Persona 5 Royal Review on Nintendo Switch
Persona 5 Royal on the Nintendo Switch offers the best of both worlds. You get all the content and features of its original release now on a portable device, my full review.
Persona 5 Royal on the Nintendo Switch is just as remarkable as it was when the game debuted in 2018. It embraces Japanese influences and settings combining it with modern mechanics and visuals. This marriage of traditional and new fuses into vibrant characters, stories, and stunning modern settings in Tokyo, Japan. Persona 5 Royal is a truly unique JRPG expereince, one that you shouldn't pass up.
Persona 5 Royal on the Nintendo Switch is a finely tuned version of its original release that now offers swaths of added content. Players can explore numerous dungeons, grind for experience and loot, battle enemies with stylish combat moves, and build relationships with characters in the game. On the Switch Persona 5 Royal boasts strong performance, reworked mechanics and adds entirely new chapters to the story. There has been quite a bit added since the original release adding even more to the expansive world. With loads of upgrades over its predecessor, it's clear that this version of Persona 5 is sure to please fans of the series and newcomers alike. Let's dive in and see how this title translates on the Nintendo Switch hardware.
Persona 5 Royal on Nintendo Switch
Platform(s): Nintendo Switch, Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One and PC
Reviewed on: Nintendo Switch
Developer(s): P-Studio
Publisher(s): Atlus USA
Genre: Role-playing
Modes: Single-player
ESRB Rating: M (Mature 17+)
The Story of Phantom Thieves of Hearts
The story follows a group of high school students who form a rebellious team to fight against injustice in society. You play as their defacto leader going by the pseudonym, "Joker." He joins forces with a group of outcasts to form the Phantom Thieves. He and his friends use their mental prowess to take down some of the world's most diabolical people. Joker and his band of misfits commit daring robberies and battles with hordes of imaginary creatures. The new content includes dungeons, characters, locations, music and an epilogue that ties up loose ends from the main storyline. Consequently, the new story content adds 20-30 more hours of gameplay than its original version and add 3 new endings.
Persona 5 Royal Graphics and Performance on the Switch
The visuals of Persona 5 Royal on the Nintendo Switch are crisp and vibrant, especially on the OLED model; the hardware I reviewed the game on. The visuals are quite beautiful in handheld mode, the stylized anime aesthetic makes it feel as if you’re playing an interactive cartoon. The bright colors pop off-screen and every detail looks vibrant and sharp. Players will be pleasantly surprised to find that this version runs quite smoothly with few hiccups or frame drops, despite the size and scope of the game.
There is the odd slowdown when the action gets particularly intense, but it is never too noticeable. Character models are detailed and full of expressions that bring their stories to life. The environments are also rich in detail with a lot of attention paid to lighting effects, even on the Switch version. The anime-style cutscenes look exceptionally beautiful. Furthermore, the anti-aliasing has been improved resulting in clean and sharp visuals. There are no significant upgrades to Persona 5 Royal on the Switch, but no downgrades either, making this one of the more technically sound ports to land on the console.
Persona 5 Royal's Gameplay and mechanics
Persona 5 Royal features quite a few different entry points for players when it comes to gameplay. The game is comprised of five central areas: the turn-based battle system, collecting and fusing personas, exploring dungeons, the Confidant social system, and raising social stats through a variety of activities. The turn-based battles are as thrilling as ever, with a variety of enemies to fight and an array of abilities to master. The personas collection is also an engaging aspect of the game with various effects, skills, and attributes to keep in mind when collecting and fusing these creatures.
Exploring dungeons can be fairly repetitive but it’s a necessary part of the game that allows you to grind for experience points, items and currency. Building relationships with characters through the Confidant system is essential in Persona 5 Royal and adds extra layers of depth to the story. Finally, there are many activities available for you to raise your social stats such as studying, working part time jobs or going out on dates. All these elements combine to make an enjoyable and immersive experience that add-up to well over 100+ hours of content.
Final thoughts on Persona 5 Royal
Persona 5 Royal is a fantastic game that runs incredibly well on the Nintendo Switch with no notable losses in quality. The story content is engaging, the characters are likeable and the gameplay mechanics will keep you hooked for hours at a time. If you’re looking for a game to get lost in this holiday season, look no further than Persona 5 Royal on the Nintendo Switch.
Persona 5 Royal PROS
+Excellent graphics and performance on the Nintendo Switch
+Engaging story content and characters
+Fun and immersive gameplay mechanics
+Plenty of activities to keep you engaged for hours
Persona 5 Royal CONS
-Repetitive dungeon exploration can be tedious at times
-Amount of content can be overwhelming
Gameplay: 9/10
Graphics: 9/10
Sound: 9/10
Replayability: 8.5/10
Overall Rating: 36/40 (90%)
A copy of the game was provided by Nintendo for the purpose of this review.
About the Author - Matthew "Dapper Tux" Rondina
Matthew has been involved in all things gaming since the 8-bit era. He is a veteran of the video game and tech industry who has been passionate about technology and gaming for over 20 years. Along with being the Managing Editor of dappertux.com, he has bylines with Best Buy, Cineplex Entertainment, Mobile Syrup and Walmart. Follow Matthew’s gaming + tech adventures on twitter, Instagram and join in on the fun!
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