This dream collaboration between Atlus and Arc System Works brings us a game that will easily stand out even in the crowded fighting game segment. It's also sure to serve as a gateway drug for both RPG and fighting game fans to cross to the other side. Really, there's nothing else quite like this.
Mastering the mechanics of this engine involves a lot of time and effort in the training room. This game hits a lot of the notes that catch the attention of casual and hardcore fighting game fans, even if it won't necessarily bring them together.
It plays super-slick, is easy to learn, all the while still offering enough depth to take on the competition. Just like with all the other Beat 'em' Ups, though, you can't help but wonder when the genre will take its next evolutionary step.
it's just as good as persona 4, in it's own way. there is a story mode, which involve a lot of reading through dialogue, as well as your character's thoughts. it takes place two months after the true ending in persona 4 and is very well done. the game-play itself is also very good. it's simple to understand the basics, but difficult to master it there is also an arcade mode, which is a shorter version of story mode, online battling, a score attack mode in which the a.i. difficulty shoots up past 'hell' difficulty, and 390 total combo challenges between all the characters.
A strange decision to continue the story of a RPG in a fighting game. It is as far as I can see competently made and they put a lot of effort into the game. However I was mostly here for the story and a bit out of curiosity. The game itself is a continuation from Persona 4 and Persona 3. You should definitely know these games aka the stories as you will get lost really fast otherwise. It starts when the protagonist of Persona 4 Yu returns to Inaba to visit his friends. Shockingly when he and some of his friend meet the Midnight Channel that should be gone reappears and a fighting tournament is announced by one of their friends that is not present. They want to investigate this in the TV world which is a manifestation of human subconscious / mind (Without Persona 4 knowledge you are lost and it should look strange). Meanwhile the characters from Persona 3 are now part of an organization that deals with issues related to the subconscious world and are in the area investigating a missing anti Shadow weapon (Again without Persona 3 knowledge you are a bit lost). With this the story starts. I like the story and characters. The twists and reveals are nice and overall I was satisfied. However there are weaknesses. A mayor twist can be spotted from miles away, it feels a bit forced sometimes and the story is told in character chapters. You have to unlock additional chapters to continue the story and / or see other perspectives. The gameplay is O.K for me. Fighting games / beat em ups are not my favorite genre. I am familiar with Street Fighter, Tekken and Mortal Kombat but not as much to be anywhere near expert knowledge. They managed to give the Persona feeling without a doubt. The characters, move sets, Personas and areas are familiar and enjoyable. What should I say you have basic attacks, special moves, a SP gauge for devastating attacks etc. The characters are different and have their unique moves. For me it has depth and works well. I repeat take this with a grain of salt as I am no expert in the genre. I will however point out that some characters are better or easier to use. Maybe a balance issue or just my lack to use these efficiently. As other point out the same I lean more towards the issues. The presentation is top notch and they nail the visuals and style of Persona 4/3. The soundtrack and voice actors are excellent and enhance the atmosphere. Overall while it was a nice game I dislike the fighting game approach. It is not that great while I will defend that it is well made. A 7/10 is fair.
How I rate games:
Game-play, Music/Sound, Graphics & Visuals, Story/World-building, and Characters each get 0-2 points adding up to a score /10. 0 is non-existent or bad, 1 is average or N/A, and 2 is better than average.
Game-play: 0
For a fighting game, the game play is very broken with some character being gods or having spam-able abilities while others are near-useless.
Music/Sound: 1
The music has some new tracks that aren't terrible memorable and some tracks from P4. None of the sound effects are too annoying or amazing.
Graphics & Visuals: 2
The graphics are a fun mix of drawn images for backgrounds and pixel art that keeps the artstyle from becoming dated with time.
Story/World-building: 2
Oddly enough, this is the strongest part of the game. The use of adding details from P3 and interrogating them with P4's setting works wonders expanding the world and creating a story that is appropriate for the series.
Characters: 2
It is mostly existing characters, but the new ones are stronger than you'd expect for a spin-off.
TOTAL: 7/10
This is terrible. Maybe I should never play another anime inspired fighting game, because between this and the terrible Skullgirls, I've lost faith. Although I love Blazblue so go figure. Small chars, slow gameplay, it takes me all day just to get to the other end of the screen. Stupid persona concept (again, similar to the terrible Skullgirls), and stupid visuals. I'm so glad my gamestore let me take this back. The developers of this and Skullgirls should get together and rewrite their resumes (leaving these games out of course), and then try to get on a team that actually knows how to put an ounce of fun into their fighting games.
persona 4 arena is a very bad excuse for a fighting game. the only way anyone could get any enjoyment out of this game is if they are weaboo trash like Daniel mills. ****
SummaryPersona 4 Arena uses hand-drawn, high definition 2D anime-style fighters and colorful, over-the-top special effects to bring to life a roster of fighters from Persona 3 and Persona 4.