Former Nintendo head Hiroshi Yamauchi once famously said that RPGs are for, “depressed gamers who like to sit alone in their dark rooms and play slow games.” Current head of Geekscape.net Jonathan London also said that fighting games are for, ” gamers who were too afraid to play contact sports.” So it’s surprising that it took this long for an honest to goodness RPG inspired fighting game to actually release. Sure, there was Dissidia: Final Fantasy, but that game used the fighting genre loosely.
Persona 4 Arena, on the other hand, is not only a full fledged 2-D fighter from the minds at Arc System Works –of Guilty Gear and BlazBlue fame– but it’s also a canon sequel to the Persona 4 RPG. The dillema is finding a balance between the fast paced depth a fighting game requires while following the complex story of an established role playing game to please both audiences. Does this latest battle accomplish this task or is it destined to live in the shadow of its traditional prequel?
Yosuke and Yu. The ultimate bromance.
Taking place one year after the true ending of Persona 4, which you obviously want to steer clear of the story mode if you have any interest in either the game or anime remaining spoiler free, the main cast from gets pulled back into the TV world and are forced to participate in a mysterious fighting tournament, pitting them against friend and foe alike. The story is told through both the arcade and story modes. Arcade mode is what you would expect from a fighting game. Watch a voice acted scene during key story fights, fight a few people, rinse and repeat until you finish the game and watch the ending. The story mode is much more in depth and has a structure similar to the BlazBlue series for those who have played it. Choosing between the various cast members, each character’s role is explained in depth, requiring players to follow branching paths and even lose matches to uncover every outcome.
The sprites and effects look incredible in motion.
Unlike BlazBlue, Persona tries to stay true to its RPG roots by having a much longer story mode. And I mean MUCH. LONGER. Even though I’m interested very much in the universe and lore, the dialogue goes on and on. It took me about an hour and a half to finish one story that contained about 20 minutes of play. It gets to a point where the only way to get through it without tearing your hair out is to fast forward. Which is a shame because the game has very strong voice acting for the most part. But I can only stare at still potraits of the characters for so long. And no, the occaisional animated scene doesn’t help.
But it’s a great thing that the fighting itself is so damn fun. Featuring characters from both Persona 3 and 4, each fighter has two sets of attacks. One set is from their character and the other is from their Persona, a summonable creature that fights side by side with each player. The key to success is to play to the strengths of both the person and the Persona to pull off alternating combos. This gameplay style helps the Persona 4 Arena make full use of its source material while creating a unique feeling experience. Keeping your Persona protected is vital however, because if it takes too much damage, it can be temporarily disabled, effectively cutting your moveset in half.
And there’s no lack of moves in this arena. Each fighter has a unique set of abilities such as unblockable flames, an arsenal of bullets and even a steel chair. The trademark Arc Systems instant kill attack has made it in too! Certain mechanics have even been adapted from Persona 4 to fit the fighting arena, such as the All-Out Attack, where fighters rush down their opponent in a cloud of smoke and button mash to victory, or the Once More Cancel, which borrows the name of the Once More attack from the original game, but is just a simple cancel to reset combos. Even RPG inspired status effects have been thrown in, such as control reversing confusion, health draining poison and paralysis that locks down movement. Of course, not every RPG gamer is used to stringing together moves in a fighter, so mashing A allows a preset auto combo to occur, making players feel like a badass without actually doing anything. All of this is complimented by some of the nicest 2D sprites you’ll find in a fighter, especially in motion. Top it off with a strong soundtrack that borrows and remixes songs from the original game and anime, and you have one kick ass game on your hands.
The low quantity of characters is made up for with their unique qualities and styles.
Learning each fighter is made easier thanks to the challenge mode that’s found in almost every game in the genre nowadays. Challenge mode walks players through a variety of combos to make it easier to learn each fighter’s moveset until they’ve become certified masters. In addition to the world famous Arc Systems score attack which will pit you against the toughest CPU opponents you’ll ever find combined with the arcade and story modes, there’s hardly a lack of content to dabble through all on your lonesome. Especially if you’re a lonely, basement dwelling RPG gamer.
Though it might take awhile, once you run out of single player content, there’s always the online mode to go through. The options are basic, but the netcode is mostly seamless, leading to mostly lag free games where you can only blame yourself if you lose. Lobbies are easy to create in player matches where you can fight both friends and strangers, but ranked matches against random fighters is where its at if you want to boost your rank and to earn experience points and level up. These don’t actually do anything other than give out bragging rights to show how awesome you are at “owning scrubs,” but it’s a nice feature nonetheless.
Yukiko Amagi Ain’t Nothin’ To Mess Wit!
It’s amazing how well Persona 4 Arena is able to keep the RPG’s identity while creating a damn good fighting game at the same time. By crafting a story that effectively continues the narritive into what could have been Persona 5 and making it fit around a unique game play system that’s easy to learn but hard to master, there’s no reason this title shouldn’t appease RPG and fighting fans alike. Sure, the story mode is way too drawn out, and some of the DLC is asinine –three dollars for glasses that you can hardly see? Really?– but all I know is I’ve been playing it for a week and not only have I not stopped, but I’m considering learning how to kick ass with fans and look good in a red blouse. Regardless, if you’re a fan of the Persona series or a fan of fighters, it’s time to climb out of your basement and get some sun, because Persona 4 Arena is worth the trip.