Persona Q

You Can Form A Teddie Harem Party In Persona Q: Shadow of the Labyrinth

In Persona Q: Shadow of the Labyrinth, you’ll be mixing and matching different characters from Persona 3 and 4 to create a team of five to take on dungeons and fight Shadows. Dengeki’s latest update on the game shows us how we’ll be doing just that.

 

The above is a look at the character select screen, where you’ll be choosing your frontline and backline characters to make your team. As mentioned in our earlier report, you might hear special dialogue between certain characters, so it’ll give you another reason to mix things up a bit.

 

You’ll also be able to pick between Fuuka Yamagishi from Persona 3 and Persona 4’s Rise Kujikawa, who’ll be playing the role of tactical support in Persona Q.

 

It’ll be important to balance your team based on physical attack, skills, heals, supports, and more; however, there will be a little more depending on the mix of characters you have. For example, having a party of all boys might result in some kind of manly friendship thing going on.

 

…or you can make a Teddie harem party to see how that might work out!

 

This time, all characters will be able to use their main Personas, along with sub-Personas, so you’ll be able to form parties according to your preference.

 

The enemies you’ll be fighting will be the same Shadows from Persona 3 and 4, but the game will also have some new enemies who’ve yet to be seen.

 

Here’s a look at the “Boost” feature in Persona Q, that is similar to the “All-Out Attacks,” as you’ll be getting it by hitting enemy weaknesses.

 

 

 

When you land an attack and any of the other characters are in a Boost status, they can do a “Follow-up Attack,” where they perform an extra hit to add to the damage.

 

 

Having more party members in your party also gives you a higher chance of being able to do an All-Out Attack, so a good tactic will be to have as many characters as you can in Boost mode!

Persona Q has F.O.E. enemies, dungeon mapping
More Etrian Odyssey elements for Etrian Odyssey-like Persona.

The latest issue of Famitsu reveals new details about Persona Q: Shadow of the Labyrinth, Atlus’ upcoming dungeon crawler for 3DS, indicating that its Etrian Odyssey roots extend as far as the inclusion of Field On Enemy-type (F.O.E.) adversaries, as well as the series’ iconic cartography mechanics.

As in Etrian Odyssey, F.O.E. enemies, which in Japanese is derived from Greek and stands for “Physis Oikein Eidolon,” far outclass the normal Shadows you’ll encounter while traversing dungeons. Although defeating one yields great rewards, it’s said that they’re best left alone until your party can confidently take it on. Unlike conventional Shadows, F.O.E. enemies appear on the dungeon floor as you walk around, making it possible to avoid them with careful planning using the dungeon layouts at hand. That being said, Famitsu notes that the difficulty level in Persona Q can be altered at any time, ensuring that no hurdle is ultimately too great for players.

The map-making, meanwhile, should be familiar to most anybody who’s previously played an Etrian Odyssey game. Using the bottom screen, you can meticulously plot out the layout of dungeon floors as you explore, drawing walls and placing icons down on tiles as you discover relevant landmarks. This enables you to efficiently return to areas for future trips and focus on pure questing. For newcomers intimidated by the feature, rest assured, as Famitsu points out that there are handy tutorials designed to walk players through the ropes, as well as an auto-mapping feature that can be turned on for those who simply don’t want to concern themselves with map-making at all.

Famitsu also announced a 10,590 yen Famitsu DX-branded special edition of Persona Q that can be pre-ordered online at Atlus’ D Shop website. In addition to the game itself, the pack includes:

A B2-sized tapestry drawn by the anime cutscene staff
A poster drawn by Atlus
A five-piece clear paper filer set
A mug
A papercraft version of Persona newcomer Rei
Persona Q: Shadow of the Labyrinth is due out for 3DS on June 5 in Japan and this fall in North America.