#im on the clock rn this is so fucked up :(((

[crescentfool]

i've been doing a bunch of tartarus runs in reload lately, and it got me thinking about how i miss certain ways FES's clunky gameplay can characterize minato… (ramble about the great clock mechanic + leveling up party members in reload vs fes under the cut)

when i got to yabbashah block in tartarus (block 3), i remember commending the developers for adding the great clock mechanic. it's a much more convenient way to keep party members at the protagonist's level- so when you think about p3 from the perspective of trying to make it easier for people to play, the mechanic succeeds in this respect.

but now that i'm in adamah block, and that i've done lots of my once-a-month tartarus runs… i think that i got a little too dependent on it, and the way that i played through reload feels like a vastly different experience from how i played FES.

in reload, my party's levels are very lopsided. minato, yukari, akihiko, mitsuru, and fuuka are all level 90+, meanwhile junpei and aigis are at level 79, and then… poor ken and koromaru are at 71 and 64 respectively. (i never got to have a great clock for them…)

meanwhile, in FES, my party's levels were much more evenly distributed and were at least level 90. i did all of this manually for every monthly tartarus run because i enjoyed having options available for the taratarus guardians and monthly operations.

with how i perceive minato, i feel that the way i played FES feels more in-line with his character than me dawdling around waiting for the great clocks in reload.

FES's gameplay loop left me with the very strong impression that minato has to work twice as hard as everyone else in SEES does. it makes sense because, yeah, he's the leader, but something about having minato run through tartarus multiple times with different groups of people just to make sure that they are adequately prepared speaks volumes about his character, to me.

and while the tired mechanic is present in reload to some degree, most notably with allowing you to freely raise your courage stat when you visit edogawa after school… the tiredness system doesn't hit the same way that FES does, i think.

the way your party members in FES will call it quits when they return to the entrance floor at tartarus when they're tired, versus minato, in spite of all his tiredness and sickness, still pushes through tartarus because it's his responsibility…. idk!!! i miss that! i feel like this really hammers home the difference between minato and the rest of SEES, how minato doesn't really see himself as a human with needs worth respecting as long as he's useful to someone.

i don't think that tartarus being tedious (in FES especially) is not what most people would describe as fun, and i can respect people thinking it's a slog. but, regardless of how it feels to play, it doesn't change that FES's gameplay loop is a fundamental building block in how i perceive minato…

of course, i do recognize that you can just opt to NOT use the great clock in reload (and it's great when players are offered the choice to not partake in mechanics)! i definitely think that if someone really wanted to, they could manually level up party members, but i do feel that kind of playstyle isn't necessarily "incentivized" to the type of people who are into playing games for Having a Good Time. it's kind of like… "why would you do that when there's a much more convenient option available to you."

in any case! despite my woes, i do want to emphasize that i'm glad that reload has a much more smoother gameplay loop than the original P3 did, because it does make the game more accessible to people. having played both FES and reload, it feels very strongly apparent to me how the core gameplay formula of persona has really been refined in the past 18 years (to think og p3 was 2006 and reload is 2024.. time flies!). and reload has made revisiting a story that i love so dearly much, much easier because the gameplay just bops!

at the same time, due to my "i miss characterization informed by weird and dated FES gameplay quirks" woes, i still think that playing FES is worthwhile. (really, i feel this way about all iterations of p3! i think it's worthwhile to see what each version and side media has to say even if it doesn't Land™ for you.) but i also understand why people wouldn't want to play it, so i will keep writing posts about things i liked from FES's gameplay because i'm still very fond of FES (especially in respects to minato. these mechanics are so telling about him!!!) 💪

[ratgingi]

hey google is it normal to hate every living being on the planet just because you had to go to work

[postmanlinksbootyshorts]

new schedule would have me clocking in @ 3pm... i fear unemployment is right around the corner for me

[analogwriting]

currently obliterated and playing beer pong. I'd be lying if I said something wasn't cookin

[lo-cinno]

Hi

I’m fucking dying

[lostandbackagain]

you guys ever wake up evil

[databent]

[pained wailing emoji]

[the-yearning-astronaut]

Me: just trying to work on projects for work so can actually say I've done something at the team meeting tomorrow

My brain: sleepy.... Nap time? Time to get cozy. It's beddy time! Look at your warm, soft pets sleeping next to you. Don't you wish that were you rn?

My body: Your eyelids are getting heaaavvvvy and your brain is foggier than a haunted house attraction. You should listen to it. Close your eyes, just for a second. Just rest.

Brain: How about a nice, short catnap to boost your energy. Only been up for 2hrs you say? That's ok! time is relative and you deserve a nap at any time. You'll feel more rested and energetic if you just take 20 minutes and have a nice little doze, promise...

Body: your movements are slow and clumsy and you'd feel so much better if you just lay down and close your eyes. Just for a minute.

Brain: if you don't take a nap in the next 10 minutes I'm gonna start screaming at you via migraine and force you to take one.

[monsterbisexual]

having some thoughts......need to watch/read/etc more weird stuff

anyway society if i wasnt at work n could make weird posts n watch weird movies </333

feel free to rec stuff btw if u wanna!!

[astralmarionette]

i think someone should kill me. violently. make my body unidentifiable. dismember me. discard my limbs in different parts of town.

[corvidat]

LONG WEEKEND HELL YEAH

[oetscop]

should i just say fuck it and quit so i can go to the doctor bc im so close to doing that rn. i dont even like have another job set up yet. but i cannot work somewhere thats treating me like this. i shouldnt be risking my job for needing to go to fucking urgent care

[toastsnaffler]

still have some brain fog but nowhere near as bad as the last couple days 👍

[permanentreverie]

7 1/2 hour shift with no food ayyyyy

[ftmbruce]

talking about lotr themed items with a customer and he asked if i liked lotr and i said yeah, my cat's name is frodo! :) and he goes ohh i hate frodo. he's so annoying. im like okay man and he just keeps going. "he's so whiney i cant get past it" and i was convinced he was like. messing with me so i was just staring at him and after a second i was like "im sorry but like. what do you like about lotr then." and he was like "i like every single other character! i just hate frodo" like i know everyone has their own opinions but like what's your damage man

[deacf-coffee-is-a-sin]

love coming into work an hour early cuz bro im just CHILLIN. I love watching all my coworkers move back and forth from break to work while I'm chilling in the sectioned off part of the restaurant asking them what it's like out there and ruefully shaking my head like a middle aged man hearing abt the state if the world when they tell me we're busy. I love it. I'm so bored but I'm free