Persona 5 Strikers comes out on February 23rd, and it will be coming out on the Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4 and Steam. The game will differ a lot from Persona 5, but it is still considered a direct sequel. It is worth mentioning that the storyline is a continuation of Persona 5 and will not mention the events that were added in Persona 5 Royal.
Now, all of the original Phantom Thieves will be playable characters in Strikers, and you will be able to utilize each of their Personas as well. There will be new playable characters as well. Combat is going to be a huge difference here, as Strikers is going to be a hack and slash action RPG, much like Dynasty Warriors and Fire Emblem Warriors.
The battle system will feature both real-time combat and sequences that allow you to stop and plan out attacks. You’ll have excess to each character’s specific moves and those tied to their Personas. They will also be able to wield powerful spells that can help with crowd control, called Master Arts. Think of them as ultimate finishing moves.
Another thing that is going to be changing with Strikers is the replacement of Confidants for something called the BAND system. Basically, the BAND system will allow you to raise your relationship with characters by interacting with them, battling alongside them and progressing through the story. That will allow you to unlock special abilities with those characters, stat bonuses and other goodies.
Unlinke Persona 5, you won’t be able to capture Personas in Strikers, however Joker will still be able to use multiple Personas. Instead of capturing them, they will be random drops from bosses in the Metaverse. The good news is that the fusion function will still be present so you’ll be able to take your Personas to the Velvet Room and fuse them all you want.
Stealth will be present here again, allowing you to ambush the enemies and gain the upperhand in battle. The dungeon alert system is back too, which means that if you reach 100%, you’ll be kicked out of the dungeon. Alternatively, you can lower your alert meter by ambushing enemies.
The Third Eye feature is also going to be in Strikers. It will allow you to see the environment in a different light, and make out valuables, places of traversal, and enemies more clearly. This will certainly help you find treasure in the dungeons and figure out where you’re going.
The story follows the Phantom Thieves while they are on vacation traveling through Japan. However, their vacation ends early when things start going wrong all around Japan and they are asked to, yet again, explore the Metaverse and figure out what’s wrong.
Throughout the story, there will not be any time management feature so you will be able to do things at your own pace. There will also be many side quests again, called Requests. On top of all of that, there will also be a new cooking mechanic. Joker’s Kitchen will allow you to combine ingredients found in dungeons and create dishes that can heal HP, restore SP or provide additional boosts in battle.
Persona 5 Strikers will certainly differ from Persona 5, but it looks to still be promising if you enjoy games in the hack and slash vein. There’s enough new content here to feel like Atlus is really trying instead of just riding the Persona 5 gravy train. It’s been out in Japan for a year now, and has been doing great, so far.
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