Summary
Baton Pass is a good addition toPersona 3 Reload, but another ofPersona 5’s signature features would have been a better addition. It is a good sign that Atlus is seeking to makePersona 3 Reloadthe best version of the game to date, as previous trailers have displayed. However, there are still a few features that could have given the game an even bigger boost compared to past versions ofPersona 3. There are a lot of good things that could be done with the remake, and some good ideas could be left by the wayside.
Persona 3 ReloadaddingPersona 5’s Baton Pass mechanicprovides a highly useful tactic for players to use. Introduced inPersona 5, Baton Pass allows characters to pass extra turns that they get from downing an enemy to another party member, boosting their strength for the turn in the process. It’s an effective tool for dealing with groups of enemies with differing weaknesses, and can dramatically increase the party’s damage output. It’s one of the biggest improvements announced forPersona 3 Reloadso far, and should be a big boost for players. However,Persona 5had another major improvement that deserved consideration as well: Confidants.
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Upgrading Social Links to Confidants Could Have Been Great for Persona 3 Reload
Social Links are aPersonastaple, andPersona 5’s Confidant systemtook them to the next level. With Confidants, not only did players get the usual perks of a Social Link for the associated arcana, but each one came with a unique bonus that couldn’t be acquired otherwise. Thanks to this system,Persona 5did a better job than previous games of making the player feel more powerful as they forge bonds with the characters. Considering the power of some Confidants, they made managing the player’s time to max them out more important than ever. Confidants are a clear upgrade over older Social Links.
Confidants would have been an incredible boon to have as afeature inPersona 3 Reload.Persona 3has a wide array of Social Links, and many of them could have easily granted Confidant abilities to the player, especially with some of the more intriguing personalities on display. For example, Tanaka the saleman could have provided the player with abilities that let them gain more yen, or Nozomi the gourmet could help the player heal more with food items. With Baton Pass showing up as a new mechanic, it’s a shame thatPersona 3Reloadisn’t updating its Social Links in addition to combat.
To be fair, there would be some difficulties with adding Confidants, even beyondPersona 3 Reloadsticking to the original. A lot of the Social Links in the game end up leaving for various reasons once their link is done, such as Bebe going back home, or Akinari’s death. Any Confidant abilities involving interacting with those characters would be unworkable for that reason. Also, the addition of Baton Pass is already a big change to the game’s formula. Factoring in several other perks could make rebalancing the game in response quite difficult. That may explain why Confidants didn’t make it intoPersona 3 Reload.
Persona 3 Reloadwill benefit from Baton Pass, but Confidants could have made the game even better.Persona 3 Reloadwill have lots of content, which should give fans plenty to be excited about. However, reworking the Social Links into Confidants could have given the remake an even bigger push. The way thatPersona 3 Reloadhandles its Social Links is worth looking into. However, with the game not straying that far from the original, changing them up too much was unlikely to happen.Persona 3 Reloadlearned from what worked inPersona 5, but missed one of its best innovations.
Persona 3 Reloadwill be released on Jul 23, 2025 for PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.
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