After diving back into the world of Persona 3 and experiencing its poignant expansion, Episode Aigis, I must say that this journey has left me with a profound sense of admiration and emotional resonance. It’s not every day you come across a story that so beautifully captures the raw, complex nature of grief and the human spirit’s resilience in the face of tragedy.
The following will contain spoilers for the base game content of Persona 3.
Persona 3 Reload was the game that finally made me fully understand and appreciate Persona 3. Although I’m a fan of all the games in this series, I found it hard to enjoy earlier versions of Persona 3. But sandwiched among my favorites was one that didn’t quite resonate with me, despite seeming like it should have. This year’s remake gave it a fresh look, redefined its main characters, and improved its battle system, which transformed it from the least enjoyable to possibly my favorite. I’ve never been more ready to enjoy Persona 3 content than I am now.
Revisiting Episode Aigis, the epilogue from Persona 3 FES, sparked my curiosity about one of Persona’s more contentious narratives. While I wasn’t particularly fond of the original gameplay in Persona 3, especially a thirty-hour dungeon crawl on hard mode without compendium access, I was familiar with its main storyline due to my long involvement within this community. Although I had forgotten many specific details before starting this playthrough, I approached it with an open mind.
Describing the original version as merely divisive might be an understatement, considering many players didn’t seem to appreciate its presentation, which could have hindered their enjoyment of the game. Essentially, you are referring to a game that took the life simulation aspects from Shin Megami Tensei and blended them with its addictive gameplay, only to remove half of the life simulation elements and require new players to play Shin Megami Tensei to uncover the epilogue. While I acknowledge the creators’ ambition, I can understand why people might be dissatisfied when crucial story elements were scattered throughout a demanding dungeon crawler. Reload’s Episode Aigis is their endeavor to create a more accessible version of this gameplay experience.
Following the conclusion of P3, it’s nearly time for S.E.E.S. members to part ways. After the heartbreaking demise of the Protagonist, each individual is dealing with the situation in their unique manner. Yet, on March 31st at midnight, they find themselves back at the start of the day, trapped within a time loop and unable to leave the dorm unless they navigate a desert of doors that lead to shadowy dungeons.
At a basic level, the performance remains exceptional. The dungeons are well-designed, battles are exciting and dynamic, the animated scenes maintain the high standard set by the original game, and the new music is simply fantastic. Many remixes of previous tracks enhance them, or at least match the originals more consistently than before. The new Mass Destruction track stands out, and it could be argued that it’s even better than the new battle theme “Don’t”. However, I don’t feel compelled to argue whether two masterpieces like the Mona Lisas should fight.
In the course of enjoying Persona 3 Reload, a recurring idea surfaced in my mind as I traversed the labyrinthine Tartarus – “I adore this game, and I yearn for a title that emphasizes combat and dungeon exploration more prominently.” To my delight, Episode Aigis, despite not meeting the exact criteria, comes pretty close to fulfilling this wish. As the characters are confined within their dorm and unable to leave, other elements of the contemporary Persona structure are absent. Instead, the focus is predominantly on exploring dungeons and engaging in battles. You can pause for rest, gather supplies, or engage in conversation with companions occasionally, but it’s safe to say that approximately 95% of this game consists of either running through randomly generated dungeons or participating in fights.
Are you absolutely smitten with the dungeon exploration in Persona 3 Reload? Was adding “Persona 3 Reload” to your gaming bucket list a must for you, like it was for me? If so, you’ll feel right at home because there’s more of that. The key word is ‘more’. Episode Aigis doesn’t revolutionize the mechanics of Persona 3 Reload, but instead fine-tunes them slightly. You’re essentially getting a taste of a Persona game in a compact format, with the same progression condensed into a game that’s roughly half the original length.
Leveling is faster, there are more battles, everything is harder. Your characters all start at level 30 with their late-game personas, and from there you’ll need to regain your power as you fight harder and harder enemies. I tried to compare stat screens between my old save and my new one, and if there were any serious character rebalancing then I guess I missed it. Characters like Akihiko and Mitsuru still feel “nerfed”. They’re useful early on thanks to having their better personas at an early level, but fall off near the end.
Although Atlus didn’t introduce any significant new elements to the overall combat system, they appear to have fine-tuned everything else instead. My main issue with P3R was that it felt too easy, even when played on hard mode. I don’t mind the trend in the Persona series towards less friction, accessibility, and more enjoyable games, but Reload seems to be under-tuned in this aspect. Episode Aigis offers a gaming experience closer to The Answer’s original version, albeit slightly. While you can still adjust your difficulty settings, all levels will be notably tougher than those encountered in the main game from the start.
At first, I opted for the Normal difficulty to get a sense of it since I’ve always played on Hard before and it was locked. To my delight, it felt just right, similar to Hard mode in Reload, offering a good challenge that penalizes carelessness. I found myself toggling between Normal and Hard throughout my play, appreciating both modes equally. This experience underscores the strong foundation of Reload when implemented in a game with more intensity.
I believe this approach was quite clever, and for an RPG epilogue, I’d like it to maintain connections with Persona 3 and progress its narrative and mechanics. They certainly achieved that goal. This results in a more harmonious gameplay experience, and possibly one of the most enjoyable times I’ve had playing a modern Persona game. The gameplay feels fantastic, yet it’s balanced to encourage strategic depth, allowing players to adjust the level of challenge based on their preferences while still making each difficulty level harder compared to the original game. In my opinion, that’s what a well-balanced RPG is all about.
In this modern take on challenges, there’s a ruthless edge that was once prevalent in Atlus RPGs but is less common now, which I found captivating. As you progress further, it becomes increasingly deranged – bosses often have abilities to dodge their weakness, and more enemies become resistant or reflective to attacks. In the late game, when most of your party excel at physical attacks, enemies start to possess skills that can instantly defeat them with counterattacks, even if they’re at full health. The appearance of Monad Doors becomes frequent, presenting three doors of varying difficulties, promising better loot behind the harder ones. Dying in these areas is a game-over with no respawns, and the superior gear you find there won’t help for long, either. It can be delightfully cruel, yet incredibly addicting.
For enthusiasts who enjoy the social dynamics more than the turn-based gameplay in Persona, there’s an accommodation. The Characteristic system from the base game has been retained, linked to unique items hidden in chests that can be unlocked with twilight fragments after defeating bosses. These items can then be presented to certain characters for use as conversation starters during downtime. Although these scenes aren’t essential, I find it charming to witness the group bonding moments. Among these interactions, my top pick is likely Metis compelling Ken to prepare pour-over coffee and discussing the concept of a robot like her tasting it.
While I’m deeply engrossed in the procedurally generated dungeons, the scale of this expansion can be daunting. My play session was approximately 30 hours long, and by hour 20, I was feeling fatigued. The designs of the seven dungeons tend to repeat, which is not necessarily a negative point if you take your time and don’t rush through what essentially amounts to a compact video game within a week. However, it does suggest that Episode Aigis could benefit from more diversity and rhythm that the day-to-day sections typically offer. With infrequent cutscenes, many players might find this challenging given their tolerance levels. I regret not being able to prolong my playtime until the release of Metaphor ReFantazio next month, as I believe I would have enthusiastically declared it as the most enjoyable modern Persona gameplay experience if I had done so. For now, I need some time to ponder over this before I can confidently say that I’ve fully appreciated its qualities (once I’ve caught up on my sleep).
It’s been a while since I last encountered “The Answer’s” narrative, and I must admit, I’m still puzzled about its popularity. This story delves into the challenging journey of coping with the loss of a loved one, exploring themes of acceptance, resilience, and moving forward. Although some may find the initial circumstances leading our characters to their predicament weak, I believe they serve a purpose in creating a narrative that focuses more on character development than the original P3 did.
The English voice actors truly gave their best in portraying these characters’ departures, delivering emotional performances that are likely to be remembered as outstanding within this series. Standout performances were given by Dawn M. Bennett as Aigis and Heather Gonzalez as Yukari, who shone brightly, while Zeno Robinson expertly brought a subtle maturity to the character of Junpei, which was essential for his successful portrayal in this narrative.
As a devoted fan, I have to say that while the game generally sticks close to the storyline, there were alterations towards the end that left me feeling ambivalent. I can’t delve into specifics, but after a pivotal moment, a part of the game felt somewhat muted. There are no significant plot shifts, and everything still unfolds as it did previously, but I detected a shift in character motivations. It appears they attempted to address long-standing feedback about the characters seeming out of character by modifying dialogue to provide clearer perspectives. Some characters received more development, while others remained similar yet distinctly altered. What struck me most was a significant overhaul to one of the best animated scenes from the original game, which seems odd and almost sanitized, though I must admit it piques my curiosity as to why they chose to make these changes.
The Episode Aigis expansion is remarkably similar to its PlayStation 2 version, retaining many of its quirks. However, I find the enhancement lies in the way it enriches the narrative through gameplay that a wider audience might appreciate. I once questioned if this addition was merely an afterthought, but now I see it as the missing piece that completes Persona 3’s narrative puzzle. This expansion excelled in almost every aspect I hoped for. Although some minor story adjustments left me perplexed, overall I have a favorable impression because it offers a profound exploration of one of life’s most painful tragedies. If you stopped at the credits of Reload, you might find the story satisfying, but Episode Aigis provides a fitting conclusion. Persona 3 is arguably one of Atlus’ most thematically rich stories, and if you were captivated by this case as I was, I believe you’ll appreciate seeing where they take it next. It may not satisfy every Persona fan, but it certainly resonated with me. Just remember to take your time.
Versions tested: Xbox/Windows.
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2024-09-10 06:56