This or P4G?

[Guy of Gisborne]

If you had to choose one.

I've never played a game from this developer. I know many people love them, but this style has never really appealed to me. I have enjoyed a few JRPGs (primarily Final Fantasy games) and always wondered if I may be missing a good time by sleeping on Persona.
Now, I have P4G on my wishlist and plan to buy it when it's on sale, but I just now learned of Metaphor and so many reviewers say that Metaphor is the best game this studio has done, so I'm beginning to think I should pass on P4G and wait for a sale on this one instead. But that would likely mean waiting a couple years for it to drop to a price where I don't mind taking the risk. P4G, on the other hand, I could probably buy within the month at a price I'm comfortable with.

But like I said, if you have to choose only 1.

And please keep in mind that I'm not a JRPG superfan (even if I do adore some!) and I am 0% an anime fan so I'm not the typical audience for something like this.

[REBirthTheEdge]

P4G: High school Schooby Doo adventure. Deal with social issues, mostly in Japan though.

Metaphor: Political fantasy intrigue with a lot of races, fantasy racism and political ideologies.

Gameplay-wise: Metaphor has the addictive Press-turn system from SMT, and a job class system where you can switch and inherit skills from other class, kinda like Final Fantasy Tactics.

[DrkCntry]

Can't really recommend one way or the other as the themes between this and the Persona games are pretty different.

If you like how the Persona games looked to play, you'll probably enjoy this mechanically, but themes can be a sticking point as they are nowhere near alike.

[Ancient Toaster]

This by a long shot

[Guy of Gisborne]

Originally posted by DrkCntry:

Can't really recommend one way or the other as the themes between this and the Persona games are pretty different.

If you like how the Persona games looked to play, you'll probably enjoy this mechanically, but themes can be a sticking point as they are nowhere near alike.

That's fair. Not being an anime fan, I assume games like this may seem more goofy or annoying to me than to someone who is a fan. But I don't want to say I'd automatically find them annoying solely because of the style. FF can ofc be pretty out there, but I probably just got into the series at a young enough age that I don't mind the moogles and squeaky voices and all that. The last big non-FF RPG I played through was Dragon Quest XI. I enjoyed a lot about that one, but there is one character that is almost game-breakingly annoying to me.
So maybe I just want to know which game has characters that are less divisive for a series newcomer?
But maybe that's a difficult question too.

I super appreciate not wanting to give a specific recommendations, because people don't want to presume to know what I'll like, so in that case I'm simply asking about you, whether you're a long-time fan or an outsider like me, which is your favorite of the two?

[DrkCntry]

Originally posted by Guy of Gisborne:

Originally posted by DrkCntry:

Can't really recommend one way or the other as the themes between this and the Persona games are pretty different.

If you like how the Persona games looked to play, you'll probably enjoy this mechanically, but themes can be a sticking point as they are nowhere near alike.

That's fair. Not being an anime fan, I assume games like this may seem more goofy or annoying to me than to someone who is a fan. But I don't want to say I'd automatically find them annoying solely because of the style. FF can ofc be pretty out there, but I probably just got into the series at a young enough age that I don't mind the moogles and squeaky voices and all that. The last big non-FF RPG I played through was Dragon Quest XI. I enjoyed a lot about that one, but there is one character that is almost game-breakingly annoying to me.
So maybe I just want to know which game has characters that are less divisive for a series newcomer?
But maybe that's a difficult question too.

I super appreciate not wanting to give a specific recommendations, because people don't want to presume to know what I'll like, so in that case I'm simply asking about you, whether you're a long-time fan or an outsider like me, which is your favorite of the two?

I've played all of the Persona games as well as the Shin Megami Tensei games, and I'd say they are all pretty grounded in a semblance of reality with supernatural undertones doing a lot of the heavy lifting in the story (there are some pretty major exceptions though).

It's hard to determine, as you said, your tastes without knowing you personally, but for me the themes of the Persona series are far more approachable casually than SMT, and by proxy Metaphor.

SMT and, thus far, Metaphor feel darker to me, whereas the Persona series tries to sidestep a lot of the dark themes it has with a more 'bubbly' cast and setting (well, mostly lol).

Honestly, if I were recommending a friend that likes FF games but not much into anime, I'd probably go more for Metaphor than P4..

[wombocorp]

What do you not like about anime stuff? I think that will determine how you'll feel about these games.

If you just don't like annoying characters then most of the characters in these games are fairly grounded although both Persona 4 and 5 have a mascot character that people aren't a big fan of and I assume if you aren't into anime stuff then you'll probably hate them, but they're just one character in a game with a ton of them. Can't talk much for this game since I've only played the prologue demo but the mascot character equivalent is a fairy that's kinda like a guide who's a little insecure. I doubt anyone would really hate her tbh.

If you're interested in this one definitely check out free the demo, it's really long and your save carries over to the full game. I also love the Persona games and would recommend any of them (haven't played 1 though but the manga was good), and people are very fond of 4. You can't really go wrong with any of them so go with looks the most interesting you because that will most likely keep your interest the longest.

[zero]

i have an obvious bias to it: but p4, i loved the music, i overall enjoyed the story, and the whole high-school ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ doesn't bother me much.

i dont think you can go wrong with either, but some people are having some pretty major issues with this game (crashing, for example) so perhaps p4 for now, and this one down the line?

[Guy of Gisborne]

Originally posted by wombocorp:

What do you not like about anime stuff? I think that will determine how you'll feel about these games.

If you just don't like annoying characters then most of the characters in these games are fairly grounded although both Persona 4 and 5 have a mascot character that people aren't a big fan of and I assume if you aren't into anime stuff then you'll probably hate them, but they're just one character in a game with a ton of them. Can't talk much for this game since I've only played the prologue demo but the mascot character equivalent is a fairy that's kinda like a guide who's a little insecure. I doubt anyone would really hate her tbh.

If you're interested in this one definitely check out free the demo, it's really long and your save carries over to the full game. I also love the Persona games and would recommend any of them (haven't played 1 though but the manga was good), and people are very fond of 4. You can't really go wrong with any of them so go with looks the most interesting you because that will most likely keep your interest the longest.

I guess I'm generally not a fan of how over-the-top a lot of anime is. I'm probably what one would consider an older gamer and anime wasn't on my radar when I was young, and then I was old and it was just a thing young people were all hyping about, which made it even more annoying to me. lol

But yeah, a mascot character can potentially be overlooked if everything else is good enough. In Dragon Quest XI, the mascot character (those who've played it know who I'm talking about) is very polarizing. In that case, he was a main character and it often made it challenging to stick with the game because he always put me in a bad mood.
I'm going to blindly assume that neither P4G or Metaphor has a character nearly as bad as that one. I mean, it's almost impossible.

I have downloaded the demo, but even before playing it I like to ask these questions and read reviews because it gives me a sense of where I should set my expectations.

[HarkeN]

I'm going to echo whoever said it depends on what you dislike about anime. If it's over-the-top stuff, then you may prefer this game, as so far it has a more serious and grounded atmosphere, as long as the very obvious themes of social inequality don't get to you.

Regarding DQXI, I loved Sylvando for example, but I'm going to guess that they're the character you found annoying.

P4, while it has its serious moments, is probably the "brightest" of the Persona games in terms of aesthetic, whereas I'm past the second story dungeon in this game and even the character you think by appearances is going to be a cute mascot completely subverts expectations. So I would probably think you'd prefer Metaphor.

If nothing else, you can try the demo to see how you feel about it. Depending on how you play games it's 5-10 hours in length and you can transfer your save directly to the full game.

[hush]

p4g first since it much cheaper. this game is not really that newbie friendly, so its a higher probability that you won't like this game and waste 70 bucks.

but i love both games

[Guy of Gisborne]

Every point here is a good one. Why isn't the rest of the internet like this?

Another thing I was just thinking of is how nostalgic we feel about our first experience with something we love, and how that often can't ever be replicated. For example: If Skyrim was your first Bethesda game and you loved it as most did, any Bethesda game that comes after could be great, but it'll never be your first again.

This developer (of P4G and Metaphor) is one people are really attached to, and even if I'm super late to the party I'm hoping I can somehow get into their stuff.
20 years from now, which is the game that people remember with greater fondness?

I seem like I'm over-thinking, but I'm just indecisive and have a massive backlog and have a harder time getting into games now, but I still long for those really special moments.
I wish P4G had a demo, too. Then I could very easily answer most things myself without taking a gamble.

[wombocorp]

Originally posted by Guy of Gisborne:

Originally posted by wombocorp:

What do you not like about anime stuff? I think that will determine how you'll feel about these games.

If you just don't like annoying characters then most of the characters in these games are fairly grounded although both Persona 4 and 5 have a mascot character that people aren't a big fan of and I assume if you aren't into anime stuff then you'll probably hate them, but they're just one character in a game with a ton of them. Can't talk much for this game since I've only played the prologue demo but the mascot character equivalent is a fairy that's kinda like a guide who's a little insecure. I doubt anyone would really hate her tbh.

If you're interested in this one definitely check out free the demo, it's really long and your save carries over to the full game. I also love the Persona games and would recommend any of them (haven't played 1 though but the manga was good), and people are very fond of 4. You can't really go wrong with any of them so go with looks the most interesting you because that will most likely keep your interest the longest.

I guess I'm generally not a fan of how over-the-top a lot of anime is. I'm probably what one would consider an older gamer and anime wasn't on my radar when I was young, and then I was old and it was just a thing young people were all hyping about, which made it even more annoying to me. lol

But yeah, a mascot character can potentially be overlooked if everything else is good enough. In Dragon Quest XI, the mascot character (those who've played it know who I'm talking about) is very polarizing. In that case, he was a main character and it often made it challenging to stick with the game because he always put me in a bad mood.
I'm going to blindly assume that neither P4G or Metaphor has a character nearly as bad as that one. I mean, it's almost impossible.

I have downloaded the demo, but even before playing it I like to ask these questions and read reviews because it gives me a sense of where I should set my expectations.

Persona games can be over-the-top but the more grounded elements do a good job at balancing it out and provide the contextual outline for the more outlandish stuff. Seems to be the same with this game.

If you want over-the-top then play Persona 2, which funnily enough is usually liked by people who consider the newer games to be "too anime" for them lol. (im not hating i love the persona 2 duology a lot, it's just kinda funny to me)

If you want my two cents then P4 is my least favorite Persona game, but I'm definitely in the minority. I still think it's a great game mind you, I just love the other ones more because they're setting/themes/premise is more appealing to me. I'll also say that even though I'm not big on fantasy I'm super hooked on this game so far and am really excited to play more of it. I loved the demo a lot.

[hush]

Originally posted by Guy of Gisborne:

Every point here is a good one. Why isn't the rest of the internet like this?

Another thing I was just thinking of is how nostalgic we feel about our first experience with something we love, and how that often can't ever be replicated. For example: If Skyrim was your first Bethesda game and you loved it as most did, any Bethesda game that comes after could be great, but it'll never be your first again.

This developer (of P4G and Metaphor) is one people are really attached to, and even if I'm super late to the party I'm hoping I can somehow get into their stuff.
20 years from now, which is the game that people remember with greater fondness?

I seem like I'm over-thinking, but I'm just indecisive and have a massive backlog and have a harder time getting into games now, but I still long for those really special moments.
I wish P4G had a demo, too. Then I could very easily answer most things myself without taking a gamble.

another option is if you can afford PC game pass or has access to their free trials, you can try playing Persona 3 reload, so you can gauge if you like these type of games.

i could give you a 14 day free trial if you want

[Swimfan]

Originally posted by Guy of Gisborne:

If you had to choose one.

I've never played a game from this developer. I know many people love them, but this style has never really appealed to me. I have enjoyed a few JRPGs (primarily Final Fantasy games) and always wondered if I may be missing a good time by sleeping on Persona.
Now, I have P4G on my wishlist and plan to buy it when it's on sale, but I just now learned of Metaphor and so many reviewers say that Metaphor is the best game this studio has done, so I'm beginning to think I should pass on P4G and wait for a sale on this one instead. But that would likely mean waiting a couple years for it to drop to a price where I don't mind taking the risk. P4G, on the other hand, I could probably buy within the month at a price I'm comfortable with.

But like I said, if you have to choose only 1.

And please keep in mind that I'm not a JRPG superfan (even if I do adore some!) and I am 0% an anime fan so I'm not the typical audience for something like this.

I for one always wanted to play P4 (never had a chance tho) and my first Persona ended up to be P5 upon that game's original release. When I came around to play the Golden Version of P4 one year ago I was so happy to finally get a chance ... only to realise that some aspects of that game haven't aged that well and that nostalgia seems to be a big factor for some. P4 is by no means a bad game but I HEAVILY prefer Persona 5 The Royal (it's not even close). Combat in P5 is much improved and while some argue the characters in P4 are so "deep", I think the crew from 5 are way more interesting and fun to "hand out with" (which is a big part of that game).

So I'd say grab Persona 5 The Royal.

[okazaki2552]

to be short if you`re more to games based on "reality" than chose p4g. it has some extraorenari elemens but over all you "live" a live, do things in town casn rommans a girl you like (romense is kinda strong but still). anyway do normal thing and olso explore the unown

refantazio if full on fantasy whit fairys elfes and the like

thay are simular in combat and bassic leveling and skill progretion but the setting is totalli diferent