This post has not been edited by the GamesBeat staff. Opinions by GamesBeat community writers do not necessarily reflect those of the staff.
But for the new consumer, who may have first heard about the game through its newest iteration, Persona 3 Portable, there are some choices at hand. Or rather, a single choice. Persona 3 has been released three times in the US alone, and for now, this seems like the last time. And between the two concurrent versions – Persona 3 Portable and Persona 3 FES – there is no truly “definitive” version of the game. Unless you get both, you won't see the entirety of the Persona 3.
And making the choice isn't as easy as you would think. Portable introduces full party control, a much-lauded feature from Persona 4, into 3's storyline. This decreases the headaches induced by having to rely on your teammates to heal your status effects when you weren't able to do so yourself. The AI was generally on the ball about things like that, but the fact that it can fail even once means that controlling them yourself is an improvement. You also won't get tired while venturing in Tartarus, the game's main dungeon, which means you won't have a limit on how long you should explore it.
Portable's other big feature is the inclusion of a female playable character, which means that the original storyline is altered slightly, with some new plot threads to develop between the various relationships you develop with your classmates (who you can date being the biggest one, of course). This seems like a feature aimed at veterans of the previous iterations of the game, as well as people who prefer to pick their gender in any kind of game.
It does make a few compromises, though. The graphics are noticeably worse on the PSP version, and most of the locations you visit are in the form of 2D explorable menus instead of fully explorable areas. As someone who had a bit of trouble finding certain areas in FES, I welcome the streamlined approach, but can certainly see why someone would miss the sense of immersion that comes from actually wandering around your surrounding.
Portable's other big loss in the transition to the PSP is the expansion pack content that came with FES. About 30 in length – no measly amount – “The Answer” answers some of the questions raised by the main game's ending, and also includes more in-depth explorations of the characters' pasts. It shines the ending in a new light, so it's not entirely dismissible content. I'm not entirely sure of the cause for the omission, but it have something to do with crafting a separate Answer storyline for the female lead.
In any case, your choice comes down to an all-around streamlined and accessible version of the Persona 3 in Portable, or a cheaper, more immersive, and complete, if slightly dated, experience in FES. Personally, I would choose Portable, since I don't mind the utilitarian interface, and “The Answer's” full story is currently available on Youtube, and could possibly come as downloadable content for Portable in the future (nothing on that yet, of course).
But whichever version you choose, you owe it to yourself to at least try one of the best RPG's on available. Whether you should play Persona 3 or 4 is another question for another article.
