Persona 3 Reload: A Missed Opportunity or a Faithful Remake?

Is Persona 3 Reload a faithful remake of the original game, or does it fall short by holding back too much content? In this article, we'll explore whether Atlus made the right decision in focusing on being 'faithful' rather than creating something truly incredible. As a long-time fan of the series, I was thrilled to hear that Persona 3 would be getting a full remake. The original game, released back in 2006, holds a special place in my heart. However, upon playing through the first few hours of Reload, I couldn't help but notice some changes - both good and bad. On the positive side, the graphics have been completely overhauled, giving the game a fresh, modern look that still retains the charm of the original. The voice acting has also been redone, with the new cast doing an excellent job of bringing the characters to life. And let's not forget about the soundtrack - rerecorded and sounding better than ever. But then there are the areas where Persona 3 Reload seems to take a step backwards. For example, in the original game you could choose between joining the swimming club, kendo club or track team. In the remake though, that choice has been limited to just track. It's a small thing, but it does make you wonder why they would remove options rather than add more. This trend of cutting corners continues with Episode Aigis, the paid DLC that adds a new story focusing on the robotic warrior herself. As someone who loves Aigis, I was excited to see her in the spotlight again. The problem is that this expansion seems to be almost entirely focused on battling shadows - the basic enemies of Persona games. While combat is definitely a core part of these games, it's usually balanced out by plenty of social and life sim elements too. You can hang out with friends, go on dates, play mini-games, work part-time jobs, study (if you're into that sort of thing), and more. In Episode Aigis though, not so much. Aigis is restricted to the dorms and a dungeon called the Abyss of Time which feels very similar to Tartarus from the main game. Later on there's access to a smaller version of Paulownia Mall too but most of the shops are out of bounds. Luckily you can find items in the Abyss that unlock some social scenes with your friends, but they lack voice acting making them less engaging. So while Episode Aigis is a very good DLC and does add some new content to Persona 3 Reload, it's not something I'll be playing over and over again. It feels more like a side story rather than an essential part of the main game experience. This lack of additional content outside of combat also brings into focus how much less there is to do in Persona 3 Reload compared to other modern RPGs like Persona 5 Royal which was released back in 2020. Sure, you could argue that this is acceptable given the original game was made over a decade ago and so has fewer features by today's standards. But if we're going to be remaking it anyway, why not expand on those elements? Why not add more clubs and activities for Aigis to do in her free time rather than just fighting all day? Why not open up the mall fully instead of leaving parts off limits? Persona 3 Reload is still an excellent game overall. The combat is as engaging as ever, the story is just as compelling, and the characters are as lovable as they've always been. But it could have been so much more than a simple remake. Atlus seems to have gotten so caught up in trying to be 'faithful' to the original that they forgot to really push the envelope and create something truly groundbreaking like we've seen from other RPGs this year. Episode Aigis feels like another example of this, being good but not adding enough substance to justify its price tag. So while Persona 3 Reload is still a must-play for fans of the series or JRPGs in general, it's hard not to feel a little disappointed that Atlus didn't take more risks with this remake and really blow us away.