Persona 5 Royal sounds like DLC for 2017 released Persona 5 but is, in fact, the full game with lots of additions and some changes to the original. There is no way to just buy the extra content as DLC and there’s a good reason for it too. Read on if you want to find out why new fans should definitely get this version and old fans shouldn’t feel cheated if they happen to pay full price yet again.
Phantom Thieves
Persona is a series in which you discover there is more to the world than meets the eye. There is a metaverse in which people tend to show their true colors. Some people have the ability to discover their persona and actually enter the metaverse to unfold the evil that lurks there. Tearing of the masks of wrongdoers is ultimately the goal of any persona user. In persona 5 royal, you are Joker, a second-year transfer student who accidentally discovers he possesses such Persona powers while defending a girl whose been assaulted by a groping drunk. The drunk man sues you for assault and you are transferred as part of your probation period. You enter Shujin academy and discover you’re not alone with these weird outer-worldly powers. Ultimately you form a group called the Phantom Thieves to bring wrongdoers to their knees through the metaverse.
Conquer the palace
The term “palace” is used in Persona 5 Royal to be a visual representation of the “dungeon” you enter to fight an evil person. These palaces take on different forms based on the way the perpetrator thinks. For instance, the first palace you enter is one formed by the mind of a gym teacher called Suguru Kamoshida. His palace takes the form of a castle ruled by king Kamoshida. In his castle, the students are slaves locked away in cells to signify the abuse he gives them in real life. Kamoshida is also a pervert who has close relations with some female students. He feels untouchable like a “king in a castle” because of his standing as a former renowned athlete. If Joker and his fellow Phantom Thieves conquer the castle they can finally bring Kamoshida to his knees in the real world.
Life simulator
Besides top-shelf JRPG action, Persona 5 Royal also offers plenty to do when not in the metaverse. You’ll need to go to school, interact with your friends, take a part-time job, finish exams, read books,… All these activities serve two purposes. The first is actually doing everything that is expected from you as to not raise suspicion you’re also leading this other life. The second is to raise your stats. Spending your time improving your relationships with certain people raises social links. These all grant much-needed bonuses in the metaverse. Reading books, doing chores, passing exams could potentially grant your persona new abilities and much more.
What’s revamped
Persona 5 Royal sounds much like Persona 5 up to this point but there is actually lots of new stuff. There is more free time available to explore social links, read books, … There’s now school counselor Takuto Maruki who gets introduced after finishing the first palace. Interactions with him will grant you all sorts of abilities and items is you chose the right dialogue options. There are generally more options to interact with your friends and max out your social links. Palaces have all got some different routes to explore. The addition of a new grappling hook even lets you explore previously unreachable places. Most bosses have been rebalanced and updated with new phases. Will seeds can now be found in palaces and grant you an SP refill without having to exit the palace. Finding three of these in one palace even gives you a unique accessory.
What’s new
All previously mentioned changes are subtle enough to be looked over but actually add a lot of improvement over the original. If you happen to be a recurring fan thinking about getting Persona 5 Royal you’ll be more interested in the newly added semester. This new semester opens up a whole new area named Kichijoji with lots of new things to discover. Going to the jazz bar to gain stat boosts or to the temple to meditate to improve your SP is just a glimpse of the things you can do in Kichijoji. In this new semester, the new transfer student named Kasumi which wasn’t in the 2017 release will become available as a member of the Phantom Thieves. With this new character obviously comes new personas and new powers to mix up your playing style.
Which version is better?
The number of tweaks done to the base game all makes playing Persona 5 Royal an even better experience than before. The new personas, new abilities, new social links, new exams, new mementos… all add to the great experience. People new to the game should actually ignore the original and go for this version. Fans of the original will surely enjoy the adjustments and will have the new semester and new character to look forward to. Sadly there’s no way to use your save data from the original game, which means you’ll have to invest another 80-100 hours before you actually reach Kichijoji. At least Kasumi will pop up from time to time though.
Conclusion
Persona 5 Royal is a revamped and augmented version of the original game. The game has improved on all fronts and should be bought in favor of the 2017 release. If anything, fans now have an excuse to revisit their favorite places in Persona 5 Royal yet again.
