So, I REALLY want to get into the Persona series now. I mean, I have been aware of the series for a while but never owned anything beyond Persona 4 Arena (and that was because my friend let me borrow his copy of the game, and I only played it for about a month.) After purchasing Ultimax cuz why not I've found a deep appreciation for the series, and I only started Ultimax a couple of weeks ago! (I am familiar with the game mechanics, having played the first P4A and all, but the game in general is still an alien concept to me besides my go-to knowledge of fighting games.)
I never actually played the RPG's, but I most certainly want too now. Everyone has told me I can start from Persona 3 or P3FES and work myself up, and just watch the animation to get the jist of Persona 4 Golden. I got a lot of feedback saying Persona 1-2 don't follow the "new" atmosphere that the games follow now, but it may be good for those who wanted a more straightforward and dark turn on things. Once I get the funds, I'll be getting Persona 3 (or FES, whichever is available for PS3 download) and Persona 4. My friend will give me his copy of P4A since he says he doesn't play it that much anymore, and you can bet I am getting hyped for Persona 5. Unfortunately, I don't think I will have access to Persona Q sadly, but everyone keeps telling me it's more of a canonical fanservice version of the series. (WARNING: Long post incoming)
Now as far as Persona 4 Arena Ultimax is concerned and how I feel about the game as a whole:
I love it. I love the central theme, the Blazblue inspiration, the interesting persona and "Shadow" mechanics, and it is relatively simple to pick up (lol 5A mashing)
However, this game is a double edged sword for me personally. When I actually want to learn a game or character, I would hope it would go through a series of moves or explains what certain moves do and how they can be useful in battle. Unfortunately, tutorial mode only covers the bare basics and Challenge mode is pretty much "Here do these combos if you can. Your done" most of which aren't all that practical.
I know the games way of teaching new players isn't as in-depth as say Blazblue or Skullgirls tutorial modes, but I would hope to believe that they at least tried to explain certain mechanics better then just giving a general overview. It is a struggle to keep up with the combo system, and one glaring feature I noticed about this game off hand as I practiced; Timing and Delays are dahm near a chore. Even in cases of button mashing do I find it a rather obnoxious experience (sometimes.) A character I am trying to learn, for ex. is Marie and the timing on her c.X button (I am not familiar with all the terms yet) has to be delayed literally 0.5 seconds before connecting the follow up attack for some combos, and it throws me off.
vs. Other fighting games where I feel timing/delay and moves connecting one after the other is evenly paced, but here it does not feel that way. It seems like in very specific combos or timed delays do combos actually link one after the other (It may just be the character or my inability to pace my self at a slower input execution, but it is very noticeable.) Skullgirls, UMvC3, GG Xrd, Blazblue, and even DoA to an extent can give you options to flow combos more fluently without stricter delay execution whereas here it is pretty much relied on.
Then there are the combos themselves: I do enjoy them, I really do, but somehow they seem highly impractical/risky. There is also the fact there are no true explanations on why Marie's weather mechanics should be used or how they work (from what I know, they affect your Persona's attributes but unless I did research I wouldn't know anything beyond that.) If I got in an online match, I'd be attempting the same moves and combos over and over just to figure out what works, and what doesnt which would result in me getting punished. It's a process but it is something.
Well that is all I have to say about my P4A Ultimax experience. I do really want to get in the game, maybe even competitively, but unless I find a way to figure out timing issues or delayed inputs, it may be a long while before I reach that point. Anyone willing to give me any pointers or even spar with me some to get my feet wet?