Andrefpvs
Member
I've seen a significant amount of people asking about this in PlayStation Plus threads, so I thought I'd make a quick thread to warn everyone. If this prevents at least one person from getting spoiled, I'd say it's worth it 
Alright, so here's the deal: if you're currently playing Persona 3 or Persona 4 for the first time (either the normal or Portable/FES/Golden versions), or are planning on eventually playing them in the future, I would advise against playing any Arena game right now. You should still download the game/add it to your account, but you might want to hold off on playing it until you've completed both P3 and P4 (or decided to not ever complete them).
The story of the Arena series is a direct sequel to both Persona 3 and 4. Despite its name, I'd argue that it is more of a sequel to P3 than P4.
The timeline goes like this (in parentheses are the versions that superseded the original canon):
Persona 3 (FES) -> Persona 4 (Golden) -> Persona 4 Arena -> Persona 4 Arena Ultimax
Since you can get Persona 4 Arena's story as DLC for Ultimax, there's no need to get that game. While you can play Persona 3 and Persona 4 in any order, playing any of the Arena games before will spoil you on either game.
The spoilers aren't limited to the game's Story mode. If you're clever enough (and chances are that you are, since you're interested in Persona 💛, then you can infer significant spoilers from the character selection screen alone.
Just off the top of my head, the Arena series contains the following spoilers (actual spoilers in the spoiler tags, don't quote this post):
There are even P3 FES (The Answer) and P4 Golden specific spoilers, such as:
The thing about the story in the Arena games is that, well, it's not even that good (by the series' standards), so it'd be an even bigger shame if people got spoiled because of it. I still recommend playing it because there are some great moments in there, but just remember to keep the good and forget about the bad
If you really want to try the game before beating P3 and P4, here are a few steps you can take to minimise the number of spoilers you stumble upon:
- Don't play the story mode.
- Keep the game at version 1.00. Downloading the patch will add a few characters to the roster.
- Do not look at the DLC for the game.
Okay, I guess that's it. Don't let me be "The Man", though. I just thought I'd let unsuspecting people know. Do whatever you want as long as you have fun!
Alright, so here's the deal: if you're currently playing Persona 3 or Persona 4 for the first time (either the normal or Portable/FES/Golden versions), or are planning on eventually playing them in the future, I would advise against playing any Arena game right now. You should still download the game/add it to your account, but you might want to hold off on playing it until you've completed both P3 and P4 (or decided to not ever complete them).
The story of the Arena series is a direct sequel to both Persona 3 and 4. Despite its name, I'd argue that it is more of a sequel to P3 than P4.
The timeline goes like this (in parentheses are the versions that superseded the original canon):
Persona 3 (FES) -> Persona 4 (Golden) -> Persona 4 Arena -> Persona 4 Arena Ultimax
Since you can get Persona 4 Arena's story as DLC for Ultimax, there's no need to get that game. While you can play Persona 3 and Persona 4 in any order, playing any of the Arena games before will spoil you on either game.
The spoilers aren't limited to the game's Story mode. If you're clever enough (and chances are that you are, since you're interested in Persona 💛
, then you can infer significant spoilers from the character selection screen alone.Just off the top of my head, the Arena series contains the following spoilers (actual spoilers in the spoiler tags, don't quote this post):
- (P4)
The 'culprit' from Persona 4
- (P4)
Naoto's gender
- (P3)
ROBOTS
- (P3)
Shuji Ikutsuki and Takeharu Kirijo plotlines
- (P3)
Junpei and Chidori's relationship
- (P3)
P3's main character's fate
- (P3+P4)
Elizabeth's post-P3 quest
There are even P3 FES (The Answer) and P4 Golden specific spoilers, such as:
- (Golden)
Marie's true nature
- (FES)
Aigis's arcana change
- (FES)
P3's main character tuning into a door or whatever
The thing about the story in the Arena games is that, well, it's not even that good (by the series' standards), so it'd be an even bigger shame if people got spoiled because of it. I still recommend playing it because there are some great moments in there, but just remember to keep the good and forget about the bad
If you really want to try the game before beating P3 and P4, here are a few steps you can take to minimise the number of spoilers you stumble upon:
- Don't play the story mode.
- Keep the game at version 1.00. Downloading the patch will add a few characters to the roster.
- Do not look at the DLC for the game.
Okay, I guess that's it. Don't let me be "The Man", though. I just thought I'd let unsuspecting people know. Do whatever you want as long as you have fun!
