Persona 3 - is it right for me?

[heybtbm]

Wait a minute. I just picked up Persona 3 at Gamestop (where I've had it pre-ordered for months). This is what I received (rubberbanded together)...




This is from Gamestop.com and Amazon...



Did I just get ripped off? I didn't receive the case (similar to previous Atlus games) that holds the artbook and game. Did anyone get the case?

[Promophile]

Did I just get ripped off? I didn't receive the case (similar to previous Atlus games) that holds the artbook and game. Did anyone get the case?

Yes, yes you did. It came in a case. I'd take it back tommorow if I was you. I have to say, I've never seen GS open a preordered game.

[Nate Nanjo]

Yup, you got ripped.

Uh, anything I say about this maybe a little bais, considering Persona 2: Innocent Sin is one of my favorite games. However, I not to fond of dungeon crawlers. So, far I like the game, but only an hour in.

Jack Frost!

[Aussie2B]

I would've been wondering what's going on the second I saw a rubberband. Rubberbands are for thrift stores selling 15 year old used games that they want to hold together, not GameStop. :/ If they were actually preorder bonuses, they should be kept in a separate drawer, which they would pull out as you're purchasing the game, and Atlus sure as heck wouldn't package it that way. I seriously don't understand the business practices of GameStop sometimes.

[heybtbm]

Yeah, I got a display copy. Even though I paid for the game in full last February. I'm going to go there today and rip them a new one. This is the third pre-order screw up at that particular store since last September. If they don't have a sealed copy left (somehow I suspect that last sealed copy was bought by an employee), I'm returning it and buying it from Amazon. I'll also return every single one of my current pre-orders (which are all paid in full). We'll see how this goes at lunch.

[Kitsune Sniper]

Wait a minute. I just picked up Persona 3 at Gamestop (where I've had it pre-ordered for months). This is what I received (rubberbanded together)...




This is from Gamestop.com and Amazon...



Did I just get ripped off? I didn't receive the case (similar to previous Atlus games) that holds the artbook and game. Did anyone get the case?

Jesus Tapdancing Christ. What the fuck, man.

Go out there and punch the crap out of the guy who sold you that. Jeez.

[mailman187666]

yeah dude, if you're gonna pay the full $50 you gotta get the outer case for it. I bought it yesterday without a pre-order (but i went just as the shipment arrived) and still got a sealed copy. You may have to wait until next shipment though but its worth it to be able to get EVERYTHING you paid for. I haven't even gotten a chance to play it yet, how is it anybody?

[exit]

I was able to snag a copy up at GS yesterday, it was factory sealed and all, you got totally ripped. They had also just gotten them in as well, so along with the NES games I found there, I must have really lucked out.

[Kitsune Sniper]

I called Toys'R'Us. "Duh, Chim Megani Topsy?" No dice.

I went to Wal-Mart. "I looked up the full title of the game you wrote down for me, and it's not in the system. We didn't get it this week. Tried Gamestop?"

*bangs head on wall*

[Nate Nanjo]

Yeah, I got a display copy. Even though I paid for the game in full last February. I'm going to go there today and rip them a new one. This is the third pre-order screw up at that particular store since last September. If they don't have a sealed copy left (somehow I suspect that last sealed copy was bought by an employee), I'm returning it and buying it from Amazon. I'll also return every single one of my current pre-orders (which are all paid in full). We'll see how this goes at lunch.

Uhh, pre-order games are suppose to be kept untouched for at least 48 hours right?

O_o

[Daria]

Yeah, I got a display copy.

What could have also happened was your copy may have been at the top of the shipping box and when they opened it with a box cutter sliced through the outercase.

[Promophile]

Uhh, pre-order games are suppose to be kept untouched for at least 48 hours right?

O_o

Thats what I thought. Every time I've preordered from multiple stores that's been the case.

[heybtbm]

Victory!



I went back to Gamestop during lunch and they had one sealed copy remaining. Of course the manager had to be a whiny bitch about it. He grudgingly went to the drawer and pulled out the last copy, which was good...for him. I have several hundreds of dollars in pre-orders that I was ready to return if the situation had to get ugly. The whole time I was polite and clear that I paid for a sealed copy and that's what I was leaving with. Still, the manager had to be all pissy like I was trying to rip them off. Can't they look in the computer and see the $1000's of games I bought there over the years? Whatever.

I have my game and all is well.

[Kitsune Sniper]

Victory!



I went back to Gamestop during lunch and they had one sealed copy remaining. Of course the manager had to be a whiny bitch about it. He grudgingly went to the drawer and pulled out the last copy, which was good...for him. I have several hundreds of dollars in pre-orders that I was ready to return if the situation had to get ugly. The whole time I was polite and clear that I paid for a sealed copy and that's what I was leaving with. Still, the manager had to be all pissy like I was trying to rip them off. Can't they look in the computer and see the $1000's of games I bought there over the years? Whatever.

I have my game and all is well.

I would've gotten the game and CANCELLED all the preorders just because of his attitude.

Congrats. Let us know how the game is!

[RadiantSvgun]

Persona 3= awesome! Is this going to end up like Nocturne?

[exit]

I've yet to see the game at my store, I asked the game guy a while back if we were going to receive it and he said no, so my guess is that Wal-Mart will not be receiving Persona 3. Ironically enough, we did receive Raw Danger, which is collecting dust minus one copy that I bought.

Victory!



I went back to Gamestop during lunch and they had one sealed copy remaining. Of course the manager had to be a whiny bitch about it. He grudgingly went to the drawer and pulled out the last copy, which was good...for him. I have several hundreds of dollars in pre-orders that I was ready to return if the situation had to get ugly. The whole time I was polite and clear that I paid for a sealed copy and that's what I was leaving with. Still, the manager had to be all pissy like I was trying to rip them off. Can't they look in the computer and see the $1000's of games I bought there over the years? Whatever.

I have my game and all is well.

Congrats man. I hate how fuckin snoody some of the employees there can be, acting like they're better than you.

One time this guy gave me an attitude because I asked if the copy of SH3 I bought came with the bonus CD and instruction manual. He kept on bitching about how it's a used game and they sell used games there. I stood my ground and asked him why it's such a big deal to look in that little bag of his, by that point there was a small line growing behind me. Well the guy pulled out the manual and I told him that I wanted my manual back, needless to say I had a pleasant grin on my face the entire time watching him work.

[VACRMH]

One time this guy gave me an attitude because I asked if the copy of SH3 I bought came with the bonus CD and instruction manual. He kept on bitching about how it's a used game and they sell used games there. I stood my ground and asked him why it's such a big deal to look in that little bag of his, by that point there was a small line growing behind me. Well the guy pulled out the manual and I told him that I wanted my manual back, needless to say I had a pleasant grin on my face the entire time watching him work.

I get that stuff all the time. That and people hate it when I won't buy a display copy, complaining that "It's the same thing"

Picked up my copy on Wednesday, about 2 and a half hours in so far. Epic Lulz were given when I summoned a persona for the first time.

[G-Boobie]

Yeah, I just wanted to chime in on the overall quality of Persona 3... Holy crap. I can't put the controller down.... (and yeah, the collectors edition stuff is pretty cool). I think I like it better than Digital Devil, and I KNOW I like it much better than Persona 1.

Between Persona 3 and Bioshock, I don't think I'm going to need another console game for a couple months

[MrSmiley381]

Is this game right for you? I'm not too sure. But, I can tell you right now, Persona 3 is the most insanely weeaboo (Wapanese, Wannabe Japanese, etc.) game ever created by man. The localization, for starters, is decent enough. The game still takes place in Japan (so no sudden switch to AMERIKKKA) and every damn cultural thing about Japan is still there. The way school is on Saturday, the way that there's kendo teams, just everything screams I LOVE JAPAN LOVELOVELOVE.

OK, so that's somewhat of a strike against it. Well, let's talk about some gameplay, OK? You have the option of exploring this HUGE tower every night. However, sometimes you're still tired from the night before, or that dumb healer bitch on your team is too sick to go in (that time of the month?). Well, in these cases, you can sometimes STUDY, or just go to sleep. Which leads to the next topic.

You, school, and schoolgirls.

Personally, this part of the game does not contain enough tentacles, but I suppose AO is a little much for Atlus. Well, school is Monday through Saturday (Wait, they might switch every other Saturday, I didn't play that far yet). Scripted events occur where you answer questions for your idiot companions or join the kendo team, or hit on some sort of Ganguro girl that totally will never, ever, put out. Working with your friends increases your various social links. So, every time you build better friendship, you have voices in your head tell you that you can create better Personas. You know, those demons you shoot yourself in the head for help? Personas. Yep.

Yeah, if you didn't know, your characters have a magic gun that they shoot themselves in the head with so they can summon badass demons. I suppose the whiny looking emo kids go well with this concept.

All right, so after you go to school, and assuming that bitchy healer isn't on her period, you go to Tartarus, the Xbox-sized tower that appears where your school does. This happens during the Dark Hour, which is a magical realm that exists between midnight and 12:01. You fight these shadows in Tartarus, because they eat people. Sort of. Their souls, maybe? I guess shadows just make people apathetic. Seriously, they say on the in-game news that there are EXTREME CASES OF APATHY.

Uh huh.

So, while you explore Tartarus, you see your enemies, and you can strike first (A la Valkyrie Profile) to get the advantage. Combat, unlike everything else in Persona 3, is pretty decent. You only control the main character, although you can give basic commands to your teammates, like "Standby," and "Bitch better be healin'." If you strike an enemy's weakness, you'll get an extra attack. Hitting all of your opponents with their weaknesses will give you the option to do a hilariously cartoony all-out attack. Good stuff, all around.

It's possible to break the system, though. I did. I beat the Floor 10 trio of enemies by telling my fellow attacker to standby, and the healer to heal. Long story short, every turn I attacked all three of the same enemy with the type of attack they were weak against. This knocked each of them into a state where they more or less lose a turn, unless they are attacked. See the broken part, yet? Attack, attack, attack, standby. Friend stands by. Bitch heals if necessary. All three enemies waste a turn getting back up. Rinse and repeat. I hope later enemies aren't this exploitable.

Finally, there's the art style and music. The music sounds good in-game, but horrible when in real life. Nothing against GANGSTA MUZAK, but it doesn't work when mildly browsing the internet. The art is a mix of win and epic fail. The character portraits and artbook are amazingly detailed and expertly crafted, even though Kazuma Kaneko bailed on this game. However, the characters models themselves ARE HORRIBLY SHITTY AND MUDDY AND DISGUSTING. Jesus. The 3D modeling in this game looks like a mixture of barf, shit, and piss. I can barely tell which way my characters are looking sometimes. Man.

Also, my disc seems to skip a lot on the aforementioned GANGSTA song. It's great hearing your PS2 make noises. The disc isn't being scratched, so I either got a faulty disc or my PS2 has AIDS. Front Mission 3 and Silent Hill, along with Gradius V have occasional RRRRRR noises ejecting from the PS2, but nothing like Persona 3. I will further test this out on my friend's multiple PS2's tomorrow.

Well, that's my short and messy review. Take it as you will.

[Cryomancer]

Maybe because the game was made in Japan? And aimed at a Japanese audience? Because, it's a Japanese developer and a series branch know for taking place in schools?

I will however admit that it's weeaboo in the sense that they have English voice actors using Japanese words. Why DO they market to the weeaboo demographic and take out the Japanese voices? All that does is delay the game and make it cost more, it's a waste of time. Maybe they're too lazy to add subtitles? This topic sure is coming close to violating rules 1 and 2....