Hey, gang. Its been a minute I last spent a concerning amount of time discussing the internet's (least) favorite JRPG, but I'm back to finish what I started. Last time, I discussed Persona 5 Royal Palace by Palace, stopping to discuss all the major things that crop up, but this time, we'll be talking about...well, everything else. Music, UI, Social Links, and combat will be the big ones, but also finishing up some story stuff. Themes, and the like.
Let's get the Social Links out of the way. This is one of the more controversial aspects of this game's design. Starting with positives, there are few Links, or Confidants as the game, and nobody else, calls them, that are outright bad. Disappointing, maybe downright droll? Definitely, but these are pretty ignorable. In my hours playing this game, I've still never done Devil or Sun and haven't found myself really missing them. As such, my commentary might have some holes, but so be it.
I've always prioritized my party members whilst doing Social Links in Persona games. Because you can get their ultimate Personas out of it, it stands to reason that they are a better use of your time. What I like about P5 compared to previous Persona titles is that every Confidant (I'll throw the game a bone) offers something interesting in return for your time. Kawakami's cleaning services, Iwai's expanded wares, and Sojiro's coffee and curry make a notable impact upon the gameplay by further drawing together the tune-based combat and social sims halves of the game. (These characters are also more interesting than you Link list being filled with a bunch of your non-party member classmates.) Having P5 be my first game in the series, this masterstroke of design is easy to take for granted. Sure, matching the Persona to the Link your currently pursuing to get more friendship points did that for the two game previous, but ranking up a Confidant earning you a new tool to play around keeps a long, long game like this consistently fresh. Not all of these bonuses are created equally, however. Yusuke can copy skill cards while Ryuji's "Insta-kill" ability lets you blast through low level enemies to instantly get money, items, and Personas. Nevertheless, Royal's change of starting every character off with Baton Pass instead of having to rank them up evens the playing field.
Of the main party members, I'd say that Yusuke, Ryuji, Ann, and Haru's rank highest in my personal estimation. Haru doesn't get much screentime in the main story, so her Confidant picks up the narrative threads left behind, and feels substantial for her character for that reason. I've already waxed poetic about Yusuke and my love for him, but I truly appreciate how his Social Link gets to the heart of what it means to be a young, struggling artist. His problems with money, trauma, and authenticity speak to some real ass fears about being a creative in the modern day. His epiphany about creating art for others made an impact on how I write and craft stories of my own. Its corny, this was some life-changing stuff for an impressionable, young Adam Buckley. Oh, and Yusuke one's of the funniest characters in the game. Its a shame you can't make him your boyfriend. Speaking of, Ryuji's Social Link is one of, if not the first, one you'll start and finish. It holds a special place in my heart because it sees Kamoshida's continued legacy of abuse live on in Ryuji. He has to fight past his trauma and reclaim a part of himself he thought was lost thanks to what Kamoshida did to him and his teammates. Ann's is much the same, but it brings back Shiho to square that circle. Sure, it has some shenanigans with Ann's modeling career that really only amounts to some comedy and a stock lesson about confidence and jealousy, but its all in good fun.
Futaba's is a solid one, but sneaks under the radar. She's one of the strongest, most consistent characters in the game, and I'd describe her Social Link like that as well. Helping her get out of her comfort zone results in some equally funny and heartfelt moments. Her synergy with Sojiro's social link is interesting as well, and the moment where she calls him her dad always just kills me. I'm not one of those freaks who ships Joker and Futaba since I see them as very sibling-coded, if you can forgive my Zoomer vernacular for a moment. I think they're relationship is much stronger in that way.
The last main party member to have a Link in the base game is Makoto, and while she's arguably my favorite character, she has one of the worst storylines. I get what they were trying to do, but too much of the story is spent on Makoto doing these extracurricular investigations that fail to truly engage the player. Because Makoto's main relationship is to Sae, who remains as a distant antagonist to the group for the majority of the game, she can't really enter the fray, so instead, Makoto's preoccupied with her father, who was a cop. The story makes some commentary about the law and how Makoto is a serial rule-follower, but in the end, she still wants to be a cop, so what did this really accomplish? There are some moments of comedy, but nothing to truly save it.
Royal added 3 new Confidants, two of which being party members. Akechi's felt like a no-brainer addition. Getting one-on-one time with him is a net positive thanks to how important he is to the later narrative. His iconic "I'm alone right now..." text lives in my head rent free. Going to jazz clubs and cafes and bars with Akechi drives home how he grew up too fast, and sees himself as a pseudo-adult. The way it interacts with the main story by giving you a chance to duel him with your Persona is another triumph in the synergy department.
Kasumi/Sumire's is one I could take or leave. She's a decently charming character, and her Link does the bulk of her characterization for the narrative, making it almost exclusively responsible for the player taking a shine to her, but looking back, I can't seem to remember any stand-out moments. There's a cute shopping date and a lunch date, but this is one of those moments where the game's structure is nakedly evident. There's not enough room in the base game's script for Kasumi, so she has to characterized on her Link. For the record, I think is a super smart move, but with it being only a 5-rank Confidant, it doesn't have much time to do anything too flashy. My memory could be failing me here, but I think this Link is overwhelmingly mid.
Now onto non-party Confidants. (Morgana's auto-levels so I'm not talking about him.) What I appreciate about the adult-focussed Links is that its the game extending is thesis of "adults are bad" by showing us that adults don't just take advantage of children, but other adults. Sojiro (and Wakaba) is a victim of the government, Kawakami is being extorted, and Iwai is running from the mob. Beneath their flaws, these are good people that are victims of one system or another. Under a closer lens, let's start with Maruki to round out our Royal exclusives. Maruki's is one of the best, straight up. Because he's your guidance counselor, the psycho-babble about cognition is appropriate, and the repeated device of each rank being a visit to him, provoked by Joker's involvement with Kamoshida, is just brilliant contextualization. Each of Maruki's ranks have this anxious apprehension to it. You never know if the next thing you're going to learn about the guy is going to make you love him or hate him. The way it dovetails into the third semester is also brilliant, but you already knew that.
Sojiro's is another banger. His story relies on some familiar tropes at first, particularly the old guy being a bit of a perv, but the more we get to know him, we know that its part of his mask, the persona of a smooth, salt-and-pepper lady's man to hide that he's actually a traumatized government operative. Its one of the few Social Links that feels like you genuinely spending time with another person, and not just continuing a serial story line. Sojiro's paternal bond with you is believable without the Link, but for those who did it, he's imparted to you actual dad wisdom, which goes a long way.
In all honesty, I've always done Iwai's Link, but was never too engaged by it. I like that it has an element of danger, and that you slowly gain his trust over time. There's another element of fatherhood here as Joker is a kind of dark mirror of what Iwai fears his own son will become. Kawakami's, while being infamous, also reflects on a similar type of protectiveness that the "good" adults of the game have over children. Even though Kawakami is paid to take care of you, it does seem that she cares about your general health, given that you're basically an orphan living it a dusty attic. Her's is one of the most utility-based Links, but Chihaya's has her beat. Sure, its nice to pay Kawakami to make coffee or clean clothes, but Chihaya's abilities to give extra friendship points and boost social skill progression is insanely useful. Its a shame the actual story is pretty forgettable. Along the same lines is Hifumi's Link. While I do love it and think its really good, I quite literally forgot about it. Nevertheless, I think Hifumi is one of my favorite non-party Confidants, and her story is genuinely compelling. Out of the romance options available in the game, she's a favorite.
Lastly, I'd like to talk about my girl Tae Takemi. I don't think the story here, or even the gameplay benefits, are out of this world, but I do Tae's Link every time because there's something delightful about the simple subversion of the scary goth doctor being a total sweetheart. This is the base appeal to most of the adult social links to be sure, but Tae executes on it the best. As a doctor, she embodies the caregiver role that adults ought to play in the lives of children.
The other part of the social sim aspect of these games is the noble quest of ranking up your social stats, becoming "Badass" and "Erudite." Many can relate to struggling to pump up you courage or intelligence for Makoto's Confidant, or their proficiency for Yusuke's in the base game, at least first time players. Vanilla P5 already has tons of ways to rank these stats up, but with Royal giving you more nights with free time, you can pretty easily get your stats where the need to be by Sae's Palace. If you're not ranking up Confidants or maxing your social stats, you can indulge in some other activities, like making Thieving tools or going to the arcade. Ultimately, these amount to bragging rights anecdotes for me. Getting all of the collectibles for Joker's attic is a fun way to reward getting out and exploring Tokyo's options, but nothing special, truly. The best thing these activities do is better immerse you in the Persona fantasy of being a student in a big city. Studying at a cafe or hitting up a new food place with a friend captures the feeling of being in Joker's shoes as a regular kid. After maxxing out my party members' Links, I usually try to see how many times I can take them out to unique locations to take home an item, or at least see an interesting cutscene. You might even run into another Confidant while out and about. Its these small things that make this system interesting.
Its conventional wisdom that besides a few cases like Pokemon and Dragon Quest, turn-based combat is practically dead. Persona is carrying the torch for what might be the smoothest, most stylish traditional turn-based combat you can find out there. Base Persona 5's combat is the series' best. It retains that weakness-exploiting into all-out attack flow that its known for, but with snappy presentation and punchy sound effects, making it an almost rhythmic pleasure. It wasn't without flaws, though. SP was in short supply, ammo was entirely depleted for an entire Palace run after emptying the mag, and baton pass was locked behind Social Link ranks. Royal fixed these issues, but also added multiple tiers to baton pass, making it better as the game went on, as well as Showtime attacks and Will Seeds. I've discussed my hangups with Showtime attacks previously, but I think they're an overall net positive.
Where I think Persona 5 truly has all of its brothers beat is into its Velvet Room. Persona fusion via Execution is standard, but the Gallows and the Electric Chair open up options for hanging onto powerful Personas as well as itemizing them into powerful weapons and armor. Caroline and Justine are my favorite Velvet Room attendants thanks to their voice lines being so packed with personality. Lavenza, who's subdued in comparison, gets by just by so darn cute. Previous games' Velvet Room seem boring in comparison, and this can be felt in a game like Persona 3 Reload, which could have used a few extra bells and whistles in Igor's abode. P5 is also good at trickling these new facilities throughout the game. You'll eventually find a rhythm, but its alway neat getting to play around with a new thing in the Velvet Room.
In terms of difficulty, Persona 5 is a hard game to discuss. The challenge of the game is most meaningful in the first two Palaces, when Personas and Confidant abilities are scarce and not as powerful, but by the third and so on, you can juice your Personas to a lethal degree, stockpile helpful items, and upgrade your baton poss and status ailment damage to carry you. A good player maxxing out these options has earned the right to an easier game, but its a shame when you can pretty safely blow through a Palace except for its bosses. The amount of tools available to the player at any given time is pretty ridiculous, and when used in tandem, you're practically unstoppable. But that's the power of friendship, right?
Finishing up our discussion of gameplay, let's talk about the UI. When I played the Metaphor Re: Fantazio demo, I was awed at the UI...and how much I didn't really like it. The constant particle effects and distracting movement of the interface just isn't my thing. I understand why people find it beautiful, because I think its beautiful, too; I just couldn't get past its visual intensity. I found myself thinking about people who might feel the same about P5. Its conventional wisdom that the game has good UI. Its intuitive, kinetic, and visually interesting. Rarely are you going to get lost in menus or confused about where to find something. Its the little things I love the most, like the comic book style border around the screen during cutscenes that almost makes it look like a TV screen, which is further pushed by the CRT lines during a fast-forward. I also adore the silhouettes next to the party members' health bars. Shop's having their own bespoke UI, like Takemi's Clinic and Iwai's airsoft shop, is the cherry on top. Shocking, I know, that there aren't any hot takes in this department, but the people have it right this time.
Let's talk music. Oh boy. Persona 5's music. Singlehandedly responsible for getting males aged 14 to 25 into jazz. I discussed the Palace themes, which I feel are the games most interesting musical pieces, in the first part, but tracks like "Tokyo Daylight" and "Kichijoji 199x" background your adventures in the city. "Butterfly Kiss" playing at Takemi's Clinic, "Layer Cake" playing at Untouchable, and "Ideal and the Real" and Maruki's office further endear the player to those locations. And despite how many times you'll return to those places, their themes will never get old. Persona 5's most famous track is probably "Last Surprise," and as a battle theme, few can touch it. Funky and bouncy, it makes you ready for battle, feeling good and looking good while doing it. "Take Over" has its fans, but it'll never take the crown.
The music that plays during the dull, unserious, or heartfelt moments are also dear to me. "Take a Short Rest" in the safe rooms instills a sense of calm, emphasizing its role a checkpoint. "Sunset Bridge" is a bittersweet number that accompanies particularly emotional ranks in Social Links. Similarly, "Confession/Secret" puts one in the mood for some serious melancholy. "RUN,RUN,RUN" is a straight goofy piece that backgrounds the gang's moments of high tension escape or retreat. The tracks that most fans love tend to crop up in emotional story moments or intense boss battles, but I like field tracks the best. Palace themes, of course, but also ones like "Beneath the Mask" and "No More What Ifs."
My rattling off of so many tracks ought to clue you in that I think the soundtrack is brilliant. Praising Persona 5 music in the year of our Lord 2025 might be old hat, but I don't care how many time's you heard these songs in the background of a video essay, it was put there for a reason. Its fusion of jazz and rock, sliding between smooth funk and pulse-pounding riffs are what makes this soundtrack so memorable. Its melodies, mixed with how perfectly each song captures its intended moment, is why it will be remembered as one of the best, and most unique, gaming soundtracks of all time. I don't care if this is a P5 glaze, I'm simply speaking my truth. P4 comes close to taking the crown, but Royal pushes it over the top with its 3rd semester tracks.
As promised, I'm circling the wagons on the story. Part 1 was very story focussed, which is why I'm briefly commenting on it here, but there were some moments I forgot to mention. I, among many others, crown the moment after Shido's Palace crumbles, where the girls beat up Ryuji, to be the worst moment in the game. For no reason, the game indulges in some bad, tropey comedy after making us believe our oldest, most reliable ally might have died tragically saving the entire team. It also leaves a bad taste in my mouth considering Ryuji's history as an abuse victim. These characters ought to know better. The game forgets itself for a single scene of a cheap, lazy gag. At least P5 is free of this series' weird insistence on bath house related hijinks, although Strikers is not. Another bad scene is Morgana quitting the team. As a payoff to a long-running character conflict, it makes sense, but causes the player a major mechanical headache. And while people like Akechi's "I'm a bit occupied, so do your goddamn job!" during Adam Kadmon's defeat, its another bit of comedy that doesn't land for me. I would have rather something more characterizing come from Akechi's mouth in the moment rather than a quip.
All of the romance options with the more question members of the cast are also rancid. I'll give a pass to my Takemi enjoyers, but Kawakami is your teacher, and Chihaya and Ohya are grown ass women. Futaba as a romance option feels wrong because I find her and Joker's relationship to be more familial, but she's also a sheltered middle-schooler, so it feel wrong in that way, too. I'm fine with all the other romance options within the party because Ann is your age, and Haru and Makoto are only a year older. Once more, I could take or leave Sumire. (Hifumi fans, rise up.) Truthfully, its still weird for a potential player older than Joker to think about which high schooler they're going to bone, but this is why I think P5 could have been set at a college and the story would be the same. Making all the romance options at least 18 years old would be a band-aid solution on a pretty shallow system. I get that its for fun, and I'll admit to enjoying it, but in the end, its meaningless. If the series goes forward with romances, they need to mean more. If I pick a character to be my partner, I think it should come with new dialogue, changed scenes to reflect this relationship, and maybe even gameplay changes. Going forward, I'd also like a Persona game about adults, but I don't see that happening anytime soon.
Okay, this one's just first me. I want to talk about the aesthetic and meaning of the party members' Personas. Compared to the previous two games in "modern Persona," I think 5 has the clearest, strongest through line and reasoning for its picks of character-specific Personas. Drawing from international literature instead of a particular mythological pantheon is a more appropriate choice due to the game's themes of self-determination and the human condition, but quite frankly, I've never really been drawn to that aspect of Persona anyhow. 3's use of Greek myth is superior to whatever P4 is trying to do, but maybe because I'm a writer, P5's inspirations simply impact me more. Each Thief's Persona goes through a transformative arc where it starts as a trickster, ascends to godhood, then at the third and final stage, becomes a mixture of the two. I find this better than stopping at godhood because, while one could say that their Personas becoming gods means that the character has become the master of their own destiny, and I like this reading, I just find it too contradictory to the game's base ending of shooting "God" in the head. The third Persona evolution mixing gods with men better reflects the ultimate adversary, Maruki, a man playing God. (I'm using a capital G here in reference to a single, divine being, not any one in specific.)
P5 also just has a massive lead over its brothers in terms of design. Long gone are the dated aesthetics of the 2000's, and thank God for that. In Persona 3, the Personas are kind of generic. They look like toys with their weird proportions and faded colors. 4's are nearly there, but they lack the iconography that 5's would have. The Phantom Thieves' Personas demand attention upon impact. They're flashy and take up space. By not restricting the picks to a single pantheon, the Thieves' are a more collective group of aesthetics, giving them each their own look and influences, which ties into the theme of rebellion. Even the Thieves' aren't a visually cohesive group. Sure, they're dominated by black leather and red accents, but look at Yusuke's bold blue and white outfit, and Haru's soft purples and pinks. Even Futaba brings in a complementary green to the function. There's a reason why some many people have gone on to draw Confidants as Phantom Thieves; the formula used here is so compelling and effective that its fun to imagine yourself or other characters undergoing the same process. Picking what trickster or literary character fits best is an exercise in characterization being made manifest.
Woah, themes!
The last stop on this train will be to discuss the various Persona 5 spin-offs. Truthfully, I haven't played Tactica nor Persona Q2, or even that Chinese mobile game? I don't know the deal is there, but I think we all agree that Strikers is the real heir apparent. Its story continues that of base P5 via "Musou" style gameplay, a la Dynasty Warriors. I have to admit that the combination of Musou and Persona gameplay styles works surprisingly well. Getting to control these characters in real-time combat is a treat, and so are the new characters Zenkichi and Sophia. Quite honestly, I've forgotten most of the game's story, but what I appreciated most about it was its dedication to focusing on characters that kind of lose narrative momentum later into base P5's runtime. Ann is one of those characters, and Haru being so screentime deficient makes her focus in Strikers appreciated. Ryuji and Sophia's relationship is charming, and Kenkichi fulfills the fantasy of someone like Sae joining the team. Having an adult Phantom Thief really flips the status quo of the Thieves and their manifesto on its head. Returning to the aesthetics of Yaldaboath and Mementos in a post-Maruki world feels a tad retrograde, but it can't be helped. Its another game where you kill a god at the end, after all.
What keeps me from coming back to the game is the repetitiveness of the gameplay. You have a lot of characters to choose from, but one you have them down, they'll play the same way from beginning to end. Its enemies and boss rarely pose an interesting mechanical challenge because they're mostly just damage sponges. What actually keeps the game fresh its is sprawling Jails and quests that incentivize you going back into them. Having more time to spend with these characters is the real favor this game does us, and it succeeds in that lane 100%.
I hope Tactia is as good of a time. I'm not a fan of each spin-off adding a new Thief, or that Akechi and Kasumi are locked behind paid DLC, but them's the brakes. As a Fire Emblem fan, a new tactical RPG to play entices me, and I think the Thieves are well suited to such a genre.
Aaaaaaand that's about all. Persona 5 is a big game, but also one of my all-time favorites. I think talking about it, even almost 10 years after release, helps me understand and appreciate it better. I understand people being tired of Persona 5 after its long stay in the spotlight and its multiple spinoffs, but it holds a very special place in my heart. I do think its as good as people as it is. Its a 120 hours game that manages to keep you engaged through the entire runtime with its interesting mechanics, riveting story, and unique structure. Its not cool to say Persona 5 is good anymore, but that doesn't change the facts. It really is That Good.
(Bonus list of my top 10 fav P5 tracks):
10. “Confession / Secret"
9. “Gentle Madman”
8. “Freedom and Peace”
7. “Layer Cake”
6. “Kichijoji 199X”
5. “Butterfly Kiss”
4. “Price’
3. “Whims of Fate”
2. “No More What Ifs”
1. “When mother was there”
(Bonus bonus list of my top 5 tracks from Strikers):
5. “Anti HERO”
4. “Daredevil”
3. “Loving Wonderland”
2. “Counterstrike”
1. “Sophia’s SHOP”
