Persona 5: Tactica review – Joker’s wild

Looking back, it’s amazing to see how Persona 5 has grown over almost a decade. The original 2016 game became the new measuring stick for the Persona franchise, and in the years since then, we’ve seen spin-offs, collaborations, and fresh remasters of the Phantom Thieves saga that has kept the series going. Now you can throw another entry into the mix with Persona 5: Tactica, as everyone’s favorite high school vigilantes leverage their popularity for a stab at the strategy-RPG genre.

The result? A stylish game of wits, camaraderie, and casual strategy that makes for a charming entry in the Persona 5 universe – and a massively confusing story to anyone unfamiliar with these characters.

Straight off the bat, Persona 5: Tactica wastes very little time in reminding you that if you’ve skipped out on Persona 5 or the excellent enhanced edition Persona 5: Royal, you’re going to be more confused than a chameleon in a bag of Rascals. Persona 5: Tactica does make some effort to bring newcomers up to speed, but between the game being sandwiched between pivotal moments in the Persona 5 saga and the threat of spoilers lurking around the corner, it’s going to be hard to figure out just who the heck these characters are and what they’re saying.

Brushing that aside, Persona 5: Tactica still shines a spotlight on its cast, and how they fit into a new story that tasks them with overthrowing an iron-fisted despot in a fantasy realm. There’s a lot more at play here than a simple Isekai story. Combined with seemingly unconnected story threads, surprisingly heavy subject matter, and each character having a chance to show off, Persona 5: Tactica has a great story to wade through.

When it comes to gameplay, the first impression that Persona 5: Tactica might give off is that it has been peeking at Fire Emblem’s homework. Surprisingly, the game’s combat has more in common with XCOM than Nintendo’s turn-based strategy series, as you’ll make use of cover to avoid or reduce damage while flexing some stylish Persona 5 firepower. Your team of three characters can make use of familiar battle mechanics to annihilate the opposition, and it’s amazing to see just how well that older gameplay from the series gels with the tactical side of this genre. You can even use the franchise’s signature “One More” mechanic to gain sizable advantages on the battlefield, chaining them together for some cunning chaos.

Combined with an emphasis on keeping a triangle formation that can be used to activate a Triple Threat attack, and the appeal of tight formations, strategic movement, and fashionable fisticuffs quickly combine to create a fun gameplay loop. Of course, this being a Persona game, you’ll be spending a lot of your downtime strengthening your bond with your fellow allies and using your reinforced relationships to become more dangerous when in combat.

But suppose there is a downside to having an injection of Persona energy in a strategy game. In that case, this title unnecessarily draws out the story and combat with its uneven pacing. There’s big “it could have been an email” energy at play here, especially in the first chunk of Persona 5: Tactica, as powerful attacks take hours to be unlocked and more enemy variety is kept in reserve right until the game’s final stretch. Sure, boss fights introduce some interesting twists to the formula, but with more challenging cannon fodder grunts being kept locked away, the game can become tedious at times.

All this said, for longtime Persona fans this new spin-off has plenty of heart, fresh new style, and casual combat that’s amplified by excellent chemistry between the cast. That hard-rockin’ Jazz-powered soundtrack isn’t too shabby either. Together, it makes for a package worth experiencing.

Released 17 November, Persona 5: Tactica is out now for PlayStation and Xbox consoles, Nintendo Switch and PC.