Persona 3 Reload revolves around the fusion of formidable creatures and exploiting the vulnerabilities of encountered shadows. Yet, understanding your party members deeply is equally crucial. With a plethora of intricacies in the RPG remake, here are some tips and tricks curated to enhance your combat prowess.
Strengths And Weaknesses Are Everything
Similar to other titles within the Shin Megami Tensei universe, in Persona 3 Reload, you'll assume the roles of teenagers who wield the power to summon ancient creatures. These beings are equipped with a variety of elemental skills and abilities, ranging from Bufu (Ice) to Zio (Thunder) to Agi (Fire) to Mudo (Dark).
These skills also have upgraded and group variants, allowing you to target either a single foe or multiple enemies, depending on how much SP (Skill Points) you're willing to spend. Additionally, there are numerous physical attacks to consider, which deplete HP (Health Points) rather than SP.
Each character in Persona 3 Reload possesses a weakness, and exploiting it will result in either significant damage or vulnerability to subsequent attacks, granting either you or the enemy an additional turn.
Fortunately, in Reload, the game automatically indicates which of your party members can exploit an enemy's weakness as you select a move or switch between them. Pressing the assist button will promptly direct you to the prompt to utilize this feature, with Mitsuru or Fuuka assisting you accordingly.
Visibility matters in combat, and buffs play a crucial role.
Persona 3 Reload initially feels more forgiving compared to FES and Portable, particularly in the early stages. However, this ease abruptly shifts when facing bosses, often resulting in a humbling defeat if you overlook your party's health and weaknesses.
To navigate through tougher battles successfully, it's essential to utilize spells like Rakukaja for bolstering defense or Tarukaja for enhancing attack. Conversely, employing Tarunda and Rakunda against enemies can significantly weaken their abilities, paving the way for a more favorable outcome.
While it might seem tempting to bypass these strategic steps, the challenges posed by later floors and optional boss encounters will quickly change your perspective.
Designating a single party member to handle both healing and buff application, even at the expense of dealing damage, proves invaluable. Although battles may take longer, adopting this cautious approach significantly increases the likelihood of victory.
Regularly utilizing and monitoring your items is key to success.
You'd be amazed by the array of valuable items you come across while exploring the streets of Japan and delving into dungeons in Persona 3 Reload. From gems capable of dealing massive damage to items that can fully restore your party's health, your pockets are brimming with spoils waiting to be discovered.
Amidst the flurry of spells and focus on exploiting weaknesses, it's easy to overlook the wealth of resources tucked away in your coat pockets. Take a moment to rummage through them from time to time; you never know when a well-timed item could be the difference between victory and defeat.
Additionally, don't forget to sell any unwanted loot to the police station. After a few ventures into Tartarus, the proceeds from these sales typically provide enough funds to purchase several new weapons and armor sets for your party, ensuring you're well-equipped for whatever challenges lie ahead.
Embrace experimentation with different Personas.
In contrast to games like Pokemon, where sticking with a single monster and leveling them up can often lead to success, Persona 3 Reload takes a different approach. The game encourages players to explore the mechanics of Persona fusion and Shuffle Time, as sticking to one Persona can result in punishment.
While your party members are fixed to their default Personas, they still acquire new abilities as they level up and can equip various skills and abilities. The protagonist, however, has the unique ability to switch between available Personas during combat seamlessly, without wasting a turn or drawing attention.
This flexibility allows for strategic adjustments, whether you need to unleash different elemental attacks or mitigate vulnerabilities that enemies could exploit. It took me some time to grasp this mechanic fully, but once I did, it added a whole new layer of depth to the gameplay experience.
Open Treasure Chests To Avoid Unwanted Battles
In Tartarus, shadows are relentless in their pursuit, making evasion a challenging task. Even a momentary glimpse of them is enough to trigger pursuit. However, there are tactics to navigate these encounters smoothly.
You can press the square/X button to ambush shadows from behind, gaining the upper hand in battle. Alternatively, if a shadow guards a treasure chest, simply opening it will cause them to vanish after the animation.
Mitsuru, Fuuka, and other party members will constantly alert you to nearby treasure chests, leaving no room for doubt. This proves particularly handy when dealing with formidable red shadows, which offer superior loot and heightened challenge.
However, when low on health and aiming to survive, it's wise to steer clear of such encounters.
Don’t Hesitate To Make Use Of Theurgy Attacks
Theurgy attacks introduce a fresh mechanic to Persona 3 Reload, offering each character the opportunity to unleash potent and unavoidable attacks. However, they cannot be used repeatedly.
Before unleashing a Theurgy attack, it's essential to fill the Theurgy gauge for each party member, which unlocks these powerful moves. With stunning animations and damage output that can rival even All-Out-Attacks in some cases, these abilities prove invaluable in intense boss battles or when the tide of a confrontation needs turning.
It's worth noting that Theurgy attacks become available only after several hours into the campaign, once characters like Mitsuru and Fuuka have joined your party. They add an extra layer of strategic depth and spectacle that distinguishes this remake from the original version.
Hang Out With Your Friends In The Real World
Engaging in activities outside of Tartarus in Persona 3 Reload is akin to taking a breather and experiencing a different side of the game. While grinding in Tartarus can be productive, neglecting other aspects of Reload's offerings will inevitably lead to hitting a roadblock.
Persona 3 Reload is not just a turn-based dungeon crawler; it's also an anime social simulation. Much of your time is dedicated to nurturing friendships and advancing social links, which, in turn, enhances the power of certain Personas fused within the Velvet Room.
Each person you form a social link with possesses a unique Persona, making it worthwhile to strengthen bonds with those who complement your playstyle or those you're particularly fond of.
Additionally, core party members like Junpei, Akihiko, and Yukari may invite you to hang out during weekends or days off. While these interactions don't always progress social links, they offer a chance to boost the overall stats of their Personas.
