The Ultimate Guide to Mastering Persona 3: Unleashing the Hidden Secrets

Highlights

When playing Persona 3, make sure to have a diverse set of Personas that cover each elemental damage type to effectively battle different foes.

When engaging in the social simulation aspect, it is advisable to focus on romancing one character at a time in order to prevent any negative repercussions with the other characters.

To maximize your chances of success, it is recommended to avoid relying too heavily on Shinjiro, Ken, and Junpei, as they are comparatively weaker options, particularly when it comes to their skill sets.

Now is the perfect time to explore earlier versions of the game, Persona 3, before Persona 3 Reload is released. Thankfully, Persona 3 Portable was made available on all major platforms earlier this year, making it convenient for players to immerse themselves in the world of Persona 3 before the remake. However, there are some community-agreed unwritten rules that players should follow to ensure the best possible experience with any version of Persona 3. While longtime fans of the Persona series may already know these rules, newcomers should be aware of the differences in Persona 3 compared to other games in the series. With three slightly different versions, including the original P3, Persona 3 FES, and Persona 3 Portable, it is essential to understand the universal unwritten rules that apply to all versions, although they may vary with the release of Persona 3 Reload.

Have a Persona for Each Elemental Damage Type

Only Romance One Character at a Time

A key aspect of the Persona series revolves around the collection and fusion of different Personas for use in battles. These Personas possess various elemental types, each representing unique skills. To effectively face a diverse range of adversaries, players are encouraged to ensure they have a Persona capable of countering every potential elemental weakness. The elemental attributes in Persona 3 include Fire, Ice, Electricity, Wind, Light, and Darkness. Additionally, players should also consider including Personas proficient in three different types of physical damage: Strike, Slash, and Pierce, within their arsenal.

The social simulation aspect of the Persona series, represented by Social Links in Persona 3, is another key element. As players strive to establish Social Links with different characters in the game, some characters can become romantically involved once the player reaches a sufficiently high rank with them. However, pursuing multiple romances simultaneously can lead to a decline or loss of ranks with these characters due to feelings of jealousy. To avoid such consequences, Persona 3 players should ensure that they achieve rank 10 with one romanceable character before pursuing another one, as Social Links at rank 10 are unbreakable and irreversible.

Avoid Using Shinjiro, Ken, and Junpei

How These Unwritten Rules Might Change in Persona 3 Reload

Party composition plays a crucial role in achieving success in battles, as is the case with most JRPGs. In Persona 3, however, there are certain characters who are not as effective and are better off being excluded from the team. Shinjiro, Ken, and Junpei, in comparison to the available alternatives, are relatively weaker party members. Thus, it is advisable for players to minimize their usage. While Junpei proves decent in the early stages of the game, he becomes outshined as the story progresses. On the other hand, both Shinjiro and Ken suffer from limited move sets. Shinjiro can only learn physical attacks, and Ken relies too heavily on underpowered Light skills.

These rules are applicable to the current versions of Persona 3. However, they may change once Persona 3 Reload is released, as the remake appears to introduce some alterations to the game mechanics. For instance, in Persona 3 Reload, Social Links cannot be broken at all, but reversals can still occur. As a result, pursuing romantic relationships with multiple characters simultaneously may yield different outcomes. Moreover, certain party members like Ken may become more valuable due to changes in the Light and Darkness skills, which will incorporate the Kouha and Eiha abilities from Persona 5. Consequently, the need for Personas with Light and Darkness skills is expected to become even more critical in Persona 3 Reload.

Persona 3 Reload is releasing on February 2, 2024, on PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.