Shin Megami Tensei: Persona 3 FES - PlayStation 2

Persona 3 FES being the upgraded version of Persona 3 is a underrated masterpiece. There are many draws in the game, the main ones being it's incredibly deep physological story and characters. But the anime style and clearly Japanese soundtrack add so much aswell. I've played thousands of game and this one stands as my favorite, it's still just as worth playing as the day it came outGameplay is really fun, it has unique One more! battle system where if you attack a monster with it's weakness you get to attack again. And you can scan an enemy and get to see it's weakness without wasting a turn which is a nice change from usual. But the monsters get the same advantage if they attack you with one of your weakness'. It feels a little like you're cheating because you can wipe out the enemy before they ever even get the chance to move if you know what you're doing, it's a lot of fun once you get it down, it becomes almost like a rhythmYou also collect personas (it's like an adult version of pokemon in many ways) which you can get by winning them in a card shuffle at the end of a battle or fusing ones you don't want anymore together to create a new stronger oneBut thats only half the game, the other (arguably even more enjoyable half) is essentially a social sim, You go to school get asked questions decide what friends to make, get in a relationship, play sports, meet new people who react in different ways depending on what you say to them, or just shop and play at the arcade to raise your stats. Theres about 20 different "social links" (basically friends) you can have and as you spend time with them you're rank increases. When it goes up you get more powerful fused personas and if you max any or all of them out you can incredibly powerful personas. Its got a lot of charm and theres so many different types of social links, from someone whos about to die to a school friend to an elderly couple or even potential lovers. It's capable of making you laugh or cry because these people feel very real.This version contains the 20 hour epilogue titled "The Answer", and if you like Persona 3 then this really is essential. It adds so much to the game. It has some of the nicest animated cutscenes I've seen in a game. It provides much needed closure without being overly final. The ending is really beautiful, it had me crying from sadness at the same time as I was smiling. It also adds a new social link which is very touching, lots of cool new Personas, and new requests from Elizabeth along with a secret ultimate boss into the original gameVoice acting is some of the best in the business, and the character design is amazing especially if you like anime. I highly recommend the artbook to go along with it, the huge soundtrack is worth getting aswell. Don't forget to try the similar Persona 4 if you like 3, and you could even try Persona 1 and 2 though they feel very differentThe story is very dark (even the color scheme was made to reflect this) and will probably make you cry (I sure did). Finally one of the coolest aspects is that you have to commit pseudo suicide (part of the psychology I mentioned earlier) to summon your persona, each character has a different way of doing it and even after hundreds of hours it never gets old.If you like JRPGS and/or anime and or social sims or just a game that's great all around then get this, you won't be disappointed

If you're curious about the Shin Megami Tensei franchise but aren't sure where to begin, Persona 3 is a fantastic entry point to the series. This version - FES - is an expanded and enhanced re-release of the original Persona 3, featuring some new events, more Personas, an optional Hard difficulty setting (I'd only advise this for SMT veterans, who should be used to the punishing nature of the franchise), more equipment options, more sidequests, added dialog, new ways to strengthen your Personas, new music, and a number of tweaks. The biggest reason to choose this version over the original release is the inclusion of The Answer, which is another chapter of the story that takes place some time after the main game. It is very important that you do NOT play The Answer until you've finished The Journey (the original story). It's also worth mentioning that The Answer's difficulty level is equivalent to Hard mode, and cannot be adjusted.So how does it play? In a word, quite well. Persona 3's gameplay is comprised of juggling the main character's school life and social life while trying to protect their city from Shadows: the deadly creatures that stalk the night. Luckily, these creatures are only active during the Dark Hour, which is a hidden period of time between one day and the next. This is where the combat of the game comes in.While you're exploring Tartarus (I've used the word "explore" loosely here, as Tartarus is as bare bones as a dungeon can get), you'll have to fight Shadows. Once you're in a fight, your options are: change tactics (what your teammates' AI will do), change Persona (you're the only multiple Persona user), attack, use a skill (spell), use an item, wait, or run away. Before choosing, you can make a more informed decision by pressing R1 to check the turn order or L1 to scan an enemy (or check the strengths and weaknesses of an enemy whose type you've scanned before). What all this means, along with what all of the various statuses mean are summarized in the game's manual. Most battles can be won by bringing a good combination of team members that compliment one another in battle and having the optimal Persona equipped, as well as using the correct Tactics for your teammates to follow. The AI isn't perfect, and will occasionally do some stupid things, especially if you have the wrong Tactics selected.So how do you get the best Personas? Social Links and Fusion. Persona Fusion works similarly to Demon Fusion in other Shin Megami Tensei games; you can gain combine two or more Personas to make a new one. Most Personas can be made with several different combinations of other Personas, but some will require specific ones to be fused. Each Persona requires that the main character be at a certain minimum level in order to use it. Others will remain hidden until the player has obtained a Key Item tied to that Persona. These items are obtained by doing certain sidequests or maxing out a Social Link. So what's a Social Link?Social Links are a game mechanic introduced in Persona 3 in which the player must interact with other characters in the game and develop a relationship between them and the main character. Fellow teammates, shady businessmen, rival athletes, and yes, even girlfriends. Because Japan, I guess. Depending on your dialog choices, which Personas you currently have, and other factors, you'll learn more about these characters. As you do, your fusions will be more effective. If you fuse a Persona of the same Arcana as your Social Links, that Persona will gain extra experience, meaning that you'll need to grind less to get that Persona to learn new skills. Once you've completed a Social Link (typically by helping the other person resolve some conflict), you will be able to fuse an exclusive Persona of that Link's Arcana. For example, Thanatos is only available once you've finished the Death Social Link.Now the real draw of the game is the story. The basic gist is that you play as a high school student who discovers that he has the power of Persona (and the ability to change Personas at will, also known as the power of the Wild Card) and is recruited to fight alongside other Persona-wielding teenagers from his school, Gekkoukan High. During the Dark Hour, the school transforms into the labyrinth known as Tartarus. Tartarus contains mostly just shadows, items, and hundreds of flights of stairs. But there are also clues to the mystery of Tartarus's existence and the origin of the Dark Hour...Persona 3 is one of the finest JRPGs of the 2000's, and is not to be missed! If you own a PS2 or have a working launch model PS3, this game should be on your shelf. If you have a PSP, you should also consider getting Persona 3 Portable, which remedies some issues of this release (like not being able to directly control the actions of your teammates). Both versions have an incredible story, fantastic music, and enough gameplay to keep you busy for 100 hours, easily.