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[CurseoftheGods]

I think P3 had the better characters and story, but Persona 4 had better gameplay and dungeons. I'd say P4 overall.

 

[Flandy]

P4 is automatically better because it didn't have Tartarus

 

[Mauricio_Magus]

P3P is my favorite game of the bunch, so yeah P3>P4.

The story, characters, AIGIS, music, and FeMC are my top reasons.

P3P > Golden > P4 = FES > P3(vanilla)

 

[PartTimeWarrior]

Loved them both but my love for P4 is stronger

 

[omlet]

P4 has Chie so it wins.

But they're both good.

 

[Producer]

Persona 3 has a better story and character development.

Meanwhile in Persona 4 everyone stays worshipping the MC

 

[UpperCaseN]

I played P3P and P4 (PS2). Between these, P3P was better for me; better characters and better story.

 

[orochi91]

P3 is better, specifically FES version.

I had no issue with the gameplay, but the cast + story + themes easily put it ahead of P4.

 

[Steel]

That's kinda a short argument to get this topic started. Preferred P3 personally, that last 20% of the game was soooo good.

 

[cafemomo]

P3 all day erryday

 

[ohlawd]

P3P > Golden > FES > OGs

 

[Zukuu]

I think P3 had the better characters and story, but Persona 4 had better gameplay and dungeons.

That far I agree. As a whole, I value characters, setting and story more than the ability to control your whole party, so I hold P3 in slightly better memories than P4.

 

[Jawbreaker]

Persona 3 for the better story/characters.

 

[Hugstable]

I feel like I like the story and difficulty much better in P3, while I like the characters and overall gameplay improvements in P4 (even if those improvements made the game a bit too easy especially compared to P3FES).

Overall I think I might have ended up liking P3FES more than P4, story really pulled me in once it started rolling, and I really enjoyed the difficulty of some of those Tartarus bosses, fights seemed alot more varied than the fights in P4 to me.

 

[bigkrev]

Even though vanilla and FES are unplayable, the compromises made to P3P don't hurt it enough to move P4 past it

 

[darkwing]

P4G of course

 

[LaunchpadMcQ]

I think the casts are comparable, P4 having a slight edge for me.

Dungeon design is better in 4.

I think 3 story is arguably better; themes are darker and deeper, too. I preferred 4's story, though.

4 had better combat, no contest.

The soundtracks are really close. I can't give a winner for this one.

I'd have to give it to 4.

 

[Hubb]

I like them both a lot, but I like the music in P4 better. I guess that means P4 > P3 for me.

 

[Acquiescence]

I hated Persona 3, loved Persona 4 (Golden). Funny how things work out sometimes.

 

[Tevos]

I liked Persona 4 better. It was more lighthearted and so it was easier for me to get into. Preferred the music, characters, and overall plot to it over P3, as well.

P3 is a great game too, though.

 

[FluxWaveZ]

Persona 5.

Persona 3 FES wins it for me because of its characters and story. Persona 4 was amazing, of course. I think both OSTs are pretty much equal, for me.

Persona 4 had better dungeons, aesthetically and conceptually.

Persona 3 had better character development, and didn't tie Persona evolution to Social Links as a result.

Persona 3 had a much better climax and resolution to Persona 4, which almost felt like a retread and that they were attempting to pull off a Persona 3 again.

 

[Trigger]

Persona 3 is my preferred game. Not necessarily because it's "more mature" or "darker", but because I found the immediate plot more compelling. The murder mystery angle in P4 starts interesting but wears kinda thin halfway through.

 

[aravuus]

Loved them both but my love for P4 is stronger

Yup. I'm a sucker for murder mysteries, and I liked P4's characters more.

 

[mdubs]

P4G. Better pacing, better dungeons, better characters, better story, better setting, better battle system and Rise and Chie.

P3 does have Yukari however and Mass Destruction

 

[CrazyDude]

Persona 4, has a more interesting story and characters. Persona 3 was bland in comparison.

 

[Acosta]

PS3 for story and characters, in general.

PS4 for deepness, execution and portrayal of characters, aside of more interesting and involved Social Link stories. The game structure was better, but I kinda missed the Tartarus -yes, I know, it sucked some times but it had a sense of dread and mystery that was lost in most of the TV world-.

Both are fantastic.

 

[mocolostrocolos]

P4G is the second best RPG ever.

 

[vvise]

I've played P3P and P4 original.

P3 was better. Also Aigis.

 

[FireCloud]

It depend on whether you consider personas a good thing or bad thing.

If good. Go with Persona 4 because it seems to have one more person in it. Otherwise, Persona 3 would be better due to there being one less persona in the title.

 

[budpikmin]

I played 4 about a year ago and 3 just two weeks ago and I really do think 4 is a much better game.

I loved 3, the story and characters are great but the pacing is AWFUL. Having sections for weeks at a time during the holidays etc where I couldn't slink with school friends really soured my mood with it at times. The cast of 4 also had much more heart and depth to them. I was really looking forward to the Yukari and Mitsuru slinks and they just felt a bit flat when I finally played through them. Aigis however is the best developed character of both games. I didn't mind tartarus and the story is great but 4 really is the complete package.

 

[Psycho_Mantis]

Persona 3 FES by far.

Better story, better characters, and a much better OST.

 

[flatearthpandas]

Oh boy.

P3 has better characters and better story (Teddie is my favorite though).
P4 has better gameplay, in that you can control your party.
Both have dogshit dungeons.

P3 for me. The fact that the P4 characters learned instruments in two days and put on an idol concert totally overwrites any gameplay improvements. And that is just one example of P4's crimes.

 

[Blablurn]

I like both. Even though I enjoyed 4 Golden a lot my heart beats a lil stronger for 3 because it was my introduction into the series.

 

[buddha0991]

*insert obligatory Persona 2 post here*

 

[BkMogul]

P4= Able to control all your characters.
P3=........well, nothing there matters compared to the above.

So P4 wins.

 

[RurouniZel]

I finished Persona 4, but not 3, so I'm gonna go with 4.

I played the PS2 version and I hated the friendly character AI. You give them direction, but they always did stupid shit (like use my best healing items when I get a minor scratch). I know the PSP version fixed that, but after 20 hours-ish of FES I continue to struggle getting into 3.

 

[Ourobolus]

I think P3 had the better characters and story, but Persona 4 had better gameplay and dungeons. I'd say P4 overall.

Exactly my thoughts. I preferred the dark tone of P3 over the happy-go-lucky (for the most part) themes in P4.

That said, both games are excellent.

Oh, and P3 Final Boss > P4 Final Boss.

 

[Zyrox]

I think both are amazing but I slightly prefer P3. I liked the cast, story, music and dungeon better than P4's.

Spoiler

I'm so happy that P3 gets movies.

 

[Blunoise]

the p3 soundtrack alone makes it better than p4

 

[LX_Theo]

Persona 4, fo'sho. The cast is better and better integrated into the game to me.

Gameplay and dungeons are better

Basically everything else is on equal footing.

 

[Coffee Dog]

P3 has higher highs but it's first few months are a slog. P4 is more consistent the whole way through.

I prefer P3, as P3P fixed a lot of my problems with the original.

 

[budpikmin]

A lot of votes for P3 having better characters but I personally don't agree. What is it about the P3 cast that you guys prefer?

 

[Vincent Grayson]

I can't think of a single thing about P3 that I like better. Hell, when I played Persona Q and the cast of 3 showed up, I realized I couldn't even remember most of them.

 

[Iksenpets]

I like them both differently. P3 is super dark, and has much more realistic characters. P4 has better gameplay and is just overwhelmingly charming. Hard to pick.

 

[ultron87]

Persona 3 has approximately 20 hours where nothing happens. That made me drop it for a long time.

So I think P4's pacing is a big reason I like it better.

 

[BLCKATK]

I love Persona 3 because of the attitude of the game and the climax of the plot. However I think the gameplay adjustments in 4 make it a way better experience overall. P3P is the happy medium between this, although it sacrifices the overworld exploration I love so much.

In the end I'd say I prefer Persona 3.

 

[GlassEmpires]

A lot of votes for P3 having better characters but I personally don't agree. What is it about the P3 cast that you guys prefer?

For myself, it's the lack of S Links tied to them. This allows the party cast to have growth outside of me being the answer to all their problems.

 

[Supermanisdead]

P3 is much better. Better story, better characters, better combat system. P4's story is plodding; the rescuing theme is repetitive as hell and you know what's in every dungeon. Going through Tartarus, you have no idea what's coming, what's the deal with it's mysterious past, what the reason for it's existence is, etc.

In P4, after you finish the first dungeon, you know the gimmick and it's one that wears thinner and thinner after every one. TV world, true self, etc. It's all the same thing for every character and it's disappointingly obvious. Until the big twist at the end of the game, everything is predictable as hell.

 

[The Cool One]

How were the voice actors in p3

 

[Coffee Dog]

A lot of votes for P3 having better characters but I personally don't agree. What is it about the P3 cast that you guys prefer?

The greatness of Junpei and Yukari help carry weaker links like Ken.

P3P also helps a lot as well, as it adds more party member social links.