Persona 5 Reviews Come Pouring In, Near-Perfect Game?

From one of the most storied cult hit video game franchises to being wildly praised as one of the best JRPGs to date, Persona 5 has been getting excellent reviews left and right. A majority of publications are giving the game near-perfect scores, though, they do make it clear that there is one glaring issue with the title. Even so, based on the feedback so far, this appears to be the best Persona game yet.

By and large, it seems reviewers absolutely loved almost every part of P5, but most of them focused on five essential aspects: the story, the UI, the combat, the characters, and the world. Considering that the game is sitting at 94 on Metacritic as of writing this piece, it could not be clearer that publications are absolutely enamored with this game.

In Ars Technica’s review of P5, the publication notes how the game’s pacing can be slow at times, but that this is covered by its many other excellent aspects. There’s the spectacularly detailed world that is just chock full of activities, for starters, where players can spend hours doing things other than fighting monsters.

Ars also notes how stylish the game is, particularly when fighting the title’s enemies called “shadows.” With fast paced and spectacularly flashy combat, modern players might actually not mind the turn-based fight system so much. The game literally tries to shine gamers with flair and panache, and it absolutely works.

Gamespot goes a lot deeper in describing the world, going through the dark and distinctive “Metaverse,” the unique collection and fusion process of Personas, and how well the game balances difficulty settings that make them actually different and fun.

As for the characters themselves, P5 continues the tradition of a mute main character surrounded by a group of compelling teammates. Like its predecessors, the game goes out of its way to break stereotypes and tackle serious issues with a fun medium.

Naturally, reviewers would be remiss if they don’t find a fault or two in the game and the slow pacing of P5’s final arc is the main target. It’s not a huge deal, especially for a game like this. It’s practically negligible.