Persona Q: Shadow of the Labryinth

Anyone playing this yet? What do you think so far? I’ve tried playing a few minutes before going to bed the last couple of nights, but haven’t made any progress.

I’m playing as the Persona 4 character, and I love hearing the Persona menu noises. It really brought back great memories of one of the best games ever.

It’s on the list of games to pick up once the hype dies down and the price drops. I’ve had so much difficulty getting into pretty much every 3DS game I’ve purchase so far, so I’m cautious about wasting cash on 'em. A very positive review might help, but it’s still in Not Sure If Want territory.

I’m about 20 hours in. Here’s my take:

If you’re an ardent Persona fan, I heartily recommend picking this up, even with the inflated price. Considering all the Persona re-releases, spinoffs, television and film adaptations, merchandising, etc., I was concerned PQ would feel more “phoned-in” than the proper numbered titles, but those concerns dissipated almost immediately. PQ’s got the same great spunk of P3 and P4, with a very satisfying fusion of Persona and Etrian Odyssey systems, a solid soundtrack, and a lot of meat on its bones. I thought PQ would feel “grindy” given it’s a traditional, hardcore dungeon crawler, but it does a great job sprinkling in major plot points, puzzles, or silly character vignettes to keep things fresh. The only gripe I could see someone having w/ PQ is that it takes a solid 2-3 hours to get going, and another 3-4 hours before you meet up with the cast of the Persona game you didn’t choose. For me, PQ’s the best 3DS release this year.

Recommended for: RPG fans, Persona fans, Etrian Odyssey fans, any combination thereof

This is encouraging to hear. I knew I shouldn’t have tried to start this game before going to bed. Persona games always take a few hours to get interesting.