Persona Q2: New Cinema Labyrinth (Nintendo 3DS)

Persona Q2: New Cinema Labyrinth is a spin-off of the Persona series with a mix of the insanely fun Persona battle system and Etrian Odyssey's dungeon crawling/map making. The casts of Persona 3, P3P, 4 and 5 are the stars of this game though unlike Persona Q1 which was split into 2 sides of a single story you instead take the role as the Persona 5 main character and play through one long and well written story while meeting the other 3 protagonists and their teams. You don't need any knowledge of Persona Q1 to jump in (as the characters don't actually remember it, handy right?), nor any of the Persona games, though you will miss many references and fun interactions that are enhanced by knowing the characters and their personal stories before.Not sure why the only other review (at the time of writing. EDIT: This is no longer the case for reference) says this game doesn't lack quality, has spelling errors and isn't balanced because these are pretty much all untrue and comes across as the reviewer hasn't actually played the game at all. I've personally put over 50+ hours since release and I can genuinely say this is the best spin-off in the series, and as the title of my review says, a quality send-off to the system. While I'm a little sad this isn't a switch title due to the fact the game is already such high quality, it being on the 3DS doesn't damper any impact it has and if you have a 3DS this should be the last title you buy for it.The OST by Atsushi Kitajoh is insane and one of the best in the entire Persona series (which is already known for it's incredibly high bar with its soundtracks), the voice acting while only being in Japanese (Yes there's no English dub due to it's late release but please don't let this deter you) is so well done while being acted extremely well and the visual design is on par with Persona 5 which is one of the best looking games you can buy right now. The menus all transition in cool, artistic and flashy ways and the main hub music will have you humming and singing along as you watch your party members interact and discuss the latest plot and events.If you played PQ1 you will be utterly shocked at how much better and an improvement PQ2 is compared from everything from the writing by atlus' newly assembled writing team to the slick visual design and battles with baton passes and unison attacks. & if you haven't played PQ1 then Persona Q2: New Cinema Labyrinth is the best place to start for a super fun, addicting rpg. This game didn't sell well in Japan due to it's release right at the end of the 3DS' lifespan and it's likely to do just as well in the west (thus why it doesn't have a dub in the first place), becoming a rarer and expensive game (like PQ1), so consider picking it up! Don't let this gem pass you by just because of it's late release and fewer copies sold. It's 100% worth it and an experience you shouldn't miss out on. It's not a perfect game but it's filled with so much love, care and charm that's made me laugh out loud more time than I can count and deserves so much better than the sales it will get.

I really enjoyed the first Persona Q game, but PQ2 has fixed just about all the issues I had with it and is an absolute joy to play (and listen to - the soundtrack, as with other Persona games, is phenomenal). Unlike the first game, PQ2 is more focused and has just one main character (Joker) and story. The Phantom Thieves get thrown into the new cinema labyrinth of the title whilst in Mementos, two members go missing and so the story begins, as they begin to search from their friends and a way out. It's a blend of Etrian Odyssey first-person dungeon crawling and map-making with Persona-style combat and characters from P3, 4 and 5.Visually, the game is gorgeous. It brings P5's style to the handheld in marvellous fashion. The soundtrack, as mentioned, is glorious. One stumbling block for some may be that only the Japanese voice acting it available, especially those used to the English actors, but it's not really an issue if you're reading the text as you can skip through it as quickly as you want to. Combat is as enjoyable as ever with Persona games. The PQ games use a 'boost' system rather than the usual 'one more'. If you hit an enemy's weakness that character goes into boost state which makes their next action free to use and also powers up. The dungeons themselves are given the style of movies, as the characters step through the cinema screen to enter them, and they are beautifully designed and great to look at. Also, if you don't like the map-making function you can automate it to a degree, but doing it yourself is much more fun.If this is the 3DS's swan song it is a fantastic way for it to go out.

If you really disliked PQ this game will most probably change your mind. I'm not even half way through the game and I already really enjoy it, I've almost forgotten this game doesn't have a dub with how much better the gameplay is. I remember playing the first game which was like a chore every time. If there was a dub I would have given it 5 stars.Really annoying when battle quotes aren't translated, so I'd just have to assume what they say most of the time.I hope they do more crossover puzzle games like this in the future, just not on the DS. It's very limited and with persona, there are so much they could do.

Let's be a Debby Downer and get the negatives out-of-the-way first. The things I don't like: There is NO connection to PQ at all. It's an entirely different continuity. Does this matter? Not really that much, I just thought it was strange.It takes a while to unlock all the characters but that's also not much of an issue.The battle music is... egh. Thankfully you can get free DLC to change it. I had the P3 theme for most of the game.And finally: PLEASE ATLUS do something about placing doors with auto mode on. You have to manually paint the walls and floor each time you pass through a door and it's just annoying.Everything else is pretty grand, however. The story is generally what you'd expect for a Persona spin-off: nothing groundbreaking but it's a nice excuse to get all of your friends together. The gameplay makes much-needed changes to Persona Q, one being that Links now make sense.Perhaps THE BEST change of all to this game is it is devoid of ridiculous puzzles where you need to run from point A to point B doing algebra while being attacked every 3 steps. There are puzzles but they are incredibly minor.The game never overstayed its welcome, either. I was expecting the final dungeon to be 10 rooms long (like in PQ) but it was very nice how it didn't make the player trudge through more rooms just to get to the last boss.Very enjoyable. Remember Mitsuru is best girl.Also for those complaining there's no English dub: Why are you playing with dubs anyway? Just listen to it in its original language like the rest of us do.