Yay completed in 54 hours.(true ending)
Anyone higher =/?

The Shin Megami games have always been appealing to me - I love a good horror story and these have always stood out to me as the video game equivalent of a good, scary, story (which isn’t to say there aren’t a couple of themes I could do without) wrapped up with impressive RPG game play mechanics. And while I’ve only had a limited amount of time with any one of the games, I’ve came away from each of those experiences genuinely impressed with most of what I had played.

Well, a few weeks ago I finally managed to track down a nice copy of the once rare Shin Megami Tensei i: Nocturne (PS2) and I had heard an awful lot about how good Atlus’ Persona 3 (PS2) was by RPG enthusiasts so I had that in the back of my head to track down as well. Fortune must have been smiling upon me because after purchasing a game for my girlfriend’s birthday online recently, I received $30 dollars in incentives to purchase other games at the same retailer. Just the opportunity I needed to jump in and see what all the Persona fuss was about. Using that special offer I was actually able to pick up the expanded version ( Persona 3: FES) for ~ $18 dollars, and what’s more I was able to apply the rest to an already reduced offer on a Persona 4 (PS2) pre-order and was able to get that game for ~ $15 dollars when all was said and done.

Long story short, I ended up getting both of these critically acclaimed games almost free, and now that both have arrived I can safely say that it was one of the best entertainment decisions I’ve made all year. These game drip with personality. I’m only ~ 3 1/2 hours into P3: FES but after puttering around and getting the feeling of things its already proven to be an ultra-addictive game that I’m having to force myself to put down in order to get to other things around the house. I’m itching to throw in P4 as well, but I really do need to try and tackle Persona 3: FES first and I’ve obviously got a ton left to see so there’s no reason to let my impatience get the best of me.

Good for you, if something you don't understand in the journey, the answer will answer everything. P4 was VERY worth it to me. :p

Thanks, I'm just a little worried that I'm not going to be able to level up as well as I'd like before the boss encounters that automatically occur and wish I had a little more control on how much "grinding" I could do in P3: FES. I'd like to be much stronger than I currently am, but my fellow SEES members still get tired a little too easily for my tastes (though I do try to everything I can get them out before it turns to sickness and I lose even more time). Still, fantastic game and I'm sure I'll figure something out.

I loved Persona 3 enough to get Persona3:FES... Needless to say I preordered Persona 4. I think it's amazing, but the only thing I suffer from is that when I'm not into the storyline very much, I don't feel the want to play it until I actually am. If you can get past the beginning in which things progress slowly, there is a lot of text and no battles (I'm not saying the beginning is even bad, just not riveting from the start) then you'll be glad you're playing!

You Should definitely play it. Its an awesome game. Played persona 3 like 4 times. Right now im on my 2 go through for persona 4.

Gah, and I'm still trying to get to the final boss on P4...and I'm already passed the 74 hour mark. Most of it was due to late night playing and falling asleep though...I've clocked at least 23 hours of gameplay as sleep hours. Haha.

Regardless, I'm like level 71 and trying to get to the final boss. having difficulty trying to get passed the third path, any recommendations? (I know, I should've maxed out my Hermit social link, but I didn't. I spend most of my time focusing on trying to up my stats.

I recommend you buy it if you haven't already. It has a really interesting story and is pretty though to actually get to the true end. Guessing at who the true murderer is was fun.

The true murderer was kinda predictable imo. 0-o

ChaosNataku

The true murderer was kinda predictable imo. 0-o

Not for me, I had it wrong the whole time until I had to try to avoid the bad ending. I didn't look at any sources before playing the game so it wasn't obvious. But it was really interesting how in the end

SPOILER (click to view)

everyone was manipulated by Izanami

.

SPOILER (click to view)

Izanami didn't manipulate anything. She just chose the players for the board and let it play out.

And eh, I found it kinda predictable. I didn't check any sources either, but Adachi was my first guess also. Probably because he and I act similarly.

SPOILER (click to view)

I was actually hoping that Adachi would not be the murderer, that dude was really cool. I just have the stereotype of murderer = mentally unstable which blinded me from the truth.

Embarrassingly enough, what first caught my attention about this game was a trailer in which all of the characters in action were wearing glasses. I kind of have a thing for glasses, so I was quite intrigued. A few Youtube videos and a Wikipedia entry later, I knew I had to get it. However, I don't have enough money for it yet, so I may wait until it turns into a "classic", AKA, when the price drops to $20. Hopefully I can get it soon, it really does look like a great game.

This game is epic. A mature RPG for older audiences. I've played it a bit more and I've grown to like this game. As soon as I beat it I'm planning to get Persona 3 and try it out. And Teddie is awesome!

It's worth it! I spend a few hours solo leveling in tartarus with the MC each in-game month until the enemies start giving weak exp, fuse useful, mutli-purpose personae that cover various enemy weaknesses, always get player advantage, always set the prioritize knocking down opponents, pay attention to how the AI attacks under one strategy compared to another (For example, Mitsuru tends to go for multi-target elemental attacks under All-Out-Attack. Conversely, she'll attack enemies individually under Knock Down. Both tactics can be desirable under different circumstances) complete Lizzy's requests ASAP to get goodies that make the game easier. You should get nice and familiar with the game over screen, perhaps over a few stiff drinks because you're going to need them.