Summary
Persona 5 Tacticaputs Joker and the Phantom Thieves back into the fray, fighting against tyrannical rulers as they help spark rebellion. To assist them in combat is the return of their iconic Persona designs; from Captain Kidd to Milady, the Phantom Thieves call upon their other selves once again to aid them in battle. ThoughPersona 3through5relied on the wildcard ability for their protagonists,rendering starting Personas largely obsolete in the face of demon fusion,Persona 5 Tacticabrings Arsene back in a more substantial manner, making it a mainstay for Joker in combat.
Persona 5 Tacticatakes a bit of a cue from theSoul Hackersseries through letting its team utilize Persona skills other than their own. This comes in the form of “sub-Personas,” keeping fusion relevant throughout the game. Sub-Personas offer the chance to give more skill coverage to the team, allowing them to utilize elemental attacks and healing skills beyond the ones they specialize in. With that said, they’re generally more useful for the passive abilities they can adopt, whether that be increasing damage to targets attacked from behind or reducing SP costs for ‘Once-More’ attacks, playing into the strategic side of fusion customization.
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Arsene’s Eiha Skills and Phantom Judge Keeps Joker Formidable
Despite the use of sub-Personas, the skills ofthe Phantom Thieves' starting Personas remain a consistent resource throughout the game that can be expanded upon through character skill trees. This extends to their battle animations, even when utilizing a sub-Persona’s skill; while some might be disappointed in the absence of other demon designs appearing in battle,Tactica’s chibi art style would have been a tremendous undertaking for the development team to apply across the game’s compendium. Still, this gives a Persona like Arsene more screentime, with it being nice to see Joker alongside the quintessential design.
Arsene’s Battle Prowess
Arsene utilizes Eiha skills, inflicting despair on enemies. Unlikethe Garu skills of Morgana’s Persona Zorro, Eiha skills don’t change enemy placement when utilized, making it a wise choice for attacking while keeping enemies grouped in the same position. The range of Eiha skills, not just in the distance they can target but in how much grid coverage they have, proves to be especially powerful toward late-game missions; Eigaon has an acceptable amount of coverage and less SP cost than Maeigaon, for example, allowing players to focus on other skill tree avenues without worrying about unlocking both.
This gives a chance to boost the damage potency of Arsene’s Eiha skills through Despair Boost, while also taking into consideration buffs. Though players might focus more on Arsene’s offensive abilities, the unlocking of a skill like Marakukaja, raising the defense of all team members regardless of proximity, helps make the game’s final boss fight incredibly manageable - especially in conjunction with a teammate like Ann casting Matarukaja to raise the team’s attack. This makes the trio ofJoker, Ann, and Morganapowerful together, with the former two dealing heavy amounts of damage while the latter cleans up any survivors, gaining once-more actions in the process.
The Versatility of Phantom Judge’s ‘Once-More’
Arsene’s special plays heavily intoTactica’s once-more mechanic; a move called Phantom Judge, accessible via the game’s Voltage system, allows Joker to down enemies in order to execute another action. While special skills are on a cooldown, the chance to gain Voltage becomes much easier towardsPersona 5Tactica’s mid-to-late game when characters' skill trees are more complete, making it both a reliable and useful resource. The options for Joker following a Phantom Judge attack are endless; whether doubling down on attacking the same enemies, moving across the map in search of other targets, or performing a Triple Threat, the ability leaves even more room to synergize with the team before a turn’s end.
