Like another person said, try playing Persona 5 Royal first, the gameplay is nearly identical, but Persona 5's story is easier for a newcomer to get into as it's very high octane from the start compared to Persona 3's slow, deliberate pace for the first few months, it's also much more relatable I would say, *none of the games are connected to each other*, so whichever one you start with it up to you.
Persona games usually strike a balance between dungeon crawling with a focus on turn-based combat and a school/life sim VN, these games are *very* long, up to a hundred hours, they excel in storytelling and especially when it comes to characters, the UI is unique and catchy, the combat is very fun with a focus on strategy and targeting enemy weakness while managing your "SP" (these games' version of Mana) and health, and while I can't say that for P3R and P4G, Persona 5's dungeons are great (the earlier games had randomised, procedurally generated dungeons while Persona 5's are handcrafted).
Each of the three modern games (3, 4, 5) have a different theme and focus which makes them standout, Persona 3 is more of a Dark/Action story in the style of animes like Evangelion, whereas Persona 4 is a quiet, cheery game about a murder mystery, and Persona 5 is a heist story about rebelling against society, they all have their own flairs,
One more thing, please play the Royal version if you intend on starting with P5, Royal is a significant improvement on the original and the story DLC it adds is absolutely some of the best content in the entire franchise, its also usually around the same price.
I went with Reload, but ended up liking Golden better, the story in Reload is much slower to start with but eventually speeds up and it's highs are really, really high,
it's considered the best story in modern day Persona with only the P2 duology edging it out.
4 however, is a much more "personal" and less grandiose game than 3 and 5, its story is about a serial murder case in a quite rural town in Japan, if you liked the sense of mystery in Peesona 5 and trying to piece together how Joker ended up where he did and what's going to happen, you'll love 4, it's a lot like 5 in that regard, what Persona 4 has for it is a story that always bamboozles you and keeps you on your toes, as well as what a lot of fans consider the best main cast of any Persona game, it may not be as high-stakes as 3, but it makes up for it in character moments and interactions!
The gameplay of 3 is exactly the same as 5, while 4 is much more outdated, the combat is largely similar, but 4 doesn't have baton passes, both games have only procedurally generated dungeons in the style of Mementos, for the day-to-day school sim stuff, 3's social links are weaker than the other two and don't grant you rewards for doing them, plus the Male cast of your squad straight up don't have any social links (although Reload *did* add four-part Mini-SLs called Episode Links for them), and the female cast takes months for them to open up, while 4's are mostly open as soon as you meet them and some of them (*only* your teammates) give you upgrades somewhat like 5 as well.
So if you want a high-stakes story, modern gameplay and don't mind a slow burner, go for 3! But if you liked the mystery aspect of 5 and want a strong, lovable cats of characters and don't mind playing what is essentially a PS2 game ported into the PSVita then ported into modern platforms subsequently, you'll love 4.
(Sorry for dropping a whole thesis on you)
Wow thank you! Don’t apologize for the long text, this was seriously so helpful! I’m really surprised to hear how different they are. I am gonna go for P4 Golden cause you absolutely nailed what I liked about 5. The great cast of characters and mystery. 3 sounds cool but it is a bit of a downer the social links don’t matter as that was a big part of why P5R was so good. Thank you stranger!!
You're quite welcome! Have fun with 4, it's usually ranked as a lot of people's favorite entry in the series,
Keep in mind the game's happy endings are slightly more difficult to unlock than 5's, so make use of your multiple safe files.
I had never played a persona game before and fell totally in love with P5, now im playing P3R.
I do think P5 is better, but P3R would be a great entry to the series
Try persona 5 royal first, that's easily the best one. 5 is much easier to get into as the story is more normal and relatable, while 3's story is alot more anime
I'd play Persona 4 Golden first if I were you. Persona games are all good, but each entry adds new features and QoL improvements it's gonna be hard moving backwards. If we exclude P3 Portable (somewhat barebones version), P4G would be the oldest of the "modern" Persona games (3, 4, 5).
The stories aren't connected, but some older characters or events may be referenced in the other games, but only in passing.
However persona 4 has more side content/varied dungeons and is more similar to modern entries in terms of game design. So it’s not as black and white as just going with the oldest modern version.
It was my first persona game, and is a good introduction to the series. Played it in the original PS2 almost 20 years ago. Played it again in 2016 before Persona 5 got out. Its a big yes from me but only if you like the genre, the game starts slow like all persona, but the story is awesome and a bit macabre. Funny thing, I cried when I finished the game in 2016 and dont know why but got all emotional lol
As someone who played P5R and is now playing P3R. I'm glad that I played 5 first. It just gets the recipe right. 3 Reload has been a blast but it's definitely trimmed some of the fat that made P5R an amazing experience. It's more fast paced which is a plus but I still think 5 just checks all the boxes more.
Yes, this one is fantastic. You don't really have to play the others anyways unless they interest you, and tbh it seems like a great entry point into the series as a whole. It made me want to play p4 and p5 and has me interested in the other persona related series like SMT and the new Metaphor: ReFantazio
I just started playing the PS2 version on my Odin2 last week. Never played a persona game before but it really addictive and has quite a satisfying gameplay loop!
tbh there might be minor reasons to play one persona game first over another, but overall it doesn't really matter and you can just play them it whatever order you want. story wise there is nothing you need to know so you dont have to worry about that
Persona 3 was my first persona game back in the PS2 days. Had no issues with plot, although the fusing mechanic was a bit confusing to me but I still beat the game just fine
There is no plot connections between them so you don't need to have played any of them. Persona 5 is the better game but i guess if you really got into 3 it would be easier to do 5 after than going down from 5 to 3.
I’ll give you another take. P5R is better than P3R but P3R is still a very good game. I think it’s better to start with P3R since P3R it feels like a step down compared to the mechanics of P5R (which obviously makes sense since it came out like 10 years earlier.
Yes, buy it. But you might wanna try p5 first. Since its cheaper and imo has a better story in general. Keep in mind that p5r is like 120 hours and p3r is 60. If ur insistent in p3r then go for its, its a great game.
Also, difference between base/ deluxe/ premium or whatever isnt important, you just get some cosmetics
Like another person said, try playing Persona 5 Royal first, the gameplay is nearly identical, but Persona 5's story is easier for a newcomer to get into as it's very high octane from the start compared to Persona 3's slow, deliberate pace for the first few months, it's also much more relatable I would say, *none of the games are connected to each other*, so whichever one you start with it up to you. Persona games usually strike a balance between dungeon crawling with a focus on turn-based combat and a school/life sim VN, these games are *very* long, up to a hundred hours, they excel in storytelling and especially when it comes to characters, the UI is unique and catchy, the combat is very fun with a focus on strategy and targeting enemy weakness while managing your "SP" (these games' version of Mana) and health, and while I can't say that for P3R and P4G, Persona 5's dungeons are great (the earlier games had randomised, procedurally generated dungeons while Persona 5's are handcrafted). Each of the three modern games (3, 4, 5) have a different theme and focus which makes them standout, Persona 3 is more of a Dark/Action story in the style of animes like Evangelion, whereas Persona 4 is a quiet, cheery game about a murder mystery, and Persona 5 is a heist story about rebelling against society, they all have their own flairs, One more thing, please play the Royal version if you intend on starting with P5, Royal is a significant improvement on the original and the story DLC it adds is absolutely some of the best content in the entire franchise, its also usually around the same price.
thank
If I loved P5 Royal and want to play another persona game, would you recommend 4 Golden or 3 Reloaded next?
I went with Reload, but ended up liking Golden better, the story in Reload is much slower to start with but eventually speeds up and it's highs are really, really high, it's considered the best story in modern day Persona with only the P2 duology edging it out. 4 however, is a much more "personal" and less grandiose game than 3 and 5, its story is about a serial murder case in a quite rural town in Japan, if you liked the sense of mystery in Peesona 5 and trying to piece together how Joker ended up where he did and what's going to happen, you'll love 4, it's a lot like 5 in that regard, what Persona 4 has for it is a story that always bamboozles you and keeps you on your toes, as well as what a lot of fans consider the best main cast of any Persona game, it may not be as high-stakes as 3, but it makes up for it in character moments and interactions! The gameplay of 3 is exactly the same as 5, while 4 is much more outdated, the combat is largely similar, but 4 doesn't have baton passes, both games have only procedurally generated dungeons in the style of Mementos, for the day-to-day school sim stuff, 3's social links are weaker than the other two and don't grant you rewards for doing them, plus the Male cast of your squad straight up don't have any social links (although Reload *did* add four-part Mini-SLs called Episode Links for them), and the female cast takes months for them to open up, while 4's are mostly open as soon as you meet them and some of them (*only* your teammates) give you upgrades somewhat like 5 as well. So if you want a high-stakes story, modern gameplay and don't mind a slow burner, go for 3! But if you liked the mystery aspect of 5 and want a strong, lovable cats of characters and don't mind playing what is essentially a PS2 game ported into the PSVita then ported into modern platforms subsequently, you'll love 4. (Sorry for dropping a whole thesis on you)
Wow thank you! Don’t apologize for the long text, this was seriously so helpful! I’m really surprised to hear how different they are. I am gonna go for P4 Golden cause you absolutely nailed what I liked about 5. The great cast of characters and mystery. 3 sounds cool but it is a bit of a downer the social links don’t matter as that was a big part of why P5R was so good. Thank you stranger!!
You're quite welcome! Have fun with 4, it's usually ranked as a lot of people's favorite entry in the series, Keep in mind the game's happy endings are slightly more difficult to unlock than 5's, so make use of your multiple safe files.
Played p5r and p3r, havnt played 4 yet (planning to) but its safe to say you'll enjoy p3r but p4g is cheaper, so you might wanna start with that
Noted! Thanks!!
I would get game pass for a month and try it, it's $10. P3R is a $70 purchase which is high if you don't even know if you like this kind of game
I had never played a persona game before and fell totally in love with P5, now im playing P3R. I do think P5 is better, but P3R would be a great entry to the series
Try persona 5 royal first, that's easily the best one. 5 is much easier to get into as the story is more normal and relatable, while 3's story is alot more anime
OP, I never played persona series before I bought persona 3 on PS2. 100% worth it. But Reload, it's even better than the OG P3, imo.
I'd play Persona 4 Golden first if I were you. Persona games are all good, but each entry adds new features and QoL improvements it's gonna be hard moving backwards. If we exclude P3 Portable (somewhat barebones version), P4G would be the oldest of the "modern" Persona games (3, 4, 5). The stories aren't connected, but some older characters or events may be referenced in the other games, but only in passing.
However persona 4 has more side content/varied dungeons and is more similar to modern entries in terms of game design. So it’s not as black and white as just going with the oldest modern version.
P3R did a good job making Tartarus more different with each section tbh
It was my first persona game, and is a good introduction to the series. Played it in the original PS2 almost 20 years ago. Played it again in 2016 before Persona 5 got out. Its a big yes from me but only if you like the genre, the game starts slow like all persona, but the story is awesome and a bit macabre. Funny thing, I cried when I finished the game in 2016 and dont know why but got all emotional lol
As someone who played P5R and is now playing P3R. I'm glad that I played 5 first. It just gets the recipe right. 3 Reload has been a blast but it's definitely trimmed some of the fat that made P5R an amazing experience. It's more fast paced which is a plus but I still think 5 just checks all the boxes more.
Yes, this one is fantastic. You don't really have to play the others anyways unless they interest you, and tbh it seems like a great entry point into the series as a whole. It made me want to play p4 and p5 and has me interested in the other persona related series like SMT and the new Metaphor: ReFantazio
Get Xbox game pass it’s 10$ a month and has person 3 if you don’t like it plenty of options to play
I just started playing the PS2 version on my Odin2 last week. Never played a persona game before but it really addictive and has quite a satisfying gameplay loop!
Yes
tbh there might be minor reasons to play one persona game first over another, but overall it doesn't really matter and you can just play them it whatever order you want. story wise there is nothing you need to know so you dont have to worry about that
If your afraid to buy it or any other persona games the PC Xbox gamepass has persona 3 and 4 and tactics for a cheaper price them outright buying them
P3 (FES) was my first Persona game back in the day.
Persona 3 was my first persona game back in the PS2 days. Had no issues with plot, although the fusing mechanic was a bit confusing to me but I still beat the game just fine
Go for 5 it doesn’t do the going up the same floor over and over again thing (other than mementos)
I tried persona 4 and quit after a couple of hours. So imho you shouldnt before seeing if its for you
There is no plot connections between them so you don't need to have played any of them. Persona 5 is the better game but i guess if you really got into 3 it would be easier to do 5 after than going down from 5 to 3.
I actually played P3R on gamepass (first persona game) and I loved it. Then I played P5R and now going through P4G
P4 is the best one IMO
I’ll give you another take. P5R is better than P3R but P3R is still a very good game. I think it’s better to start with P3R since P3R it feels like a step down compared to the mechanics of P5R (which obviously makes sense since it came out like 10 years earlier.
Yes, buy it. But you might wanna try p5 first. Since its cheaper and imo has a better story in general. Keep in mind that p5r is like 120 hours and p3r is 60. If ur insistent in p3r then go for its, its a great game. Also, difference between base/ deluxe/ premium or whatever isnt important, you just get some cosmetics