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Persona Community Thread |OT9| SPOILER TAGS OR DIE

As someone who has read all the spoilers and seen virtually all the story, keep at it. This is one game you definitely do not want spoiled if you can avoid it.

This is the kind of thing I like to hear. I've seen the first forty minutes and listened to a few songs (Life Will Change, Beneath the Mask, Last Surprise), and I'm dodging spoilers otherwise.

Still 3.5 months, ugh. The stuff I know about and the tidbits I've picked up from like spoiler-free impressions, lyrics, etc. are ticking all the right boxes for me for this to be one of those rare things that hits you juuuuuust right, but you can't ever really know that until experiencing it for yourself (especially when I know so little of the plot).
 

Lynx_7

Member
I never have any expectations as far as cast is concerned before I get to know them. My expectations are always centered on story events and atmosphere, and after P3, 4 and Catherine I expect P Team to knock it out of the park on those categories.

Going strictly by design the protagonist, Goro, Futaba and Ann are my favorites.
 
One thing I'm particularly interested in seeing is to what extent the Phantom Thieves screw around with the larger city and public opinion, since having that stuff in the open is so completely counter to how P3 and 4 worked.

If you watch that 17 minute opening video Atlus posted,
when Joker gets captured the police are out there in ludicrous numbers, with full riot gear. Then when they have him in the interrogation room, they beat the hell out of him, they've drugged him, and they STILL won't let Sae in there with him for very long because they have no idea how he's committing these crimes and they think he's dangerous.

Compared to how unassuming your character always was in 3 and 4, I just kinda went "uh, wow" at that whole picture.
 

Jintor

Member
Ryuji isn't really like Yosuke, from what I could tell, aside from fitting into the 'best friend' template that Yosuke and Junpei also fit into.

Yeah, i mean it'll depend on the translation but Ryuuji seems a lot more self-confident than Yosuke does.
 
P5 is probably at a disadvantage due to a lack of 'social' events, and a complete lack of large scale ones like the camping trip. As far as I recall, most events are plot related, so it'll depend on how we all feel about the whole Phantom Thieves thing.

I think it's interesting you mention the large scale social events like the camping trip, because I always liked the P4 cast in spite of those events, rather than because of them. Every time the Investigation Team struck me as being really endearing, one of those events would come along and really sour my opinion on them. I think those events are a big part of the reason I still prefer the P3 cast a few years later.

I'm not saying this to counter your argument or anything, just thought it was an interesting difference of opinion.
 

Dantis

Member
I think it's interesting you mention the large scale social events like the camping trip, because I always liked the P4 cast in spite of those events, rather than because of them. Every time the Investigation Team struck me as being really endearing, one of those events would come along and really sour my opinion on them. I think those events are a big part of the reason I still prefer the P3 cast a few years later.

I'm not saying this to counter your argument or anything, just thought it was an interesting difference of opinion.

Yeah, and that's fine.

I'm really interested in seeing how people take to them in the long term. Like I say, I'd be surprised if people latch onto them in the same way they have with P4.
 

Sophia

Member
Yeah, and that's fine.

I'm really interested in seeing how people take to them in the long term. Like I say, I'd be surprised if people latch onto them in the same way they have with P4.

As someone who was always a bigger fan of Persona 3, I'd say I've latched onto Persona 5 harder than I ever did with Persona 4.

The themes of Persona 5 are strong, and resonate with me almost right off the get go.
 

Dantis

Member
As someone who was always a bigger fan of Persona 3, I'd say I've latched onto Persona 5 harder than I ever did with Persona 4.

The themes of Persona 5 are strong, and resonate with me almost right off the get go.

I think you're in the minority there.

P4's characters are definitely much more beloved than P3's.
 

Jintor

Member
they were still finding their footing in p3, and i think the 'colleagues' nature of the relationship for most of p3 as opposed to the 'your best friends ever' vibe in p4 worked against it to.

p5s feeeeeeeeeeeeeels a bit more... I don't know... real to me? Maybe it's just the increased animation work, but somehow it just strikes a nerve less saccharine than p4's friendship dealies.
 
they were still finding their footing in p3, and i think the 'colleagues' nature of the relationship for most of p3 as opposed to the 'your best friends ever' vibe in p4 worked against it to.

p5s feeeeeeeeeeeeeels a bit more... I don't know... real to me? Maybe it's just the increased animation work, but somehow it just strikes a nerve less saccharine than p4's friendship dealies.

Granted, there's a lot about P5 I don't know (I've only spoiled myself on major plot points), but I feel like P5's cast might strike the sweet spot between the tone of P3's cast and P4's. It will certainly be interesting to see if that proves true down the line.
 

jzbluz

Member
I'm not that attached to P3 and P4, so I'm pretty sure I'm going to like P5 more. I probably won't become as fond of it as P2, but that's because P2:EP was my first and I'm incredibly nostalgic about the duology and its cast.

Yusuke for sure is going to be my favorite, but I'm not sure which of the girls I'll end up liking. I don't have strong feelings for Ann or Futaba, Makoto seems a bit forced, and while I liked Haru in her introduction, she seems a bit boring.
I'm most curious about Goro since I want to see if I'll hate or like him.
 

Jintor

Member
also i'm still in the process of meeting futaba and yusuke's vocab is too fucking high level for my ass half the time (ryuuji is definitely the easiest to handle, his vocab is really coarse lol)
 

Dantis

Member
they were still finding their footing in p3, and i think the 'colleagues' nature of the relationship for most of p3 as opposed to the 'your best friends ever' vibe in p4 worked against it to.

p5s feeeeeeeeeeeeeels a bit more... I don't know... real to me? Maybe it's just the increased animation work, but somehow it just strikes a nerve less saccharine than p4's friendship dealies.

This doesn't necessarily mean people will like it more. Catherine was better written than both P3 and P4 but nobody cares. Comparatively, Fire Emblem's writing is complete shit, and yet people love those characters.
 

Dantis

Member
Welcome to my life.

I will say that I have no desire to draw anything P5, nor do I see much art for it out in the world. That could definitely change after the US launh, however.
 

PK Gaming

Member
I think it's interesting you mention the large scale social events like the camping trip, because I always liked the P4 cast in spite of those events, rather than because of them. Every time the Investigation Team struck me as being really endearing, one of those events would come along and really sour my opinion on them. I think those events are a big part of the reason I still prefer the P3 cast a few years later.

I'm not saying this to counter your argument or anything, just thought it was an interesting difference of opinion.

Tell me you at least loved the cross dressing/group date cafe event.That's like peak slice of life Persona right there!

6GOXitq.png


In fact, i'd even go as far to argue that they're all good (barring the camping trip) and pretty much the reason why P4's so easy to replay. P3 has too many dead months, man.

This doesn't necessarily mean people will like it more. Catherine was better written than both P3 and P4 but nobody cares. Comparatively, Fire Emblem's writing is complete shit, and yet people love those characters.

People are going to like P5's cast more, that's pretty much a guarantee. Quality aside, the hype for this game is monumental. Sides, P5 doesn't have everyone's favorite whipping boy, Yosuke.
 
This doesn't necessarily mean people will like it more. Catherine was better written than both P3 and P4 but nobody cares. Comparatively, Fire Emblem's writing is complete shit, and yet people love those characters.

Path of Radiance was my first Fire Emblem game, and what I thought the average writing quality I could expect out of that series was.

I was wrong.
 
Tell me you at least loved the cross dressing/group date cafe event.That's like peak slice of life Persona right there!

6GOXitq.png


In fact, i'd even go as far to argue that they're all good (barring the camping trip) and pretty much the reason why P4's so easy to replay. P3 has too many dead months, man.

Sadly, all I can say is that I didn't actively dislike that scene, like I did some of the others. So that's something... I guess? I also disagree about your replay point; I think those group events are even worse on additional playthroughs because they take up so much in-game time with jokes that I don't find funny. I can definitely see the appeal of them, I just don't feel the same way.

People are going to like P5's cast more, that's pretty much a guarantee. Quality aside, the hype for this game is monumental. Sides, P5 doesn't have everyone's favorite whipping boy, Yosuke.

Depending on how you look at it, I think the hype might backfire on P5. People are so excited because they loved P4, or know someone who did. The differences Dantis is talking about might disappoint people, and heaven hath no fury like a disappointed Persona fan.
Your point about Yosuke stands unchallenged, haha.
 

Jintor

Member
honestly i think it's gonna depend on the localisation.

the differences don't feel substantial structurally from p3 or p4 really so I can't imagine anything but the nuances of what is actually being said will bother people.

i don't really recall too many 'we're all gonna hang out' events thus far that don't revolve around phantom thievery

d i dunno if ur following the right people, p5 drawings on the reg on my tweets
 

Dantis

Member
People are going to like P5's cast more, that's pretty much a guarantee. Quality aside, the hype for this game is monumental. Sides, P5 doesn't have everyone's favorite whipping boy, Yosuke.
More than what? Catherine or P4?

There's 52 pages of Persona art here: http://www.pixiv.net/contest/persona20th?p=1, with a good amount being of Persona 5.
I appreciate what you're saying but this is a bad example.

Maybe people will latch onto them the same way. I'm just not convinced because I guess they don't seem as... loveable? to me. Like are people really going to go mad over Haru the same way they do Chie? Or Makoto? I doubt it.
 

Jintor

Member
they're not a walking collection of tropes? (obvs p4 characters were more than that but the trope stuff was pretty surface-level)

i kinda get what you mean. they seem more multifaceted... i think.
 

PK Gaming

Member
More than what? Catherine or P4?


I appreciate what you're saying but this is a bad example.

Maybe people will latch onto them the same way. I'm just not convinced because I guess they don't seem as... loveable? to me. Like are people really going to go mad over Haru the same way they do Chie? Or Makoto? I doubt it.

P4. Also Catherine, because Catherine's cast isn't particularly beloved?
 

Sophia

Member
I pretty much disagree with a lot of what Dantis has said, but I already talked with him about everything Persona 5 related for like almost an hour so meeeh @_@
 

Dantis

Member
I hope they're multi-faceted, though obviously I wouldn't know that.

I think they lack the appeal. They seem more mature, and maybe less fun?

P4. Also Catherine, because Catherine's cast isn't particularly beloved?
At best, it'll match P4. If we had some way gauge it, I would absolutely bet you on this, because I think you're wrong.
 
New reason to look forward to P5: getting in on this argument.

Edit: Also I like knowing that there's someone else here that dislikes pretty much all of P4's big group events that weren't main plot-related.
 

Lynx_7

Member
P4's cast has had years to solidify themselves within the fandom so any comparisons right now are obviously going to favour them outside of a few people who weren't fond of them in the first place. Let's at least give P5's cast a little room to breath first before we go deciding who's better than who.

The only thing I have to say about the subject matter right now is that their designs have a certain "iconic" quality to them, like FF VII's cast, which isn't something I felt at first with P4's crew. I don't know, they just feel really visually striking and distinct. Could be the costumes.
 

Lunar15

Member
I just kind of attributed the best friends ever thing to them being the only people in this small town who understood each other. There wasnt much to do, so you'd just hang out with your buds a lot. That's the vibe I got.

I'd never say Persona is a paragon of good writing, but it's odd to see this weird negative backlash on the eve of P5. I still like those characters, and I still think they're fairly well written and fleshed out characters, and ultimately a different fare from what JRPG's had at the time.

I think the spinoffs are what made people get tired of them.

As for P5, it's like Dantis said, we really won't know where the game falls in the "collective" mind of fans until way after launch. There's always that post launch glow that keeps everyone from seeing how things fit in the bigger picture.
 
Persona 4 gave me the cultural festival that Persona 3 denied. That and the other events allowed the kids to be, well, kids. As opposed to being angsty super-secret-shadow-slayers all the time. This is one of the various factors that endears P4 to me much more than P3.
 

Zolo

Member
Eh. Yukari had her club, Junpei did whatever he felt like, Fuuka also had her club, and the MC played an MMO. They did things, but they just didn't really hang out like the P4 cast.
 
They did things, but they just didn't really hang out like the P4 cast.

And that's another of those factors for me~

Anyways, strangely, I don't really have expectations in terms of the cast interaction for P5 as I want it to be its own thing. All I know is I need it to be February already.
 

DNAbro

Member
I'm not seeing any reason why people wouldn't like P5's cast as much as P3/P4. People are definitely going to have their favorites. And I've seen plenty of fan art for the game but I don't think that's a good metric for how well liked in comparison they are to P3/P4.
 
Persona 4 gave me the cultural festival that Persona 3 denied. That and the other events allowed the kids to be, well, kids. As opposed to being angsty super-secret-shadow-slayers all the time. This is one of the various factors that endears P4 to me much more than P3.

Dare I say, it puts PQ over P3.

Edit: Also I like knowing that there's someone else here that dislikes pretty much all of P4's big group events that weren't main plot-related.

Hi.
 

jzbluz

Member
P4's cast has had years to solidify themselves within the fandom so any comparisons right now are obviously going to favour them outside of a few people who weren't fond of them in the first place. Let's at least give P5's cast a little room to breath first before we go deciding who's better than who.

Yeah. Plus, Atlus probably won't be focusing on P5 as much as they did with P4 since we will hopefully get P6 a lot sooner than we got P5.
 

GSR

Member
I can't compare to P4's cast (never played it, so all my experience with the characters is secondhand), but I liked the P5 cast a lot, and definitely more than P3's. In some ways they reminded me of P2:IS's cast in that they're dealing with some heavy stuff (and not just their personal demons) but at the same time, they're still students/teenagers and there's still a lighthearted tone to a lot of their interactions.

There's definitely more focus on "the work" than on the group just hanging out together, but that didn't stop them from developing as a friend group. I think it helps that the first arc in the game gives personal stakes for the original trio of Protag/Ann/Ryuuji as well as emphasizes how each of them is an outsider in their own way, which makes their friendship spark better and sets a good groundwork for the other party members.
 

Holundrian

Unconfirmed Member
People are going to like P5's cast more, that's pretty much a guarantee. Quality aside, the hype for this game is monumental. Sides, P5 doesn't have everyone's favorite whipping boy, Yosuke.

I doubt it. People going to have their own favorites and I can easily see P5 coming in last for some people. That's just personal preference.
It's also an easy prediction due to the fact that so many already stated that they loved P4 for the several bonding events like the band, hot springs, ocean, going to the city, etc, etc. And P5 isn't like that with a different tone and focus.
 

PK Gaming

Member
People are going to honeymoon the heck out of the P5 cast, for one. That, and I've already seen quite a bit of "P4 cast wasn't that great in retrospect" posts in addition to Yosuke being a huge hate sink, I could easily, easily see the P5 cast becoming more beloved.

Oh, and P5 being a better game in terms of sheer gameplay will definitely help.
 

Lynx_7

Member
I can't get behind this Yosuke hate at all. Like, I get it, I just don't agree with it. Yeah, he's an immature prick sometimes but that's not necessarily a bad thing, flaws are just as important to a character as qualities. For the most part he's still a cool dude and I just chalk up his casual homophobic remarks to him being a teenager
and written by a society who isn't the most in tune when it comes to lbgt issues.

While we're at it, Teddie gets too much unwarranted hate too. Only character who would rightly deserve the amount of shit these two get is Ken, because he's absolute trash with no redeeming qualities whatsoever, so it'd be justified in his case.
 
I can't get behind this Yosuke hate at all. Like, I get it, I just don't agree with it. Yeah, he's an immature prick sometimes but that's not necessarily a bad thing, flaws are just as important to a character as qualities. For the most part he's still a cool dude and I just chalk up his casual homophobic remarks to him being a teenager
and written by a society who isn't the most in tune when it comes to lbgt issues.

While we're at it, Teddie gets too much unwarranted hate too. Only character who would rightly deserve the amount of shit these two get is Ken, because he's absolute trash with no redeeming qualities whatsoever, so it'd be justified in his case.

I'll see your Ken (who shapes up the moment he loses all relevance) and raise you a Sho.
Though since he's a spinoff character, I guess that doesn't count.

Hmm...
Is there a real reason people like Koromaru?
 

Lunar15

Member
Persona Central just posted this and I'm pretty sure it's new

Soejima artwork for Sae
CweTIjrWQAAgNzO.jpg:large

What a great design.

The only negative I have against the party in P5 compared to the other parties so far is the character design. 3 and 4 had designs that were immediately appealing to me, but not so much for 5. Yusuke and Makoto were the only standouts.
 

PK Gaming

Member
I'll see your Ken (who shapes up the moment he loses all relevance) and raise you a Sho.
Though since he's a spinoff character, I guess that doesn't count.

You gotta stop saying this! You gotta stop saying this? You gotta stop saying this... It's a completely nonsensical and wrong. For real, I don't know why you keep insisting that Ken somehow has less relevance than the other SEES members when everyone in P3 congeals into this amorphous blob that is SEES.

I can't get behind this Yosuke hate at all. Like, I get it, I just don't agree with it. Yeah, he's an immature prick sometimes but that's not necessarily a bad thing, flaws are just as important to a character as qualities. For the most part he's still a cool dude and I just chalk up his casual homophobic remarks to him being a teenager
and written by a society who isn't the most in tune when it comes to lbgt issues.

While we're at it, Teddie gets too much unwarranted hate too. Only character who would rightly deserve the amount of shit these two get is Ken, because he's absolute trash with no redeeming qualities whatsoever, so it'd be justified in his case.

Yosuke is absolutely a good character who's a dumb teenager who does dumb teenager things. I think people (myself included) forget most of his genuinely great moments since they're muted by his dumb, obnoxious and hateful moments. I don't begrudge people who dislike him for that though, but I'd like to stress that it's a case of the developers being out of touch with Western sensibilities, and NOT an example of a teenager who's just being an asshole. Like it's really obvious that his jabs towards Kanji are intended to be "humorous friendly bullying" instead of legitimately awful bullying.

Also Ken being a terrible character is one of the biggest and most obnoxious memes in the Persona fandom. Ken is solid character marred by a terrible ENG voice and a plot contrivance.
 

Dantis

Member
People are going to honeymoon the heck out of the P5 cast, for one. That, and I've already seen quite a bit of "P4 cast wasn't that great in retrospect" posts in addition to Yosuke being a huge hate sink, I could easily, easily see the P5 cast becoming more beloved.

Oh, and P5 being a better game in terms of sheer gameplay will definitely help.

People are going to say so at first, but the interesting part will be, what, this time next year?

People say crazy things right after launch (see Arena and PQ).
 

Makio

Member
Soejima artwork for Sae

The Queen of Persona 5 (sorry Makoto) , great design, right now she is one of the characters im most looking forward.

. For real, I don't know why you keep insisting that Ken somehow has less relevance than the other SEES members when everyone in P3 congeals into this amorphous blob that is SEES.

Yosuke is absolutely a good character who's a dumb teenager who does dumb teenager things. I think people (myself included) forget most of his genuinely great moments since they're muted by his dumb, obnoxious and hateful moments.

Also Ken being a terrible character is one of the biggest and most obnoxious memes in the Persona fandom. Ken is solid character marred by a terrible ENG voice and a plot contrivance.

Plus linked to a pitiful / bad social link in the (non canon ?) female protagonist route.
Maybe i should play Persona 3 again and try to find that relevance you speak of because all remember of him is was is he introduce and right after the plot point which he is famous , which seems the only reason he is there ...do nothing before that and do nothing after more than help a little Akihiko resolution plot line which could work anyway without Ken ...
He is like Koromaru just another party member where to choose , which only saving grace is some people say is a useful party member gameplay wise.
But of course Koro gets more love because damn son is a dog using a persona how cool / non sense is that , plus like most dogs is likeable
Maybe you can remind me how relevant is and refresh my memory because to me he is only a plot device / trigger , even unnecessary since that plot can take other route and got the same results P3 SPOILER
Shinji is gonna die anyway

Terrible ... maybe not but unnecessary and forgettable asf in my opinion

---------

And about Yosuke (the other party member i dislike in general) like you say maybe he is not a bad character and can i see why people like it so much (over Junpei and Ryuji now) but to me those bad moments really stand out to me making it an annoying character everytime he is on screen plus fixed he is about that "Partner" thing he has with Narukami which maybe to a normal person not mind because thats how teenage friendship is , but really gets my nerves specially in the spinoffs
 

Dantis

Member
Yosuke is great. I can understand why some people would be upset by him, but on a personal level, I think he's a really good, flawed character.

Lowenthall kills it with his performance, too.
 

Makio

Member
In Yosuke defense he plays his "comic relief" card better than Junpei ,lets see how it works for Ryuji since all comedy sections i see / read of him so far make me roll my eyes most of the time (he is my less favorite p5 char right now anyway)

But the main reason i got Junpei over Yosuke is because his character personality and growth feels bigger more authentic than Yosuke's to me specially since The Answer helps him a lot

And of course other thing i "hate" is when people put Yosuke
X Saki
and Junpei
X Chidori
in the same level or compare one with the other , like we agree both storylines got plus and cons but never seen or been taken like the same thing .... like NO please

PD : Lowenthal is an amazing VA , overused to death but not his fault he works most of the time ,his Yosuke is always in point , love how handle it in Persona Q how he make Yosuke vs P3 Hero so diferent ....
 

Setsu00

Member
Ken is much better in the Japanese version, mainly due to Megumi Ogata and her incredible voice acting skills. The only thing I genuinely dislike about Ken is his fashion sense.
 
You gotta stop saying this! You gotta stop saying this? You gotta stop saying this... It's a completely nonsensical and wrong. For real, I don't know why you keep insisting that Ken somehow has less relevance than the other SEES members when everyone in P3 congeals into this amorphous blob that is SEES.

Look, I'm trying to throw the kid a bone.
Though yeah, pretty much everyone who isn't Aigis the Black Hole falls to the wayside by the end.
 
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