Back to Persona 3

Originally posted 2009-07-27.

Trying to regularly record my progress with games, hopefully to get some conversations going with my game-enjoying friends. Even if it’s just through disjointed, badly-written megatweets like this.

For some reason, I felt like picking up Persona 3 again, even though I’d sworn off it when it started requiring me to grind. The recommended level for beating Strega is 53, and I’m 40. Stayed up until 3 AM getting to level 42. It’s going to be a long grind.

Finally got Dominion, the Justice persona I’ve been wanting for a while. Had to level up to 42 to get him. Justice personas are dear to my heart, because Chihiro was my first and favorite level-10 commu. Dominion leveled up to 45 with the bonus XP for having a complete Justice commu. Also fused a Taraka (Hermit) and a Clotho (Fate).

Actually kinda enjoying the grind this time around. But the fluffiness of the storyline, and its disconnectedness with the rest of the game, have me longing for Persona 2’s engrossing story.

I do keep getting knocked out by the terrifyingly brilliant monster design in these games, though. The monks with pages (of what I presume is scripture) rapidly spinning around them in a cube pattern are nightmarishly unique.

Jules and Ann just started Persona 3 a few days ago, and they’ve already passed the beach trip, a part of the game that took me four months to reach. I suppose playing in Japanese slows me down, but man, that is kinda depressing for me. But happy for them!

Giants

Originally posted 2009-08-13.

Continuing my worthless Persona 3 progress notes.

Final exams. The history questions in the Japanese are hard enough for H and her brother, and I hear that the localized version has them translated faithfully. I have no idea how they expect English speakers to answer them.

The Stasis Giants are a tough boss battle. Jules beat them by fusing a Persona that nullifies Strike, and I started researching a similar path. Kali (who nullifies strike) was doing all right, and Hokuto Seikun (who dodges it) served me pretty well, but eventually the giants’ crazy attacks were too much. It didn’t help that Yukari was despairing too much to fight, and Aigis is out of commission. Now Yukari is back, and I think I’m going to try Dionysus. It drives me crazy when RPGs take your favorite characters away from you, so that you have to make do with your level 17 neglected dudes alongside your level 55 main guy.

Dionysus get. Sure wish I had the Moon commu right about now.

Hmm, I was going to write out my tactics for beating these giants, but my blog editor ate the beginning of it, and it ended up being way more complicated than I’d expected anyway. Mitsuru-senpai hitting one guy at a time with Bufudyne is my main damage. Iori-kun is bait. Yukari-chan, when she’s alive, is healing. My main dude is switching between Dionysus (for safety) and Throne (for Mediarahan), and using up lots of defense-increasing items.

And there! It took about ten tries, but I beat the Stasis Giants, with everyone alive, using a team-up attack at the very end!

Wow… the level 190 Tartaros boss is a pushover. Beat him on the first try.

Sheesh! The level 201 bosses are a joke.

…And the level 211 boss is a piece of cake too. What’s going on?