This year 2023 begins under the best auspices for J-RPG enthusiasts. From January 19, the Remaster versions of Persona 3 Portable and Persona 4 Golden will arrive on our modern consoles. The icing on the cake for players with the green banner, the latter directly integrate the Xbox Game Pass on the day of their release. Enough to immerse yourself in excellent games in the best conditions.
Initially released in 2008 in Europe exclusively on PlayStation 2 (and only in English), then in 2011 on PlayStation Portable in a remastered version adding a lot of new features, the one that we will soberly call by its diminutive P3P was a small revolution in the J-RPG series from Atlus.
Now in our hands for a complete test of this ultimate version, for the first time fully localized in French, it is time to dive into the depths of the human soul.
The twenty-fifth hour
As the saga has accustomed us to since then, we play the role of an anonymous hero (or, for the first time in the series and we will come back to this later, a heroine). The latter is transferred to Gekkoukan High School, located in a Japanese city, somewhere on the coast.
Barely arrived, he meets a strange boy who asks him to sign a contract, then his first comrades. Very quickly, his dormitory is attacked by evil entities that he manages to fight thanks to a strange power: that of his Persona.
He then joined the SEES (Special Extrascolaire Squad of Execution in French), only composed of people capable of controlling the Personae, in order to fight these Shadows invisible to the eyes of the greatest number and which only appear during the twenty-fifth hour. of the day.
Out of respect for the readers of this test and more particularly for those intrigued by this essential J-RPG, we will not go further in explaining the story. Just like that of Persona 5 (and by extension the vast majority of games signed Atlus), the latter must be fully discovered, appreciated like a good vintage wine.
- The eternal Velvet Room is present
We will be satisfied for this specific point to say that the scenario of Persona 3 is dark, devilishly well written, powerful and impactful. Comparable to that of the 5? Certainly yes.
Just the fact that the invocation of said Personae is done through the intermediary of the Evoker, a kind of gun that the user must operate on his own temple, is a marvel of inventiveness and innuendo: everything as with the masks of Persona 5, it is at the cost of an enormous sacrifice (note: a suicide) that our heroes can exceed the limits of their own mortality and truly develop their full potential.
With innuendo, incredibly rich and addictive as possible, this Persona 3 cannot leave anyone indifferent as to the quality of its writing. Fans of J-RPGs with a sinister atmosphere will be delighted and there is no doubt that neophytes will not come out unscathed.
The origins of success
To put the game in its context of the time, it is important to remember that Persona 3 was in its time a small revolution in the saga. The transition to the PlayStation 2 generation was smooth, adding a rare dose of quality.
Taking up in part the ideas already developed in the second opus, the latter offers for the first time a truly free adventure in its design. Mean by this that we can freely use the day/night cycle for our daily activities, strengthen our relationships with the other protagonists, equip ourselves, or simply learn more about the general lore by visiting the various unlocked places.
A huge “Visual Novel” part has also been added to the game, making it far more immersive than its predecessor. Here, no succession of dungeons, but a real story, each element of which is told to us through dialogues that are very well constructed and pleasant to follow.
- The female character has the right to a pink interface
Of course, the fact of insisting so much on the relationships between the protagonists has the effect of making them more endearing, more concrete and of fact of involving the player even more in the tragic events which ensue.
On the gameplay side, fans will find themselves on familiar ground. Whether in terms of spells, enemy resistances/weaknesses system or labyrinthine dungeon progression, fusion, etc… Remaking Persona 3 reminds us of how tried and tested the Atlus formula has been and has evolved little through the time.
In the dungeon precisely, the protagonists are visible and follow each other, allowing us to interact with them at leisure. The level design of the latter is however quite anecdotal and takes up the structure of all the games of the firm. Fans will be conquered, detractors disappointed.
- The twenty-fifth hour is coming
Yes, we indicate “the” dungeon in the singular. Unlike subsequent games, Persona 3 directs all of its exploration around a single dungeon: Tartarus, a huge tower that you cycle through until the very end.
Divided into levels bringing somewhat different scenery, each level is completely renewed with each visit. In other words, like a rogue-like, each new entry brings its share of enemies and objects to recover.
Of course, regular teleportation points allow us not to have to start our entire ascent over each visit.
Memento Mori
If the choice to adapt the “Portable” version of Persona 3 can make neophytes smile, fanboys will be won over.
Indeed, as in most episodes of the series, Persona 3 was released in three different versions: the initial, FES and P3P. The last proposed here is undoubtedly the most complete and brings a lot of novelties to the credit of the title (it’s a bit like the “Royal” version of Persona 3).
We therefore find on the program, in addition to the main adventure, the notable improvements of FES: new Personae, adjustments in skills, new treasures and objects, videos, an additional playable character, a deepening of social links , several new quests, costumes, as well as an additional difficulty mode.
- Even the heroine’s Persona is adapted
From the Portable version comes a new female main protagonist. We therefore have plenty of time to select it as soon as the game is launched. A choice that we do not recommend, however, the young lady having a higher difficulty than her colleague, new storyline branches as well as links with the plot that cannot really be appreciated only through the prism of a first reading.
The ultimate version…really?
Now that we have praised the game as it deserves, it’s time to look at this adaptation to modern consoles. Is it really worth it? Well… the answer is all in nuance.
Already, let’s put the church back in the middle of the village: here we are in front of a portage. This is neither a remake nor a remaster. The version we have in our hands is in all respects identical to that released on PlayStation Portable, with a few very significant additions… and notable gaps.
Let’s start with what is most visible (and important): location. For the first time, we can discover Persona 3 in French. And this translation is worthy of the title. Extremely well done, it manages without fail to retain the essence of the original game while adapting it to our language. However, some problems come to taint our pleasure: quite anecdotal and few spelling errors but above all, big problems of gender agreements. To clarify this last point, it is not uncommon for the female protagonists to be entitled to texts… in the masculine. Including heroin.
- Movements are made on fixed images
The size of the subtitles is, as at the time, also really appreciable. At this level, it’s absolutely flawless, which should serve as a lesson for many modern games.
Several gameplay comfort improvements are also included. Thus, the movements of the characters and the navigation have clearly been optimized for our greatest satisfaction. Similarly, it is now possible to choose between English or Japanese dubbing.
Unfortunately, these innovations are also mixed. The improvement in fluidity, for example, is a simple increase in overall speed… including that of enemies. They can therefore rush at you like lightning even as you unleash your attack, preventing you from getting priority in clashes. Identically, when the latter flee, their animation seems epileptic…
- Tartarus is subject to its own rules
Finally, this version has a quick save option, really essential during our explorations, the save points being quite few.
In short, everything is perfect? Well…not really. Persona 3 Portable is a game that shows its great age. Visually totally outdated, technically very late, it is, moreover, literally the port of the PSP game as we indicated earlier.
Mean by this that at the time, the Portable version of Persona 3 was undoubtedly the least successful of the three, removing many videos, compressing images and cinematics, suffering from pervasive aliasing and amputating the content of a huge DLC available only in the FES version (and still to absentee subscribers here).
- The symbolism is still strong
The improvements in this version are notable, there is no doubt about it. We are very far from the porridge proposed at the time. However, the title still suffers from heavy visual problems, especially on cutscenes. Many textures are pixelated and upscaling is sometimes clunky.
Far from being off-putting, it is certain however that its “old school” side and its graphic concerns will block a good number of players in their discovery of this title, however excellent.
Tested on Xbox One X
