Parents' Guide to
Persona 5 Tactica
Common Sense Media Review
By Chad Sapieha , based on child development research. How do we rate?
Strategic spin-off with teen heroes; some blood & language.
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Persona 5 Tactica
Parent and Kid Reviews
What's It About?
PERSONA 5 TACTICA is a new adventure set within the Persona 5 universe and features the same teen Japanese characters many players came to know and love in other Persona 5 games. Joker, Ann Takamaki, Morgana, and the rest of the crew find themselves teleported to a realm ruled by an evil woman with the power to control people's minds. The group decides to help the local resistance, led by a young woman named Erina, setting the stage for a series of tasks and confrontations that make up the bulk of the game. Like other Persona games, players spend a good deal of time watching lengthy narrative cutscenes and tapping their way through text and voice dialogue, both of which paint a detailed picture of this new fantasy world and key characters within it. The tactical battles are slightly different, though. Characters move around gridded battlefields, taking cover, flanking enemies, and using action points to attack. Goals are often to eliminate enemies or make it to a specific location on the map. As the game progresses, players unlock new perks and abilities via skill trees and can purchase new weapons.
Is It Any Good?
This traditional tactical role playing game doesn't forge much new ground for the genre, but fans of the Persona 5 cast are bound to enjoy getting to spend a little more time with these lovably flawed teens. Like other games in the series, Persona 5 Tactica offers limited dialogue options in its lengthy exposition sequences, few of which actually have any impact on how the story unfolds. That said, the writing is wry and snappy enough that it's still plenty of fun to tap through, with a story that delivers ample twists and chapter cliffhangers to keep players interested and engaged. It doesn't tackle the kind of serious teen issues found in the original Persona 5, but it does tell a compelling tale of dogged rebellion in the face of overwhelming odds. Erina, leader of the Rebel Corps, is an especially fun addition to the group, helping to keep up the team's morale while demonstrating a willingness to sacrifice in order to help others.
Combat, meanwhile, should be very familiar to anyone who's played strategy games like Mario + Rabbids: Sparks of Hope or XCOM 2. Moving from cover to cover for tactical position and making wise use of special abilities is key, as is taking advantage of flanking moves to encircle enemies, which allows multiple heroes to attack at the same time. The battles may seem a little short and simplistic for veterans of the genre, especially at the start, but they gradually become more challenging and rewarding as the game unfolds. Persona 5 Tactica may not deliver the best story or play in the series, but it's still a welcome addition to the growing Persona 5 universe.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about screen time. Persona 5 Tactica is broken into short battles set within longer chapters. Are you satisfied with simply playing a battle or two before taking a break, or do you prefer playing a full chapter before switching off? How does breaking these battles up help you practice managing screen time?
Talk about what diversity might look like in foreign media. Should we be concerned when a game created and set within a culturally homogenous country doesn't feature a diverse cast of characters? What are some games that do this well?
Game Details
- Platforms: Xbox Series X/S , PlayStation 5 , Nintendo Switch , Windows , Xbox One , PlayStation 4
- Pricing structure: Paid ($59.99)
- Available online?: Available online
- Publisher: Atlus
- Release date: November 17, 2023
- Genre: Role-Playing
- Topics: Magic and Fantasy , Friendship , Monsters, Ghosts, and Vampires
- ESRB rating: T for Blood, Language, Partial Nudity, Suggestive Themes, Use of Alcohol, Violence
- Last updated: August 23, 2024
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