Saying goodbye to Persona 5 is like saying goodbye to old friends. Even if you’ve spent over a hundred hours in their company, the breakup still feels painful. These characters become family, their stories stay with you for a long time. Of course, Persona 5 Royal made the separation a little easier by adding new chapters, scenes, and mechanics to the familiar story. But in essence, it’s the same path, passed in a second circle – albeit with updates.

But Persona 5 Strikers is a completely different matter. This is no longer just an “add-on” or a “variation on a theme.” This is a real continuation of the story, where beloved characters find themselves in new circumstances, with a completely fresh plot and a bunch of previously unseen locations. Yes, Strikers may not live up to the epicness of the original, but it’s simply impossible to call it an ordinary spin-off. This is a full-fledged sequel – bright, cheerful, and with its own character.

Persona 5 Strikers Deluxe Free Steam Account

Persona 5 Strikers is not quite the “full-fledged” second part that one might expect from a sequel to such a cult game. A lot has changed here: the familiar elements of the original Persona 5 have been left behind or seriously reworked. Forget about morning trips to school, difficult exams and evening walks along the corridors – the action takes place in the summer, which means no school days. The heroes have long known each other and are close-knit, so there are simply no scenes with awkward dates or friendly tea parties in cafes. Even leveling up – the same one that in the original required reading books and watching movies – has faded into the background: the main character already “knows everything” and “can do everything”.

Nevertheless, Strikers carefully preserves the spirit and charisma of the team. Yusuke still philosophizes about art, Futaba never misses a chance to dive into the depths of coding, Morgana still cares about Ann (and still gets annoyed when he’s called a cat). And then a new character appears – Sophia, a mysterious artificial intelligence who calls herself a “friend of humanity.” Her attempts to understand what it means to be human add warmth and freshness to the already familiar company. When another long scene with dialogues begins, you easily forget that you are not in front of a traditional Persona – everything is so familiar and cozy.

But as soon as the dialogues end, Strikers can no longer hide the fact that it is hard for it to compete with the main part. Instead of one city, there is a journey across Japan: the heroes move from place to place, encountering “masters of minds” – be it a social media star or a charismatic mayor. Each of them manipulates people, turning them into blind followers. And when the next “heart fix” is completed, the team leaves – there is no way back, and it is not needed. These cities are quickly forgotten: they are made more for show.

The developers tried to add a little “sociality”. While exploring the city, you can bump into someone you know and get a small task. For example, Ann suddenly asks you to buy her some candy – and you run between the shops in search of the most expensive sweet. Funny? I think so. But such moments rather emphasize the scarcity of locations: a couple of streets, several shops, an entrance to the Velvet Room and a little bit of bonus dialogue. That’s all. Even collecting recipes looks like something secondary, made “for show”.

And yet, despite this, Strikers works. It gives you the opportunity to be close to the heroes you fell in love with again. Reuniting with them warms the soul and helps to forgive all the flaws – even the script ones. There’s a lot of coincidence here, with antagonists being connected to team members through shared pasts or professions. The stories sometimes feel forced or derivative, but you still get involved. Because these characters matter — no matter how logical everything is. Persona 5 set the bar incredibly high. So high that even the original creators themselves would have a hard time exceeding it. Not to mention another studio that took on the continuation of their story. But if you perceive Strikers not as an equal successor, but as a warm meeting with old friends on a new background — the game works. And it works well.

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How Gameplay Works in Persona 5 Strikers: Battles, Characters, and Mechanics

One of the most notable innovations in Persona 5 Strikers is, without a doubt, the prisons. They have become a kind of replacement for the palaces from Persona 5, but with a couple of convenient improvements. For example, now you can return there at any time, even if you are already in another city. The structure of the prisons still resembles palaces: large areas divided into segments with loading areas, enemies that can be caught by surprise, hiding around the corner – everything is in place. Only the battles are now completely different. Forget about turn-based tactics – now battles take place in real time, and you find yourself in the thick of things with dozens, and sometimes hundreds of opponents. But despite this, the developers somehow magically preserved the spirit of the original combat system. You can control any member of the team, use their special attacks, weapons and even summon Personas. With the R1 button, time freezes — and you have the opportunity to choose a pinpoint attack to hit the enemy’s weakest spot. And the game will carefully tell you what the enemy is vulnerable to. If the attack is successful, you can continue the combo using different buttons.

The interactivity of the environment is another pleasant surprise. For example, you can blow up a car and create a blazing hell around. Or use ice structures to freeze enemies. And if you jump on a lamppost and press “Triangle”, the hero will create a real whirlwind of blows, spinning around the support. Everything looks dynamic, stylish and very bright — the visual style is maintained with a bang and immediately evokes associations with the original.

However, not everything is smooth. Some effects, such as sleep, fear or freezing, are weakly felt here. They seem to be there — but you don’t really feel them. Especially when enemies use them on your allies. Most often, you just focus on your character, and what the others do is not particularly important. If you are debuffed, you just need to turn the stick, and in a couple of seconds you are back in action. In Persona 5, such effects could decide the fate of the battle, especially against bosses. Here, it is more of a cosmetic matter – bosses are mostly thick-skinned and do not pose a threat to an experienced player.

It’s funny, but this even makes life easier. Accessories with protection from negative effects are almost not needed, which means you don’t have to spend a lot of time choosing equipment. And in general, you only think about this if you specifically start to understand the mechanics. In battle, something else is more important – to spend mana correctly, combine attacks and competently use abilities against large groups of enemies. And there will be a lot of them – especially when, for example, you need to protect Futaba during her hacking operations.

The best thing is that all this does not get boring. Even if you are allergic to the word musou, you should not worry. Yes, there are more enemies here than in Persona 5, but the game does not reach the meat grinder in the spirit of Dynasty Warriors or Hyrule Warriors. In addition, fights can be simply avoided – just go around the shadows. And if you still have to engage in battle, then with the right strategy, a dozen enemies can be destroyed in just a few seconds. This is a game in which you want to fight – not because you have to, but because it’s fun.

Yes, it is technically a standalone game: there are hints of past events, a couple of lines, recognizable faces. But without playing Persona 5, you simply won’t feel that magic. It’s like watching a sequel to your favorite series, having skipped the first season — the characters are still there, but why they became like this remains a mystery.

It’s especially strange that the original Persona 5 can still only be launched on PlayStation. And if you’re hoping that SEGA and Atlus will one day come to their senses and release it on other platforms… well, let’s be honest — the chances are dwindling with each passing year. Persona 4 Golden has long since migrated to PC, Joker appeared in Super Smash Bros., and the five remain exclusive. Apparently, Atlus has its own principles.

So if you really want to enjoy the whole story properly, you shouldn’t start with Strikers. Better yet, get a PS4 or PS5 and play the original Persona 5 — at least the one that’s free with a PlayStation Plus subscription. And if you want the ultimate experience, grab Royal right away — it reveals the characters in more depth and offers a much more intense adventure.

Is Persona 5 Strikers worth playing after the original?

If you’ve ever immersed yourself in the world of Persona 5, spent sleepless nights leveling up your relationships with characters, exploring palaces and saving lost hearts, then Persona 5 Strikers will be a real gift for you. This is not just another spin-off on the Warriors engine, but a full-fledged storyline sequel that preserves the spirit of the original. Yes, a lot has changed in the new part – from the combat system to the pace of the narrative – but the feeling of closeness to your favorite characters remains.

Strikers offers an unperfect, but quite a strong narrative that develops after the events of Persona 5. Summer, long-awaited vacations, meeting old friends – and, of course, new threats that require the intervention of the Phantom Thieves. The story itself is not revolutionary, and at times relies on familiar techniques, but it works: it holds attention, gives emotional moments and allows you to once again feel the very atmosphere that fans have missed.

It’s worth saying right away: don’t expect a full-fledged Persona 6 here. Strikers doesn’t have many of the key mechanics that the original Persona 5 was famous for. There will be no days scheduled down to the minute, no leveling up of school stats, no deep social life, or dating opportunities. The characters here have long been familiar with each other, and the player can expect more action and dynamics than reflection and everyday details. This makes the game much faster – it can be completed in 30-35 hours, which seems modest by the standards of the franchise. But at the same time, everything that’s most important – soul, charisma, style – is preserved here.

What we liked:

• A story that included both familiar characters and interesting newcomers.
• The visual style remained recognizable and stylish, despite the change in genre.
• The combat system is a pleasant surprise: the key mechanics from the original have been carried over, and the new ones organically complement the process.

What we didn’t like:

• The plot sometimes suffers from banal cliches.
• Social elements, such as developing relationships and life outside of battles, have almost disappeared.
• Newcomers who haven’t played Persona 5 will have a hard time feeling the atmosphere and characters – it’s better to play the original first.

Strikers is a sequel for those who miss the heroes of Persona 5. It’s not a game that builds something from scratch, but a story that lives on its legacy. It takes familiar elements, adds dynamics, experiments with the genre, and does it with confidence. Not without flaws, but with soul. If you’re a fan of the series, don’t hesitate. If you’re a newbie, start with the original. And if you just want a stylish, rich action RPG with charismatic characters, give Strikers a chance. It’s not Persona 5, but it’s still Persona.

Persona 5 Strikers System Requirements

How to play Persona 5 Strikers Deluxe for free on Steam via VpeSports

Missing the Phantom Thieves? Then it’s time to return to their world – but this time in a completely different way. Persona 5 Strikers is not just a tribute to the original, but a truly independent adventure in which the Joker and his friends face a new threat, travel across Japan and fight in fast-paced battles where there is no time to think. This is no longer a meditative school drama, but a tense road movie with heart and soul.

We removed all the unnecessary things so that you can focus on the main thing – the game itself. Just register on our website, go to your personal account – and Persona 5 Strikers will be ready to launch. The entire launch process is described step by step, and what is especially nice is that you can start playing with a free Steam account, which we provide especially for such cases. Yes, no subscriptions, no purchases, no headaches.

And when you pass another prison, defeat dozens of shadows and are once again surprised how much the characters are still alive – tell us how you like it. We read every comment. If it does not appear right away – do not panic, just correct a couple of phrases, and after moderation you will receive a letter with the necessary information for further play.

And if you want to be aware of everything related to Persona and JRPG in general – welcome to our Telegram channel. There we post fresh accounts, share guides, announcements and even discuss favorite scenes or persons. Everything is like in a good fan party: kindly, with soul. Do you have questions? Look in the section “How to play for free – Complete guide” or just write to us – we will answer, prompt and, if necessary, set everything up together.