Story: 9/10
Personally, being new to the Persona series, the story of Persona 5 Royal did not fail to draw me in and keep me hooked. To put it simply, the story is about a group of high school students who become the Phantom Thieves and do their best against so-called "rotten adults" by attempting to steal their twisted desires through a parallel reality. The combination of real-world issues with supernatural elements works really well, allowing the player to feel immersed within the game's world. The story and plot are well-crafted with various engaging twists, always leaving the player wondering what is going to happen next.

Characters: 8.5/10
Persona 5 Royal is all about characters. Every member of the game's main cast is well-defined with their own backstory and personality. The game’s confidant system, where you can level up different people in the story to learn more about them adds depth but also serves as an opportunity for development within one’s relationship with others. These elements allow players to quickly build affection for these characters who become very familiar.

Gameplay: 9/10
If you imagine a game like Pokemon with its traditional turn-based combat mixed with social simulation and visual novel elements you just pictured Persona 5. The result is something completely different from other titles and engaging. With its dynamic systems such as Baton Pass, Technical Damage, and Show Time attacks, fights become more than just hitting “fight” over and over again like in like most turn-based games. Outside of battles, managing your daily activities doing stuff such as attending school, working part-time jobs, and hanging out with friends, adds variety and depth. Pacing is key when it comes down to mixing up different types of gameplay within one title and luckily Persona 5 Royal does not disappoint here either, being very well balanced while keeping the gameplay fresh and engaging until the very end.

Visuals: 10/10
Being one of the main factors that brought me into the game, Persona 5 Royal's visuals are absolutely stunning. The graphics are striking and stylish, with a bold and vibrant art style that makes it stand out among other JRPGs. The character designs and environments are all visually appealing and consistent. Persona 5 Royal has a UI with the most stunning and dynamic visuals together with such a unique style I have never seen in a video game. The animated cutscenes are top-notch and bring a cinematic feel to key moments in the story. As someone who just played this game for the first time, I assure you that its beauty will be hard to forget.

Soundtrack: 10/10
The music in this game is absolutely amazing. It’s got a little bit of everything. Some tracks are upbeat and catchy, while others are melancholy or atmospheric. Songs like “Last Surprise” and “Rivers in the Desert” will stick with you long after you’ve put the controller down. The soundtrack really drives home the emotions behind each story beat as well as amping up the intensity during battles. The game never felt like it failed at using the right soundtrack at the right time, matching perfectly the intended "mood" at all times.

Replayability: 7/10
Persona 5 Royal offers quite a bit of content that encourages replayability. There are multiple endings, a large number of confidants to max out, and many side activities one might and very likely have missed on a first playthrough. Additionally, there is even more content with the inclusion of Thieves Den with dozens of unlockables and challanges for one to complete. However, the length of the game that exceeds 100 hours, might be daunting for some players considering a second playthrough.

Overall Rating: 9/10
As someone who has never played a Persona game before, Persona 5 Royal is an amazing place to start. It has a captivating story line, memorable characters, stylish visuals and an awesome soundtrack that will make you feel like you are part of this world. You can either choose to battle strategically or simply live your daily life; both ways have their own set of rewards thus giving one engaging gameplay which is not common is most games today. Despite its length, the game's depth and richness make it a must-play for both JRPG enthusiasts and newcomers.

After 140 hours I can confidently say this is a good game I wholeheartedly recommend.

I started P5R after finishing up P3R, and while P3 is good and all, P5 blows it out of the water. 10/10 experience

I'm not a huge fan of anime or turn based combat, and I have a lot of complaints for this game and its strange systems, but honestly 90 hours in I'm still enjoying its strong aspects enough to recommend it.

If it's your first, highly recommend modding in cheat sheets if you want to make the most of this game, because a lot of hangouts/enemy negotiations don't make sense and will just waste your precious time, in-game and out-game.