This is definitely not an easy title to review considering that this game will greatly appeal to some and will be hated by others. If your first experience with the Persona series was from Persona 3 or 4 then there is a chance that you may not enjoy this entry into this unique Shin Megami Tensei spin-off series. You may also not enjoy this game if you are not a fan of long in-depth RPGs.
The reasoning behind my strong warnings for this game isn't because there's a problem with the story since it's actually pretty well done. Like other reviewers have stated before me the plot takes place in a contemporary setting and follows the exploits of a group of high school students that are trying to put a stop to the plans of a being referred to as Joker. Essentially, Joker is making every rumor being spread around come true which is causing all kinds of havoc. I haven't beaten the game so I can't tell you how deep the plot of the entire game is but trying to put an end to rumors becoming reality is the initial premise.
Okay, now onto the "problems" with this game. I put the word problems in quotes because the possible "problems" with this game will actually be appealing to some and will be off-putting for others. First and foremost, for those that don't know this is a remake of a PS1 game from 1999 that was never released in the United States until now. It was the only entry in the Persona series that wasn't and because this is a remake of a PS1 game there are some shortcomings associated with this game. For starters, aside from some really nice anime and CG cut-scenes the graphics in this game are not up to par with today's standards by any stretch of the imagination. They are very low grade 32-bit and while some old-school gamers may find this graphical style to be nostalgic most casual gamers that grew up with the last generation of consoles (GC, PS2, X-box, etc) will be turned off by this graphical style. The other possible shortcoming that this may possibly have for some people is that like a lot of retro RPG's, information isn't spoon-fed to the player. If you don't have a walkthrough handy with this game it is possible that there will be quite a few occasions where you'll be wandering around for and hour or two trying to figure out where to go next.
Alright, now onto the next "problem" with this game which is the actual gameplay. At it's core this game is a dungeon crawler that uses a turn based battle system with quite a few twists. The best way I can describe the battle system in this game is by saying that it's a mixture of the battle systems in Pokemon and Final Fantasy. Like most turn based RPGs Persona 2: Innocent Sin gives the player the option to fight demons using regular attacks or using other skills. The attack command simply has a given character attack a demon with their weapon of choice whereas the skill command allows the character to attack a demon or group of demons using one of their Persona's numerous skills. A Persona in the Persona series is simply a demon under one of your characters' control. Each character in the game has a Persona from the get-go but you'll want to get more Personas because the Personas the characters in the game start with can only get so powerful. The Personas increase in rank as you use them while your characters level up in the usual RPG fashion by simply defeating enemies and gaining experience. When a character's Persona reaches its maximum strength capacity it is indicated by them reaching "Rank MAX." When this happens it is generally a good idea to get a new Persona for that character and how to go about doing this may be where certain people may be turned off while others will be overjoyed that the game uses the negotiation mechanics that were a trademark in older Shin Megami Tensei games.
Aside from the option to fight enemies the game also gives the an option listed as "Contact" in the initial battle menu. In short this option allows you to use a character in your party to negotiate with the demons for spell cards, items, and information. What you really want here are the spell cards since they allow you to summon new personas. There are many different types of spell cards and the kind of spell cards a given demon will yield is determined by that demon's arcana such as Lovers, Strength, Chariot, Fool, etc. The different Personas you can summon are determined by the kinds of spell cards you have. For example if you want to summon Pixie you need X amount of Lovers cards or if you want to summon Poltergeist you need X amount of Devil cards. Now back to how demon negotiation works. Each character has 4 different character-specific ways they can negotiate with demons and these different negotiation methods can be anything from dancing to discussing what it means to be a man. The demons will react to these actions by getting angry, happy, scared, or eager. The ways the demons react will determine whether or not the demon will give you something or attack with hostility which in essence grants them a preemptive strike in battle.
The demons may also ask a given character questions and the answers to these questions will also cause the demons to react in one of the four possible ways listed above. And that's pretty much all you need to know about demon negotiation. The only other unique thing in the battle system in Persona 2: Innocent Sin are the fusion spells. A fusion spell is an attack that is caused by using certain skills in a certain order. Once a fusion spell is used it is stored in a list of fusion spells that can be accessed through the initial battle menu. This is so you won't have to worry about using those skills in the same order again if you wish to pull of a fusion spell you did in the past. And that's the battle system. Phew that was a lot of typing.
Now while the battle system in Persona provides the player with a lot of options it might make the player feel torn between fighting demons and negotiating with them. Some people may love having to make this decisions while others may find it frustrating to have to manage when they negotiate and when they fight. I should also add that the encounter rate in this game is quite high and all these options for each battle can really cause each one to drag out. This ultimately makes every dungeon a multi-hour affair and many people may not be willing to spend the time enduring long battle after battle in order to just progress the story but like always, some people may love this. Now I'm playing this game on "Easy" mode simply because I'm assuming that I would have to deal with a greater possibility of my party getting one-shotted on the "Normal" difficulty setting which has happened to me in other Shin Megami Tensei games such as Digital Devil Saga.
Onto the final aspect of the game I wish to talk about which is the music, and all I can say about this is that it's awesome. The game gives the player the option to switch between the original PS1 soundtrack and the remixed soundtrack which was made exclusively for the PSP release so you really can't lose here. Unlike the PSP port of Revelations Persona, Persona 3 for the PS2, and Persona 4 for the PS2, all of the music is instrumental for the most part instead of having the J-pop style. The music in the game spreads across multiple genres from energizing electronic rock to beautiful piano-focused tracks.
In conclusion I think Persona 2: Innocent Sin is a great game for those that like dungeon crawlers and a psychological story that takes place in a modern day setting. The developers really put a lot of work into this remake including the new soundtrack, new cut-scenes, and a new Quest Mode. I recommend this game to anyone who is a fan of old-school RPGs, a fan of the Shin Megami Tensei franchise, or open-minded. ROCK ON ATLUS!!!
PS: I am open to all criticism especially since this was my first review. Hopefully it wasn't too painful to read lol.
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Product information
| Number of Players | Single Player |
|---|---|
| Publication Date | September 20, 2011 |
| Computer Platform | Sony PSP |
| UPC | 730865600175 |
| Compatible Video Game Console Models | Sony PlayStation Portable |
| ASIN | B00523VFJU |
| Release date | September 20, 2011 |
| Customer Reviews |
4.1 out of 5 stars |
| Best Sellers Rank |
|
| Product Dimensions | 7.2 x 5.1 x 1 inches; 3.2 ounces |
| Type of item | Video Game |
| Rated | Teen |
| Item model number | PS-60017-5 |
| Is Discontinued By Manufacturer | Yes |
| Item Weight | 3.2 ounces |
| Manufacturer | Atlus Software |
| Date First Available | May 24, 2011 |
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Top reviews from the United States
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- Reviewed in the United States on September 29, 2011
- Reviewed in the United States on January 10, 2012
Top reviews from other countries
- Paul PrattReviewed in the United Kingdom on March 16, 2014
The 'Persona' saga continues
- WilliamReviewed in Canada on May 15, 2019
Fun game
It helps if you are a fan of JRPG. The graphics are good. It is a mature story. Fun to play.WilliamFun game
Reviewed in Canada on May 15, 2019
Images in this review
- Adrian MilesReviewed in the United Kingdom on March 12, 2016
A neat title ported from psx to psp
