WhilePersona 5has dominated discourse around Atlus RPGs in recent years, some long-needed ports have shifted attention to some more nostalgic entries. Fans old and new can now playPersona 3 PortableandPersona 4 Goldenon modern platforms, getting a sense of the IP’s earlier days. WhilePersona 4 GoldenandPersona 3 Portableare very different from the modern face of the franchise, they’re still worthy games in their own right, and in a lot of ways. For instance,Persona 3 Portablehas a particularly unique set of Persona-wielding party members that add up to a cast worthy of imitation inPersona 6and beyond.
EveryPersonagame bills itself in large part on its memorable cast.Joker and the Phantom Thievesare only the latest entry in Atlus' long list of successful protagonist designs; the Investigation Team, SEES, and even the lead faces of the original threePersonagames remain recognizable to this day. However, Atlus has seemingly reigned in its ambitious party member designs in recent entries. Its creativity arguably peaked in thePersona 3generation, where Persona-users of all shapes and sizes appeared to show the exact depth and breadth of this RPG franchise’s lore.
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At the outset ofPersona 3 Portable, players work with a standard array of peers from Gekkoukan High School; various teenagers of similar ages all worth together to fight Shadows. As the game progresses, however, SEES gets new members, some of which are a little strange and surprising. For instance, Koromaru is a dog that wields a Persona, establishing that humans aren’t the only ones who can wield this power. The Shadow-hunting android Aigis also shows that AI can have as much spiritual might as humans. Ken Amada might be a human like most of SEES, but given that he’s an elementary schooler rather than a teen, he sticks out significantly.
Altogether, this makesPersona 3 Portable’s party one of the most creative that Atlus has designed thus far. The vastly different origin stories for each of the game’s characters result in a wider breadth of plot roles andSocial Linkstorylines than might otherwise be possible with a team purely composed of human high schoolers. Aside from storytelling, SEES' character variety also makes combat more interesting. Having a dog, a robot, and an 11-year-old inPersona 3’s ranks adds variety to the visuals of combat and opens the door to new kinds of mid-fight character interactions.
Unfortunately, Atlus hasn’t taken its own advice so much in more recentPersonagames.Persona 4 GoldenandPersona 5 Royaleach have an otherwordly character in their playable cast, but otherwise their respective teams are composed entirely of human teens who are close in age. Atlus seems to be missing out on storytelling opportunities and refreshing character dynamics by sticking so closely to the high school theme.Persona 6might therefore be better off if it brings in some non-human characters, makes more room for Persona-users who aren’t in high school, or taps into other character backgrounds and archetypes thatPersonahasn’t touched on before.
Atlus may have sent fans a sign that it’ll spread its wings soon throughPersona 5 Strikers.Not only did this game introduce a new AI party member in Sophia, butZenkichi Hasegawamarked the first adult human Persona-user to join the player’s retinue since the days of thePersona 2duology.Strikerscapitalized on these ideas excellently, finding lots of ways to give Sophia and Zenkichi unique roles to play in the main story, as well as highly distinct relationships with their teammates. Hopefully this means thatPersona 6will draw onPersona 3 Portable’s more varied team composition and introduce a broader range of Persona users. After all, Atlus has already proven that it’s more than capable of diversifying its protagonist portfolio.
Persona 3 Portableis available now on PC, PS4, PSP, Switch, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.
MORE:Persona 4 Golden: Why Naoto Shirogane is a Late Game Party Member Done Right
