By: RJ (@rga_02)
- Persona 3: Dancing in Moonlight
- Developer - ATLUS
- Publisher - ATLUS
- PlayStation Vita, PlayStation 4
“I’ve been waiting for this,” – a line made famous by Akihiko Sanada in Persona 3. His words rang true to my head when ATLUS announced Persona 3: Dancing in Moonlight a year ago. “Finally,” I said to myself, the Persona game with the best music will take center stage. But will SEES get a standing ovation?
Persona 3: Dancing in Moonlight - along with its Persona 5 counterpart, is a follow-up to Persona 4: Dancing All Night. It is a lighthearted take on a usually “edgy” franchise where you get to see your favorite characters dance to the beat of the game’s catchy soundtrack.
The premise of this game is next barebones, however. Everyone in SEES - the afterschool club in Persona 3 was summoned to the Velvet Room or Club Velvet by Elizabeth. From there she says that everyone is in a dream and after you wake up none of this will matter, so what should you all do? Dance of course! That’s it. For me, this was a blessing in disguise as the story arc in Persona 4: Dancing All Night was tedious at times. Now for those invested in the lore of the franchise will most likely be disappointed. However, as you progress through the game there are small social interactions with some character development. Here, you will see the SEES you know and love. For example, Akihiko is still talking about #protein and Aigis is still yearning to know what it feels like to be human.
As for the gameplay, it retains everything from Persona 4: Dancing All Night. Notes fly from the center of the screen towards the sides where you will have to press the corresponding buttons to hit the beat. If you haven’t played the previous game but played other rhythm games, a close comparison would be Xonic. The game isn’t terribly hard even at its highest difficulty which might sway away those who are looking for a deep rhythm game experience – but remember, this is a game with jRPG roots, not music. There are some modifiers you can unlock to make the game more challenging such as speeding up the notes or have the notes fade away.
Enough with the gameplay blabbing though and let’s dive into the good stuff. You know, the soundtrack. I will gladly die on the hill stating that Persona 3 had the best soundtrack out of all the Persona games. However, this game doesn’t do them justice. Out of the 20+ songs that are present, most of them are weak remixes of the songs you love. Seriously ATLUS, how can you mess up Wiping All Out? Of course, tastes are subjective. There is some good news though, you can play the original version of Mass Destruction in all its original glory.
There will be more songs added via DLC at a later date, but you can only pad up a library so far with just remixes or live concert editions of songs.
The art direction of the game is a little bland. Gone are the expressive character portraits and to replace it are lifeless 3D rendered models. At times they feel out of place and out of character. SEES is filled with lively individuals, but the models in this game make feel like a pile or rocks. If Aigis wanted to be human, well she won’t anymore. She looks more robotic than ever.
Overall, this game is OK. It’s not terribly offensive, but it also isn’t anything groundbreaking. Fans of Persona will love it for sure, but rhythm game fans will yearn for something more. SEES didn’t take center stage, they are just wandering endlessly throughout the floors of Tartarus.