just killing time at the shrine and club.
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# ? Feb 21, 2021 02:31 |
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Simply Simon posted:I've seen some FAQs that recommend reloading whenever you don't get an extra random stat up for crafting lockpics in P5R, at a like 12% chance, and that's absurd, don't do that. Yeah this is extremely not necessary in P5R. I think I know the guide you're talking about and it has like a full month and a half of free time at the end.
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# ? Feb 21, 2021 02:34 |
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Spiffster posted:I did it in 3 but hoooo boy did I cut it close. I was convinced I was gonna miss it. Compared to Royal when I messed up and didn’t max out temperance before a certain point and was locked out of advancing them for a bit due to story and school related stuff. Thought that was gonna Kill my max run but I ended up spending the last months just killing time at the shrine and club. Props to you. I hosed up even with a guide but I was happy to at least max Star and get my fave demon Helel.
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# ? Feb 21, 2021 02:38 |
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[inevitable “Why is the first Persona game titled 3?” joke]
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# ? Feb 21, 2021 02:38 |
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Am I missing something in P5S or is there no reason to not just leave jails and heal up every time you get the opportunity? It's not like P5 where there's a month timer, right?
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# ? Feb 21, 2021 02:41 |
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Which is superior: Mass Destruction or Wiping All Out?
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# ? Feb 21, 2021 02:44 |
fadam posted:Am I missing something in P5S or is there no reason to not just leave jails and heal up every time you get the opportunity? It's not like P5 where there's a month timer, right? At least the first "dungeon" feels like it was balanced around leaving the jail every time you find a checkpoint, everyone goes through their SP like crazy. But yeah, no timer.
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# ? Feb 21, 2021 02:45 |
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ROFL Octopus posted:Which is superior: Mass Destruction or Wiping All Out?
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# ? Feb 21, 2021 02:49 |
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This started playing in my head as soon as i opened this thread. At the Hollow Forest dungeon now in P4G and hoo boy, the mechanics make this an absolute slog.
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# ? Feb 21, 2021 03:12 |
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I've only ever maxed all social links in Persona 5 and P5R. I cut it very close in vanilla P5--I didn't realize it would be possible until the last three weeks of the game and I just barely pulled it off. It was easier in P5R since I already knew about how great Chihaya and Kawakami are for time management optimizing. I've never even tried in P3, it seems insanely daunting.
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# ? Feb 21, 2021 03:13 |
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I have never maxed all S Links. I forgot in P4 that you miss out on all December if you finish the final dungeon in one day.anakha posted:This started playing in my head as soon as i opened this thread. On the other hand, it does have the best dungeon theme in the series https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BHoMvZEHWJo And also Marie is Best Girl.
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# ? Feb 21, 2021 03:19 |
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# ? May 9, 2024 23:56 |
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As I mention in the previous thread but what’s the best advice for fighting Shido ? I have been using Melchizedek but also have Ananta. Now I was a moron and didn’t Max out many of my confidants and don’t really have access to other Personas atm as I’m only level 60. I nearly had Shido beat earlier, but I didn’t guard during his last form and he insta-killed me when he charged up. Still, just getting to that point was a 20-30min grind. So the insta-kill was really deflating.
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# ? Feb 21, 2021 03:19 |