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[Steel]

To directly answer the OP, the game is incredibly charming in its presentation. The user interface elements are all designed extremely well and are bright and fun and thoughtfully put together. Same goes for most of the game. The brightness is tinged with the occasional classical SMT darkness and mystery, which adds a lot of intrigue and is used to drive the story forward. I really think the charm takes people off guard and sucks them in. The game itself is great, in a ton of ways.

From a post-first-impression perspective, one of the best parts about Persona 4 is how integrated the game is. Which is why, when people complain about particular segments of the game (the dungeons, the combat, the social links, etc) it makes me kinda concerned that they missed (or intentionally ignored) something. You're never doing just one thing in the game. When you're in a dungeon, you're fusing and you're exploring the dungeon and you're fighting shadows. The more you fight, the more personas you get, the more you can fuse, the more new skills and skill-sets you can try. When you get out of the dungeon, you can sell items, buy new ones, improve social links (which improves your ability to fuse), fuse more, etc etc.

There's TONS of content in the game, and I don't just mean big large story segments. The game itself lasts a very long time, but it's also filled with tons of small details. Conversations and interactions with things that people may never find in half a dozen playthroughs.

The game sucks you in with its presentation and keeps you ensnared by connecting everything together. It's a high quality product that feels like it was genuinely made with love. It's enjoyable.

I definitely feel this way about the game. It has a similiar appeal to an elder scrolls game that way(Granted they are completely different games).

Honestly, I wish I knew. I've never quite been able to understand it.

It's not the waifus. Gajllions of animu waifu games come out every year, and they're almost all incredibly niche.
It's not the dungeon gameplay. Other SMT titles use similar but better versions of the same combat systems, but are less popular.
It's not the story or writing. Well, actually, it seems that it is - the game receives a lot of praise for these things. I just don't understand why. Nothing about the narrative stands out to me compared to other games or anime. It's very... normal.
It's also very similar to Persona 3, but much, much more popular. This is maybe the most confusing point - it is somehwat improved, but still.

I can only assume it's some transient, magical combination of these things.

I feel like it is the combo. Persona doesn't seem to excel at any one aspect of it that makes people like it. As for the Waifu point, to be fair, pretty much all WRPGs nowadays have a romance aspect to them, so it's not an uncommon mechanic at all, though.

I also notice there are a lot of people who dislike it because of the slow intro. Then there are people who dislike it for the reasons that I expected my shooter friend to dislike it...

 

[semiconscious]

'ordinary people / extraordinary circumstances'. it's the same for last of us, & for walking dead. unlike most games, the player character isn't anyone special, &, aside from the circumstances, the world itself is very relatable (everyone's gone to high school), & actually pretty mundane...

it's an interesting approach to framing a narrative, it's not genre-specific, & it's one that's always appealed to me (especially when you throw in some good writing). & i think the more that most mainstream games continue to move in the other direction, the more lasting will be the appeal of games like these...

 

[UnluckyKate]

Grinding a social life is fun.

Also, the game is full of charms : school, activities, characters, locations, everything is full of charms. Let alone the situation (school trips etc...)

 

[Soriku]

wat

Did Persona 3 cease to exist? ;P

No but that's irrelevant to people who have started with P4.

 

[Superblatt]

Is this still on sale on amazon?

 

[XiaNaphryz]

I feel like it is the combo. Persona doesn't seem to excel at any one aspect of it that makes people like it. As for the Waifu point, to be fair, pretty much all WRPGs nowadays have a romance aspect to them, so it's not an uncommon mechanic at all, though.

Romance options aren't uncommon, but the life/dating sim element with the romance is.

 

[BinaryPork2737]

Is this still on sale on amazon?

Unfortunately nope. It's out of stock.

 

[Taruranto]

...Because I like the Persona 4 characters and music? Believe me, if there were a VN of similar quality I would be reading it.

You don't know many VNs then.

 

[Curufinwe]

LOL

Great comeback.

 

[Robert at Zeboyd Games]

Honestly, I wish I knew. I've never quite been able to understand it.

It's not the waifus. Gajllions of animu waifu games come out every year, and they're almost all incredibly niche.
It's not the dungeon gameplay. Other SMT titles use similar but better versions of the same combat systems, but are less popular.
It's not the story or writing. Well, actually, it seems that it is - the game receives a lot of praise for these things. I just don't understand why. Nothing about the narrative stands out to me compared to other games or anime. It's very... normal.
It's also a very similar game in every regard to Persona 3, but somehow much, much more popular. This is maybe the most confusing point - it is improved, but that much?

I can only assume it's some transient, magical combination of factors. There's probably also an element of good timing; people wanted this kind of experience at this time in gaming history, for whatever other reasons, gaming climate and so on. And of course, being popular helps make things more popular, so after it picked up initially, it makes sense that it became larger. But overall... I don't know. It's just amazing to me, the whole phenomenon. I just can't figure it out completely.

I'd say the big reason why Persona 4 is more successful than the other SMT games here (including Persona 3) is the tone. The series in general is very dark & apocalyptic so compared to that, Persona 4 is downright cheerful (despite focusing on a murder mystery).

Also the characters in Persona 4 are much more approachable than the ones in Persona 3. In Persona 3, you're working with the cool kids - there's the popular fashionable girl (Yukari), the rich student president (Mitsuru), and the athlete (Akihiko) with only Junpei being really relateable. In contrast, Persona 4's core is a goofball (Yosuke), a tomboy (Chie), a shy girl (Yukiko), and a lovable punk (Kanji).

 

[TheChaos0]

It's simply a good game but it's not for everyone. I find it surprising that it clicked for so many people that don't like jrpgs and/or anime much.

 

[Error]

There's no secret, it's just a really good game.

 

[Jawmuncher]

If they made a persona game with all the dungeon aspects cut out, I think we'd all be surprised the amount of people who would be ok with it so long as the social link stuff was still in

 

[AmanoBuff]

Waifus

.

#teamyukiko

 

[Curufinwe]

If they made a persona game with all the dungeon aspects cut out, I think we'd all be surprised the amount of people who would be ok with it so long as the social link stuff was still in

Collecting and fusing Personas and then using them to overcome challenges in battle is a huge part of the appeal.

 

[Starviper]

I am pretty addicted to this game right now. I've been holed up in my room most nights lately playing through it instead of watching stuff with my roommate or playing battlefield (I do a bit of both, I suppose.)

Not sure what it is exactly that really catches me on it. The gameplay loop I really like, I suppose, along with the idea of social links.

Though, I absolutely fucking hate Teddy. Not sure why everyone else likes him so much. His voiceover in every fucking battle is driving me up a wall. "Oh, Chie, you're hurt!" "Oh, enemies, oh no!" etc.

 

[Steel]

Romance options aren't uncommon, but the life/dating sim element with the romance is.

Which is exactly why I think it's the combination of everything.

Edit:

Collecting and fusing Personas and then using them to overcome challenges in battle is a huge part of the appeal.

Exactly. It's like pokemon that way.

 

[Memento_Mori15]

If they made a persona game with all the dungeon aspects cut out, I think we'd all be surprised the amount of people who would be ok with it so long as the social link stuff was still in

With all the waifu posts, I wouldn't be surprised. But I would probably not play it. I love the core SMT aspect of it and fusing demons is enjoyable.

 

[Coconut]

If they made a persona game with all the dungeon aspects cut out, I think we'd all be surprised the amount of people who would be ok with it so long as the social link stuff was still in

I disagree, since the social stuff bleeds into the dungeon stuff it gives it urgency to the other with out both elements it'd be boring.

 

[shiftplusone]

I played for about 5 hours...was bored out of my mind...sent it back to Gamefly.

I'm sorry, I'm 32 years old with a wife and kid. I don't have 8-10 hours to play a game "before it gets good"

Avatar quote

I had the same experience with p4g

Haven't rooted a jrpg since ffx (vesperia was okay I guess) but I loved p4.

I've even started 3. It's not as good so far but it seems interesting. Never would have given it a chance before but p4 kind of eased me back in

 

[Lightning Lord]

Also the characters in Persona 4 are much more approachable than the ones in Persona 3. In Persona 3, you're working with the cool kids - there's the popular fashionable girl (Yukari), the rich student president (Mitsuru), and the athlete (Akihiko) with only Junpei being really relateable. In contrast, Persona 4's core is a goofball (Yosuke), a tomboy (Chie), a shy girl (Yukiko), and a lovable punk (Kanji).

Hey, you forgot the coolest kid of them all: Ken Amada.

Spoiler

I'm kidding.

 

[atmusfear]

It's just a damn good game. Characters, story, music, gameplay, everything is just so well done.

 

[VisceralBowl]

I got the game because of GAF hype. I loved the first 8 or so hours a lot (and I usually dislike turn based combat). After that though, the voice acting stopped and the freedom was turned to 10. I lost interest because I couldn't decide what to do and really had no clue what to do. The lack of voice acting in that part also killed it for me. I may pick it up again, but I don't know how the game will regain my attention.

 

[buddha0991]

persona started with 3

They made these shitty psp prequels though that were ugly and didn't have a day by dy system or social elements, also the combat was way more annoying

 

[Persona7]

Is this still on sale on amazon?

It is currently $15.67 on amazon, new.

 

[AwShucks]

I played for about 5 hours...was bored out of my mind...sent it back to Gamefly.

I'm sorry, I'm 32 years old with a wife and kid. I don't have 8-10 hours to play a game "before it gets good"

I'm 29 with a wife and a kid. It took me 6 months to beat the game (I did take a month long break at the obvious halfway mark) and it was definitely worth it. Being on Vita makes it that much easier to just pick up and play a bit. You can put the Vita to sleep without HAVING to save immediately if your wife or child need you right away. So yeah, there's nothing wrong with this game even if you have a wife and kid, myself being the example.

 

[PAULINK]

Teddie.

 

[buddha0991]

Teddie.

UnBEARable

 

[Robert at Zeboyd Games]

Hey, you forgot the coolest kid of them all: Ken Amada.

Spoiler

I'm kidding.

That's also a good point. I've heard many people complain about some of the later cast in Persona 3 - Ken, Aegis, and Fuuka being the most common - but I haven't heard many complaints about anyone in Persona 4.

 

[Snakeyes]

It combines a setting most people can easily relate to, likable human characters that aren't outlandish, great writing and gameplay that is somewhat reminiscent of the Pokemon mechanics that many people grew up with in a stylish package.

 

[Steel]

They made these shitty psp prequels though that were ugly and didn't have a day by dy system or social elements, also the combat was way more annoying

I see what you did there.

But they did break the combat in P2P IS. I've been replaying it and it is so fucking hard to die in that game. Too easy.

Edit:

That's also a good point. I've heard many people complain about some of the later cast in Persona 3 - Ken, Aegis, and Fuuka being the most common - but I haven't heard many complaints about anyone in Persona 4.

Teddie.

 

[Atlas157]

P3FES on Hard is harder than P3P on Maniac, just like P4 on Hard is harder than P4:Golden on Very Hard

How is Hard on P3FES harder than Maniac on P3P?

I agree on Golden though, it was easy on Very Hard. Well to me at least.

That's also a good point. I've heard many people complain about some of the later cast in Persona 3 - Ken, Aegis, and Fuuka being the most common - but I haven't heard many complaints about anyone in Persona 4.

I've never seen anyone complain about Aigis.

Ken is a

Spoiler

team killing little shit

and I only find Fuuka annoying in battle, she's fine outside of it.

 

[meltingparappa]

If they made a persona game with all the dungeon aspects cut out, I think we'd all be surprised the amount of people who would be ok with it so long as the social link stuff was still in

I would play just about any game by that team.

Or maybe what if they made a Persona game that was about adults tackling really troubling, grown up issues. Maybe some of the NPCs struggle with infatuations with their best friend's girlfriend, gender identity or even something pretty dark like incest. Perhaps for the dungeons, they enter a nightmare world where their insecurities try to kill them. But then instead of an rpg dungeon, it's a brutally fast-paced puzzle game. And then maybe the choices you make throughout the game determine which of the multiple endings you get.

Man, that would be amazing.

Oh hey, it WAS amazing! More people should play it.

 

[publicpwnerer]

My only criticisms are the dungeons and combat. Combat is a little too simplistic. I've always hoped for persona transformation / epic moves, but it's just really barebones.

The dungeons...a handful of designs, but overly repetitive.



But yeah, as others have pointed out...every facet of the game just oozes charm and style. The modern setting is refreshing for a genre that's predominately fantasy.

 

[Jeronimo Jones]

I don't know what it is, but it's fun/interesting to me. I don’t play many rpgs, have no interest in dating sims, but I like how different the game is from most western games. I had similar feelings for Virtue's Last Reward.

It's a combination of the characters, setting, presentation and gameplay imo.

Also, maybe because I don’t play P4G every day, and actually have been playing it for months in bite size chunks. I keep coming back to it.

 

[Galang]

Junpei and Yukari are far better characters than anyone in P4. While both games had plenty of stereotypical anime tropes for characters, P4 was far worse with that.

And I actually prefer the story in 3 to 4 - I know a lot of people prefer 4 for the more personal approach but a lot of us prefer the larger overarching plot in 3 as well as the overall death theme.

Completely agree with this!

 

[Curry-Hakase]

This game is pretty much Japanese Scooby Doo.
Interpret that any way you want.

 

[Village]

I would play just about any game by that team.

Or maybe what if they made a Persona game that was about adults tackling really troubling, grown up issues. Maybe some of the NPCs struggle with infatuations with their best friend's girlfriend, gender identity or even something pretty dark like incest. Perhaps for the dungeons, they enter a nightmare world where their insecurities try to kill them. But then instead of an rpg dungeon, it's a brutally fast-paced puzzle game. And then maybe the choices you make throughout the game determine which of the multiple endings you get.

Man, that would be amazing.

Oh hey, it WAS amazing! More people should play it.

That isn't an RPG with pokemon yugioh mechanics.

 

[Kyuur]

It's really solid in all aspects and polished. Kind of like a Nintendo game.

 

[Steel]

I would play just about any game by that team.

Or maybe what if they made a Persona game that was about adults tackling really troubling, grown up issues. Maybe some of the NPCs struggle with infatuations with their best friend's girlfriend, gender identity or even something pretty dark like incest. Perhaps for the dungeons, they enter a nightmare world where their insecurities try to kill them. But then instead of an rpg dungeon, it's a brutally fast-paced puzzle game. And then maybe the choices you make throughout the game determine which of the multiple endings you get.

Man, that would be amazing.

Oh hey, it WAS amazing! More people should play it.

Loved Catherine personally. But I love any puzzle game I buy, so I'm biased.

 

[Snakeyes]

I would play just about any game by that team.

Or maybe what if they made a Persona game that was about adults tackling really troubling, grown up issues. Maybe some of the NPCs struggle with infatuations with their best friend's girlfriend, gender identity or even something pretty dark like incest. Perhaps for the dungeons, they enter a nightmare world where their insecurities try to kill them. But then instead of an rpg dungeon, it's a brutally fast-paced puzzle game. And then maybe the choices you make throughout the game determine which of the multiple endings you get.

Man, that would be amazing.

Oh hey, it WAS amazing! More people should play it.

Catherine is plenty popular already, relative to other Atlus properties. Unsurprisingly, it also shares a lot of elements with P4 (the setting being a cross between the mundane and the supernatural, main cast grounded in reality with issues that are easy to relate to, stylish presentation, etc...).

 

[buddha0991]

I see what you did there.

But they did break the combat in P2P IS. I've been replaying it and it is so fucking hard to die in that game. Too easy.

I know, I actually consider the psp version to be the weaker version. A shame, because EP PSP fixed everything and is the best psp port of any Persona game.

How is Hard on P3FES harder than Maniac on P3P?

I agree on Golden though, it was easy on Very Hard. Well to me at least.

The full party control combined with the adaptation of the P4 mechanics, such as hitting any weakness granting One More! even if another enemy nulls your attack, getting up doesn't waste a turn, and hitting an enemy weakness twice stuns them, among other new P4 mechanics. combine that with the fact that they didn't adjust the enemy AI, so it plays thinking its P3/FES rules instead if P4, make it easier. Add new conveniences like Skill Cards and Blocking along with team mates taking hits for you, among other things, it's gonna be easier no matter what. Feel me?

 

[Atlas157]

The full party control combined with the adaptation of the P4 mechanics, such as hitting any weakness granting One More! even if another enemy nulls your attack, getting up doesn't waste a turn, and hitting an enemy weakness twice stuns them, among other new P4 mechanics. combine that with the fact that they didn't adjust the enemy AI, so it plays thinking its P3/FES rules instead if P4, make it easier. Add new conveniences like Skill Cards and Blocking along with team mates taking hits for you, among other things, it's gonna be easier no matter what. Feel me?

Yeah I kinda figured all that had to do with it.

Now if Maniac was in P3FES...

 

[meltingparappa]

Catherine is plenty popular already, relative to other Atlus properties. Unsurprisingly, it also shares a lot of elements with P4 (the setting being a cross between the mundane and the supernatural, main cast grounded in reality with issues that are easy to relate to, stylish presentation, etc...).

I just hope that that P4 serves as both a gateway and a beacon to people who don't know what they're missing.

 

[GloriousBagel]

Maybe because the game is the effin best?
I was out of the JRPG scene since the gamecube days. Then some guys on a Vita forum told me to play Persona 3 Portable before P4G came out. I got hooked.
It's a great dating sim/dungeon crawler, with a sweet story line. Now I'm into the SMT games, I'm a new Atlus fan.
People downright trashing on the game in this thread might be trolling XD

 

[buddha0991]

Yeah I kinda figured all that had to do with it.

Now if Maniac was in P3FES...

2Manic4Me

 

[Rising_Hei]

what.

i don't even remember some of the characters in that game.

P4 characters left a mark

I felt like Atlus went all out with P3, the story was really epic and the ending awesome as well.

P4 wasn't bad, but... the story just wasn't as ambitious imo

Sorry about the "ot" D:

 

[Dragon]

Because Xenoblade is good from the very beginning

It's actually not. You do a lot of boring shit before major events happen that make the game interesting.

 

[XiaNaphryz]

It's actually not. You do a lot of boring shit before major events happen that make the game interesting.

You at least have player control really early on though. P4's beginning all you really do for a long while other than the name entry screen is press X to advance text boxes. Not even much of that that if you have auto-advance enabled. P3 you at least were able to move around a bit once you got to school.

There's a reason they kept making "Press X to..." jokes in the P4 Endurance Run well past the 30 episode mark.

 

[masterlobo]

I tried Persona 3 and couldn't get into it. The whole social sim aspect, and going to school and all of that bored the hell out of me.

But I played SMT IV and loved the hell out of it. I know they are very different games but I loved it so effin much now I want to get into the whole series.
I kinda want to revisit Persona for that very reason, do you guys think P4 would work for me?

Edit: I did enjoy Catherine, a lot though.