Summary
While the Phantom Thieves' initial and second-tier Personas were released as DLC forPersona 3 Reload, there were a handful fromPersona 5 Royal’s DLC that did not make the cut. Among these was Izanagi no Okami, which made aPersona 5 Royalrun incredibly easy. DLC-aside, there were several Personas from previous titles that made a return inRoyalthat could have stayed forPersona 3 Reload.
Had they made it intoPersona 3 Reload, it’s likely that the non-DLCP5RPersonas would have a different Arcana. This could be a good thing, considering that it’s recommended to have a Persona of a matching Arcana when doing Social Links. Having access to lower-leveled Personas of later-Social Links (ex, Tower) in the earlier stage ofP3Rcould save on Fusion and Persona cards in Shuffle Time. Not to mention, access to the DLC Personas could potentially make the game easier for newcomers.
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Koppa Tengu is of the Temperance Arcana inPersona 5 Royal, and it has two weaknesses and one resistance. This Persona stands out with its Growth 1 and Rage-inducing Skills. Growth 1 will allow Koppa Tengu to gain some experience even if it isn’t used in battle. Rage War and Taunt can induce the Rage ailment enemy, which greatly boosts their attack at the cost of their Defense and Speed/Accuracy.
If Koppa Tengu was inReload, it could be used in Fusion to transfer Rage War or Growth 1to “earlier” Personas. While these Skills ultimately lose their value as the protagonist unlocks stronger Personas, they’re good for building a Persona that will act more as a Saboteur/Support than a fighter. Koppa Tengu inRoyalwas a Tower Arcana Persona, starting at level 11. The earliest Tower Persona that players will get inReloadis Eligor (level 31). Having Koppa Tengu inReloadcould have cut back on “cost” when summoning it from the Compendium for the Tower Social Link.
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Makami is a Temperance Persona inPersona 5 Royal, and it has a balance ofmagic skills and support skills. Its best stat is Strength upon obtaining it, but it may work better for zeroing in on enemies with Nuke weakness or for inflicting Confuse. Makami is weak to Electric, but it will eventually learn Dodge Elec at level 20.
Having Makami inPersona 3 Reloadwould fill the same niche as Koppa Tengu: A good “beginner” support Persona. It would be a wise decision to unlock its Evade Elec ability to transfer that to another Persona in a Fusion. In battle, Makami could act as a backup “healer,” curing anyone afflicted with Fear, Despair, or Confuse with its Energy Drop Skill. Also, since Nuke doesn’t exist inReload, its Mafrei Skill could be swapped for Megido or even Virus Breath if its initial level were to be higher than 15.
Bugs, or Bugbear, is a Persona of the Fool Arcana inP5R.It specializes mainly in Physical Skills, but it learns Psiodyne, Evade Phys, and Fast Heal. Unfortunately, Bugs is one of the “later” Personas, as its base level is 49. In fact, the first run-in the Phantom Thieves may have with it is the level 65 “Killer Teddy Bear” Shadow in Mementos.
If Bugs were inPersona 3 Reload, it would likely retain itsP5Rbase level (ie, 49). Its Triple Down Skill would be changed from Gun (P5R) to Pierce (P3R), and if it kept Miracle Punch (or aP3Requivalent), then it would become a Strike Skill instead of Melee. Bugs would be outranked by stronger physical-focused Personas, and its Psiodyne Skill would need to be replaced, likely with an Almighty Skill (as they did with Anat’s Cosmic Flare).
Fafnir was one of the more challenging enemies to appear inRoyal. He could only be fought in Maruki’s Palace and also served as the guardian of its final Will Seed. Fafnir’s attacking Skills alwaysdeal Colossal or Severe damage. It even has Nuke Amp and Concentrate to double its damage in-battle. This isn’t counting its Debilitate Skill, which lowers the Attack/Defense/Speed/Accuracy for one target. If Fafnir wasn’t taken out quickly inRoyal, it could prove to be quite the frustrating opponent.
If Fafnir were inPersona 3 Reload, it would likely have served as a boss for one of the Monad Passages on the higher floors of Tartarus. With its innate ability to Absorb Fire, Reflect Physical Skills, and essentially having no weaknesses, it’s not a Shadow that would be found on Tartarus' regular blocks. It would also be nice to have a Persona that could innately reflect, resist, and absorb various Affinities. Since it’s another Nuke-heavy Persona, Fafnir would likely bean Almighty-attacker and debuffer(Debilitate).
Persona 5 Royalintroduced “third awakening” Personas for the entire cast and the at-the-time new Phantom Thief,Kasumi Yoshizawa. This wouldn’t be the first timePersonahad third-tier Personas, asGoldendid the same with the Investigation Team (excluding the protagonist). The third awakening Personas could only be used in the third semester, andonlyafter January 14th, when Joker can speak with each of his teammates one-on-one. This also wastes Joker’s afternoon time.
TheRoyalDLC Set forPersona 3 Reloadincluded the initial and second-awakening Personas of the Phantom Thieves. It’s a wonder why the third-awakening Personas weren’t included as well or even in place of the second-awakenings. However, given that each third-awakening Persona has their own unique Skill, it’s likely this was to preventP3Rnewcomers from being too overpowered. Another argument is thatRoyal’s third ultimate Personasdoesn’t fit the “theme” ofPersona 3 Reload.
Izanagi no Okami is probably one of, if not the best, Persona that could be summoned from the DLC pack inPersona 5 Royal. He is thePersona 4protagonist’s ultimate Persona. Izanagi no Okami’s best Skill is arguably his Myriad Truths, which dealsx3 heavy Almighty Damageto enemies. Stack this with an Almighty Boost passive Skill and Concentrate, and even bosses won’t have time to retaliate.
Looking closer at Izanagi no Okami’s stats and Skill List, it’s not too surprising why he wasn’t added toPersona 3 Reload’s DLC or expansion pack. He’s overpowered and can essentially make the beginning stages ofPersona 3 Reloada cakewalk. Still, there are plenty ofPersona 3 Reloadplayers that wouldn’t mind having the overpowered Izanagi no Okami.
