I was reading the Caroline and Justine confidant and got excited when you got all those -kaja skill cards, because I’ve been playing Digital Devil Saga and Nocturne recently. Are buffs as good in Persona as they are in mainline SMT?
Click Here for Update 53
: “Futaba’s still asleep too… this won’t be good.”
: Look, Morgana, this is the franchise where people spent the better part of a month inside an isekai realm in the TV. That’s just how anime works.
: Speaking of which, when I was recording this, I listened a little harder than I normally do and I distinctly heard one of the characters say “isekai” when talking about the metaverse.
: “…Hey.”
: “Same as always. Today’s the day Wakaba passed. I do this every year… here, I’ve got a cup for you too.”
: “Futaba reminds me so much of her mother. She’s a smart girl. Doesn’t just go with the flow, either. Wakaba… your work and your kid were so fulfilling for you. Why’d you have to die so suddenly…?”
: “…That reminds me, you saw me talking to that prosecutor - I mean, that woman in a suit, right? I remember you were real bothered by it. She might come back, so I guess I should tell you about it.”
: Did Sojiro just predict the inevitable Sae cutscene that’ll happen tomorrow, since it’s the end of an arc?
: “That woman was trying to get information on Wakaba’s research out of me.”
: “That’s what we heard in the Palace.”
: “You don’t need to know what the research was about. Just know there was some trouble around it. Obviously, Wakaba got dragged into that as well.”
: “Now, they ruled her death a suicide… but I’ve got my doubts.”
: “Doubts? Could she have been killed?”
: “Supposedly, there were people who wanted to take her research and use it for their own benefit… don’t get me wrong though. I don’t have a lick of evidence.”
: “That’s why I haven’t told Futaba any of this. I don’t want to cause her any more trouble.”
: “It sounded like she had suspicions of her own based on what she said in the Palace.”
: This line might sound kind of stupid, and it’s because it’s a bad translation as far as I can tell. You can clearly hear Sojiro’s VA say “SOS” and I’m guessing the actual line is something like “Right before she died, she sent me an SOS”.
: “I brushed it off thinking it was a joke, but if I had just taken her seriously… that’s another reason I took Futaba in… redemption.”
: “She went through such horrible things. Those heartless adults just yelled at the poor girl… hey… how do you heal emotional scars?”
: Joker’s like “Well first, you go into a stupid dungeon that’s about twice as long as it needs to be, and then you fight a boss that you could beat by doing nothing.”
: “I agree. I’m waiting for it to happen, but… Futaba!?”
: “Huh?”
: “N-Never mind that… how did you get here?”
: “Uh… I walked.”
: “…You’re okay!?”
: “Was that bad?”
: “Th-that’s not it! I’m just shocked to see you out of the house…”
: “Uh… I’m sorry I worried you.”
: “…Ha… It’s all right.”
: “By the way, what’s the date today?”
: “Eh? It’s uh… it’s the 21st.”
: I don’t know why they did one of these dialog transition things when it takes like two seconds to get to Sojiro’s house from the cafe. A simple load screen would’ve done it.
: “Hmph, ‘Medjed.’ Now, how do we cook them?”
: “Violent much?”
: “Hey, Futaba? We don’t have much time left. Are you sure you could do this!?”
: This is another example of how bad Morgana’s dialog was in the base game. It should be “Are you sure you can do this!?” but apparently they forgot to change that for Royal.
: “Th-the kitty talked!? Is this a dream? I’m going back to sleep…”
: I’m just imagining Joker going “He’s my magical pet. I’m a magical boy. It’s like being a magical girl only without the girl part.” and seeing if Futaba falls for it.
: Then again though… isn’t that technically what Joker is? I mean, he does the whole outfit transformation and runs around casting spells and fighting a different monster each week.
: “…R-right.”
: “Now hurry it up!”
: “…Eh, I guess it doesn’t matter. Let’s get cracking!”
: “I don’t think she can hear me… talk about intense concentration. This place is so messy… I’m surprised she can focus at all.”
: “Futaba? You should really clean your room a bit.”
: “…”
: “She’s not listening… oh well. Just waiting around is boring. Let’s clean the place up.”
: “Well, Futaba? We’re done on our end. Are you finished yet?”
: “…”
: “She can’t hear a word I’m saying… guess we’ll just have to keep waiting.”
: “Wh-what’s up? Something happened?”
: “It’s finished.”
: “Finished? What is?”
: “Ah, it’s so clean! Why!?”
: Futaba is a trash gremlin and we’ve just removed her natural habitat.
: “We cleaned it. Anyway, is it true? Did you really take care of Medjed?”
: “I handled them, and someone else handled my room! I don’t understand, but this is good!”
: It’s going to take her ages to gather enough trash to rebuild her nest.
: “Hey, Futaba! What’s wrong!?”
: “Well, it looks like it’s been taken care of. I guess we should get home and sleep too…”
: “We should be in the clear now, right…? I don’t know - maybe it’d be better if we just stayed in today.”
: Five points to Guts. If I could have gotten a luck reading, I would have… even though we’ll be maxing out Guts by the end of the month.
: “Yo, you look tired.”
: “We’ve made ourselves at home.”
: I looked up to see if Japan actually has an anti-doxxing law, and I don’t think they do. At least, if they do, I couldn’t immediately find it.
: “Aren’t these the guys people have been up in arms about?”
: “What’re you all smirking about?”
: “Well stop it. You’re gonna drive away all my customers.”
: “But there ain’t any customers.”
: “Can it… my customers are on summer vacation too.”
: I feel like this is more or less the same response Sony had to people who bought the PS3 at launch. “But there ain’t any games!” “Can it… we’ve got Talladega Nights on Blu-Ray.”
: “Oh crap, I just realized our break’s almost over!”
: “There are still ten days left.”
: “I wanna go somewhere, but we can’t just leave Futaba-chan alone.”
: “Some things still concern me too, like that ‘research’…”
: “Good morning.”
: Get used to seeing Futaba hiding behind people. This is something they’ll continue into Strikers.
: “It seems she’s cautious of us…”
: “Hey, why don’t we go upstairs? If any customers come, she’ll be even more afraid.”
: “Why don’t you go with them, Futaba? Have fun. It’s about time my regulars show up anyway, so I don’t want you guys loitering around my store.”
: I’m surprised Hideki Kamiya isn’t busy blocking people on Twitter or making another character action game that inevitably won’t review well.
: Just in case you had any kind of questions about what kind of villain Shido is, he’s a generic Metal Gear villain.
: “Sorry, I wasn’t listening.”
: “And Medjed was in turn defeated by her real-world hacking abilities? This does correlate to the facts as we know them… if he’s telling the truth, then Wakaba Isshiki didn’t commit suicide…”
: “Did a third party target her life with the goal of destroying her research? Wakaba’s death was two years ago… that also coincides with when the incidents started occurring…”
: …And you never thought those two incidents might be connected in any way?
: “Does this other Metaverse user that Madarame and Kaneshiro mentioned… really exist? Earlier, I briefly mentioned about those psychotic breakdown incidents that have alarmed the public.”
: “All of a sudden, people will lose consciousness or become violent… a situation as incomprehensible as that can’t be explained away as ‘troubled social conditions’.”
: “The method involved always muddled the explication, but your story has virtually confirmed its viability. Although, I wouldn’t have expected a new criminal to come to light from your testimony…”
: I’m just picturing Joker banging his head on the desk. It only took her what, two dungeons to figure this out?
: “What did your group think of this other Metaverse user?”
: “How self-centered of you. The Phantom Thieves tamper with people’s hearts without asking consent. How is that different?”
: “Well… no matter how you thought of them, there can be no doubting your resolve. Are those incidents because of you or someone else? Either way, I will get to the bottom of this.”
: Don’t worry, the game won’t just let us figure this out on our own or anything. It’ll bash us over the fucking head with who the killer is by the time we reach the next dungeon… assuming you haven’t already figured it out.
: “You should know who he is… considering what happened. Your testimony regarding this incident will be serious. I’m sure you understand why.”
: “Answer my next question carefully. What did you do to this Okumura?”
: “That means our enemies aren’t limited to Shadows.”
: “I thought the other people were just victims, like the slaves at the castle or the walking ATMs.”
: “Even though they seem to be alive, they’re only part of the backdrop… the environment. In other words, the Palace ruler determines the form and strength of their cognitions.”
: “I would have loved to ask Futaba’s mother how far along she was with her research…”
: Maybe if they had her research, they could make Makoto less of a camera hog.
: “Research, huh… she was lookin’ into that cognitive psience stuff, yeah?”
: “If we put together all the information we’ve gathered up to this point… abuse of cognitive psience can lead to death, and it may even relate to the psychotic breakdown incidents.”
: “Considering the ‘cognitive’ aspect, I sense a strong connection between it and the Metaverse.”
: “On top of that, the research might have been stolen and used by someone else.”
: “You mean those guys that showed Futaba-chan the fake suicide note.”
: “If that is the case, those people are unforgivable.”
: I don’t understand what the point of showing Futaba the suicide note was in the first place.
: “Hey, Futaba. Is there anything else you can remember?”
: “That smell…”
: “C’mon, no fair…”
: “Hey, can I snag a bite?”
: “Why don’t we take a short break?”
: Here’s something I forgot to do up until now. If you count the lines of dialog each character has in this scene, Makoto has twice as much (or more) than everyone else.
: The same thing is true for pretty much any scene Makoto is in - she will ALWAYS have more lines than anyone else.
: “Even if Futaba is a genius, could she really crush an international hacker organization that easily?”
: “The one who taunted the Phantom Thieves was a guy in Japan. I knew the Medjed members in Japan weren’t anything special, so I wasn’t worried.”
: “How do you know that?”
: You’ll notice that nowhere in this cutscene does it explain who the person hijacking the Medjed name was, or why they wanted to target the Phantom Thieves to begin with… and knowing who it is makes the plot make that much less sense.
: In the game, you don’t learn who it is until it’s just randomly blurted out in the middle of the second to last dungeon. The anime takes a different approach and shows the person straight out, so I’ll explain it now.
: The answer is that the fake Medjed is a nameless president of an IT company working with Organization XIII the random shadowy cabal of people the SIU Director is on the phone with all the time.
: What I don’t get though is how exactly the random IT guy would follow through with the whole “I’m going to crash the economy” thing when presumably all of his money is in Japan.
: “Yep. It was only me at first, back when I was referred to as the hacker of justice. But since I stayed anonymous, a bunch of guys from all over the world started using the name.”
: “And those were the ones committing cybercrimes.”
: “It was a hassle to expose all of them, so I just left them be.”
: “Uhhh… so Futaba was the true Medjed, and we were freakin’ out over some weak-ass dipshits? You should’ve told us from the start, Futaba.”
: “I discarded the Medjed name a while ago. I’m Alibaba now.”
: “Futaba, what do you want to do now? Since you know our secret, we’d like you to join our team.”
: " 'Kay. "
: “Just like that?”
: “This may even ensure our investigation of Mementos goes along smoothly.”
: “Well… I guess.”
: “Well, Futaba’s real amazin’! She’s gonna be a big help for us, huh?”
: “Say, Futaba. How did you find out about us?”
: Makoto is one of those people from back when I still did MMOs who treated joining a guild like a job interview.
: “Secret.”
: “Where did you learn to hack?”
: “Private.”
: “When did you obtain the Nav?”
: “I refuse to answer.”
: “At the very least, we need to be able to communicate normally with her.”
: “What should we do?”
: “How?”
: “First, we’ll need to help her open up to us. If we each spend an entire day with her, maybe she’ll get more used to being around us.”
: “I see. We do have the time, thanks to summer vacation.”
: “We can begin tomorrow.”
: We’re going to have over a week of very long cutscenes coming up. For readability purposes, I’ll probably split them up more.
: “Let’s go to the beach! There’ll be tonsa people there, plus we got totally dried out in that desert.”
: “That’s a great idea! I forgot I hadn’t gone to the beach yet!”
: “Uh, excuse me…?”
: “I’ll come by tomorrow. See you then.”
: “Let me help as well. I don’t have anything planned.”
: “Thanks. We can set a schedule with everyone else depending on when they’re free.”
: “Okay!”
: “How can I stay calm about this!?”
: “I understand how you feel.”
: “Thanks to the incident with those hackers, people are calling us incompetent. And on top of that, the Phantom Thieves are claiming justice is on their side. Don’t make me laugh.”
: “Medjed was dealt with by either the Phantom Thieves themselves, or some avid supporter. There are no tracks whatsoever, so they must be quite skilled…”
: “Either way, the general public recognizes the Phantom Thieves as the subjugating party.”
: “They’re gaining support and influence much faster than we could have anticipated…”
: “It is indeed an abnormal situation. I’m beginning to suspect mass manipulation of some kind… it’s even possible that a powerful person is behind them, plotting the psychotic breakdowns.”
: Yusuke and Futaba going at each other is going to be an ongoing thing.
: It seems like Morgana really doesn’t like his job being taken by Futaba. That certainly won’t become a major plot point.
: “Training Futaba’s going to be a lot of work - more than stealing someone’s heart.”
: “…Why is he of all people getting excited about this? Well, the news really did draw a lot of attention. I can’t wait to see what happens.”
: There’s a couple of things we can do tonight. First, we can get what is presumably a severed hand from Sakai for a Melon Pan, which we got from the Ginza station gate a few updates ago.
: Those people on Gamefaqs were apparently wrong. It’s 50,000 yen.
: “You’re really lucky! Now you can afford some sushi for me, right?”
: Now that we’ve recouped some of the money we’ve been dumping on Chihaya these past few weeks, let’s go see Hifumi.
: “…The digital version of the weekly magazine. My father’s deteriorating health, and that he’s bedridden… the fact that my mother primarily supports us… they even reported that my mother works at a night club…”
: “Which is… not untrue… but was it really necessary for them to write about all this? Capitalizing on a family’s private matters is just cruel…”
: “My family’s troubles have nothing to do with my skills as a shogi player… my mother was furious when she read the article. She said it’ll hurt her career, and that she’ll never forgive whoever wrote it.”
: Ain’t gonna forgive! Hifumi even looks like a more detailed Pipimi.
: “My father didn’t say anything… he just sat there listening to her. But he looked troubled… my mother told me that we’d be able to easily quell these rumors if I were to become more famous.”
: “So now she’s even more insistent on having me do more TV and magazine interviews than before…”
: “…Yes. Although I can’t express that to my mother. She’s so happy for me. I always believed that if I worked hard as a shogi player, I’d be able to support us… but I never expected such a destructive article would be written about me and my family.”
: “Honestly, nothing good will come from being treated like an idol. People say I’m all looks and no skills. They’re annoyed that I’m in the press all the time.”
: “Terrible things have been said about me, suggesting I would do anything to become popular… I’m even starting to be shunned in the shogi world. That’s why my senior acted that way toward me.”
: “My father used to practice with me from his sickbed, but his illness has made that impossible. Maybe I should stop playing shogi and just get a job… that way, my family won’t get hurt again…”
: I am very disappointed that there’s no ‘maybe you should try getting a job’ option.
: “Do what I love…? I love shogi… I don’t want to quit.”
: “At the end of the day, I love shogi. I’d never be able to give it up. I was just confused because of that article and how my senior treated me…”
: “However, I think I can see my next move… thanks to you. You’re helping me realize a lot about myself, outside of shogi.”
: “…Let’s return to the church and play a match. That article has left me somewhat irritated. I’m going to use my secret move: the Eternal Abyss Yagura Gate, and turn the board into hell…”
: “…Well? Would you care to face me in a match?”
: “Thank you so much for accompanying me today. I needed the distraction. Trying to solve this on my own, I felt caught in a vicious cycle… but you helped me find a new path.”
: “…You might make a fine priest yourself. Considering how good a listener you are, I mean.”
: “Really? I thought I felt a hidden potential brewing within you… you really are a strange individual. I was supposed to be your teacher, but somehow, the tables have turned. I’m the one learning from you.”
: “I would love to keep learning from you. Well then, if you’ll excuse me. I’ll see you at the church.”
: “It seems you freed the heart of a frenzied girl and saved her from her haunted past. chuckle Another step has been taken to rehabilitation… you are progressing quite nicely.”
: "Our master bestows words of praise upon you! You’d better feel honored!’
: “By the by, more curious information has found its way to your ears. A scientist’s research… it seems that world may secretly be known after all.”
: “Furthermore, that very research has been stolen and is now used by those with malicious intent… I wonder how this will change the approach you take to your rehabilitation…”
: “Allow me to grant you a new power worthy of your current self. Though you have my aid, be sure not to let your guard down. Otherwise you may get swept off your feet…”
: In case you’re wondering, no, there was no ability at Rank 7 in the base game. I’m not sure why Igor says “new power” when you don’t get anything until Rank 8 (which will bring our total Persona slots to 12 and make it a fucking nightmare for me to find Lilim and Anzu).
: “We shall again in the near future.”
: Next time, we’ll have a series of long cutscenes with Futaba followed by confidant events at night… for the foreseeable future.
In most cases, no. Combat is usually over before it starts, even assuming you’re not grinding for 100%, and bosses are easy enough without them. The only time they’re really good is much later in the game when you have third and fourth-tier spells that are going to get the most benefit out of being buffed and you have Debilitate and Heat Riser to instantly debuff the enemy and buff your party.
Click Here for Update 54
: It’s the first update of the Okumura arc. We’re going to be seeing a lot of the same pattern: a long cutscene during the day and confidant event at night.
: The approval bar grows to 60% overnight.
: “Makoto and Yusuke are scheduled for today, huh? I haven’t seen them… what happened to them?”
: “Looks like we’re meeting up immediately over at Futaba’s. Makoto’s really going about this seriously…”
: “Such avant-garde design. You have excellent taste.”
: “…Mwehehe.”
: “L-Let’s get started, shall we?”
: “What do you plan on doing?”
: “I’d like to simply have a normal conversation. That is the basis of true communication, after all.”
: “I thought it would be best to start off just by learning some more about each other. Don’t think too hard about our conversation. We’re just going to talk about ordinary topics today.”
: “And what do you mean by ordinary topics?”
: She’s going to attempt to bore Futaba into submission.
: “You know, things like food or the weather. Well then, let’s begin with food. What do you like to eat, Futaba?”
: “Organic ones.”
: I don’t know if they intended for her answer to not make sense, or if this is just a bad localization.
: “Um, that wasn’t exactly what I meant…”
: “…”
: “L-Let’s try a different topic! How about the weather? I heard that this heat wave is showing no sign of stopping…”
: “Dunno. I haven’t been out.”
: I love this scene because it’s nothing but Makoto getting owned. If there were more scenes like this I might like Makoto as a character more.
: “O-oh, right…”
: “Makoto’s getting overwhelmed…”
: Joker: “Ordinarily I would not approve, but this is a bootleg because Blue is missing. Also, Black and Red are missing the little magnets that stop Pink from getting near them.”
: I think whoever did this part genuinely forgot that it originated from Innocent Sin. The only place where a green Featherman exists is in the costume set in Persona 4 because they needed one for Chie.
: Oh, right. The pose Yusuke puts the figures in is the Ginyu Force pose from Dragonball Z.
: The worst part is that I have a Joker Figma I could take out of its box and put his head on say, the Link Figma I have, but that would require effort.
: “They appear to be quite shoddily made.”
: “They’re from ‘Phoenix Rangers Neo Featherman’ !”
: “No… Yellow and Pink’s heads… and Red’s been hacked to bits… this is all Inari’s fault…”
: “Inari?”
: “You know, inari sushi? The tofu things foxes eat in the old stories? What kind of Fox doesn’t know that?”
: “Inari…”
: “Rghhh, they were in the perfect poses too! It was so much work getting them set up just right! You wouldn’t know aesthetics if it hit you in the face, Inari!”
: “Yeah…”
: “Mm-hm. Victory is great for action, and Neo’s got the best transforming suit. So cool.”
: “Fascinating. Art depicts a flash of inspiration, but models offer a much different means of enjoyment.”
: “Huh? take a look at that - Futaba’s having a regular conversation.”
: “It seems she doesn’t have a problem talking to others as long as the subject interests her. I suppose the topics I brought up were not the right ones.”
: “So this is all I gotta do? What a breeze!”
: “In that case, we should advance to the next step. How about we have her spend time in someone else’s room?”
: “Yes. She hasn’t had many chances to leave the house yet, so that would be the perfect opportunity.”
: “Don’t set the bar so high!”
: I like to think she’s saying that sarcastically, because as far as I understand it, Futaba was pretty functional (if not a little strange) up until her mother’s death.
: “Rrrggh… I can’t stand this gung-ho way of doing things…”
: “I’ve left tomorrow to Ann and Ryuji. Akira will be there as well, so you’ll be okay.”
: “Can I wear my mask?”
: Futaba was probably one of those people who really enjoyed the covid masking mandate.
: “I-I think it would be best if you didn’t…”
: Makoto is like the people across the street who were wearing masks while mowing their lawn.
: “There’s really no telling how tomorrow’s going to go…”
: “Lady Ann and Ryuji teaming up honesty worries me… but I guess we’ll see what they can do.”
: I took a look at what Iwai’s new part selection is like, since we have to do his confidant tonight. They’re… not what I was hoping for. Shock is honestly the worst status effect since it only opens up the enemy to Physical and Nuclear… but hitting a shocked enemy with a physical attack transfers the shock to you instead. It sucks.
: “You’ll be on your own though. I gotta take care of some other business. The guy you’re lookin’ for is homeless, but he knows what’s up. He’ll be somewhere in Shibuya.”
: “Get info on the ‘rumor about the underground deal,’ and don’t act all suspicious. I gotta take care of some other business, so I’m countin’ on ya, kid.”
: Joker’s like “Are you going to tell me that the burger place sells weapons because I already tried asking and they don’t.”
: Roughly $915,000 at current conversion rates.
: “It’s nice to hear that comin’ from you, Tsuda-san.”
: “Welcome.”
: “Depends on how quick the parts come in. Some stuff’s prolly gonna have to go through customs. How long things get stuck there’s totally outta my control though…”
: “…That’s right.”
: “Tsuda-san, please…”
: I mean, if he didn’t know now, he’d find out in a couple of years when he has to get background checks done for work.
: “Fine… I’ll put a rush on your order. Happy now?”
: “Yeah. sigh Sorry you had to see that. Anyways, how’d it go today? You learn about anything good?”
: “Huh. So someone made a big deal with the Hong Kong mafia worth 100 million yen… and it happened sometime ‘round New Years… wouldn’t surprise me if Tsuda had somethin’ to do with it.”
: “I hear he’s been braggin’ all over about a big score he made right near the start of the year. I’ve gotta do some more research into it myself…”
: “Anyways, nice job. I’m gonna be able to give Tsuda a real scare thanks to the info you gave me!”
: The uh, info that you apparently already knew?
: chuckle “Anyone ever told you how demandin’ you are? But uh… another time, yeah? Man, I can’t wait to see the look on Tsuda’s face. It’s been ages since I’ve felt this excited.”
: “And it’s all 'cause of you, kid. Turns out you’re pretty useful.”
: “Well, I’m gonna head home early and spend some good ol’ quality time with Kaoru to celebrate. Damn fine job again, kid. Get on outta here. I’ll see ya next time.”
: “You definitely got me some good intel. Honestly, I appreciate that… but now Tsuda knows your face. And that could be a real problem.”
: “You catch on fast. Thanks to that shit today, Tsuda knows we’re connected, at least. Which means that stunt we pulled with Masa ain’t gonna work on him.”
: “Well, what’s done is done. If one method isn’t gonna work, we just gotta find another. I’ll think about our next move. Until then, don’t do anything stupid.”
: “When I need help, I’ll get in touch. Hope you’ll be ready.”
: “There’re no customers.”
: “So many snacks… what exactly do you plan on doing!?”
: “Well, summer vacation’s the time when you lounge around in your room all day.”
: “Yeah, and eating snacks is the best part of that!”
: “You’re gonna get fat, y’know.”
: “Shut it!”
: “Hey, where’s Futaba?”
: “Wh-whoa! Shit freaked me out… that you, Futaba?”
: They’re really going to get as much mileage out of that mask as possible.
: “Anyway, bring it!”
: “Sheesh. Look like today’s going to be another noisy day…”
: “Uh, it’s you we’re talking about here. There’s no way you were ever a chick magnet.”
: “What was that?”
: “Agreed. As a member of the opposite sex, I sense no charm from you, Ryuji.”
: I feel like Futaba really doesn’t count because I feel like she’s firmly in the “buttered shark fins” camp. She’s probably going to try marrying someone over emacs.
: “Plus, popular guys wouldn’t go bragging about that stuff to other people.”
: “…Hey, are you even listening!?”
: “There’s no point talkin’ about wedding dresses right now. None of us have significant others.”
: I remind you that it’s entirely possible (and in fact is happening behind the scenes) that Joker and Ann can already be dating at this point.
: “Yep. I’m not getting married anytime soon.”
: This scene is a lot like the way someone on 4chan’s anime board once described Lucky Star: “It’s an anime about a bunch of girls who run out of things to talk about and the only thing left to talk about is food.”
: “Yeah, she doesn’t have any trouble speaking her mind. Seems totally normal to me.”
: You know what this really needs? Someone saying Makoto is wrong.
: “I dunno what normal is… but if this is it, I’m happy.”
: “I totally thought you were gonna be some weirdo, but I guess all that worryin’ was for nothing.”
: “Mm-hm, I’m relieved too. I think things should keep going smoothly at this rate. By the way, what’s on the agenda for tomorrow?”
: “How about we have her try helping around the cafe?”
: “That’s perfect! It’ll be good practice to have her up in front of strangers.”
: I think what I dislike about these Futaba cutscenes (and something else we’ll see much later with another character) is that this game kind of has an open disdain for people who aren’t super extroverts.
: “You don’t have to deal with customers if you don’t want to. Maybe you could dry plates in the back?”
: “Hrgh… nrghhh…”
: “…I’d be mad if you weren’t.”
: “Then it’s all set. We’ll be rootin’ for you, Futaba!”
: Why is she surprised to hear that? Ann already told her about it!
: “You better make an effort tomorrow, Akira!”
: Tonight, we have Hifumi’s unique non-rankup event.
: “I’d like to teach you shogi at different locations from time to time, to change up the mood. Somewhere outside, without too many people… there may not be many such places.”
: “I see… that’s an excellent idea. I know it’s sudden, but I’d like you to take me there. I might be able to think of a good move.”
: “The scenery, the sounds, the smells… I’ll be able to utilize all five of my senses… perhaps I’ll even come up with some new ideas.”
: “Yes, a different sensibility than usual awakens. It helps one come up with new moves. I’ve opened up new opportunities through shogi.”
: Isn’t that kinda borderline Forrest Gump? I mean, that’s half a step away from “Life is like a box of chocolates”.
: “I wonder what kind of person you will become… just imagining all the possibilities is fun. giggle I’m starting to get the feeling that a new move will come to me.”
: “Well then, now that we feel refreshed… let us play, fair and square!”
: “But I’ve never had her do anything like that before. Is she gonna be okay?”
: “Futaba?”
: “D-don’t worry. I did graduate middle school last year… I-I’ll be fine if I just think of this as my first summer job of high school!”
: “Well in that case… how about you wash the dishes? Just don’t push yourself too hard, okay?”
: “Hey, are you all right?”
: So, uh… I just found something out in the middle of working on this update that might be kind of a kick in the dick. I’ll talk about that at the end of the update. It’s going to need a vote.
: “Sure thing. …Keep an eye on Futaba for me.”
: “Oui, oui! Heheh…”
: Damn this guy’s a creep, especially given that Futaba is 15.
: “Sorry, we’re serving a blend today. Hey, snap out of it. Hurry up and bring him the coffee before it gets cold.”
: “When in the world did she… Hey, Futaba. Haven’t I told you not to show up in front of people with that damn thing on? And be more polite when you’re bringing something to a customer.”
: “But it, um, protects me from the steam!”
: “To think Futaba’d go out and talk to a customer herself… mask aside, I’m impressed. Looks like people really can change.”
: “Futaba’s been working really hard. And then there’s Ryuji. It’s like he doesn’t have a care in the world… he’s gonna get in trouble somewhere down the line if he keeps this up…”
: We have another crossword puzzle available tonight. I was going to skip doing these since there’s no point anymore, but the devs put in enough of these that you can keep doing new ones up until the end of the game, so we might as well.
: I really wish they had done something like give you EXP for doing optional stat boosters like this once your stats are already maxed.
: Before we do anything else, we need to visit Chihaya for both a luck reading (kindness) and an affinity reading with Iwai.
: For the first time in several months, we’re doing Sojiro’s confidant.
: “These beans are Colombian, a medium-fine city roast. Oh, and don’t let the water boil too much. …You’re gonna be fine. I’ll be here the whole time.”
: “…Not bad. Though I guess anyone can do something as simple as just brewing it. Making a blend, on the other hand, is a different story. Mixing beans at random won’t do you any good.”
: “That’s because the acidity and the flavor profile all depend on the bean ratio. Pretty deep, huh?”
: “Bean ratio” sounds like a term someone would use to describe a cryptocurrency. “Yes, you see, our new coin is indexed to the MSCI Global Bean Ratio and can be exchanged at any time for physical beans in case of the collapse of the global financial system.”
: “Oh, somebody’s enthusiastic. If you’re really that interested, feel free to try out whatever combinations you want to. …Oh, but hands off the expensive beans, got it?”
: Why does he even carry expensive beans when, as far as we’ve seen at least, he gets maybe two customers a day?
: “Next up is the curry. There’s something special about its flavor. The truth is, a scientific genius actually came up with the perfect spice combo to complement my curry.”
: Wakaba Issihiki was actually killed by Big Curry to stop her from publicizing the recipe.
: “Something about the quantification of taste… there’s no formula for flavor, but it IS pretty damn good. Anyhow, we don’t make compromises when it comes to food service. Our stuff’s gotta wow the customers.”
: “This is a tiny shop, after all. Self-satisfaction is the only thing that keeps me going.”
: “Haven’t I already told you I don’t have the money? Look at this place. You see many customers in here?”
: “If you’re not planning on buying anything, can you please leave? I’m expecting a phone call, so I don’t have time to chat with you.”
: “Well…”
: Thanks to the yakuza, Joker knows exactly what to do.
: “Oh, there’s that social services call I was waiting for. They come 'round pretty often to make sure this guy’s not getting in any trouble. Want me to introduce you?”
: “Does he really have nothing better to do…? sigh I guess I should explain what’s going on. He might try and drop by when I’m not around.”
: “…That man is an old acquaintance of mine who’s short on cash right now. Looks pretty friendly, yeah? Don’t let him fool you - it’s all an act.”
: “I have to say though… I’m surprised you were quick-witted enough to pull that stunt off. You really saved me back there. Thanks.”
: “Still… why do you poke around into other people’s troubles? It’s way easier to just ignore them. I guess that’s just the kinda person you are though, huh…”
: Are they going to use the exact same plot framing for Sojiro that they did for Kawakami? You bet they are, because Hashino is creatively bankrupt.
: “Oh, uh… never mind that. Anyway, that’s it for today. Go… study or something after you close up.”
: “Sorry about today. Didn’t mean to get you wrapped up in my problems. I probably don’t have to say it, but if that guy shows up while I’m out, just try to ignore him, okay?”
: “Just let him do his thing, and get on with the job. Got it?”
: “Good. Whatever he says, just don’t let it get to you. You’re still under probation, so don’t cause a scene, yeah? All right, I’m trusting you on this. Later.”
: I’m going to cut the update here. We’ve got three more days before a VERY long cutscene and this way it’s evened out. Next time, we’ll work at the bar, max out another social stat, have an uncomfortable cutscene, and then realize that Akechi is just a badly-written clone of Reiji Kido because Hashino is to creative writing what Kenneth Lay is to corporate governance.
While working on the update that I accidentally posted early, I found out that there’s a minor kick in the dick in this game. It’s going to require a vote, so I’m going to put it up now so I have plenty of time before the next recording.
Persona 5 Royal adds a feature called “Network Fusion”, which is accessible… soon. Network Fusion is the only way to get a number of very powerful skills, notably Almighty Boost and Almighty Amp. Unfortunately, as you can probably tell from the name, it requires you to be connected to the network to use. Connecting to the network requires that you have a fully updated PS4 and a fully updated copy of Royal.
The way Network Fusion works is that it fuses a Persona you upload to the network with a Persona someone else has already uploaded. This means you can potentially get a Persona with Victory Cry on it - Victory Cry is an upgraded version of Life Aid that restores all SP and HP at the end of a battle that is normally locked to a Persona not obtainable until New Game +.
Now, here’s the thing. While I refuse to update my PS4, I could - as far as I understand it - upload my save from my PS4 to my PS5. Doing so is a one-way trip: once it’s on the PS5, it can’t be ported backward unless you have a PS+ account and use the cloud (which would require updating my PS4 and that’s not happening).
If I do this, we would be able to not only access Network Fusion, but also the DLC. As it turns out, the “you have to re-buy DLC” bit was exclusive to Japan: in the US version, all of the DLC from the base game is free. This includes most of the cosmetic DLCs (basically, everyone but Kasumi gets them) as well as some very powerful DLC Personas. Let me make the case for and the case against doing this.
The Case For:
-
If we choose to migrate, we would get access to all the cosmetic DLC and I could show that off.
-
The LP would still largely be console-accurate to a PS4 Pro with an installed SSD. For reference, I am running an original (fat) PS4 with a stock HDD.
-
I could use Network Fusion to make something with Megidolaon and the related boost/amp and destroy the rest of the game so hard we’d see the seams.
-
The free DLC Personas aren’t really that overpowered, and I would refuse to buy the paid ones.
-
I could (in theory) make a strategy that doesn’t involve any DLC Personas or Network Fusion for preservation purposes.
-
I could immediately turn Joker into Jihei or Tatsuya.
The Case Against:
-
Sony or Atlus (or a combination of both) could shut down the servers for Royal at any point, a point that’s become increasingly prescient with Sony’s planned shutdown of the PSP’s online service (and the since-cancelled shutdowns of the PS3 and Vita). That means that someone reading this LP and using it for strategy in 10 years might not be able to do the same thing, especially if I’m relying on Network Fusion as my strategy.
-
The LP would no longer be hardware-accurate to a non-Pro PS4. This means that it could potentially change things like how much I can grind or where I grind because of the reduced load screens and faster room transitions. This is a bad thing because I want to ensure that my overall strategy works regardless of how you’re playing Royal.
-
The game could potentially get “too easy” to the point where I’d be solving combat the way I did in Persona 1 - by spamming Megidolaon at everything. This could cause changes in how I commentate the dungeons that wouldn’t happen if I didn’t have an overpowered build.
-
Even if Sony doesn’t shut down the servers, people in the future playing on a theoretical PS4 emulator or a hacked PS4 (when actual custom firmware or a hack that doesn’t require loading the web browser each time you boot the console is implemented) will not be able to connect to the servers, and thus any strategies involving Network Fusion would not be doable.
-
We would probably never see Joker’s normal clothes again. Or anyone else’s, for that matter.
-
I’m not sure if there’s any tech issues with the PS5 version that could cause me to need to take screenshots in a different resolution.
The Vote
Let me explain your choices here. Please read these carefully before voting, as many of them look similar but are significantly different.
Option 1 - No Holds Barred
Under Option 1, the game is migrated to the Playstation 5. All free DLC is allowed. Network Fusion is allowed.
Option 2 - Costumes and Network Fusion
Under Option 2, the game is migrated to the Playstation 5. Costume DLC is allowed, Personas are not. Network Fusion is allowed.
Option 3 - Network Fusion Barred
Under Option 3, the game is migrated to the Playstation 5. All free DLC is allowed, but Network Fusion is not.
Option 4 - Costumes Only
Under Option 4, the game is migrated to the Playstation 5. Costume DLC is allowed, Personas are not. Network Fusion is not allowed.
Option 5 - No Migration
Under Option 5, the game is not migrated to the Playstation 5. No DLC will be used, and by extension, Network Fusion will not be either.
Option 6 - Hacked PS3
Under Option 6, the game is not migrated to the Playstation 5. Instead, a blatantly cheated clear save is used on my hacked PS3 to show off the costumes from the base game, which are the same ones that are free for Royal. This would require me rushing through the game to September.
With that, please cast your vote.
- Option 1 - No Holds Barred
- Option 2 - Costumes and Network Fusion
- Option 3 - Network Fusion Barred, DLC Allowed
- Option 4 - Costumes Only
- Option 5 - No Migration
- Option 6 - Hacked PS3 Save
0 voters
Click Here For Update 55
: In case you haven’t voted on whether to migrate the LP to the PS5, please do so. It’s the post right above this one, assuming no one has commented.
: “Huh? Do we not have anything planned?”
: “Just what are they scheming?”
: I don’t. There are still accounts on Twitter LARPing as the Phantom Thieves. If I had to be in a Persona game, I’d probably pick Persona 1. I’m pretty sure everyone survives that except Yamaoka.
: “Hrmm… I dunno. I can’t really tell.”
: “People cannot change their deep-seated habits that easily.”
: “Well, let’s just say you made some progress for now.”
: Look at that smile on Futaba’s face. No seriously, it’s kinda creepy.
: “Man, those girls’re late. Who do they think they are, makin’ us wait like this?”
: “Hello.”
: “Please excuse us.”
: “Looking? Looking at what?”
: “A swimsuit, of course. For Futaba-chan.”
: “A-A s-s-swimsuit?”
: Ssswimsuits, for sssnakes.
: “You don’t have one, do you?”
: “No, but…”
: Oh, right. Speaking of Futaba… remember a couple of updates ago when Makoto asks Futaba what food she likes and Futaba just replies “Organic.” before going on to eat a bowl of instant noodles?
: As it turns out, the answer she gives in Japanese is a little more nuanced than that.
: “Okay. Let’s have you try it on right now then.”
: “N-N-N-Now!?”
: “We don’t have much time left, you know.”
: “Uh, but… ummm… uhhhh!”
: “I know, right? …There we go. It’s on.”
: “What the-!? This barely covers anything!”
: Why is Joker even here? Like, why does anyone have to be here other than to force me to waste a time slot?
: “That’s normal for a swimsuit. Now, we just need to push these a little more this way…”
: “Gyah!”
: “Push…?”
: “Are you supposed to move them with that much force?”
: “You gotta put some oomph into this stuff… there! Good to go!”
: “Whoa, even I’m impressed!”
: Oh, it’s one of those pointless “somebody is horny” scenes. Anyway, everything after this line isn’t canon.
: “Futaba in a swimsuit, hm…? I suspect that would make a great painting. Perhaps we should ask Makoto about it?”
: I don’t really understand how people are horny for Futaba. I just don’t. There is a sizeable horny fanbase for her, and it just doesn’t make sense - you’ll see once we do her confidant.
: “ME!?”
: “I humbly request you do so as well.”
: “Hell no!”
: “You guys are such children.”
: “What’s with all the ruckus upstairs? Something about a swimsuit?”
: Wait… they’re upstairs? When I recorded this I thought they were in the bathroom. Joker’s room has a window that looks out onto the street and doesn’t have a curtain.
: “Yeah, we’re goin’ to the beach pretty soon so they’re tryin’ some swimsuits out.”
: Joker: “People are being horny in my room and I’m going to need to fumigate it again.”
: “Futaba’s going to the beach… I didn’t think I’d ever see her take that much interest in going outside again…”
: “All flattery aside, I think it looks really great! Now you just gotta get rid of those round shoulders. Come on, straighten out your back.”
: “R-right…”
: “She might be some trouble, but I hope she can make some great memories with you guys.”
: “The chief had such high expectations of us. We need to work harder to help Futaba make some good memories.”
: Tonight, we need to work at the bar. Doing this twice gets you the information for a Mementos request.
: Working at the bar gets you Kindness, and ordinarily we’d go right for Chihaya first - except it’s raining, and that means no Chihaya.
: The second Joker tries to ask this, Yusuke slams the door open and goes “YES!”
: …Did Morgana just casually drop that he’s bisexual? I mean, I know he probably didn’t because Hashino, but still. I didn’t even remember this from my base game run.
: Maybe I need to call Salty Vanilla again. (Edit: I called Salty Vanilla again.)
: “I was hoping that we’d get some more information about our target here… but I guess it’s not that easy. Let’s stop by here a few more times…”
: “Let’s see… wanna eat together? Y’know, like how we had hot pot that one time.”
: “That may be a good idea. It’ll be a great way to strengthen our intrasquad friendships.”
: “I-I can do that!”
: “Okay, I’ll take a cola and an omelette with rice. Oh, and make that a large please.”
: I get why they localized “omurice”, but it’s not like most people couldn’t figure out what that is given that it’s a portmanteau of two words that exist in English.
: “I’d like the same.”
: “Of course I can. There is no doubt in my mind.”
: “Dude, you’re missin’ the point here. We’re supposed to be helpin’ Futaba, not stuffin’ our faces.”
: “I want the same. Extra large.”
: “Damn, Futaba! I’m impressed!”
: “Indeed, your appetite is quite nice to see. I much prefer that to women who don’t eat a lot.”
: “…You’d better not be hitting on me.”
: “How rude!”
: “Will you stop that!?”
: “So does this mean… her training’s goin’ good?”
: “Let’s go with that then…”
: “Hey, let me make you guys some after-meal coffee. It’s on me.”
: “Thank you.”
: “I want iced cocoa!”
: I had no idea that was a thing until now. I’d go make some, except I think the fridge’s ice maker is still broken.
: “You can’t handle bitter stuff either, right? Iced cocoa sound good?”
: “Yeah, definitely! Extra cold, please!”
: “Looks like we know when we’ll actually finish up now. The beach is finally within reach!”
: We’re going to see Hifumi again tonight. If you’re wondering why we’re seemingly rushing through her confidant, it’s because she’s probably the second-most available night confidant (after Kawakami).
: “The battlefield is mine… the Ultimate Togo Kingdom is complete.”
: “But to think you could stay standing after being struck by my Silver Infinity Sword… you’ve improved, considering that you endured the Climbing Silver so early in the match.”
: Joker: “I think we both know the Silver Infinity Sword is going to be on the 2017 banlist.”
: “The determination I’m sensing from you is a real inspiration. I must think of a new move… I’m afraid you’ll surpass me one day, if I don’t stay sharp.”
: “The exhibition match against the pro my mother was talking about has been confirmed. He’s a very famous shogi player… I’m aiming to be the first woman to reach the pro rank league.”
: “I’m sure it will draw a lot of attention, especially after that article… however, I don’t intend to lose. This is my chance to display my true skills… I confess I am a bit scared, though.”
: “You’re right. However, that also means I have a chance of winning, even though my opponent is ranked higher.”
: She’s got a 33.3% chance of winning until you add Kurt Angle to the mix.
: “To be honest, I’m not sure how well my skills will hold up against a true professional.”
: Morgana: “Why don’t we just make Joker into an idol instead? He’d look great in a dress!”
: “…Thank you. So, um… there’s a move I want to try out. Would you like to play another match…?”
: “Thank you very much. Strategically place your pieces in the enemy’s zone to increase your chances of going gold. Be sure to use that tactic in your next match. For today, try and steal the pieces you want from me.”
: Narikin is going to change how we pull off the Greatest Weapon. Instead of continually looping battles and then applying the bonus from Chihaya, the process looks like this:
: First, you get an ambush and knock everything down. You negotiate, ask for money, ask for money again (the first time is a near-guaranteed success) and then immediately end with an All-Out.
: I believe the bonus from Narikin stacks with the bonus from Chihaya, so you’re getting something like three to four times the money… and even more in Mementos where you have the bonus from Jose.
: “Well then, let’s begin the match. I hereby place this golden mantle upon your shoulders. Don it with pride…”
: “Hey, are you there? Sorry, but I need your help with the dishes.”
: “Help with the disheees!”
: “Is Futaba here, too? That means we’re not only helping out at the cafe, but we’re also babysitting Futaba today too… well, the faster we get started, the faster we finish!”
: Today is actually another one of those days where it was an Akechi confidant day in the base game… and they left it in because popularity polls.
: “Orange juice. 100% natural.”
: “That reminds me, you’re going to the beach tomorrow, yeah? Go have fun, and make up for the fireworks. Just try not to cut loose too much.”
: “Fireworks?”
: “Oh yeah, you wouldn’t know. He tried to go to a firework festival, but it got rained out. Not only did he get crushed in the crowd, but he came home looking like some kinda drowned rat.”
: “Fireworks, huh…”
: Today’s the day we learn one of the two reasons that I despise Akechi.
: “Oh… welcome.”
: “Oh! You’re…”
: “Huh? You know each other? Wait, aren’t you…”
: “I’m Akechi.”
: “Oh yeah, the one on TV and stuff. So what brings you here, Mr. Detective?”
: “This place is more than I imagined it to be. The atmosphere is wonderful. No wonder Sae-san recommended it so strongly to me.”
: There’s an awkward line they forgot to fix.
: “Oh no, that’s not my intention. I just came to enjoy some coffee.”
: “Oh…”
: “And she is…? Oh, you must be Wakaba Isshiki’s…”
: “What’ll it be?”
: “I’ll have whatever you recommend.”
: There’s no points here, so I can dunk on Akechi all I want.
: “…Did I bother you? My apologies.”
: If you’ve read the Persona 1 LP, you’re probably going “Wait a second, this seems familiar…” and it is, because this is almost exactly the same backstory Reiji had. The only difference is that Reiji’s mother is alive.
: Now, I’ll admit that Reiji didn’t really have much of a personality in Persona 1 apart from “Kandori ruined my life and now I want him dead” but I think Satomi Tadashi realized that.
: I might be a little cynical here, but I feel like Hashino realized that Akechi has no personality either (apart from “I hate those Phantom Thieves!”) and tried to pave it over by making him a bishounen type.
: “Ah, yes. Medjed… to think they’d be taken own by another hacker. I’m not sure whether Medjed was defeated by the Phantom Thieves themselves or an avid supporter…”
: “Um, you’re… Futaba-chan, right? Sae-san told me about you. Many kids your age seem to be fans of the Phantom Thieves… do you like them too?”
: He says this, and he’s two years older than she is.
: “What’s the matter?”
: “…You’re popular too, Ace Detective Akechi.”
: “Thank you. Although I’d rather not be compared to people like the Phantom Thieves, if at all possible.”
: “I would never have thought you’d be boarding at this cafe… we seem to share some kind of bond.”
: “Oh, that’s a shame. I believe that fate brings people together. It’s strange, but talking to you is thought-provoking.”
: “Can we? I bought some.”
: “I went by myself. I just ran into Mona on the way back.”
: “I was worried, so I decided to follow her. She was able to buy everything on her own though. If she can do that, she should be good to go. Plus she did a great job dodging that ace detective.”
: “C’mon, don’t get the smoke on me!”
: Why doesn’t he just move?
: “Will you listen to - cough”
: “Hey… the cat doesn’t like the smoke! Keep the flames away from him.”
: “Daaaaang! I made a huge one! Sojiro, look! Look!”
: “R-right. Just be careful, okay? Memories of summer, huh…”
: “Make sure you keep an eye on her. It’s tough enough going solo, let alone watching over someone else. Still, going to enjoy the beach… we can finally have a good time!”
: We need to go to Chihaya for a kindness reading. She also has some new dialog I missed, so I had to get it on the readback.
: Next is our usual Sunday ritual. This is the last time we’ll ever have to grip and sip. The guide has us do it one more time next month for some unknown reason, because even if we were on schedule we’d have no use for it as it’s knowledge points.
: There’s only something like two playable Sundays between now and when we max out Kindness, so even if I did it every time it wouldn’t rotate back to Kindness in time to be useful.
: We then feed the plant. This is the second to last time we’ll need to do it.
: We’ll end the update by working at the bar again.
: On Sundays, working at the bar raises Kindness and one other social stat depending on who you talk to. In this case, we’re going for Guts.
: And with that, we’ve maxed out Guts. We now have the stats necessary to complete all the confidants except for Sojiro’s - we’ll need Kindness maxed for that.
: “Hey, did you hear that? Isn’t that the same guy Mishima mentioned before?”
: That reminds me of one of the dumbest D&D supplements ever written.
: Lala pays the best of any job because of course she does. Next time, we’ll have Persona 5’s version of the camping scene in Persona 4, complete with the return of everyone’s least favorite offensively stereotypical gay couple. Seriously, I have more screenshots for the 29th than I do for either of the last two updates.
After thinking about it for a bit, I voted for No Holds Barred. Partly because there were 2 votes before me and I decided to be a tiebreaker, but also I don’t think this is the kind of LP are going to be relying on for strategy, even if it’s 100%.
I had a suspicion of who the other Metaverse user is by using Ebert’s Law of Economy of Characters. Then you said who it was on a stream lol.
Ryuji…please…there are so many things wrong with this sentence I don’t even know where to start. So I think I’ll just go with “The Phantom Thieves wear masks”.
Sometimes you need to look beyond what’s within and focus on appearances. Actually, I think that was the original tagline for P5 before they changed it to ‘You are a slave. Want emancipation?’
I’ve been a little puzzled why you dislike Akechi so much, not because I think he’s great but because I don’t feel like any of the P5 characters are particularly appealing. Then I caught part of one of your streams and heard his voice and gah it’s so bad.
“It’s YOUR TURN to wear the maid dress!”
Also I get their hearts are in the right place but it still hurts me a bit to see the gang immediately pushing Futaba into going to a crowded beach. Like… taking control away from someone who’s been isolating themselves and trying to rush them into something just has my skin crawling. But I guess it’s all okay because metaverse true companions bonded by their hearts yadda yadda.
Yeah, I apologize, I didn’t think anyone actually watched my streams. It doesn’t really matter if you know who the killer is anyway… but you might want to not watch my most recent recording because I think there I mention why I hate him.
The reason I dislike him is because of something that happens in the expansion content. In fact, I think I can explain without spoiling anything - the design for the expansion content in Royal was more or less based entirely on popularity polls, disregarding almost entirely whether or not any of those design decisions made sense or were consistent with the base game’s plot.
It probably would’ve been better had they stuck with Futaba’s original design. In the original designs, Futaba was a goth who was just antisocial rather than being traumatized. They got rid of it because Hashino saw it as “too cliche”. I’d almost say they should’ve done it and then had her mother be Yukino, but that would require Hashino to touch the Persona 1 plot and… no.
Click Here for Update 56
: I hope you’re all ready for an entire day that is just one big, long cutscene. It should be good preparation for September as a whole, because half of September is a filler arc.
: “Make sure you don’t let any dudes try to hit on her.”
: “Don’t do anything that’ll make you stand out, moron. Just act with your brains, okay?”
: “Hey, can we go already?”
: “Are you sure you’ll be all right?”
: “It’s just a day trip! Don’t underestimate me!”
: “R-Right… sorry. Guess I just have to let it go. Have fun, but be careful you two.”
: Wait… why is Yusuke drinking Gaia, which I can only assume is Chaos-brand water? Yusuke’s very clearly going to be neutral like his boyfriend.
: Joker’s just showing off for Yusuke. This entire cutscene is non-canon for the Gay Yusuke Route. I’ll let you know when it’s canon again.
: Of course there’s close-ups on Ann. What did you take this for, a game directed by someone who wasn’t forced out of his job?
: This is a direct reference to an intro from Lupin III Red Jacket, where Lupin does a dive in mid-air (losing his clothes in the process) into Fujiko’s bed only to have her kick him out.
: There’s almost no way Ann and Ryuji are not going to wind up in a love triangle with Shiho.
: I like to think that Joker and Yusuke have not actually ascended to the astral plane and this was just a fuckup by the anime studio.
: Of course Yusuke would wear a hoodie to the beach.
: “Why don’t we eat lunch too?”
: “I’ll go get some stuff for us then.”
: I like that they used the cut-ins for this because it makes it feel like a Phoenix Wright courtroom case. “Objection! You can’t just eat instant noodles all day every day!” “Take that! Yes I can! Watch me!”
: Yusuke looks like he’s trying out for a role in The World Ends With You.
: “What’s up Makoto? You ain’t eatin’ much.”
: “Oh, um…”
: “Not feelin’ well or somethin’?”
: “You just don’t get it, do you, Ryuji? When a girl’s in a swimsuit, she wants to look as slim as possible. Still, you’re worrying too much. Did you make sure to eat breakfast?”
: “Mona lacks tact.”
: “So, whadda we do now? Should we play some beach volleyball?”
: “Oh, sorry. Us girls already made plans to ride a banana boat.”
: “We could only rent a three-person one. Sorry.”
: “Wait… then what about us?”
: “Keep an eye on our stuff.”
: “Hell no! Why you gotta treat us like that!? We’re celebrities makin’ headlines! You should treat us better!”
: “B-But… Lady Ann…”
: “Can we get to the banana boat already?”
: “Oh, sorry. We’ll go now.”
: “We risk our lives bein’ the Phantom Thieves. There’s no way we’re the same as other guys around here. Shouldn’t we be havin’ more good times in reality too!?”
: “We’re special, man. Don’t you agree, Yusuke?”
: “Well… if you put it that way, you may be right.”
: “Ann and the others don’t get it 'cause they’re always around us.”
: “Hey, how do we get Lady Ann to notice how amazing we are as Phantom Thieves?”
: “Well, we gotta steal… you-know-what.”
: “Ann made fun of us and all. Let’s show her what we’re really made of.”
: “I see. I just need to prove my skills in reality as well…”
: “Let’s steal all the hearts with the skills we’ve honed as Phantom Thieves! I’m sure girls will be all over us, considering the vibes we give off!”
: “Very well, let’s do this. Pulling off our work in reality doesn’t sound bad.”
: “It’s settled then. So… Mona, you’re in charge of watching over our stuff, okay?”
: “Huh?”
: “All right, let’s hurry up and go.”
: This upcoming scene is definitely not canon, apart from its purpose as evidence that Hashino is creatively bankrupt.
: “I dunno… the ocean just looks bland to me…”
: “C’mon, it ain’t over yet! I’m goin’ for a miracle comeback!”
: “Hmm… did someone follow us here? Something tells me we’re being watched…”
: “Really? You think… one of those girls changed her mind?”
: And, of course, it’s our least favorite offensive stereotype. The dialog in this scene was also changed heavily from the base game.
: “What are YOU guys doin’ here!?”
: “I-I don’t think I felt what you guys were hopin’…”
: “By the way, where’s Yusuke?”
: This scene is now canon again.
: Yusuke has acquired lobster. I’m really disappointed there’s no DLC that changes his weapon to a pair of lobsters because that’d own.
: “Uh, what’re you doin’ with those lobsters?”
: “While you were busy with your interrogation, I found these beautiful specimens on sale. And so, I decided to spend the last of my money on them.”
: “Man, you’re real hopeless when it comes to cash… wait, you were watchin’ us!? Why didn’t you help!?”
: “Good for you…”
: “Are you even listening to us!?”
: “That’s what we’ve been saying from the start!”
: “It’s far more interesting than anything involving you two.”
: “Thanks for coming in like that. Those guys just wouldn’t stop pestering us.”
: “To be honest, I was nearly at my wits’ end.”
: “By the way, where are Futaba and Morgana?”
: “Ooooh! Are those lobsters? One in each hand!?”
: “I was wondering about that myself.”
: “Are you going to make them into sashimi? Or perhaps roast them whole!?”
: I wish I could gif properly because there’s this animation that plays of Futaba desperately trying to grab Yusuke’s lobsters and it actually works really well.
: Yusuke’s going to raise those lobsters until they’re big enough to be his Persona.
: “We did tons of stuff today. All in all, I guess comin’ to the beach was pretty worth it!”
: This is supposed to be Makoto spiking the ball, even though it looks like Ryuji is holding an oversized sword.
: “Agreed. Let’s pack up.”
: “Futaba seemed fine in the crowd too, so it looks like she’s overcome her last exercise.”
: “Hey, Futaba. We’re goin’ home. Stop standin’ around and help us.”
: “All this time, I thought that it was my fault that my mom died.”
: We, uh, kinda know that already.
: “Uh-huh…”
: “It’s because everyone said that I killed her. Everyone looked at me thinking I was a murderer. I ended up hating this world. That’s why I shut myself in and covered my ears.”
: “I wished… I wished my mom would come back to life. Sometimes, I’d wake up and think it was all a dream. But nothing had changed in the world.”
: “That’s why I’d sleep again. It’d be a repeat of that…”
: “Ah…”
: “How she’d work late into the night. How she’d wake up early and make me a boxed lunch every day. How she’d do her best to further her research. How she’d scold me for peeking at her notes.”
: “It was cognitive psience, wasn’t it?”
: " ‘The cognitive world can become distorted through desires. If it becomes distorted, a person begins exhibiting problematic behavior in reality. That cognitive world disappears when you remove its core, and further problematic actions stop.’ "
: “Isn’t that about Palaces?”
: “That’s the Metaverse! She knew about that?”
: “It made no sense back then, but now I understand, after it actually happened to me. All I thought about was my mom. I was trapped in a cognitive labyrinth.”
: “I couldn’t get out of it. There was nothing I could do by myself.”
: “That’s why you asked us to steal your heart? That’s a huge jump in logic in so many ways!”
: “At first, I didn’t believe the rumors about the Phantom Thieves… that they steal hearts. But I overheard you accidentally. I learned that you were near me.”
: “Overheard? Ah, the bug… so why were you listening in on Leblanc in the first place?”
: “Talk about an awful hobby…”
: Get used to this, because this is exactly what most of September is going to be like.
: “I thought, maybe the Phantom Thieves could cure my heart.”
: “You could’ve just told us from the start…”
: “You might’ve been wary of me if I asked out of nowhere. And besides, you could’ve been bad guys. That’s why I cautiously got in contact with you. I checked many times to see how you’d react.”
: “Yes, you had us twisted around your little finger.”
: “But, Futaba, you didn’t talk to anyone besides Boss for a long time, right? You must’ve needed a lot of courage to contact the Phantom Thieves.”
: “…There were two reasons for it. One was Medjed’s taunt. The Phantom Thieves were so pitiful, it frustrated me. I would’ve been in trouble if they got disbanded too…”
: “Indeed. You were our only hope.”
: “The other was what I heard through wiretapping Leblanc. Sojiro was being blamed with lies, like abusing me… he was being threatened to spill everything about my mom…”
: “Talk about makin’ shit up.”
: For the first time, Makoto thinks “Is my sister kind of a bitch?”
: “It made me sad, and it hurt. I thought, I have to save Sojiro. I gotta do something.”
: “So that’s why…”
: “But the Phantom Thieves… I didn’t think you guys would be taking such risks for me. I didn’t think you’d worry about me so much. I’m sorry I acted like I doubted you guys.”
: “Do you believe in us now?”
: If the poll’s right, 60% of her believes in John Persona.
: “Yeah, I can tell. You aren’t bad guys. That’s why I have a request. Let me join your team.”
: “There’s nothin’ to join. You’re already one of us.”
: “I’ll be honest. Changing people’s hearts isn’t my goal. I want to learn what happened to my mom… the reason why she was killed.”
: “Killed?”
: I wish all the people who played Persona 5 as their first one would play Innocent Sin.
: “Is this about mental shutdowns?”
: “Then, the criminal that Kaneshiro mentioned…”
: “Yes, that could be the case. I don’t like pursuing this line of thought, but perhaps your mother’s Shadow was…”
: “I don’t know for sure… but, right before my mom died, she didn’t seem right.”
: “In what way?”
: A minor spoiler, but we’ll see someone have a mental shutdown fairly soon, and it’s really obvious to everyone looking what’s going on.
: “No matter how much I talked to her, she wouldn’t answer back. And she didn’t jump into the road. It was more like she collapsed and fell in… that’s why I thought what was written in the notes was real and looked into it.”
: “I read books, checked theses that were released online… I even snuck into the networks of various research labs to look at their classified data.”
: “That’s why you’re good at hacking… what kind of brain do you have?”
: “But, I didn’t figure anything out. My mom’s research was nowhere to be found. She was killed by someone, and her research was treated like it never existed.”
: “I bet it’s them… those adults in the black suits who read the fake suicide note. I’ll never forgive them.”
: We know all this already!
: “Futaba…”
: “If I stay with you guys, I think I can find out more about that world. Then eventually, it might even lead to those men in black.”
: “It’s a super-personal reason why I wanna join you… is that okay? Or would I just be dead weight?”
: “Well, she was more useful than you, as a matter of fact.”
: “Hey, that’s inexcusable!”
: “This is what our Phantom Thieves are like, but I hope we get along, Futaba.”
: “Thanks.”
: “Let’s leave those two be… why don’t we lose no time and decide on Futaba’s code name?”
: “What’s that?”
: “It’s not cool if we called each other by our real names.”
: “Joker, Skull, Mona, Panther, Queen… and I’m Fox.”
: “In Futaba’s case… ‘hacker’ wouldn’t be right, would it?”
: “Mech?”
: “PC?”
: Yusuke actually says “Paso-Kon” rather than the English “PC”.
: “No.”
: “Haha, in your face!”
: “Do you have any good ideas for Futaba’s code name?”
: I can’t remember if I’ve mentioned this or not, but Futaba is the only party member to have a different code name in English. In Japanese, her codename is “Navi” (which is a standard Japanese abbreviation for the English word “Navigator”).
: The localization chooses “Oracle” instead. I will be replacing it with the Japanese codename any time it comes up in dialog. The reason for this is that in several places (I believe it happened on Futaba’s stat screen in the base game and I know it happens in Strikers) they left the “Navi” name in on some of the graphics. The replacement was lazy and kind of unnecessary.
: “I’ll curse you.”
: “What would you want it to be, Futaba?”
: “Hm… ‘Navi’. With my vision, I’ll guide you all to victory.”
: “Sounds great.”
: “Then, Futaba’ll be Navi.”
: “But man, I never dreamed that the rumored Phantom Thieves would be so close!”
: “Same goes to you. To think you’d be the daughter of a Metaverse researcher… talk about a mysterious fate.”
: “Should we get going then?”
: Well, looks like someone’s about to die.
: It’s still kind of strange to me that they’re basing most of this game’s plot on a single scene from Innocent Sin that’s entirely possible to skip.
: “Dammit, Ryuji! You always find the worst possible things to say!”
: There’s also a missable photo you can get over Joker’s IM.
: Before we move on, there’s one thing I want to show off in the Thieves Den because it’s kinda funny.
: You can run around as Futaba, and she runs like Sonic. Futaba doesn’t have a run animation because she’s never seen in battle, but I can imagine her just off-camera running like Sonic at all times.
: I’ll leave it up to the reader to determine what species her Sonic OC is, because we all know she has one.
: I hope you’re ready for a confidant event that is not going to make a lot of sense.
: “You brought me some news, right? Sorry, but let’s go somewhere else. You can give me the info later. We gotta get outta here quickly. Someone problematic might’ve found out about us…”
: “This is really annoying… where is that idiot!? Crap… hide!”
: “Ch-Chief? What are you doing here?”
: “N-no, not at all! Ohhh, it looks like my battery ran out. I’ve been busy covering the Phantom Thieves, so…”
: “Th-that’s ridiculous… I’ve been hot on their trail lately. Who told them that…?”
: Couple of things I don’t get here. First, isn’t she off the clock by this point? I think she mentioned it during one of her other confidant events.
: Second, why isn’t she going “Oh, I’m here interviewing for a Phantom Thieves piece” which is actually what she’s doing. She wouldn’t even be lying.
: “I’m honestly not. I just…”
: This is like being asked what you’re doing at work and replying with “Oh, I’m just running a meth lab in my spare time. Don’t worry, there haven’t been any explosions… yet.”
: “Yup. That’s why I’m being so discreet about it. Who knows what laws we might be breaking. I guess keeping our tryst a secret is tougher than I expected. Maybe someone saw us out somewhere.”
: “So what, you decide I’m lying and that’s that?”
: “W-wait… we’re totally dating, aren’t we, sweetie?”
: This is like going from “Yeah so I’m running a meth lab” to pulling out your phone showing a live feed of the meth lab and then as soon as you do the entire thing goes up in flames and explodes.
: “See!? Oh and he’s the one who asked me out, so don’t go thinking I’m some kind of cradle robber.”
: “Now see, what I didn’t tell you is WHY I made the meth lab and the reason is because of a hallucination I had while taking the mushrooms I’m growing under my shed.”
: “H-Hey, that’s sexual harassment! And besides, our love is something that defies both age and logic!”
: “Of course. So… can we go now?”
: “Huh…!?”
: “Arrogant bastard, ain’t he? He’s the kind of guy all the girls at the bar would instantly turn down. Anyway… that was a real surprise.”
: “Not only are you a good source of info, you’re not half bad as an actor either. You’re honestly the type of guy I’d wanna grab drinks with after work… too bad you’re underage.”
: “Well, I guess that’s it for today. Don’t stop in any weird shops on your way home, okay?”
: “You’ve got some real acting chops! Man… they really saved me today. Once I got back to the editorial staff, all they asked for was my daily report. I couldn’t believe it!”
: “You seem like a handy kid to know. Expect another call from me soon - I could use the help! And I’ll repay you with the power of journalism, of course. I’ll write you a solid article on the Phantom Thieves.”
: “Wow, so dependable! I like guys like you. …But man, you’ve got a whole lotta guts for a high-schooler. Well, I’m sure we’ll gradually get to know each other better, so…”
: “Let me know if you get any more juicy info! Okay, bye!”
: “Like, could we meet up at Leblanc tomorrow?”
: “Sweet!”
: “That worried tone - could he still have summer vacation homework left to do?”
: “Was that Morgana? Whoa, how did he know?”
: “I actually called it?”
: “Anyway! I’ve already hit up Makoto and the others! I’ll be countin’ on you to get me through this tomorrow!”
: “You gotta be kidding… might as well get some sleep while we can.”
: Hashino: “Shit. Fuck. I’ve already stolen everything I possibly could from that shitfuck Tadashi and now I’m out of ideas. Think, Hashino, think! Uh… okay, what if we had a non-playable navigator type character… and right afterward, we reveal that the animal mascot is a shadow! Man, I’m great at coming up with ideas on the spot.”
: Fred, the Janitor Who Worked in the Building Where They Made Nausicaa: “Uh, sir? I know I just transferred away from Level-5 after Ni no Kuni 2 went belly-up, but didn’t you do this exact thing in Persona 4?”
: Hashino: “Shit. Security! Fire this moron before word can spread! We’ll just have to work harder to make people forget that Persona 4 ever existed!”
: So yes, this is why I hate Morgana. Apart from the whole “go to bed” thing in the base game, it’s the fact that he is a one-for-one ripoff of Teddie… but without any of the character development Teddie had.
: Remember how Teddie had that whole arc where you fight his shadow, and then he becomes human but loses his human form after Nanako “dies”? Morgana gets exactly none of that. Morgana is an entirely static and one-dimensional character.
: The worst part is, they had the opportunity to fucking do something with him, ESPECIALLY in Royal. But no, it can’t be fucking helped. We only had a multi-million dollar budget and were selling the game at full price, did you really expect us to fucking do anything?
: Now, you might be asking “What do they do with Morgana in Strikers if he has basically no character development” and the answer is pretty much as little as possible. Morgana barely talks in Strikers outside of the usual “I wonder if that’s a Treasure” kind of shit.
: “That black thing was… me? …That can’t be true. I’m supposed to be human… I should be… If we get rid of the distortion in Mementos, I’m sure… I’m sure it’ll all be fine!”
: I think the best comparison I can make is to Ni no Kuni. Teddie was Ni no Kuni 1 - deeply flawed in that a lot of people found him annoying, but still likeable enough and has a message. Morgana is Ni no Kuni 2, where it immediately takes a greasy fucking shit all over Ni no Kuni 1 and ends up becoming a looming specter of death for the company that shat it out.
: “Oh, um… my sunburns were hurting, and that woke me up! I was absorbing all the sunlight because I’m black. Don’t you get it?”
: Cats can actually get sunburns, but most of the cases happen in cats that have some kind of fur problem, have naturally thin or white coats, or are hairless. They’re apparently fairly rare among cats with dark fur.
: “Oh, um, I’m not sure what to do when you give me an honestly concerned response like that… by the way, it’s not like I’m bothered by this or anything…”
: He’d be concerned because sunburn in a cat is something you’ll typically want to go to a vet for.
: “But hypothetically speaking, okay? What would you do if I turned out to be some weird… thing?”
: “I’d be bothered by it! If what I saw from earlier is true, is it okay for me to stay with the Phantom Thieves? And even if I’m with the team, I’m useless at the moment…”
: “It’s nothing. Well, I’ve gotten pretty used to my life as a cat too. And to be frank, this storage room isn’t bad either. Then again, I can’t wait to turn back to being a human so I can move out.”
: “Maybe I’ll live a life of luxury in a suite on the highest floor… but rather than becoming some weird thing, maybe staying as a cat isn’t so bad either…”
: “You and me made a deal, yeah? That means I can stay here… isn’t that right?”
: I didn’t know this until fairly recently, but a harisen is a kind of paper fan used in traditional Japanese comedy… which explains why it consists of the party member hitting someone with a paper fan.
: I had assumed it was a play on the word “Arisen” that I just didn’t understand.
By the way, uh… I just got a new job. You might ask how that’s going to change the LP, and the answer is that I’ll probably have less time to work on it. I start in about two weeks and I’m hoping to get as much done as possible in that time. So if updates slow down a little, that’s why.
Oh, they caught up to the P5 manga already?
Ah man, that makes me want to play more Phoenix Wright.
Wait, then I would have to play more Phoenix Wright. Let me try that sentence again.
Ah man, that makes me want to watch LPs of more Phoenix Wright.
Oh god we’re on a beach. ABORT! ABORT! ABORT!
If there’s one thing I’ve learned from Persona, it’s that every beach is a mere type, a shadow (if you will) of the Plutonian Shore that leads from our world of light into the eternal horror of the Land of the Dead.
Click Here for Update 57
: “As for me… I’m done for.”
: “Talk about a cliched way to end your summer vacation.”
: “I can’t believe you hadn’t even touched your homework until last night.”
: “Well, everyone’s free to spend their time as they choose. I guess SOME PEOPLE just can’t help themselves.”
: “I’m sorry…”
: “Come on, I think he’s learned his lesson. More importantly, why don’t you folks take a break?”
: “Boss! You’re a lifesaver!”
: “I’m gonna go pick up some groceries. Mind the shop for a bit.”
: “…Oh, that reminds me: isn’t there a female athlete from our own school who’s made the news?”
: “An athlete… do you mean the one in gymnastics?”
: “Yeah, her! The one everyone’s saying is super-cute!”
: The one everyone would forget about otherwise since we’ve already maxed her confidant.
: “Oh yeah - Yoshizawa, right? Wasn’t she gonna be in the summer meet? Or izzat already over?”
: “Ah, about that…”
: “Makoto?”
: “Well… I just happened to overhear a couple teachers discussing it when I was heading to school the other day. Yoshizawa-san’s results in the meet… they weren’t exactly stellar.”
: “I see…?”
: Here’s what I don’t get about this scene. As far as we know, Ann and Makoto have never met Kasumi. Why do they even care?
: “There seemed to have been a great many people expecting her success there. It’s got to be tough for her…”
: “Yeah… ain’t there one more meet left this year in gymnastics, though? Shit must be rough right now, but if she can nail that one, who cares what anybody at school says?”
: “Oh. That also reminds me… so, I just happened to bump into Mishima-kun before summer vacation started.”
: “And?”
: “He seemed really mad. I asked him what was wrong and he showed me some posts on an underground site about our school. It pretty much said the school’s planning to abandon any honors student who isn’t actively making Shujin look better.”
: “Whoa, wait a sec…”
: You want to know what this scene sounds like to me? It sounds like they’re having a lot of trouble keeping Kasumi relevant to the plot. It also feels like the writers learned nothing from P4 Golden.
: P4 Golden had the same problem, where Marie was largely irrelevant until after the point where the base game ended. You basically did her S-Link and then forgot about her for the rest of the game.
: What I don’t get is why instead of adding all these cutscenes that just feel shoehorned in, they wouldn’t stick to their strong points and do gameplay segments with Kasumi instead. Have it be an Assignment: Ada kind of thing where she plays differently from Joker and her game is figuring out how to abuse those differences.
: “Who knows? Still, ever since the case with Kamoshida… the school’s been frantically trying to improve its public image, right? At the very least, this abandonment of honor students would fall in line with the school’s real mission.”
: “I can’t deny the possibility that they would do this to Yoshizawa-san…”
: “They dump all their hopes onto their athletes, and if they don’t cut the mustard, they’re out like the rest of the trash, huh?”
: “Regardless of whether it’s true or not, such behavior is extremely self-serving.”
: “Tch… just like we’ve thought this whole time… there’s still tons of shit wrong with society.”
: “Yeah… we don’t know what’ll happen to Yoshizawa’s spot on the team… but at the very least, we can keep up our efforts to prevent the worst-case scenario.”
: “Enough already, damn… all anyone talks about anymore is the Phantom Thieves - who they are, whether they’re good or bad… startin’ to give me a headache…”
: “I don’t know… I don’t even remember how I first learned about Mementos…”
: Another pointless crossword tonight. I probably should put a vote up as to whether these are even worth showing anymore, since there’s multiple guides out there on how to do them.
: It’s another Chihaya night tonight. We already have pretty much all her worthwhile abilities, but we have to max her anyway.
: “But I’ve decided: I’m going to tell you everything about Fukurai-san. As well as the reason I decided to leave my village…”
: “I already told you about how it was a small, traditional town tucked away in the mountains, right? Well when I was young, I predicted a major earthquake. The villagers revered me as a messenger of God…”
: “But when I kept predicting disasters, they started blaming me for everything. They said I was cursed, a monster… so I locked myself away. People would still come by to throw stones through the windows though…”
: “Things went on like that for some time… until one day, an angry mob came and burned down the house.”
: Joker’s like “What town was this?” to which Chihaya responds “Oh, this little town called Silent Hill. Lovely little resort town in Not-Maine.”
: “That’s why I decided to come to Tokyo after graduating high school. I wanted to change my fate… I didn’t know anyone, but I needed money… so I took the first job I could find at a small night club…”
: Chihaya: “Have I mentioned I was born from a wish to torment this guy over killing his terminally ill wife? It’s true.”
: “I found myself surrounded by dangerous people… but that’s when Fukurai-san approached me. He’s a psychic too, you know.”
: “He knew from a mere glance that I was a runaway who had just come to Tokyo. Then once I told him why I decided to leave my village, he immediately invited me to join the ADP.”
: “That was when he gave me the moniker of the Maiden of Relief. He told me that I possessed a divine power to save others from misfortune… that I could become more than the monster people saw me as.”
: “I… broke down the moment he said that… hahaha… deep down, I knew all along that the Holy Stones didn’t have any powers…”
: “But I thought I might be able to save people, even though I was a monster. Or perhaps because I was a monster…”
: “What…? My fortune said you’re supposed to hate me… I never thought you would overturn even that fate, Kurusu-san…”
: “I’m going to expose the chairman’s fraudulent activities and wake the other members up to the truth! Thank you so much for listening to me today… if there’s ever anything you need to talk about, I’d be glad to return the favor, Kurusu-san.”
: We now get an ability that’s completely fucking useless, but still somehow better than it was in the base game. In the base game, you got a version of this ability that let you preview ONE confidant ability.
: You then got a second one at Rank 10 that let you preview all of them. Royal adds two new ones instead - one at Rank 8 and one at Rank 10.
: “Now that I think about it though, just saying the Holy Stones are powerless won’t convince people. The ADP holds what they call ‘seminars’ for believers… but it’s really just brainwashing.”
: “That’s why everyone thinks they’ll be unhappy without a Holy Stone. Honestly, I don’t hold any sway there, even though I’m the Maiden of Relief… just who is the chairman…?”
: “Let me think it over some more. We can talk further next time. Well, thank you again for today!”
: “Now that I think about it, I barely knew anything about the Chairman, nor the ADP in general. So I’m thinking of doing some research on the ADP first. I’m done turning a blind eye!”
: The ADP was so bad it didn’t make it into Dark Souls 3 and that’s all you really need to know about it.
: “Are you… worried about me? Hee hee… that kind of makes me happy. But yes, I’ll be all right. As long as I have the trust of my clients and believers. I am the Maiden of Relief, after all.”
: What she’s saying is that she’ll be fine as long as we’re singlehandedly keeping her business afloat.
: “…From now on, I will see with my own two eyes, rather than through cryptic fortunes. I’ll let you know if I find anything, so please, promise me that you’ll come by again. Now, I should be going…”
: “Well, this is truly our time to shine! Though this scoundrel has the same power as us, they’re triggering people’s mental shutdowns… if they truly exist, who can stop them? …Only us.”
: “We’ve got a new addition to the team, so it’s time I flex my veteran skills!”
: Morgana clearly has no idea how Neo Turf Masters works. The Veteran is probably the worst character in that game, a mere human playing alongside the gods that are the Shot Maker and Putt Master.
: “Come downstaaaairs!”
: “What is it?”
: “You don’t have any plans, right? Just come on. It’ll be my treat. Not only can Futaba go out now, but your summer break’s almost over. We gotta do something.”
: “I asked especially for sushi. You better be thankful. This place is supposed to be super delicious too.”
: It’s going to be the exact same sushi place Joker has been to like four times now.
: “Sushi!? Take me with you! I didn’t get to eat the take-out sushi last time, remember!?”
: “Man, that thing never stops meowing, does it?”
: “Tell him to bring me along!”
: “Wait, does it want to come with us or something? I do feel sorry for it though… well, I guess I don’t mind bringing some sushi home.”
: “He knows me so well! Let’s see, I want some medium-fat tuna, fatty tuna, salmon roe, anago, and, and… oh, are you gonna be able to remember all this? You might want to take notes.”
: It’s hard to capture, but in this shot Futaba is rapidly shovelling food into her face at a pace that can best be described as “alarming”.
: “Delihious!”
: “Don’t wolf it down like that. No one’s gonna take your food.”
: “What did I tell you? Drink some tea.”
: “Hresfroomf!”
: “Huh? …Restrooms? They’re that way.”
: “Back in the day, she, her mother, and I used to go eat out often… this brings back memories… I had completely forgotten about it too…”
: “Welp, time to resume.”
: “Hm? You’re still going to eat?”
: “I’m all full. I’m throwing in the towel!”
: “Which is it? I’m gonna use the restroom and then pay the bill. Check please.”
: Totally unrelated, but I saw a Persona 5 thread just now in which someone called Hashino “Rehashino” and I wish I had come up with that.
: “When I got into middle school, my mom and Sojiro took me out to eat sushi to celebrate. That sushi was so good… today’s was pretty good too. I hope the three of us can come again sometime.”
: “When should we do this again? I wish she could’ve had today’s sushi too… I want to find out what happened to Mom… I won’t forgive the guy who triggered her mental shutdown. So, you better help me out.”
: We know! Fuck!
: Wait, what. That’s $1100… how the fuck do you spend that much on sushi?
: “Looks like we won’t be getting sushi to go.”
: Akihabara is where we’re going to unlock one of the two remaining confidants in the game. It’s also got a number of things we’re going to want.
: “Wait, we’re meeting in Akihabara? Is Futaba really going to be okay? We’d better get over there.”
: Ah, Akiba. Site of not one, but two incredibly mediocre JRPGs (plus re-releases) based entirely around anime panties. They’re making a third one and I have no idea why.
: “Is she not here? Try checking around.”
: “Hey, over there…”
: “Uhhh… ah…”
: “That looks bad! What are you gonna do!?”
: I’m disappointed there’s no “It can’t be helped” option because that would really reflect Royal as a whole.
: “Yeah, hurry up!”
: “S-Sorry… I thought I conquered my fears back at the beach…”
: “What happened?”
: “There wasn’t anyone I knew with me, so I panicked. Felt like my heart was gonna pop… I got so scared all by myself… then I just sorta curled up into a ball…”
: “Then all these people started staring at me… and the police came… and then it was all over…”
: “Look, Futaba. If you’re ever in trouble, just call Akira.”
: “…Okay.”
: “Maybe. Urgh… couldn’t even go buy a game by myself. I’m a failure…”
: “Futaba…”
: “But I’m okay outside as long as it’s with Akira… is he some kinda key item? Please, Akira! Be my key item! I’ll try and get better at navigation if you do!”
: As you can probably tell, Futaba quickly goes from traumatized shut-in to us gamers: the character. Have I mentioned that you can date her?
: “It’s just a figure of speech. I want you to help me get better at going outside. And in return, I’ll work even harder as your navigator. How’s that for a good deal?”
: There’s a couple of Sae scenes that just flat out don’t make any sense, and this is one of them. Doesn’t she already know Futaba is a hacker?
: Futaba is the reason I didn’t do a poll for who to date, because I know there’s people who would vote for her.
: “…Weren’t you bawling your eyes out just a second ago?”
: “Yeah, but I have my key item now! Victory conditions met! C’mon, let’s roll!”
: “Akihabara…”
: “What!? That’s incredible, Futaba.”
: “I-I guess…”
: “I just hope you can keep that up. Maybe you’ll even be able to go to high school someday.”
: “Yeah…”
: “…Well, that’s enough of that. I bet you’re exhausted after dealing with all those people, huh? Let’s get you to bed. Hey, we’re gonna head back.”
: I have to wonder if at some point, Futaba was meant to be much younger than she is (making her P5’s equivalent of Ken in P3) and they wrote the script around that and then just kinda forgot to update it.
: “No sushi, and we got dragged around by Futaba… what a terrible day.”
: It’s funny he says that, because by the time Strikers rolls around he’s basically Futaba’s cat.
: “I can’t believe I have to leave Japan now, of all times…”
: The school trip is the reason that almost half of September is a cutscene.
: The guide tells us to finish watching the DVD we have… and I really don’t know why. We don’t ever wind up watching another DVD on this schedule, and there’s no trophy or Thieves Den award for all DVDs.
: “…This is the owner of quite a different type of power. It will help guide you all to further heights as thieves.”
: “Worry not. You are steadily approaching the realization of your goal. This is not necessarily to prove so, but I shall increase the number of Personas you can hold at once.”
: Three weeks ago, this ability would’ve been useful. Now all it’s going to do is increase the number of times I have to press L1 or R1 to find Lilim, Anzu or Arahabaki.
: Or, you know, the bullshit overpowered Persona I’m going to fuse the second we hit the next dungeon and get Network Fusion. The one with Megidolaon, Almighty Boost, Almighty Amp, Magic Ability (25% damage to all magic), Concentrate and Victory Cry if I can get it.
: Of course, all you have to do to stop me from doing that is to go up and vote in the poll. No Holds Barred is winning, and the first thing I’m doing once I get Network Fusion is making my gamebreaker.
: “From here on, your tale will make great progress… hone your powers even further, and prepare for the time that will soon come. …I expect great things from you.”
: “…Until we meet again.”
: I’m going to end this here for now, because we’ve got about two updates worth of content left before the real filler arc begins, and I want to make sure to contain that entire thing to its own series of updates so people can skip them easily.
JOKER: But Futaba…key items don’t have effects. I would have to be a piece of equipment. Are you sure you aren’t a…fake gamer girl.
Given that she was apparently looking for games in a store that seems to sell nothing but home appliances, it’s entirely possible.
Y’all, this girl I met said I was like her Flash HM. Is that a compliment?
I guess it’s not that improbable since she didn’t go anywhere, but the revelation that Sojiro’s been taking care of a teenager all this time makes his ultimate bachelor “I don’t usually give rides to dudes” act at the start funnier.
Click Here for Update 58
: “Ooh, a uniform!”
: “Make sure you study hard.”
: “Futaba says she’s going to shift to a morning person’s life.”
: “A healthy mission starts with a healthy lifestyle.”
: “Mission?”
: “Even the prime minister’s talking about the Phantom Thieves?”
: “They’re allies of justice, after all.”
: “They change hearts, huh? I wonder if it’s true.”
: “Looks like we’re finally being recognized across the country.”
: “That humility of yours is favorable. I bet you stole that from me, huh? Let’s find clues on that case as soon as we can too, and resolve it ourselves… for Futaba’s sake too.”
: “…You two really get along, don’t you? You’re gonna be late if you don’t get going soon.”
: “Good luck on your student duties.”
: Remember how Mishima told us there was a new feature on the site, but didn’t tell us what it is? That’s what it is.
: There’s another “walking to school” scene that repeats almost the exact same talking points so I’m going to skip it.
: “I think this every year, but isn’t summer vacation too short?”
: “How desperate are you?”
: “Let’s see. We’ve just gotten back from vacation, but starting next Monday is the school trip.”
: “Oh yeah, that’s right.”
: sigh “You students are so lucky. You get an entire month off for summer and get to go to Hawaii too. Make sure that none of you cut loose too much, okay?”
: You might be wondering why they’re going to Hawaii, and the answer is filler arc. It doesn’t make any kind of sense from a plot perspective - I think the entire reason they did it was to appease Western fans who claim that the SMT franchise is xenophobic.
: This as opposed to, I dunno, getting a creative department that can write something other than generic Japanese high school drama.
: “Okay, settle down! That concludes homeroom.”
: “Basically, yeah.”
: Wait, what. How does that make any sense? They basically just asked her “Hey Ann, you speak English?” and Ann replies “Yeah, I lived over there.”
: “Huh?”
: There’s an IM from Ryuji that didn’t capture correctly so I’ll just type it out.
: “All people’re talking about in my class is the Phantom Thieves. Is it the same for you? Talk about being popular. Anyways, now that a new semester has started, let’s have another operation meeting.”
: “Futaba! Did you come here by yourself?”
: “I went to get her since I got out of school early.”
: “What a patronizing Inari.”
: Hold on, wait a second. Why are they still at the walkway? Didn’t they abandon that in favor of just hanging out at Leblanc?
: “Well then, let’s get talkin’. Whadda we do now? Should we go after another big target?”
: “That’s important too, but what about that villain in the cognitive world?”
: “It’s almost certain that this person exists. What’s more, they’re inducing mental shutdowns… we certainly can’t turn a blind eye.”
: “Yeah, but we don’t got any clues… but! You know how we’re totes popular right now? Everyone at school’s talkin’ about us, and not a day goes by when you don’t hear about it on TV either!”
: “We totally made it big, don’tcha think?”
: “True. The rankings on the Phantom Aficionado website have been crazy too.”
: “You mean this?”
: “Huh? What the hell!? First place… keeps changing by the second!”
: Anyway, you’re going to see a lot of things that do not make any sense whatsoever in the next couple of in-game weeks. I have a feeling it’s because Atlus had no real plan for the latter half of the game and just kinda did the Ni No Kuni 2 thing and slapped scripts together.
: “If we go after these guys, I’m sure we’ll score some big cash at least once! What would you use money like that for, Akira?”
: “I’ve never heard of a phantom thief that saves up money!”
: Clearly, Ryuji has never played Payday 2.
: “Are you fine with that, Futaba? Even though it’s related to what happened to your mother?”
: “It’s not okay! I’m definitely gonna punch that guy!”
: “The culprit forcing mental shutdowns… if you think about it, there’s no bigger target than that. If we can change his heart and get a confession outta him, we’ll be on top of the world for real.”
: I thought about this line for a minute and realized that while it’s pretty obvious that the killer has a Persona, the game hasn’t outright said that yet.
: “Should we reveal our identities then? I bet chicks are gonna be all over us!”
: “Whoa, whoa, you want us to show our faces!? …I guess that might be okay?”
: “I see. If the true culprit confesses, the existence of the Metaverse will become known. There would be no need for us to remain in hiding in such a questionable manner…”
: “Being ‘unknown’ is the allure of being a Phantom Thief.”
: “But considering the hype now, it’s gonna be one hell of a huge deal if we pull it off!”
: “Are there really no clues regarding those mental shutdown cases? If I remember right, wasn’t the older Niijima sister investigating it?”
: I read a thing yesterday that I’m not sure is true that said that Akechi was initially intended to be Makoto’s brother. This was supposedly back when the script had Joker move in with Sae instead of Sojiro.
: “Yes… I can pry and ask about it. But she’ll just tell me to mind my own business and get angry with me.”
: “If you can’t ask her, wanna just extract that data? Does she have a personal laptop or something?”
: “Don’t tell me…”
: “Just stick this baby in, and it’ll clone the internal hard drive! It’ll even bypass the OS password! You’ll have to plug it directly into her laptop though. Can you do it?”
: “Sis does bring her laptop home sometimes… but I’m not comfortable going that far.”
: “Ooh, is Futaba gonna do something amazin’ again?”
: “Are you scared of seeing how your sister truly feels?”
: “No! …Of course not…fine, I’ll do it.”
: “But I gave a gag order in regards to Mr. Kamoshida’s case… p-please wait! Please give me some more time! I will find evidence on the Phantom Thieves for sure!”
: “I couldn’t have made it this far, had it not been for your assistance, sir, so… please… please let me-”
: “Let’s leave this to Makoto. I’m sure she’ll be able to pull it off.”
: The recycle shop now has a broken laptop and a new game for the Famiclone. We’ll grab both, even though we don’t really have a reason to.
: If we then head to Akihabara, there’s a machine parts store that sells a PC tool set we can use to fix the laptop. Fixing the laptop is something you have to do at night.
: Right down the street is this place - a blatant reference to Super Potato. Super Potato is a very famous retro game store in Akihabara.
: This store has all of the other games for the Famiclone. I cleaned the store out just because we had the money to do so.
: “I’ve been trying to use this as an opportunity to investigate into the ADP’s seminars so I can expose him… but the deeper I dig, the scarier everything becomes.”
: “The ADP apparently doesn’t profit very much from sales of the Holy Stones. It’s nothing more than a front. Most of their revenue comes from the seminars.”
: I joked about her being a Silent Hill character but she practically is, especially given the whole “drug cult” thing in SH1.
: “People have even gone missing after their seminars… families have been torn apart by this madness… and I… I was a part of it all.”
: “By selling these fraudulent stones, I was in direct support of their horrible actions. I know this doesn’t make up for what I’ve done… but I want to help the others come to their senses.”
: “Barely anyone within the ADP will talk to me though, and those who do won’t actually hear me out. What should I do, Kurusu-san…? These people are all heading down a path toward great ruin…”
: “Right. I’ll just have to admit to everything that’s been going on, even if I get dragged down too… that’s… the only way.”
: “I’m the only one who can stop him… right?”
: “O-Oh… hm, how strange… it seems the cards have changed somehow… my future is in line with that of the Trickster… what does that mean?”
: “Even so, my fate remains unchanged. I am destined to stay a monster… hm…”
: This is another one of those nights where we have to spend the entire night just to get a Mementos request.
: “I’ll have to think on this for a while. Let’s finish for today… well then, goodbye.”
: I spent last night replacing the battery in the PS3 controller I used for the Persona 1 and Innocent Sin LPs. It’s not bad until you get to the part where you put the case back together.
: “Oh yes. Thank you for the coffee last time. It’s a lovely cafe. I haven’t relaxed that much in a while.”
: “No, not particularly. Especially lately since it seems I’m hated by those who support the Phantom Thieves. Anyhow, it seems your school’s in trouble.”
: “The media is reporting that the whole school was involved in the cover-up about that gym teacher. Those unfortunate students were made victims all because adults valued their own conveniences…”
: “This is unforgivable, no matter the reason. Let me know if you need anything. I’ll do my best so that the case is wrapped up quickly.”
: “I don’t like the way they’re looking at us…”
: “D’you see that ad in the train?”
: “The media’s gonna come to our school. At least be a little interested in it. ‘Cover-up by faculty and principal of Shujin Academy, where the Phantom Thieves first appeared.’ It’s been a huge deal already.”
: “I wonder what’s gonna happen to the principal now. Anyways, we made the right choice goin’ after big targets! Everywhere I go, people’re talkin’ about us!”
: “Oh no, I’m fine.”
: “The Phantom Thieves are on fire right now, so I wonder if I got a chance if I asked her out? It sucks that I can’t just say I’m actually a phantom thief to anybody.”
: “Seriously, why does this keep happening? All my relatives are gonna call me again…”
: This shot reminds me of this one moment in 13 Sentinels Aegis Rim where they reveal that one of the characters is just an older, hornier version of a younger character from the future.
: “You know how the police have been coming to the school again because of that incident? So, a number of the senior faculty are going to be called in for questioning.”
: “And that day just happens to overlap with the school trip.”
: Basically, Hashino needed an excuse for Makoto to go to Hawaii. This isn’t even as ridiculous as this whole plot arc will get.
: “…Yes, I’ve been told so.”
: “Now, this came up at the faculty meeting, but the plan is to have third-years to act as our proxies. I’m so sorry to drop this on you, Niijima-san, but we’ll be counting on you.”
: …They’re going to have high schooler chaperoning high schoolers, and they want Makoto to buy tickets from Japan to Hawaii (which are not cheap, they’re like $980 to $1200) on short notice.
: This also makes it sound like Kawakami isn’t going. She absolutely is.
: Did Hashino ever go to high school?
: “You know… a lot of the second-years this year happen to be… unique.”
: They ignore uniform code, and have portraits and models that differ from the same one that’s used for every other student. I think they might be… JRPG protagonists.
: “You must have your hands full with the entrance exams, but I’m sure you’ll be fine with your grades. Don’t worry. There’ll be a couple more people going besides you!”
: “…If that’s the case, very well.”
: “Really? Oh thank goodness! I’ll go ahead and pass this news on then.”
: “I had nothing to do with it! Do you really think I have that much power? Okay, enough chitchat! If you’re that worried, you can always see our school counselor!”
: “Starting today, we’ll have Dr. Maruki on call. We went to the trouble of getting him, so don’t be afraid to ask!”
: I didn’t realize it, but Maruki leaves in the middle of July and doesn’t come back until today. However, we can’t progress his confidant until 09/20.
: “Yikes… the new semester’s barely started and things are already getting crazy…”
There’s a chalk dodge after this, which we have a 100% chance of getting and a 0% chance of it mattering because Charm and Proficiency are maxed.
: We won’t be seeing her again (outside of any automatic cutscenes) until after the base game’s ending.
: Starting I think today, there’s a number of John Persona themed items at the copyright-friendly Don Quixote (Rocinante is the name of Don Quixote’s horse) that we want to buy.
: Each of these items can be traded to Sakai for some very, very good shit - particularly the Phantom Wafers and Thief Mask.
: “Oh, that’s right. Um, well… sorry about what happened in Akihabara. I really messed up… that police officer… he was a way higher level than me…”
: I didn’t bother to show it to conserve space, but the reason we’re having all of this happen before initiating the actual confidant event is that Futaba’s confidant is locked behind Kindness 4.
: “Yeah… I guess you’re right. I mean, I still managed to buy some stuff after that. But that was only 'cause you were there… anyways… can we go up to your room? I wanna talk to you some more.”
: This is where Morgana asks you if you actually want to initiate the event. I’m purposely cutting this stuff because it’s generic dialog that’s repeated every time you do a confidant event.
: “I think I wanna try going somewhere else sometime. …It really sounds like Sojiro wants me to go back to school. But online classes are better for studying! I wouldn’t even have to leave the house.”
: The game never tells you what Futaba was doing for school during the two years that she spent as a hikkikomori.
: “Ain’t it!? I can attend classes without even getting out of bed! Though… I dunno if Sojiro’d really consider that going to school.”
: “School… um, to be honest… I really do wanna go back. …Do you think I’ll be able to?”
: “…Yeah! I… I’m gonna do my best!”
: “My mom used to have me do that all the time. She’d write all my goals for the month, like cleaning the house or running errands for her. Then when I’d finish one, she’d mark it off with a big stamp.”
: “She always used to write comments too… those were the best. Oh, and once I finished all my goals, she would take a day off work to spend time with me.”
: “It’s decided then! I’m gonna make a promise list! Time to get my ideas ready!”
: “So, these are my promises.”
: You’re in the wrong game for that, I’m not sure Hashino even really knows what a high school is outside of seeing it in anime.
: Well, you’re in a game with a bunch of teenagers written by middle-aged men who act like they’re in 1986 instead of 2016, so I think you’re kinda doomed there.
: “…How’s that?”
: Thanks for laying out what your confidant events are going to be up front, so that I don’t have to show them off.
: “I’m not setting a deadline for this, by the way. I wanna try and finish all of them someday! You’re gonna have to help me though. I’ll work even harder with my navigation in return!”
: “S-So, um… if I finish all the promises, do you think I could have a reward? I know it’s kinda weird to ask… but having a reward waiting at the finish line will totally push me onward!”
: The reward scene is one of the most awkward fucking things in this game.
: “Anyway, I got this! …Though I’m kinda exhausted from making the list, sooooooo… tomorrow. I got this… tomorrow.”
: I refuse to believe that this is a thing anyone has ever said.
: “Taking out the promise list brought back memories of when I worked on it with my mom. Hey. If I finish the promise list and start going to school… do you think it’d make Sojiro happy?”
: “Right! Right!? Okay, that’s another reason I gotta work at this! I wanted to think of something I could do for Sojiro, but… that’s all I got for now.”
: “But first I gotta finish the promise list! Doing this alone would be, like, omega hard. Like trying to solo a final boss. But now I got you in my party. Heh heh… I’m counting on you!”
: I’ve been considering doing Suikoden 3 as an LP - playing through Suikoden and Suikoden 2 (which I have actual discs of but wouldn’t use) and then doing an LP of 3.
: Anyway, Suikoden 2 has this bug where if you go into the final fight against Luca Blight with just the main character, the main character becomes invincible and you can auto-battle your way to victory.
: Suikoden has a lot in common with Persona in that the lead writer for the series left halfway through 3’s development and as a result 4 was… not great.
: “But now I got you in my party. Heh heh… I’m counting on you! So yeah, I’m stoked! Let’s start Phantom Quest IV: Chapters of the Thieves!”
: I don’t trust anyone who likes Dragon Quest. I just don’t. I’ve played at least three of them and don’t see the appeal.
: “Oooh, I can’t wait to see what comes of this…”
: We have another crossword tonight.
: We’re supposed to do Mishima’s confidant tonight, but I couldn’t find him. That’s because once Akihabara opens up, Mishima moves there.
: “It’s about the next target for the Phantom Thieves! This one’s massive!”
: “Well, of course! We’ve got a huge target on our hands! This is the guy. He’s a handsome young actor who’s been rapidly gaining popularity lately.”
: “He’s great at acting, has solid conversational skills… he’s even been in all sorts of commercials. If you manage to change his heart, everyone will HAVE to start paying attention to the Phantom Thieves.”
: “…He’s gotta be doing some shady stuff, I just know it. And no, I’m not saying that out of jealousy.”
: He’s absolutely saying it out of jealousy.
: I’m out of jokes about Innocent Sin at this point.
: “No, this has gotta be what the evil underbelly of the entertainment industry really looks like… anyway, isn’t it your job to listen to the public’s wishes? You have to change his heart!”
: “I mean, this would be the best publicity possible for you guys! Well? Pretty good tactic, huh? Aren’t I an amazing producer?”
: “Just you wait… I’m gonna put the Phantom Thieves on the map! You’ll practically be swimming in requests!”
: “That’s right…I’m the producer for the famous Phantom Thieves… I’m not boring… I’m not a zero…”
: “Don’t worry… this request will boost your popularity, guaranteed. After all, I’m the only reason you guys have gotten this far, right?”
: “I think you mean ‘Yes, that’s right!’ Ugh, you just don’t know all the stuff I do for you guys! The Phantom Thieves’ success is thanks to me… and the Phantom Thieves are changing the world…”
: “That means I’m the one who’s responsible for those changes… that means I’m not a zero! Make sure you check the info I sent you. I’ll let you know once I’ve found some more details.”
: “I’m listing up the evidence that’s been taken into storage. It’s a chore that any part-timer could do. I don’t have time to waste on something like this…”
: “It felt like the irritation would show on my face at the office, so I brought it home.”
: “Sorry to hear.”
: “The Phantom Thieves case isn’t so easy that I could pursue it in my spare time… the media keeps making a ruckus about it, so people have been wary whenever we make inquiries.”
: Sae going full on Jack Bauer trying to find out about John Persona.
: “All I did was question him a bit harshly.”
: “Oh, I almost forgot… I’ll be going on a school trip starting next week. The senior faculty are being questioned, so I’ll be going in their stead.”
: “Sounds good to me. The school will owe you for it. It won’t get in the way of your entrance exams, will it?”
: “Not at all. …Feel free to take a bath first. I… need to study.”
: It’s weird to me how inconsistent the developers were with when they chose to use dialog portraits when a character isn’t on screen. Sometimes they do, sometimes they don’t.
: “Yes!?”
: “I want to change my toothbrush.”
: “I-I bought a new one already! It’s on the shelf!”
: “Thanks.”
: Either Sae’s laptop is basically empty, or Hashino has no idea how file transfers work. My guess is that her laptop’s entire hard drive consists of a single text file where she stores her stupid questions.
: As soon as this dialog box goes away, you can hear Sae’s footsteps in the background.
: Your guess is as a good as mine as to why they used a winking cut-in here. It’s been not even ten seconds since Sae went off screen, which makes me think she’s a robot using some kind of heated self-clean thing like an oven.
: She just stands in one place and starts asking stupid questions until her body becomes superheated and vaporizes the dirt.
: “I’m not really in the mood to relax in the tub.”
: “It’s so close to being done too!”
: “Oh, sis!?”
: “What is it?”
: “I bought a new bath salt. It’s on the same shelf, so would you mind putting it in the tub?”
: “Not at all.”
: “Looks like it went well! I wonder what we’ll find… oh! Before that, we should get over to school!”
: “Your destination is none other than Hawaii. I hope your passport isn’t about to expire. You’re heading out Wednesday, so there’s no time to get a new one printed.”
: Joke’s on you, I don’t have a passport.
: “Anyhow, I’m sure you’ll enjoy your time sightseeing in Hawaii more if you have more knowledge. Now then, Kurusu-kun. Look closely at this picture.”
: “Each hand in this famous statue means something, but… do you know what the right represents?”
: I believe it represents Kamehameha telling his opponents to “bring it” because he has a spear.
: “That’s right. The right hand represents the prosperity of Hawaii. And the spear in the left hand represents peace.”
: “As an aside, it seems that this statue is not of King Kamehameha himself. After Kamehameha’s death, another king commissioned the statue, using a boy from his court as the model.”
: Pretty much everything Inui says here is wrong. The statue was not commissioned by a king, as this report from the University of Hawaii shows. It was commissioned by a man named Walter Gibson, who served in the Legislature of the Kingdom of Hawaii, in 1878. This was about 20 years before the United States annexed Hawaii and destroyed their democratic government, because that’s what the US does best.
: The part about the model is also incorrect. As part of the process of commissioning the statue, the Monument Committee appointed by Hawaii’s legislature sought out pictures of native Hawaiian men to use as references. They ultimately found two brothers - John Timoteo Baker, who at the time was the Royal Governor of Hawaii and had experience with the kind of ceremonial garb King Kamehameha would likely have worn, and his brother Robert Hoapili, and used a composite photo of them as a reference.
: I don’t know why I’m bothering to fact check a videogame, but here we are.
: “I hope you will make the most out of your five days there. Let me just say that I have a fondness for macadamia nuts, so…”
: “Souvenirs, huh… I definitely wouldn’t want to get some wooden figurine. I can’t understand why people would send things like that as gifts…”
: “Hehe, leave it to me.”
: “Whoa, you grabbed all these? Are they for Hawaii?”
: “If we’re gonna lay low, we might as well enjoy it. Aww, look at this one! Gigantic sea-turtle sightseein’ on some beach.”
: “Come on, food’s more important than some turtle. You really don’t find steak this big and thick in Japan! Also… mahi-mahi? Is that some kind of fish? Think it’s good?”
: Years of Animal Crossing have rendered me unable to eat mahi-mahi. If I don’t bring it to the museum now, I’m never gonna catch another one. They’re like a 1% spawn rate!
: “It seems that it’s the season for schools all around. We’re going on our school trip as well.”
: “Yeah? Where you guys goin’?”
: “I believe it’s Los Angeles.”
: “Ahaha, that doesn’t suit you at all, Yusuke! I bet you wanted to go somewhere like Nikko or Nara.”
: Hell yeah I’d go to Nara. Pet the hell out of those deer.
: “Anywhere is acceptable. After all, the mineral pigments used for Japanese art were originally imported.”
: I only picked LA because I have a deep-seated hatred of beaches. I’m not a vampire, but I might as well be given that I die in the sun.
: “I mean, don’t I seem like an LA guy? Like, a total gangsta?”
: “That makes no sense at all.”
: “I’d rather go to Hawaii.”
: “So we won’t be seeing each other for a while.”
: “We’ll make sure to buy a souvenir for you.”
: “Ooh, here comes some interesting data. This is just from a quick glance… but it says ‘perpetrated’ and ‘connected’.”
: “It means that mental shutdowns aren’t coincedence - that this is a ‘case’ with a culprit behind it.”
: “Actually, it’s not just about people having shutdowns. Looks like she’s inferring that the psychotic breakdown incidents are connected to the same case.”
: This line is weird to me because I don’t know that the game ever actually refers to the “psychotic breakdowns” being a different thing from “mental shutdowns”. They’re one and the same.
: I love that this last shot has seemingly no connection to the others for people who can’t read Japanese. In fact, I don’t even know that it has any correlation whatsoever.
: “How long do you think it’ll take to analyze all of it?”
: “Hmm, there’s a lot, so it’s not happening overnight. But I’ll manage by the time you guys get back. I demand souvenirs from Hawaii and LA for my reward.”
: “I don’t really get all this, but you’re as amazing as always, Futaba! I guess it’s called an information war? It’s so high-tech and modern, it kinda reminds me of a movie.”
: Boy was that a poor choice of phrasing.
: “We’re the Phantom Thieves, so it’s not that big a deal. I mean, I can turn into a car and stuff too…”
: “C’mon, don’t try and compete with her.”
: “What did you say!?”
: “You’re fine the way you are, Morgana. Like, you’re cheeky cute?”
: “Welp, we’ll continue this when we get back from the trip! I can’t wait to see how much the Phantom Thieves’ popularity has increased by then!”
: I might just start cutting the IMs when they only go over things we already know… which is to say I’d probably be cutting most of them.
: You might have noticed that Akechi is in Leblanc tonight. We will not be talking to him. Instead…
: “We’re going to the beach, so I bought a swimsuit, but dressing like that in front of other people… oh, sorry for bringing up such a personal topic.”
: “I’m sorry. I’m not in the mood for a match right now… I can’t teach you shogi right now… or rather, from now on…”
: “I’m… at checkmate right now. My only option is to concede… but… I can’t seem to give up. I’m not sure what my next move is after this checkmate…”
: This is the second confidant event we’ve seen that requires a maxed social stat - in this case, knowledge. I think I mentioned it at the time, but the first one was Makoto’s event at the diner.
: “My mother told me that I should lose my upcoming exhibition match against the pro…”
: “It’s a ‘strategy’ she devised… she says that if I lose to a man, I’ll get sympathy from women, and as a result get more female fans.”
: “Then when I make my comeback, I’ll become a symbol for strong women everywhere. That way, I can use the weekly magazine’s popularity against them and instantly become famous.”
: “I wish I could agree, but… I feel my mother may be right. People do love a good comeback story. Coming from the TV industry, my mother does have great insight for entertainment.”
: “This time around… I couldn’t help but argue. It’s the wrong thing to do… I actually got into a fight with my mother. It wasn’t the first time, but…”
: “What made me sad was… I realized my mother doesn’t see me as a shogi player. She said that there’s no need for me to be putting so much time and effort into shogi… and that once I become famous I can quit shogi and make money from my looks.”
: “She doesn’t mind if I lose a match, as long as I build my reputation and make money. To my mother, shogi is just a vehicle to make me famous.”
: “Even if it helped me to become famous and ease my parents’ burden… I don’t want to turn my back on shogi… a game that both my father and I love…”
: “…If only that were possible. She’s the type of woman who never changes her mind… she wants to achieve her unfulfilled dream of becoming a celebrity… through me.”
: “I highly doubt she would ever reconsider…”
: “Whose name? My mother’s? It’s… Mitsuyo. Mitsuyo Togo. What does that have to do with what we’re talking about…?”
: Yep, it’s another night we have to spend solely to get a Mementos request. I mentioned it before, but we have to do NINE of these the next time we’re in Mementos on 09/16.
: Next time, we’ll take Futaba back to Akihabara, take Yusuke for drinks instead of visiting Iwai, take the twins to the beach, and permafuck when I mis-read the guide.
I hope in Persona 6 the high school just looks like Ohtori Academy from Revolutionary Girl Utena. No, better, like Ohtori from the Utena movie, so it’s just a bunch of archways and rose gardens and balconies.
Maybe, but I’m going to start saying it every day from now on.
It’s white-fish, Ann. All white-fish taste the same.
I went on vacation to Hawaii with my family when I was very young. All I remember is if you go to Mona Loa you can see ACTIVE LAVA FLOWS, which as you might suspect is pretty neat.
I don’t know if I would use the word “phantom” to describe Payday Gang in any capacity. Although I would laugh at Ryuji getting madder and madder because Morgana keeps saying he’s in a pickle.
Also I can’t wait for the Morgana and Mishima situations to blow up because this is a work of fiction and characters are not allowed to exhibit empathy if it gets in the way of drama. Like watching a car barreling towards a speedbump without slowing down and you keep watching because there’s no way they don’t see it right?
Click Here for Update 59
: Oh no, Graham! Watch out for those nasty gamers!
: “A nasty gamer… it’s definitely possible he’ll exist in Mementos. Mishima said he’s at the arcade on Central Street, right? Let’s go see what this is all about.”
: You can see the name on the sign in the lower left, it’s in Katakana. From what I understand, “Gun About” is a localization failure. You can see that the top line reads “Ga-na” and then the bottom line reads “Ba-u-to”. The actual name would be “Gunner Bout”… which makes a lot more sense.
: Gunner Bout is based off an actual arcade game called Gunslinger Stratos, which was an online light gun game made by Taito. They had it at Magfest one year. From what I remember, the machine in game looks identical to the real arcade machine.
: Gunslinger Stratos went through three iterations, with each one having the servers shut down a couple years after release. The third game’s servers went down in April 2021.
: They also released a PC version that was Japan-only, and I’m really interested to know how that worked.
: So wait, I thought he played in this particular arcade. That was the entire reason we came here.
: I also have to wonder how this guy would cheat at Gunslinger Stratos. The first version was on a dedicated board even though it came out in 2012, when most arcade games were moving to using locked-down Windows PCs.
: The second version replaced the dedicated board with a PC, but it’d probably take some doing to hack it.
: Yeah, you’re really gonna win against a guy who has access to the machine’s innards and presumably coded his own hack for it.
: “So that’s the malevolent player that Mishima was talking about… he’s the infamous cheater. It’s one thing to cheat if you’re playing alone, but it’s wrong to mess with other people like that.”
: “We got his name, too. It looks like Yoshikuni Nejima is going to be our next target.”
: “The first one is ‘go somewhere with lots of people.’ Ooh, I’ve got the perfect place! Akihabara Wars: Revenge of the Futaba!”
: Us gamers.
: “You’re going to Akihabara? …Be careful out there.”
: “Not as good as Inari though. He’s got a particularly pervy view on art.”
: Twenty years from now, someone is going to dig up this screenshot and laugh because 3TB SSDs go for a dollar. I can remember going to a Circuit City with my dad as a kid and there were people lined up because they had a sale on 20MB flash drives, which I think at the time retailed for around $50.
: “Mayday, mayday… I’m trapped in the Home Appliance Kingdom… the Three Terabyte War rages on outside… there are just… so many people… hrgh… I don’t know if I can last much longer…”
: “I… I, I, I…”
: I thought you were a GEP gun.
: “O-Oh… thanks. I didn’t think I was gonna see you until the end of time… but then I thought about you while I was wandering around the store, and bam, a wild Akira appeared!”
: US GAMERS AM I RIGHT
: “So you’re relieved? What an incredible coincidence! Me too. …Hm? Wait a tick, I just finished a promise! ‘Go somewhere with lots of people’!”
: “Well, am I awesome or what!? It’s all 'cause of the Three Terabyte War though! Oh, and 'cause you brought me here! I, Futaba Sakura, hereby thank thee!”
: I don’t know that I’d describe anything about this as ‘innocent joy’ but okay.
: “I dunno though… I panicked hard when I was soloing that dungeon… I think… not being with you is kinda scary, Akira.”
: If I were an anime and another anime said this to me, I would run because you just know it’s going to end with her stabbing someone.
: “It might be a long questline, but I’ll finish it someday! …Phew, I’m tired. C’mon, let’s go home!”
: That’s more or less my reaction to Moon. I just bought it after months of waiting for someone to dump a translated copy of the PS1 version, and the gameplay is just godawful.
: That’s not to say the story isn’t good, but the game is solidly stuck in 1997 and has no signposting whatsoever. There’s also zero guides for it apart from a single 12-hour-long video with no timestamps.
: “So I beat the ‘Go somewhere with lots of people’ goal. First try, too. Not bad! I’m still not sure how I’m supposed to beat ‘being okay without you around’… but at this pace, I’ll clear it in no time…! Right?”
: “Wooo! I got this! I don’t care how hard the quests are, I’ll take 'em all! Anyway, I guess the point is I gotta grind for now. Leveling up for a big encounter is basic stuff.”
: “I’m gonna do a little research. See if there are any other ways I can power up. Heh heh… this is all kinds of exciting, huh? Talk to you later!”
: “Being able to talk to each other openly like that must be nice…”
: Tonight is the night we can trade the Phantom Wafers for two Strength Up Ofuda, which double the damage of the next physical or gun skill used. These stack with Charge… I think.
: Instead of visiting Iwai, we’re going to use the jazz club tonight to teach Yusuke Charge. This will be very important in keeping Yusuke viable.
: The game repeats this twice - I cut the other mention, which is when you first enter the club. I wonder if they did this for CERO, the ESRB, or both. You’d think that in a series about kids shooting themselves in the head to summon Lucifer that nobody’d really give a shit about underage drinking.
: “I feel it! I feel the inspiration flowing in me! Hahahaha! I’m not going to be sleeping tonight!”
: “Delicious…! The portions are mixed perfectly…!”
: “When I’m absorbed in painting, I lose track of time… frequently, I don’t notice until after night has fallen. My body is so still that my shoulders start to stiffen up… painting is a fairly tiring activity, you know.”
: “The worst part is the pangs of hunger I feel after I finish though…”
: He doesn’t say boyfriend yet because we haven’t gotten to Rank 9. That won’t happen until October.
: I replaced the garbage speed buff he has with Charge, which will keep Yusuke viable until the end of the game.
: “Apologies for taking up a lot of time, but I appreciate you bringing me here. It looks like it’s time to head home. Hmhm. That was an evening well spent. See you around.”
: “Looks like people are coming around to us.”
: I cut a lot of this out, but this part’s important. The arcade in Akihabara also has a Gunner Bout machine. That’s where we’re going to find the second-to-last confidant in the game once we finish the stupid Mementos request. It’s also the source of one of the best memes about Persona 5.
: This is the spot where I permafucked. We needed to get a reading for Ohya several days ago, and I just kinda forgot to do it. I wound up accidentally hitting Iwai in the menu, and once you get one you can’t re-do it.
: Oh yeah, you can do the Caroline and Justine outings from any Velvet Room - not just the one in Shibuya. This brings up even more questions, like how no one sees Caroline sitting on nothing.
: “Listen closely: the place we wish to evaluate for your rehabilitation is… a place where land, water, and sun all meet.”
: “People around here have been looking grimmer than ever lately - probably because of ‘the heat,’ as they say.”
: “During this season, large numbers of humans gather at a scorching border between ‘Mother Ocean’ and the land. Why would they subject themselves to such a harsh environment…? We demand a satisfactory answer.”
: “So, what’ll it be?”
: I should note that this outing is both time limited and completely optional - you will still get the reward at the end even if you skip out on this one. The reason we’re doing it is because the only confidant available during the day is Futaba.
: “Ooh, so you do know it! C’mon, let’s go! Move it!”
: “I’ve heard that humans can fall prey to ‘heatstrokes’ during this season. Let us take care to avoid a similar fate.”
: “Why did they come here, of all places? It’s so hot…”
: “Perhaps they are trying to catch the cool air blowing over the water. We are rather interested in entering the water ourselves, if possible…”
: “You’re talking about special apparel for entering water, yes? Of course we lack such things.”
: “And we can’t go in the water in these outfits… our master would be none too pleased upon our return.”
: “By the way, I noticed a peculiar group over there… I do not know why, but they stand in a loose formation, striking a plastic sphere back and forth…”
: “It was probably a summoning ritual. See? It looks like they’re trying to build a shriveled Decarabia army.”
: It’s entirely possible to play this and not have seen a Decarabia yet because they only appear in Okumura’s palace - which we can’t even get into until it’s too late to do this outing.
: Decarabia is a star-shaped demon that is weak to physical but learns Megidola at level 38 and I think also learns Fire Boost. They die if you so much as look at them funny.
: Incidentally, Decarabia is the 69th demon in the Ars Goetia and has knowledge of herbs, making them the 69/420 demon.
: “Beach volleyball?”
: “Never heard of it. What is it?”
: “It see. So it is a form of human recreation.”
: “Is that some variation of beach volleyball they’re playing over there? It looks like they’re using a ball as well…”
: Jump, jump! Slide, slide! Megaman 8 was a mistake on so many levels.
: “I know what this is - it’s called suika wari, correct? From what I’ve heard, splitting a watermelon with a stick can be a great pleasure…”
: Okay, so you didn’t know what a burger is… but you know about the whole blindfolded hit the watermelon with the stick game.
: “How barbaric… what’s so fun about that?”
: “Ohhh! So, splitting a watermelon open makes it taste better than simply cutting into it?”
: “Human desire knows no bounds when it comes to food… so this place has more benefits to it than just an ocean breeze.”
: “Humans can come here to fulfill their desires and release their frustration. Then, the ocean sweeps up all those feelings and washes them away… I must say, I find myself quite impressed with this ‘Mother Ocean’.”
: “We now know why humans gather at the beach, so we have determined this request to be complete.”
: “Here is your reward.”
: Meh. Growth 2 is one of those things where it’s nice but not good enough to waste a slot on.
: “As suggested by the moniker ‘Mother Ocean,’ some say humanity was originally born from the ocean. Perhaps the true reason humans gather here is that their instincts beckon them home.”
: “Hey, inmate - do you grow nostalgic when you swim in ‘Mother Ocean’? Try swimming with a ball and chain on your leg next time. I bet that’ll help with your rehabilitation, too.”
: “I see… oh yeah… there’s something I need to apologize to you about. You know, it’s part of my job to research particular things. Well, um… I ended up finding out about… your criminal record.”
: It’s surprising she didn’t already know, given that Mishima leaked it on the internet.
: “I realized you weren’t just some ordinary kid back with my chief… so I did some digging out of curiosity, and I found a ton more than I was expecting. So… sorry about that.”
: “Well, just forget the past. We’re in the same boat when it comes to being labelled.”
: “Exactly. I’ve made a vow to avenge my partner for -”
: “W-wait, don’t blame me for that! He doesn’t have anything to do with my private business…”
: “I mean, it’s not like I don’t trust you… and hold on a sec! Why am I being treated like the bad guy!?”
: “That’s true. And… I guess this is the fairest course of action for our business partnership, huh? Just… don’t tell anyone, okay?”
: And naturally, Ohya is a direct ripoff of Maya in as many ways as possible, because what Tadashi creates, Rehashino steals. We haven’t seen it because I haven’t touched Eternal Punishment, but early on in EP it’s established that Maya’s editor hates both her and Yukino.
: Also established at the beginning of EP is that the editor split up Yukino and Maya because she’s kind of a bitch.
: “We were a pretty well-known team in the industry. We blew the lids off countless scandals together. …That is, until that day came.”
: You mean the day you went to Seven Sisters and got accosted by a guy wearing a paper bag over his head?
: “We were on the trail of a certain bureaucrat, who was involved in a slush fund to support refugees. He kept himself pretty well guarded, so it was almost impossible to get any solid leads on the guy…”
: “Then one night, I got a voicemail from Kayo saying she had gotten hold of something big. But… that was the last I ever heard from her. The next day, that bureaucrat was found dead at a love hotel… and Kayo had gone missing.”
: “Well…”
: You can probably guess how he actually died.
: “That’s impossible though! She never would have slept with a disgusting man like that! And more importantly, it’s pretty damn fucked up to make allegations like that without any evidence!”
: “…Sorry. The case was closed, but we never found the truth… and Kayo was labeled a professional disgrace. And since we were partners, the company decided it would be best to move me to another department.”
: “I’m going to prove Kayo’s innocence though. That’s why I’m conducting my own private investigation now.”
: “…You’re damn right. But… thanks to all the info you’ve been giving me, I should have more time to focus on my investigation. I won’t let this opportunity slip through my fingers.”
: “…All right, we’re even now! I didn’t enjoy it though.”
: “W-Well… maybe you’re right. I haven’t felt this alive in a long time. Okay then, I’ll write a great article to commemorate our sharing session!”
: " ‘Exclusive: The Phantom Thieves’ Lofty Ideals in Connection with a Secret Society!’ Haha, just kidding! Don’t worry, I’ll definitely come up with a better headline before we go to print!"
: This is kind of a nothing ability. You start with a small amount of security level when you enter a palace, and usually lose it in the first couple of minutes by ambushing enemies. It might be more useful if you’re not going for one-day dungeons.
: “Still… there’s just one thing that bothers me. There’s no doubt the chief is on to my investigation. Maybe we should keep acting like a couple so we can trick him. How’s that sound?”
: “I’m sorry about earlier. Really. For me digging up your records and such without asking, I mean…”
: “Thanks. Hearing you say that helps. Don’t worry, I’m not gonna leak it to anyone. It’s my duty and pride as a journalist to protect my sources at all costs.”
: “I’m actually making great progress on my private investigation, thanks to you. And I’ll be needing your help later, too. So I can find out what really happened to Kayo.”
: “You know the rankings that are popular nowadays? Are you interested in them too?”
: “You’re not interested…? Are you the type to go against the trend? Did you know my name is listed too? It’s apparently due to my recent disapproval of the group.”
: “Before I knew it, I turned into a bona fide villain. Still, I thought that if I became a target, I could figure out their methods. The idea was appealing when I thought about it. Of course, there’s no guarantee I’d be safe.”
: I mean, apart from the fact that you can hear Morgana and thus either have a Persona or have seen him talk in the other world.
: “You should check out the list sometime. …Well, talking any more will make us late. See you later!”
: That’s because they’re called John Persona god don’t you know anything
: This is rapidly becoming the Joker Game.
: This scene was changed in Royal for no apparent reason. In the base game, the dialog was largely the same, except it was Mr. Hiruta instead of Maruki.
: “The school trip’s tomorrow, huh? I always got so excited the night before my trips. You leave tomorrow, right? It’ll take six or seven hours to get to Hawaii, so… it’ll be morning when you arrive.”
: You would think they’d do something with this and have the calendar roll back when you arrive, but they don’t.
: “You’re leaving at night, but arriving in the morning of the 7th… that might be quite a shock to your systems. Jetlag is one thing, but our perception of time itself can become distorted sometimes.”
: “Have you ever looked at your watch and felt like the second hand stopped for longer than a second? Say, Kurusu-kun. Do you know the name of the phenomenon where the second hand looks like it’s stopped moving?”
: I’m picturing Hashino’s co-workers going “Jeez, Boomer Bill, it’s 2016. No one wears an analog watch anymore.”
: Vierordt’s Law is a principle in psychology created by Karl von Vierordt in 1868 that states that people tend to overestimate short periods of time and underestimate long periods.
: The other two are, of course, a Jojo reference (the Stardust Crusaders anime released in 2014, right around the time the base game was being worked on) and a Metal Gear reference. Both of those wrong answers existed in the base game.
: “Yeah! That’s correct. When a person changes their viewpoint, there’s a moment of time that goes unaccounted for in their mind.”
: “In order to fill that blank, the brain experiences a fictional moment. That’s where this phenomenon comes from.”
: “The human brain really is incredible, right? It can make you feel like time has stopped. Oh, but my time’s already up. I want to hear all your stories when you get back, okay? Have fun!”
: “…You’re going to Hawaii tomorrow, huh. Don’t worry about the house. I’ll… well, me and Futaba can hold down the fort.”
: If you aren’t from the US and are reading this LP, please know that LA is indeed our capitol and is located in California, which is right in the middle of the country. Ignore anyone who tells you that’s Kansas - Kansas doesn’t exist, we do that to throw off the foreigners.
: “…Come on. Can’t you guys be a little more mature about this? I know you guys are getting excited for the trip, but you’re getting a little carried away.”
: We have one last Mementos request to grab, and it’s Tae’s. We’ll be going in on the 19th - I think I said the 16th earlier.
: “Sorry, I’m going to pass on it today.”
: You need Charm at Rank 4 to do this, but that’s not a problem at this point.
: “I… need to talk to you. Since this might be the last time…”
: “I’m thinking of resigning.”
: “Several of my suppliers have stated that they’re going to stop selling to me. If I can’t get my hands on medical supplies, I won’t be able to get what I need to complete the new medicine.”
: “They’re probably being pressured by Oyamada to stop doing business with me. So I figure it’s over.”
: “It’s fine. I confirmed with the hospital Miwa-chan was being treated at… Oyamada was telling the truth. Miwa-chan was apparently smiling until the very end. She probably didn’t want to worry anyone.”
: “I wish I could’ve cured her… I didn’t want fame or money. All I wanted… was to keep her smiling. This isn’t just about her though…”
: “I was a sickly child when I was young too… I was always in the hospital… and was rarely well enough to attend school. Medicine was all that kept me alive…”
: Oh, so you’re an anime trope. Got it.
: “That’s why I wanted to become a doctor… so I could save people, just like I was saved… but I guess this is where it ends…”
: “The medical industry is a business, after all, and the chief decides what’s best for it. I’m all out of allies…”
: “Yeah… you’re right. You might just be my one and only… I really appreciate everything you’ve done. My practice increased thanks to your nosiness, and in the end, I felt like a real doctor again.”
: “…There are plenty of other small-town doctors. This is where it ends. …Although it frustrates me. I can’t do clinical trials anymore, so you can go home.”
: “Thanks again for all your help. And good luck on those entrance exams.”
: With the smaller Mementos requests, I can understand why Joker would need someone to tell him the person’s name, but Oyamada is apparently the chief of staff at a major hospital.
: It would’ve been better writing to have Joker ask her what hospital she worked at and then search online to find Oyamada’s name, or just had him look it up after the event.
: “…You’re such a weird kid. His full name is Shoichi Oyamada. He’s a very influential Chief of Staff in the world of medicine… is that all?”
: “You guys are still talking about that trip…?”
: “Your school trip’s tomorrow, right? You don’t need to worry about us.”
: Unfortunately, we can’t leave or do anything but sleep.
: “Uh… never mind. Have fun on your trip…”
: Next time, we’ll go through an hour-long cutscene with five different scenes in it, because unlike that other LP I don’t give up on 100%. We’ll also see a new More Like Yusu-Gay by Salty Vanilla - because like this LP, they’re ahead of schedule and under budget on doing the job Hashino wouldn’t.
: I believe their commissions are open right now as well.