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Persona 3 Reload, remake of the original announced

by Chris White on June 11, 2023

Atlus has finally announced Persona 3 Reload, a remake of the popular JRPG, at the Xbox Games Showcase. It is stylistically similar to Persona 5, and looks pretty damn incredible. It’ll be releasing on Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, and PC, however, there is no release date as of yet.

We reviewed Persona 3 Portable at the start of the year, and had the following to say:

Just like it’s PSP forebear, Persona 3 Portable for modern consoles still lacks some of the epilogue content from the PS2 originals. Some may argue that they prefer the 3D models over the wholly 2D direction chosen here – however it does lend the game a breezier feel especially in handheld mode, and it is a lot less likely you will find yourself getting lost or struggle to find certain areas thanks to the easy menus and maps. As well as the choice of gender, like the accompanying Persona 4 Golden re-release this one also allows you to choose a difficulty level from the start, including the mind bending Maniac mode, which will see all but the best have their asses handed to them in Tartarus until they have done some serious Persona grinding.

Ultimately Atlus would go on to eclipse this release with the larger, deeper and more satisfying sequel, but do not let that put you off. This is still very much one of the finest role-players of its time, and a game that I managed to sink 30 hours into in worryingly quick time. Like Persona 4, the localisation is superb, the script sharp as a tack; and one which makes you identify and fall in love with the quirky cast of characters that you interact with, as well as feeling very much in control of your protagonist. There is talk of Atlus fully remaking Persona 3 using similar aesthetics to Persona 5. There is certainly a lot of potential to expand and tinker with its universe, and the strength of characterisation and story to warrant such a release. Until then, this is more than worthy of your time and comes thoroughly recommended.