Episode Aigis is an epilogue to Persona 3 Reload — a remake of the extra situation that first appeared in Persona 3 FES on the PS2. Very like Reload itself, this growth is just about a one-to-one recreation by way of core narrative and construction, however it’s bolstered by all the remake’s high quality of life and fight system enhancements. This makes the expertise a lot simpler to abdomen on a mechanical degree, because the dungeon-based tour typically felt like a severe slog again in its authentic type.
Having mentioned that, Episode Aigis nonetheless revolves round dungeon crawling virtually completely. The growth does away with the social aspect of the Persona method, and easily duties gamers with attending to the underside of a brand new, Tartarus-like creation. As you progress, story beats try and preserve you hooked, as your SEES celebration members are compelled to unravel the reality of this contemporary trial, with you taking over the function of mechanical companion Aigis.
The plot offers with some intriguing character-driven themes, however the pacing is an actual sticking level. For a lot of the journey, you are fed scraps of what can barely be known as exposition, with the precise character improvement locked behind loads of grinding. It is a tall order contemplating your ranges and tools do not carry over from the bottom recreation; you are successfully ranging from the underside once more, albeit with a wider roster of celebration members available.
You have to ask your self whether or not the grind is price it; whether or not your enjoyment of Reload’s dungeon crawling is sufficient to justify one other 20 hours of typically paper-thin and generally frustratingly contrived storytelling. For what it is price, Episode Aigis does provide a better problem than the core launch — one thing that will attraction to extra hardcore gamers. However even then, the growth is priced at $34.99 / £28.99 — and that feels costly for what’s, primarily, a brand new dungeon populated with reused enemy belongings.
Episode Aigis is one for the tremendous followers. Its worthwhile story beats are uncommon and buried beneath a number of all-too-familiar dungeon crawling, and it is undeniably costly by way of asking value. At finest, it is an intriguing however flawed epilogue; at worst, it is a fully pointless addition to a incredible recreation.