Quick Links
Persona 3 Portablewas the first game to bridge what was theShin Megami Tenseiseries into the modernPersonawe all know and love. And while most games see players going through chronologically, the smash-success of Persona 5 Royal has brought many players back to three for another taste of the franchise they adore.
RELATED:How Long Does It Take To Beat Persona 3 Portable?
But with P3P being the bridging game, it’s got a lot of elements with which modern fans of the series may be unfamiliar. For a list of tips and tricks to keep in mind as you dive into Persona 3 Portable, we’ve got you covered.
Our guides try to avoid them where possible, but they may still contain spoilers for the story of Persona 3 Portable.
Save Often - Both Quick And Manually
In the original Persona 3, players were often stunted by how few options they had for saving the game.
Now, with Persona 3 Portable, not only do you havemore manual save optionsthan the vanilla release of the game, but you can alsoquick saveas well.
Manual saves are the safest way to be sure that your data is secure, asquick save data can be erased. Nothing sucks more than losing a few days of progress to power outages or technical hiccups, so it’s always better safe than sorry!
You can manually save from a few places:
Quick savescan be performedfrom the submenu.They’ll save your data and bring you to the title screen, so use them in a pinch andbe sure to manually savewhen you come back into the game.
Watch TV On Sundays For Tanaka’s Amazing Commodities
President Tanaka is easily one of theshadiestpeople in the entirety of the Persona series, but god-damn it if he’s not kind of charming.
Among other things, he’s the host ofTanaka’s Amazing Commodities, a home shopping program that airsevery Sunday. You can order from President Tanaka bywatching television on Sunday morning.
His show often featuresitems you’d not find anywhere else, larger quantities of gooddungeon-crawling itemsthan you can’t buy around Iwatodai, and he stocks everything fromsnackstoweapons.
However, you may receive aphone call from a friendon Sunday morning, since you don’t have school.
In order to watch Tanaka’s Amazing Commodities, you’ll need toturn down your social link invitations.If youagree, you’ll leave the dorm immediately andcannot watch the programthat morning
Focus On Your Schoolmates' Social Links While School Is In Session
With24 arcanato cover, Persona 3 Portable offers a buffet of options for you when it comes to making friends andspending time with social links.
Your social links will be withpeople all around Iwatodai, bothGekkoukan students and residentsalike.
Everyone has a prescribed time during which they’re available, but you’ll notice that,when school isn’t in session, your classmate social links are harder to find.
You’ll have asummer break, like high school students do, in which you’renot going to school. For the most part, yoursocial links with other Gekkoukan students will belargely unavailable during this time.
Therefore, it’s a good idea towork on your classmate social links early. They’re around multiple times a week, and if you’re about to rank up their social link, they’llfind you during lunchto ask you to hang out with them after school.
This is a good way toknow who will rank upwithout running around checking, so keep it in mind when planning your schedule.
YourSEES teammatesand thenon-studentsyou’re getting to know around Iwatodaidon’t have the same schedule limitationsas your other classmates.
And with them having open schedules, save them until school isn’t in session!
Some Social Links Have Skill Locks
And while there are an impressive number of social links to spend time with, keep in mind thatnot everyone begins their social link immediately.There are characters you’ll come across whowon’t hang out until you hit a social skill requirement.
This can be a pain, as your social links are how you fuse even stronger Personas according to your ranking with that arcana. And without the corresponding social link started,Personas of that arcana gain no additional points upon fusion.
Therefore, it’s important to at leastget your social links started quicklyto maximize the points you’re able to earn. You then gainmore points toward your fusions in that arcana for every rank the social link advancesthroughout the game.
However, there are a number ofcharacters who won’t hang out with youbefore one of your three social skills are at acertain level.
Additionally, the characters’ social skill requirement will sometimes bedifferent between the two protagonists.
8/8
5/29
11/21
5/9
9/22
6/23
Female Protagonist: (no skill lock)
6/15
9/1
Male Protagonist: after Rank 4 of the Strength social link
Female Protagonist: after Rank 3 of the Chariot social link
RELATED:Persona 3 Portable: All Classroom And Exam Answers
Grind Between Full Moon Operations
While a lot of what you’ll do in your free time in Persona is every bit the slice-of-life story we know and love in JRPGs,battling in Tartarusis the central mechanic in the series. After all, thatiswhere you guys are using yourPersonas.
But players expecting a cakewalk through the imposing264 main floorsof the tower are in for a shock, since theenemies get harder as you go up.
Because of this, we can’t recommend enough that youspend time grindingin Tartarus between your central Full Moon Operations.
Boss shadows attack on each full moon, but before that date, you’ve got time totrain up your team to fight back.
Before going into Tartarus, though, be sure youcheck your teammates’ conditions, as lower condition hinders their performance in battle.
For more info on Conditions in Tartarus, check out ourComplete Guide to Conditions.
Equip Your Party At The Police Station
If you head toPaulownia Malland head into thepolice station, you’ll find you may purchase all sorts of great new equipment for your entire team.
For each member of SEES, you may give them a newweapon, armor, or accessory, all of which offers a sprawling list of benefits in combat.
Check what each item doesbefore deciding on what to use, as items with lower stats may also have some awesome additional benefits.
And while it’s exciting when a new person joins the party, before you bring them into Tartarus, it’s incredibly important toequip your new party members before you use them.
Everyone joins your team wearing their general outfit, so it’s up to you to give them the best weaponry and armor. It’s irritating to get into Tartarus and realize someone is taking massive damage because everyone else is wearing armor while they’re wearing a school uniform!
While you can find these items throughout Tartarus, thepolice station usually has the best stuffyou can currently use.
The station has asale every Mondaythat slashes Officer Kurosawa’s prices. If you can wait to shop on sale days, it’s a great way to save cash!
New itemsbecome available in one of two ways: when you pass acertain calendar date, or when you reach acertain player levelas you grind in Tartarus.
And while weapons and armor have the most immediate effect, be sure to check out Officer Kurosawa’s impressive list ofaccessoriesas well. They can do things like offerelemental boosts,extra HP or SP, or even help youdodge certain elements entirely.
Always be sure your team is fully equipped before heading into Tartarus!
Take Velvet Room Requests, But Be Mindful Of Their Due Dates
Regardless of which of theVelvet Room assistantsyou chose to be with you throughout your adventure in Persona 3 Portable – Elizabeth or Theodore – they’ll both routinely offer yourequestsif youspeak to them in the Velvet Room.
Some have strictdeadlines which can and will lock you out of completing a request, whileothers are open-endedand can be completed at any point before the end of the game.
The deadline for each request is displayed when you claim it. You can takethree requests at one time, so plan carefully which ones you’re currently doing.
If you accidentally select a request or find you’re unable to complete it, you cancancel the request, but it willcost in yento do so.
However, for all the stress, there is always a pretty sweetreward. The rewards for the requests can be anything fromyentoarmortoskill cards, and the reward is shown at thebottom of the request screen. If there’s something you’ve got your eye on, be sure to take on that request!
The requests are a great way toobtain new items,some of which youcan’t get otherwise, and most of the requests will be forthings you’re already doing anyway. Make smart use of the requests to earn yourself some sweet rewards.
Make Use Of Teleporters On Mini-Boss Floors In Tartarus
With Tartarus as massive as it is, Atlus would be silly to make you run through every floor each time you wanted to go into the Dark Hour. So, they gave you a shortcut:teleporters.
On the floors on which you encountermini-boss fightsthroughout Tartarus, before you begin the battle, be sure toactivate the teleporter on that floor first, even if you don’t intend to use it right then.
Youcan’t use teleporters until they’ve been manually activated, and they serve essentially as an elevator to take you as close to where you’re trying to go in Tartarus as possible.
Theaccess pointson normal floorsare not the same thing as teleporters.
If youleave via an access point, when you return to Tartarus, you’ll need to take the teleporter to the floor closest to where you’d been andwork your way back.
The teleporters arespread pretty evenly throughout Tartarus, so be sure to activate any you see.
There’sa lot to do at the entrance– using the Velvet Room, the clock, or even switching out your party-members mid-adventure if need be – so it’s better to have the option to quickly jump back than to not. Use them to go back if you need!
Fuse Often And Keep Your Compendium Current
It should come as no surprise that your impressive stock of Personas is the main focus of the game, and to keep them all straight as you welcome more and more into your heart, you’ll need tofuse new Personas relatively often.
Your stock expands as you get stronger until eventually,your protagonist can hold 12 unique Personas. But with so many in the Compendium –173 total, to be exact – you’ll need to cycle out the old to make room for the new.
Thankfully, not only do you use Personas to battle, but they’re also theingredients to make new Personas. Visit your Velvet Room attendant and tell them you’d like tofuse Personas, and they’ll help you through the process.
And as you’re creating and finding new Personas, and leveling them up as you ascend through Tartarus, be sure you visit the Velvet Room toregister your Personas to the Compendium.
As your Personas learn new skills and abilities, you’ll need toupdate their registrationif you’d like to withdraw them again knowing that new skill.
If you don’t, the Compendium will default tothe last Persona of that kind you registered, even if you’ve evolved a different one and used it in fusion or threw it out for a new card before registering it.
Not registering a strengthened or leveled-up Persona will essentiallyerase your progress with that Persona, so be sure to always register before fusing!
After you’ve used a Persona as an ingredient, you can alsowithdraw the Personas from the Compendium.
This will cost you inyen, with stronger Personas becoming more expensive pretty quickly, but it’s a good way to keep your roster current.
When getting Personas thatmatch the arcana of social links you’re spending time with, their level doesn’t matter.
If you don’t intend to use the Persona in battle, there’s nothing wrong with grabbing a cheap one for the express purpose ofearning bonus affinity with social links. They don’t care about the level, just the arcana, so save yen where you can.
