Thanks toPersona 5andPersona 4 Golden, Atlus' JRPG series has garnered another huge round of new fans after exploding in popularity recently. WhileShin Megami Tensei 5is headed for release in 2021, manyPersonafans are eagerly awaiting news about when they can expect the next entry in the series. There’s been rumors and grumbling about a potentialPersona 6announcement in the future, but nothing concrete at the moment. That being said, earlier this year fans went viral after calling for anotherPersonagame instead:Persona 3.
Releasing back in 2006,Persona 3was a huge step forward for the JRPG franchise. All of the foundational elements of the visual novel-esque social simulator thatPersonagames are now known for started withPersona 3. The game also served as a bridge between the traditional total darkness and depressing tone ofPersona 1/2into the more balanced and occasionally hopeful atmosphere ofPersona 4/5. Among other gameplay and visual changes, several aspects ofPersona 3are very dated and clunky compared to modern entries likePersona 5. Now it’s clear fans would like to play a definitive version ofPersona 3, and there’s plenty of old school aspects a remake could fix.
Improved Visual Fidelity
Of course, with any remake of a classic game, visual fidelity upgrades are typically expected. In the case ofPersona 3, a remake would mean a completely new engine from the classic 3D game engine from PS2 that powered bothPersona 3andPersona 4. If a theoreticalPersona 3Remakewas coming in the next two or three years, it would likely have beenbuilt on a version ofPersona 5’s game engine. Assuming aPersona 3 Remakeis much further off, the game would likely be developed under a completely new engine, one that’s designed to produce games on next-gen consoles.
Those who’ve played the additional/challenge battles inPersona 5have already gotten a tiny glimpse at the protagonists fromPersona 3andPersona 4in the high definition engine. That being said,Persona 3remade in the new engine would be a huge upgrade from the original game.
Removing Forced AI Teammates in Battle
One particular gameplay issue thatPersona 3remade would definitely need to be changed is the forced AI party members. In the original release ofPersona 3and the expandedPersona 3 FES, both games only allowed total control over the protagonist’s actions in battle. All subsequent party members are non-controllable, and can only have their actions dictated by certain playstyles like support or attack. This was only changed in thePersona 3 Portablere-release on PSP, which is a compressed version of the original game that wasn’t the same as the base game.
JRPG fans typically want to have total control over their battle strategy, This was never an issue inPersona 4onward with fully playable battle parties, so this would definitely need to be changed (and likely would be) in aPersona 3 Remake.
Implementing Battle QoL Changes from Persona 5
Speaking of battle changes,the huge quality of life improvements made inPersona 5’s battle systemwould likely carry over into aPersona 3 Remakeas well. Granted the slick and stylish UI wouldn’t necessarily have to carry over, but a lot of the fundamental changes like easy to access weakness scans/indicators, menus bound to button presses instead of constantly cycling up and down, and other finer details would need to carry over. Part of what madePersona 5’s turn-based combat so engaging was how quick and responsive engagements were.
InPersona 3, and even inPersona 4as well, battles required cycling through multiple different menus for actions.Persona 5was right to bind multiple functions to separate buttons, andPersona 3would do best to emulate that if remade.
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More Fully Voiced, In-Engine Cutscenes
WhilePersonagames are characterized by huge amounts of dialogue and plenty of reading,Persona 3was the first to have full 3D cutscenes in-engine.Persona 3adopting its visual novel style social simulator helped eschew the typical JRPG tropes that the first two mainline entries followed. That being said, it’d be nice to see more fully voice acted cutscenes inPersona 3like the sheer amount of fully voiced scenes inPersona 5andRoyal. Characters, both new and old, deserve to get a voicelike the many voices ofPersona 5. There doesn’t necessarily need to be more pre-rendered anime cutscenes inPersona 3, even though those scenes are a treat as well.
Retain or Lean Further Into Persona 3’s Darker Tone
Lastly,Persona 3should either retain or lean further into its comparatively darker tone. GrantedPersona 1and the twoPersona2games are incredibly dark and depressing compared toPersona 3, but bothPersona 4andPersona 5have much more hopeful atmospheres compared to their predecessors.Persona 3’s story remains a lot closer to the supernatural aspectsof the series' lore like battling shadows and exploring the Dark Hour. APersona 3Remakeshould lean into the unsettling and freaky aspects of the game’s lore.
Of course, there’s no real concrete evidence that aPersona 3 Remakeis in the cards, but Atlus has proven fans wrong before. There’s a very real possibility Atlus is looking into a port for PC at bare minimum,thanks toPersona 4 Golden’s success on the platform. Previous Atlus surveys have also inquired about the importance ofPersona 3among the worldwide fanbase. Perhaps a remake is not as far-fetched as fans may have come to expect.
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