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Persona Community Thread |OT3| Your thread title sucks, Yukiko.

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Mm, that's true. I guess it depends on the game, but I feel like most games basically just end in a lengthy cutscene after the boss, and I like that there's a bit more to it than that. I played vanilla P4, and even with the timeskip, the ability to actually run around and talk to people helped out a lot, and Golden seems to add a lot more to that. I haven't finished many other JRPGs and such in a while though, so maybe I'm off base. :p

I feel like most JRPGs just go to the ending from my experience, so I don't think your off base. Beat that final boss, awesome cutscene and then ending. It's nice to be able to play or see some kind of epilogue afterwards. Always love the option to save afterwards for a new game plus. Persona and the Tales of... games do new game plus exquisitely.
 

Gazoinks

Member
I feel like most JRPGs just go to the ending from my experience, so I don't think your off base. Beat that final boss, awesome cutscene and then ending. It's nice to be able to play or see some kind of epilogue afterwards. Always love the option to save afterwards for a new game plus. Persona and the Tales of... games do new game plus exquisitely.

It's rare, but I really like it when NG+ is incorporated into the game's story somehow. Can only think of two off the top of my head, but I'm sure there's more.
 

FluxWaveZ

Member
As for P4G, I don't have it so I'm only using second-hand info. Doesn't it give you an additional month of normal S.Link gameplay after the final boss, or is it all just cutscene-type stuff?

I'm talking about stuff before the True End if that isn't obvious.

Well, no, not at all.
Izanami is to be defeated on the day right before Yu is meant to leave Inaba, and that stays the same even in P4G. There is no extra social link moments in the P4G epilogue, it's just one straight cutscene, just like before, to the credits.

I like epilogues, but I wouldn't say P4's was exceptional compared to many other games pre-P4G. Yeah, I'm not sure about that generalization before because I do think a lot of games have acceptable to fantastic epilogues these days. One of the best last year's was The Last of Us.
 
It's rare, but I really like it when NG+ is incorporated into the game's story somehow. Can only think of two off the top of my head, but I'm sure there's more.

The only ones I can think of are Chrono Cross and Trigger since they are about time travel if that counts.
Edit: I guess Chrono Cross is more about parallel dimensions.
 

FluxWaveZ

Member
Well see I just haven't played that. :p

I know, I know, I'm terrible. GOTY and such. I'll get around to it. :p

Eh, I wouldn't feel forced to play it just because it's supposed to be GotY or something; it was just to point out that lots of notable games these days have stuff going on after the climax.

I guess it's reliant more on my personal tastes than how well it was executed (since, fundamentally, they both remove control from the player and are one long cutscene after the final boss), but I felt that the epilogue in P3FES was much more impactful than the one in P4. P4G's was nice as a way to really wrap things up, though.
 
One day I'll wake up and Atlus will have actually shown something new and significant.

I await that day.

Why I'm avoiding here for now ;P, seems like the cycle before P5 official announcement all over again XD

And so I'll leave Persona GAF with these images:
FIGURE-004423.jpg

FIGURE-004423_02.jpg
FIGURE-004423_03.jpg

FIGURE-004423_05.jpg
FIGURE-004423_06.jpg

http://www.amiami.com/top/detail/detail?gcode=FIGURE-004423&page=top

Bye for now again Persona GAF =P Stay crazy ;P
 

CorvoSol

Member
Guys what

what

guys what the fuck

guys what

what the fu
guys what the fuck is happening in this ending?


HAHAHA I THOUGHT
I HAD BEATEN THE GAME. SURPRISE NOTHER DUNGEON TO GO!!!!!!!!

Also I didn't get the
upgraded Izanagi
What did I miss?
 

RaikuHebi

Banned
So like what the fuck just happened? The game just...stopped?

Persona 4 spoilers:
I made sure to branch off my save after the game said important stuff was about to happen. I'm guessing the choices made in that last portion, particularly pushing Natsame into the TV (which I didn't do) affect the ending? And Igor talked about it way back at the start (the choices you make etc.)

So someone please tell me WTF is going on without spoiling.
Do I have to do New Game Plus? Or will my prrvious branched off save be enough?
 

FluxWaveZ

Member
Also I didn't get the
upgraded Izanagi
What did I miss?

Heh, almost seems like you're asking to be spoiled sometimes.

So like what the fuck just happened? The game just...stopped?

Persona 4 spoilers:
I made sure to branch off my save after the game said important stuff was about to happen. I'm guessing the choices made in that last portion, particularly pushing Natsame into the TV (which I didn't do) affect the ending? And Igor talked about it way back at the start (the choices you make etc.)

So someone please tell me WTF is going on without spoiling.
Do I have to do New Game Plus? Or will my prrvious branched off save be enough?

Go back to the save. Pick dialogue choices that seem correct or "better" this time during the obviously critical scene.

If you can't figure it out on your own, then here:
- Wait a second here...
- We're missing something.
- Namatame's true feelings.
- Something's been bothering me.
- We're missing something...
- Calm the hell down!
 

CorvoSol

Member
Heh, almost seems like you're asking to be spoiled sometimes.

I think it's just that the walkthroughs on GameFAQs have the order of some events SERIOUSLY out of whack.

So, since it's midnight here (I have no class tomorrow, though) I need to ask:
how long is the final final final dungeon?
 

RaikuHebi

Banned
Heh, almost seems like you're asking to be spoiled sometimes.



Go back to the save. Pick dialogue choices that seem correct or "better" this time during the obviously critical scene.

If you can't figure it out on your own, then here:
- Wait a second here...
- We're missing something.
- Namatame's true feelings.
- Something's been bothering me.
- We're missing something...
- Calm the hell down!

I haven't read your advice but I'll give it another go. Damn that ending felt unsatisfying. I deliberated on making the branched save for a good minute or so. Thank goodness I went with it.

Was a pretty bold way to have a game end though.
 

Jintor

Member
I would guess relatively low. If you're going to put the time into a 40+ hour JRPG you're probably the kind of person who likes to chat to other people about it and you're very likely to find people who are like "What? Nah dude you fucked up".

But that's all supposition, I suppose.
 

CorvoSol

Member
hyYDWGM.gif


I have finished the game. What follows is basically spoilers for the whole thing, so, click at your own risk.

Oh God the Tidal wave of feelings. It is 3 AM and I'm staying up God only knows how much longer to type up like, everything I feel about this game. I have given 0 thought to how to organize this section of my final thoughts, so I'm just going to go about it chronologically and pray that you all get the general gist of what I'm trying to say.

So the last time I was semi-coherent was the Ski Trip, nerding out at Rise and Yu inside the abandoned cabin, right? By my count the couple came near, if not over, the edge of sex something like 3 times. Her S-Rank, Christmas, the Mountain, and Valentine's Day on the beach. This creepy data means nothing and only serves to kind of add to my amusement.

SECTION ONE, MARIE AND THE FEBRUARY DUNGEON. Now that the game is over I cannot, in good conscience, say that I like Marie. Like, she's pretty much beneath the quality of every single character in this game. That said, I confess I softened up to her as the game finally took the time to explore her a little more in depth than "OHOHO THIS AMNESIA PLOT SHE IS SO ORIGINAL!" As I said earlier, the last two of her poems in her dungeon . . . actually made sense. They weren't incomprehensibly awful gibberish. She's no Kuja, but she's a good mile above the shitstain that is Genesis Rhapsodos. And, unlike many others, I suppose, I actually enjoyed seeing the Weather Goddess turn into the Weather Girl. Mostly because for the FIRST TIME IN THE ENTIRE GAME Marie dropped her act and behaved in a cheerful, genuine manner.

I think this would be the best means of explaining my problems with Marie: First, Marie feels very, very forced when she really, really doesn't need to. I think I could have looked past her TERRIBLE outfit if the game had made her a natural part of itself, rather than so horribly attaching her. The player's interactions with Marie should not have been any more mandatory than with the rest of the cast. By which I mean that the game should've been bold enough to actually have Marie present or make her events mandatory, but paradoxically should not have forced her Social Link upon the player. If she had been afforded the SAME story telling mechanisms as the party, rather than the awkward, abrupt manner in which she was in the game, she would have felt far less abrasive.

The other part I think is more subjective: Marie's behavior is at stark contrast with the entire cast. She's obsessed with being cool for reasons that, even after all the chips are down, are never really examined. She constantly berates you for being stupid, for not caring how you look, and for being so uncool. This is related to, but not the same as her dislike of the party's selflessness, which is representative of her relationship with the pessimistic Izanami (who I will get to later.) This is really all I have to say on Marie, although I might also add that the whole "I have to die to save the world" aspect wasn't necessary, and I'd have appreciated if her dungeon had been as driven by her personal issues as the party's dungeons were. This is, ultimately, the real problem with Marie: she's somewhere between a fully-fledged member of the group and a complete outsider, and it makes her stand out and invites greater scrutiny upon a character already made conspicuous by her late inclusion.

Her dungeon draws similarly mixed views from me. I detest gimmicky dungeons, but at the same time I am obliged to confess that there was an element of challenge to her dungeon which Adachi's and Izanami's lacked. This is, I suppose, because I had already broken the game by maxing out Rise, which saved me from the nightmare of Marie's dungeon. The dungeon's presentation, however, was top-notch (not that there has been anything, barring faces in the anime cut scenes, which has not been of stellar presentation thus far in this game.). The music, especially during boss battles, was wonderful and the visuals were pleasing to the eye. Though the dungeon must, by default, stand out from the others, it is all the same not without merit, and not so different from them.

PART TWO: SOME DOWN TIME Valentine's day was a total blast, and Kanji killed it all by having the best lines in the entire game. Nanako's chocolate demon with the fishy face was a very close second. I couldn't decide if Rise was trying to be risque or deep when bringing up Adam and Eve, but I dug it all the same. Mostly my mucked up brain. I got the feeling that, although Yukiko had been dumped months ago, she still had lingering, unresolved feelings for Yu. Not like Chie, who did too, but was still too busy with her love-hate with Yousuke. I just kinda got that feeling as the game was wrapping up: that Yukiko had not entirely given up that pursuit.

PART THREE: IZANAMI First of all THANK YOU PKGAMING FOR BASICALLY HOLDING MY HAND AND GUIDING ME THROUGH THIS GAME'S MANY, MANY RIDICULOUS ENDGAME NONSENSE, I couldn't have done it without you! So after following the advice to "not go home, but to Junes instead" my brain kinda melted as the game laughed and was like "HAHA OH DID YOU THINK THOSE WERE THE LAST TWO DUNGEONS? WROOOOOOOOOOOOOONG." And then the discovery that the creepy gas station attendant had some remaining significance (in fact the MOST significance) was just mind blowing. Like I legit grabbed my head on that one. Shit was CRAY.

Izanami herself serves as a perfect final foe to the plot, I think, assuming she is THE Izanami of legend. Not only does this make her the foe of your Persona, Izanagi, it also establishes her motive clearly: if the legend is true, she's probably pissed at Izanagi and has been trying to kill humankind for aeons. Since Yu is the representative of Izanagi, it stands to reason that Yu opposes her for the sake of saving humanity. Izanami's pessimism makes perfect sense in this context. What's unusual is that I kind of feel that Izanami is tied to Burroughs of SMT 4. Or rather, there's a great amount of similarity between Burroughs and Marie, in that both are fragments or representatives of greater Goddesses. Which I guess makes sense, since the whole "Megami" in "Shin Megami Tensei: Persona 4" means Goddess, if my hilariously limited knowledge of the language does not fail me. It is Izanami's hatred of mankind which also influences Marie's hatred of the cast's super heroic qualities. Just as a side note, the tale of Izanagi and Izanami has parallels with Orpheus (the Persona of P3) and Euclydie, as well as many others, including (and this is why I liked the Adam and Eve reference on Valentine's) Adam's decision to descend into mortality after Eve.

The final dungeon wasn't much of a pain, but when Izanagi has LOL MAX STATS IN EVERY CATS, well, there's not really anything to fear. My sole regret was not finding a Power or Mind Charge skill for Izanagi, so I could dish out insane amounts of damage. The final battle's climax, the Thousand Curses, really got me bawling. Frickin' Teddie comes on and that was that, man. Bad enough it began with a rousing speech from Old Man Dojima.

And the ending. Man, the ending. I don't think I even kept it together as well as Kanji did, haha. I really didn't want to leave town, and all them tears really had me on the floor. And then the photograph, and Teddie's little speech, and Nanako just ripping your heart in half with the whole "I don't want you to go!" Gah. It was, however, a wound swiftly healed by the bonus ending.

Yousuke and Teddie's matching shirts were so cute, and Kanji's new look was hilarious. No pig tails Rise is actually best Rise. Yukiko and Chie looked so grown up! But most important of all was Nanako with her hair down. I mean, I've thought multiple times recently how, in terms of character development, Persona 4 really does feel the true successor to Final Fantasy 6, but they went all out here with letting Nanako's hair down. In FF6 it symbolized that for the first time Terra was truly free, and I'd say that, similarly, Nanako's emotional turmoils had come to an end and so she could at last relax and let her hair down. It was one last jewel in the crown of heart warming that this game really was.

I have thoughts on the overall game I may post tonight, but I'm not sure, cuz it's 330.
 

kewlmyc

Member
hyYDWGM.gif


I have finished the game. What follows is basically spoilers for the whole thing, so, click at your own risk.

Oh God the Tidal wave of feelings. It is 3 AM and I'm staying up God only knows how much longer to type up like, everything I feel about this game. I have given 0 thought to how to organize this section of my final thoughts, so I'm just going to go about it chronologically and pray that you all get the general gist of what I'm trying to say.

So the last time I was semi-coherent was the Ski Trip, nerding out at Rise and Yu inside the abandoned cabin, right? By my count the couple came near, if not over, the edge of sex something like 3 times. Her S-Rank, Christmas, the Mountain, and Valentine's Day on the beach. This creepy data means nothing and only serves to kind of add to my amusement.

SECTION ONE, MARIE AND THE FEBRUARY DUNGEON. Now that the game is over I cannot, in good conscience, say that I like Marie. Like, she's pretty much beneath the quality of every single character in this game. That said, I confess I softened up to her as the game finally took the time to explore her a little more in depth than "OHOHO THIS AMNESIA PLOT SHE IS SO ORIGINAL!" As I said earlier, the last two of her poems in her dungeon . . . actually made sense. They weren't incomprehensibly awful gibberish. She's no Kuja, but she's a good mile above the shitstain that is Genesis Rhapsodos. And, unlike many others, I suppose, I actually enjoyed seeing the Weather Goddess turn into the Weather Girl. Mostly because for the FIRST TIME IN THE ENTIRE GAME Marie dropped her act and behaved in a cheerful, genuine manner.

I think this would be the best means of explaining my problems with Marie: First, Marie feels very, very forced when she really, really doesn't need to. I think I could have looked past her TERRIBLE outfit if the game had made her a natural part of itself, rather than so horribly attaching her. The player's interactions with Marie should not have been any more mandatory than with the rest of the cast. By which I mean that the game should've been bold enough to actually have Marie present or make her events mandatory, but paradoxically should not have forced her Social Link upon the player. If she had been afforded the SAME story telling mechanisms as the party, rather than the awkward, abrupt manner in which she was in the game, she would have felt far less abrasive.

The other part I think is more subjective: Marie's behavior is at stark contrast with the entire cast. She's obsessed with being cool for reasons that, even after all the chips are down, are never really examined. She constantly berates you for being stupid, for not caring how you look, and for being so uncool. This is related to, but not the same as her dislike of the party's selflessness, which is representative of her relationship with the pessimistic Izanami (who I will get to later.) This is really all I have to say on Marie, although I might also add that the whole "I have to die to save the world" aspect wasn't necessary, and I'd have appreciated if her dungeon had been as driven by her personal issues as the party's dungeons were. This is, ultimately, the real problem with Marie: she's somewhere between a fully-fledged member of the group and a complete outsider, and it makes her stand out and invites greater scrutiny upon a character already made conspicuous by her late inclusion.

Her dungeon draws similarly mixed views from me. I detest gimmicky dungeons, but at the same time I am obliged to confess that there was an element of challenge to her dungeon which Adachi's and Izanami's lacked. This is, I suppose, because I had already broken the game by maxing out Rise, which saved me from the nightmare of Marie's dungeon. The dungeon's presentation, however, was top-notch (not that there has been anything, barring faces in the anime cut scenes, which has not been of stellar presentation thus far in this game.). The music, especially during boss battles, was wonderful and the visuals were pleasing to the eye. Though the dungeon must, by default, stand out from the others, it is all the same not without merit, and not so different from them.

PART TWO: SOME DOWN TIME Valentine's day was a total blast, and Kanji killed it all by having the best lines in the entire game. Nanako's chocolate demon with the fishy face was a very close second. I couldn't decide if Rise was trying to be risque or deep when bringing up Adam and Eve, but I dug it all the same. Mostly my mucked up brain. I got the feeling that, although Yukiko had been dumped months ago, she still had lingering, unresolved feelings for Yu. Not like Chie, who did too, but was still too busy with her love-hate with Yousuke. I just kinda got that feeling as the game was wrapping up: that Yukiko had not entirely given up that pursuit.

PART THREE: IZANAMI First of all THANK YOU PKGAMING FOR BASICALLY HOLDING MY HAND AND GUIDING ME THROUGH THIS GAME'S MANY, MANY RIDICULOUS ENDGAME NONSENSE, I couldn't have done it without you! So after following the advice to "not go home, but to Junes instead" my brain kinda melted as the game laughed and was like "HAHA OH DID YOU THINK THOSE WERE THE LAST TWO DUNGEONS? WROOOOOOOOOOOOOONG." And then the discovery that the creepy gas station attendant had some remaining significance (in fact the MOST significance) was just mind blowing. Like I legit grabbed my head on that one. Shit was CRAY.

Izanami herself serves as a perfect final foe to the plot, I think, assuming she is THE Izanami of legend. Not only does this make her the foe of your Persona, Izanagi, it also establishes her motive clearly: if the legend is true, she's probably pissed at Izanagi and has been trying to kill humankind for aeons. Since Yu is the representative of Izanagi, it stands to reason that Yu opposes her for the sake of saving humanity. Izanami's pessimism makes perfect sense in this context. What's unusual is that I kind of feel that Izanami is tied to Burroughs of SMT 4. Or rather, there's a great amount of similarity between Burroughs and Marie, in that both are fragments or representatives of greater Goddesses. Which I guess makes sense, since the whole "Megami" in "Shin Megami Tensei: Persona 4" means Goddess, if my hilariously limited knowledge of the language does not fail me. It is Izanami's hatred of mankind which also influences Marie's hatred of the cast's super heroic qualities. Just as a side note, the tale of Izanagi and Izanami has parallels with Orpheus (the Persona of P3) and Euclydie, as well as many others, including (and this is why I liked the Adam and Eve reference on Valentine's) Adam's decision to descend into mortality after Eve.

The final dungeon wasn't much of a pain, but when Izanagi has LOL MAX STATS IN EVERY CATS, well, there's not really anything to fear. My sole regret was not finding a Power or Mind Charge skill for Izanagi, so I could dish out insane amounts of damage. The final battle's climax, the Thousand Curses, really got me bawling. Frickin' Teddie comes on and that was that, man. Bad enough it began with a rousing speech from Old Man Dojima.

And the ending. Man, the ending. I don't think I even kept it together as well as Kanji did, haha. I really didn't want to leave town, and all them tears really had me on the floor. And then the photograph, and Teddie's little speech, and Nanako just ripping your heart in half with the whole "I don't want you to go!" Gah. It was, however, a wound swiftly healed by the bonus ending.

Yousuke and Teddie's matching shirts were so cute, and Kanji's new look was hilarious. No pig tails Rise is actually best Rise. Yukiko and Chie looked so grown up! But most important of all was Nanako with her hair down. I mean, I've thought multiple times recently how, in terms of character development, Persona 4 really does feel the true successor to Final Fantasy 6, but they went all out here with letting Nanako's hair down. In FF6 it symbolized that for the first time Terra was truly free, and I'd say that, similarly, Nanako's emotional turmoils had come to an end and so she could at last relax and let her hair down. It was one last jewel in the crown of heart warming that this game really was.

I have thoughts on the overall game I may post tonight, but I'm not sure, cuz it's 330.
Glad you enjoyed the game. Watching your reactions was great.
 
Glad to see you love it man, some general P4A and P4 Ultimax (P4A sequel) info for you, they both take place
after the ending of P4G, but before the epilogue of P4G.
While the content of them is not as good as P4, they have us in the IRC channel excited enough that we still constantly speculate about whats gonna happen in Ultimax Suplex Ballin Drunkard Duplex. Also, you are gonna play P3P Next? I suggest once you beat it, to look up the anime cutscenes and some of your favorite scenes to see what they look like in P3FES, the PS2 version, and also look up a play through of The Answer! Lastly, P4A and its sequel are a continuation of P4 AND P3, so make sure to finish both!


Oh and guys, I have been giving it a lot of thought, and I am revising my list, and P4 is back on my top 5, this is my new list, granted, I am going for the latest versions of each game, which are supposed to be the "definitive'' versions, even when they are not. P3FES and P3P are separate due to neither not being definitive.

PERSONA ORDER IN BALLERNESS: P2EP > P4G > P3 FES Answer = P1P > P2ISP > P3 Journey > P3P.

NEW TOP FIVE MEGATEN: SMT Nocturne > P2EP > SMTIV > Devil Summoner Soul Hackers > P4G
 

RaikuHebi

Banned
Heh, almost seems like you're asking to be spoiled sometimes.



Go back to the save. Pick dialogue choices that seem correct or "better" this time during the obviously critical scene.

If you can't figure it out on your own, then here:
- Wait a second here...
- We're missing something.
- Namatame's true feelings.
- Something's been bothering me.
- We're missing something...
- Calm the hell down!

OMFG so I tried to figure it out myself twice, and then looked at your post. These are the exact choices I made the first time through when I got the failed ending. I guess my problem had something to do with running around town and talking to people for clues.

I'm quite proud of myself now :p.

Edit: Ah the bit I got wrong was afterwards where you
have 3 chances to select the correct suspect. I had thoughts of selecting Adachi, but didn't went with Teddie, Namatame and Mitsuo instead)
 
Congrats on finishing P4G, Corvo! :D

It's been great reading through your experience with the game, even if I don't agree with your near-constant Marie hate. :p What are you planning to play next? I know you mentioned P3P at some point, which would be excellent! Then don't forget about Persona 4 Arena; you'll want to be caught up by the time Ultra Suplex Hold comes out.

Happy to see you enjoy Golden so much, though. Congrats again!
 

Dantis

Member
It's probably relevant to say that you shouldn't set your expectations for Arena's story too high, if you intend to play through it.
 

Dantis

Member
After this, they are probably going to show Yukari hooking up with P4MC or something.

Isn't she just saying something like "Why do you keep bringing that up?"?

Doesn't sound like he's hitting on her to me. It might just be that she did something embarassing.
 

Sophia

Member
Edit: Ah the bit I got wrong was afterwards where you
have 3 chances to select the correct suspect. I had thoughts of selecting Adachi, but didn't went with Teddie, Namatame and Mitsuo instead)

You suspected the only person who has an automatic rank up with you, thereby outright ruling him out as a suspect? I won't even get into the reasons as to why you suspected Namatame when they just ruled him out in the story.... >.>;

I have finished the game. What follows is basically spoilers for the whole thing, so, click at your own risk.

Congratulations on finishing the game. It was quite interesting (and amusing) to watch you play through it.
 

PK Gaming

Member
hyYDWGM.gif


I have finished the game. What follows is basically spoilers for the whole thing, so, click at your own risk.

Oh God the Tidal wave of feelings. It is 3 AM and I'm staying up God only knows how much longer to type up like, everything I feel about this game. I have given 0 thought to how to organize this section of my final thoughts, so I'm just going to go about it chronologically and pray that you all get the general gist of what I'm trying to say.

So the last time I was semi-coherent was the Ski Trip, nerding out at Rise and Yu inside the abandoned cabin, right? By my count the couple came near, if not over, the edge of sex something like 3 times. Her S-Rank, Christmas, the Mountain, and Valentine's Day on the beach. This creepy data means nothing and only serves to kind of add to my amusement.

SECTION ONE, MARIE AND THE FEBRUARY DUNGEON. Now that the game is over I cannot, in good conscience, say that I like Marie. Like, she's pretty much beneath the quality of every single character in this game. That said, I confess I softened up to her as the game finally took the time to explore her a little more in depth than "OHOHO THIS AMNESIA PLOT SHE IS SO ORIGINAL!" As I said earlier, the last two of her poems in her dungeon . . . actually made sense. They weren't incomprehensibly awful gibberish. She's no Kuja, but she's a good mile above the shitstain that is Genesis Rhapsodos. And, unlike many others, I suppose, I actually enjoyed seeing the Weather Goddess turn into the Weather Girl. Mostly because for the FIRST TIME IN THE ENTIRE GAME Marie dropped her act and behaved in a cheerful, genuine manner.

I think this would be the best means of explaining my problems with Marie: First, Marie feels very, very forced when she really, really doesn't need to. I think I could have looked past her TERRIBLE outfit if the game had made her a natural part of itself, rather than so horribly attaching her. The player's interactions with Marie should not have been any more mandatory than with the rest of the cast. By which I mean that the game should've been bold enough to actually have Marie present or make her events mandatory, but paradoxically should not have forced her Social Link upon the player. If she had been afforded the SAME story telling mechanisms as the party, rather than the awkward, abrupt manner in which she was in the game, she would have felt far less abrasive.

The other part I think is more subjective: Marie's behavior is at stark contrast with the entire cast. She's obsessed with being cool for reasons that, even after all the chips are down, are never really examined. She constantly berates you for being stupid, for not caring how you look, and for being so uncool. This is related to, but not the same as her dislike of the party's selflessness, which is representative of her relationship with the pessimistic Izanami (who I will get to later.) This is really all I have to say on Marie, although I might also add that the whole "I have to die to save the world" aspect wasn't necessary, and I'd have appreciated if her dungeon had been as driven by her personal issues as the party's dungeons were. This is, ultimately, the real problem with Marie: she's somewhere between a fully-fledged member of the group and a complete outsider, and it makes her stand out and invites greater scrutiny upon a character already made conspicuous by her late inclusion.

Her dungeon draws similarly mixed views from me. I detest gimmicky dungeons, but at the same time I am obliged to confess that there was an element of challenge to her dungeon which Adachi's and Izanami's lacked. This is, I suppose, because I had already broken the game by maxing out Rise, which saved me from the nightmare of Marie's dungeon. The dungeon's presentation, however, was top-notch (not that there has been anything, barring faces in the anime cut scenes, which has not been of stellar presentation thus far in this game.). The music, especially during boss battles, was wonderful and the visuals were pleasing to the eye. Though the dungeon must, by default, stand out from the others, it is all the same not without merit, and not so different from them.

PART TWO: SOME DOWN TIME Valentine's day was a total blast, and Kanji killed it all by having the best lines in the entire game. Nanako's chocolate demon with the fishy face was a very close second. I couldn't decide if Rise was trying to be risque or deep when bringing up Adam and Eve, but I dug it all the same. Mostly my mucked up brain. I got the feeling that, although Yukiko had been dumped months ago, she still had lingering, unresolved feelings for Yu. Not like Chie, who did too, but was still too busy with her love-hate with Yousuke. I just kinda got that feeling as the game was wrapping up: that Yukiko had not entirely given up that pursuit.

PART THREE: IZANAMI First of all THANK YOU PKGAMING FOR BASICALLY HOLDING MY HAND AND GUIDING ME THROUGH THIS GAME'S MANY, MANY RIDICULOUS ENDGAME NONSENSE, I couldn't have done it without you! So after following the advice to "not go home, but to Junes instead" my brain kinda melted as the game laughed and was like "HAHA OH DID YOU THINK THOSE WERE THE LAST TWO DUNGEONS? WROOOOOOOOOOOOOONG." And then the discovery that the creepy gas station attendant had some remaining significance (in fact the MOST significance) was just mind blowing. Like I legit grabbed my head on that one. Shit was CRAY.

Izanami herself serves as a perfect final foe to the plot, I think, assuming she is THE Izanami of legend. Not only does this make her the foe of your Persona, Izanagi, it also establishes her motive clearly: if the legend is true, she's probably pissed at Izanagi and has been trying to kill humankind for aeons. Since Yu is the representative of Izanagi, it stands to reason that Yu opposes her for the sake of saving humanity. Izanami's pessimism makes perfect sense in this context. What's unusual is that I kind of feel that Izanami is tied to Burroughs of SMT 4. Or rather, there's a great amount of similarity between Burroughs and Marie, in that both are fragments or representatives of greater Goddesses. Which I guess makes sense, since the whole "Megami" in "Shin Megami Tensei: Persona 4" means Goddess, if my hilariously limited knowledge of the language does not fail me. It is Izanami's hatred of mankind which also influences Marie's hatred of the cast's super heroic qualities. Just as a side note, the tale of Izanagi and Izanami has parallels with Orpheus (the Persona of P3) and Euclydie, as well as many others, including (and this is why I liked the Adam and Eve reference on Valentine's) Adam's decision to descend into mortality after Eve.

The final dungeon wasn't much of a pain, but when Izanagi has LOL MAX STATS IN EVERY CATS, well, there's not really anything to fear. My sole regret was not finding a Power or Mind Charge skill for Izanagi, so I could dish out insane amounts of damage. The final battle's climax, the Thousand Curses, really got me bawling. Frickin' Teddie comes on and that was that, man. Bad enough it began with a rousing speech from Old Man Dojima.

And the ending. Man, the ending. I don't think I even kept it together as well as Kanji did, haha. I really didn't want to leave town, and all them tears really had me on the floor. And then the photograph, and Teddie's little speech, and Nanako just ripping your heart in half with the whole "I don't want you to go!" Gah. It was, however, a wound swiftly healed by the bonus ending.

Yousuke and Teddie's matching shirts were so cute, and Kanji's new look was hilarious. No pig tails Rise is actually best Rise. Yukiko and Chie looked so grown up! But most important of all was Nanako with her hair down. I mean, I've thought multiple times recently how, in terms of character development, Persona 4 really does feel the true successor to Final Fantasy 6, but they went all out here with letting Nanako's hair down. In FF6 it symbolized that for the first time Terra was truly free, and I'd say that, similarly, Nanako's emotional turmoils had come to an end and so she could at last relax and let her hair down. It was one last jewel in the crown of heart warming that this game really was.

I have thoughts on the overall game I may post tonight, but I'm not sure, cuz it's 330.

Congrats

The good news is that you just beat one of the best games ever created. The bad news is that you now have to live in a post-P4G world. You said you were tackling P3P next right? That's a good start, that will mitigate the pain. From there, you can try the older Persona games or you could watch the Persona 4 anime. The anime isn't perfect, but it's a good watch for someone who really enjoyed the game. Persona 4 arena is worth checking (though I recommend beating P3 to get the maximum enjoyment out of that game)

I had a lot of fun reading through your experiences with the game, and I hope you stick around. We can go crazy waiting for Persona 5 together haha.

Re: Izanagi
So how about that final blow eh? I'm guessing the ending was a lot more visceral for you. Seeing the Persona that you've been lugging around throughout the game literally turn into a man must have been quite the treat for you. It's a good thing you kept it!
 

Dantis

Member
We shippers blame Chie's trailer (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I4Pocqip5S8) for making it seem as though both of them are holding hands together=P

The story portion of it seems as though Chie gets stuck with P3MC in a certain part of the story too (e.g there's a battle scene where you can only see the battle image of the two of them, with three empty party member slots)

I'm pretty sure that their 3D portraits are just stacked, rather than them both holding hands.

I also only just realised that Chie has an attack from Arena. So I guess there was something new in there.
 

MSMrRound

Member
I also only just realised that Chie has an attack from Arena.

I'm guessing that you are referring to that Dragon Kick?

I wonder how much of a gap there will be for the release of some of the localized Persona games...

E.g recently (if I remember correctly...and sorry European comrades...going with JP and NA for now)

P4G: (5 months)
-JP July 2012
-NA Nov 2012

Persona 4 Arena: (couple of weeks)
-JP July 2012
-NA Aug 2012

Non-Persona: SMTIV (2 months)
-JP May 2013
-NA July 2013

Think it's going to be close? Think AtlusUSA is going to be a bit overstretched though...must be why John's been putting out those job notices.
 

Sophia

Member
I think Persona Q will come out pretty quickly. Like Arena levels of fast. And Persona 5 will be a simultaneous release of course!
 
E.g recently (if I remember correctly...and sorry European comrades...going with JP and NA for now)


Europe:

I would like to think (hope) that P5 will be roughly the same time as NA release

P4A2 will be over a year late.

and PQ, if Etrian Oddesy games are anything to go by, will be about a year after the NA release too.
 

Acosta

Member
Re: Izanagi
So how about that final blow eh? I'm guessing the ending was a lot more visceral for you. Seeing the Persona that you've been lugging around throughout the game literally turn into a man must have been quite the treat for you. It's a good thing you kept it!

Wait, wait

Did Corvo kept Izanagi all the game? if so I admire you, is something I always felt I had to do in Persona 3 and 4 but finally didn't, the fusion drug in too powerful.
My hat goes off. Grats on finishing it!
 

MSMrRound

Member
Europe:

I would like to think (hope) that P5 will be roughly the same time as NA release

P4A2 will be over a year late.

and PQ, if Etrian Oddesy games are anything to go by, will be about a year after the NA release too.

Let's hope that there's no game-breaking bugs in Devil Survivor 2: Break Record when it's finally rolled out on your side too.
 
Europe:

I would like to think (hope) that P5 will be roughly the same time as NA release

P4A2 will be over a year late.

and PQ, if Etrian Oddesy games are anything to go by, will be about a year after the NA release too.
If it will take even half as long as SMTIV, which isn' even out yet, I'll definetely import it.

If my japanese studying goes exceptionally well I may actually import the Japanese version as soon as it comes out, but that's a long shot.


On a completely unrelated note, I have just seen the Final Fantasy Series' sale on the PSN; as I haven't played any yet, I'm very interested in trying one. What do you guys suggest? I'm especially interested in the story/characters, gameplay-wise I just want a turn-based RPG and I'm set.
 

RaikuHebi

Banned
You suspected the only person who has an automatic rank up with you, thereby outright ruling him out as a suspect? I won't even get into the reasons as to why you suspected Namatame when they just ruled him out in the story.... >.>;



Congratulations on finishing the game. It was quite interesting (and amusing) to watch you play through it.

Adachi just never crossed my mind. He was the nicest guy in the whole thing! I wasn't selecting who I truly thought, I just had no clue. I remembered now that it wasn't Namatame I picked anyway. Was King Moron.
 

Dantis

Member
If it will take even half as long as SMTIV, which isn' even out yet, I'll definetely import it.

If my japanese studying goes exceptionally well I may actually import the Japanese version as soon as it comes out, but that's a long shot.


On a completely unrelated note, I have just seen the Final Fantasy Series' sale on the PSN; as I haven't played any yet, I'm very interested in trying one. What do you guys suggest? I'm especially interested in the story/characters, gameplay-wise I just want a turn-based RPG and I'm set.

6 is apparently much less character and story based. I have it (Twice!) but haven't actually played it, haha.

5 is good, but old school. 7 is kiiiind of good, but really overrated. Story is kind of nonsensical and silly. 8 is... interesting. Some great music, and some of the better art direction in the series (If not the best). 9 is probably your safest bet. It's very straightforward and fantastical. Most people seem to love it.
 

PK Gaming

Member
If it will take even half as long as SMTIV, which isn' even out yet, I'll definetely import it.

If my japanese studying goes exceptionally well I may actually import the Japanese version as soon as it comes out, but that's a long shot.


On a completely unrelated note, I have just seen the Final Fantasy Series' sale on the PSN; as I haven't played any yet, I'm very interested in trying one. What do you guys suggest? I'm especially interested in the story/characters, gameplay-wise I just want a turn-based RPG and I'm set.
Hmm

I wouldn't bother with FFV or FFVI. They're fantastic games, but the PSN versions are proper shit. FFVII and FFIX are fantastic, FFVIII is pretty good. I'd probably start with FFVII since it has the best gameplay out of the 3 games.
 
If it will take even half as long as SMTIV, which isn' even out yet, I'll definetely import it.

If my japanese studying goes exceptionally well I may actually import the Japanese version as soon as it comes out, but that's a long shot.


On a completely unrelated note, I have just seen the Final Fantasy Series' sale on the PSN; as I haven't played any yet, I'm very interested in trying one. What do you guys suggest? I'm especially interested in the story/characters, gameplay-wise I just want a turn-based RPG and I'm set.

If you can get your hands on FFIV, that's my favorite of the series. Great characters and story, awesome music (obviously), and a nice pace too. FFVI is my second favorite, and many consider it to be the best in the series. If you're looking for something "newer," I'd give VIII or IX a shot. XII is also good but is very different from the games that came before.

It's funny really, trying to recommend FF games, because they are all so different in many ways. I'd say that if there's something that grabs you about a particular title, go for it and see where it leads. It's a fantastic series, though, really.
 

Sophia

Member
6 is apparently much less character and story based. I have it (Twice!) but haven't actually played it, haha.

5 is good, but old school. 7 is kiiiind of good, but really overrated. Story is kind of nonsensical and silly. 8 is... interesting. Some great music, and some of the better art direction in the series (If not the best). 9 is probably your safest bet. It's very straightforward and fantastical. Most people seem to love it.

Wat? No. FF6 is pretty story heavy compared to the games that came before it.

If it will take even half as long as SMTIV, which isn' even out yet, I'll definetely import it.

If my japanese studying goes exceptionally well I may actually import the Japanese version as soon as it comes out, but that's a long shot.


On a completely unrelated note, I have just seen the Final Fantasy Series' sale on the PSN; as I haven't played any yet, I'm very interested in trying one. What do you guys suggest? I'm especially interested in the story/characters, gameplay-wise I just want a turn-based RPG and I'm set.

Of the older FF games, 4/5/6 tend to be a bit slow on the loading in their PS1 versions. Not awful or unplayable, but it might drive you nuts. FF4 and FF6 are story heavy, where as FF5 is high on character customization. FF4 has little in the way of gameplay character customization.

FF7 is pretty story heavy, and has a lot of customization, but being the first 3D Final Fantasy it's a bit dated in aspects. Chances are if you can tolerate Persona 1 or Persona 2 you can tolerate it however.

Hmm

I wouldn't bother with FFV or FFVI. They're fantastic games, but the PSN versions are proper shit. FFVII and FFIX are fantastic, FFVIII is pretty good. I'd probably start with FFVII since it has the best gameplay out of the 3 games.

They're not that bad in the Playstation versions. The only drawback is the slight loading time when battles start. Now if you want proper shit, look to the Chrono Trigger port. :p
 
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