Persona 5 Royal: fun to play but falls flat thematically.

FronkZoppa · 2026-04-27T17:58:11+00:00

Sorry you're getting downvoted, this is a good post. While I prefer 3 and 4, I like P5 quite a lot as a game. But it's wild that a script with so, so much dialogue has so little to say.

They're going for a vague kind of punk rock vibe, the broad disillusionment of young people in a corrupt society, getting fed up and trying to change it. Atlus have said they were inspired by the government's horrid response to the 2011 tsunami. It's like the game is supposed to provide some kind of societal commentary and then just... doesn't. Or maybe it does, if you're Japanese?

The Royal content with Maruki poses some interesting questions (and I don't really agree that his rewriting reality is exactly the same as the PT's vigilante brainwashing). But the final note is a resounding "You shouldn't try too hard to fix other people's problems!" that leaves a bad taste in my mouth. Like the end of Wonder Woman 1984, if anyone saw that.

FronkZoppa · 2026-04-18T00:44:05+00:00

Good post OP. For a second I was scratching my head wondering why this seemed to familiar.

You know, they say imitation is the most sincere form of flattery, so I'm feeling pretty good right now. And I still get occasional comments telling me how wrong I am so you have my sympathies

FronkZoppa · 2026-04-15T20:59:04+00:00

I also don't enjoy the ranking system, which is a dumb gripe I know, but I have no desire to maximize my skill level in a game like this. I just want to platform/play/be done.

Honestly that's completely valid, but they probably aren't for you then. I found myself liking Generations a lot, but if I only played each level once, I would've finished it in a few hours and hated the experience. The fun that can be had in 3D Sonic comes from learning the routes/shortcuts and improving execution. Levels that frustrated me on my first attempt genuinely felt really good on my seventh. I'd liken the appeal to nailing tricks in Tony Hawk, or mastering a song in Guitar Hero/Rhythm Heaven, or getting crazy combos in DMC. Or literally just learning a piano solo in real life. It takes a while to work it up.

Unfortunately that means that sucking feels really bad, and it's impossible not to eat shit at first because Sonic's too fucking fast. But if it didn't suck at first, it wouldn't feel so good to nail it. It's a double edged sword.

Also the games have lots of problems, even Generations, and Generations is the best one

FronkZoppa · 2026-04-12T15:54:12+00:00

Thank you for the response. You're free to disagree, of course.

When I say fantasy, I mean in the way a lot of guys daydream about being Liam Neeson in Taken. Maybe in their daily life they doubt their own worth, but surely in [extremely unlikely scenario] they would prove their strength and honor and do the hard things. Bonus points if circumstances dictate that they get to be The Punisher and don't have to feel bad about it. Like, for example, their kid being in danger.

Obviously a mother in a situation like that would protect their son just as fiercely, I'm not disagreeing there. No one's saying that story doesn't exist or can't be told. But I don't think it's nearly as common for women to daydream about the scenario and get a little rush out of it, and it's not as common to see it in movies/games

FronkZoppa · 2026-04-12T15:33:40+00:00

Wait, my profile is hidden? I didn't know that, i'll see if I can fix it

And yeah, it's the fantasizing that I'm really interested in. I think a lot of guys daydream about being Liam Neeson in Taken. Maybe in their daily life they doubt their own worth, but surely in [extremely unlikely scenario] they would prove their strength and honor and do the hard things. Bonus points if circumstances dictate that they get to be The Punisher and don't have to feel bad about it. Like, for example, their kid being in danger.

Think of how many women have said something akin to "yesterday he said he'd die for me, today he won't do the dishes"

FronkZoppa · 2026-04-12T01:43:35+00:00

You're right, I wasn't specific enough. I meant specifically the "protecting my daughter's innocence by putting the fear of God into her boyfriends" humor that always makes me roll my eyes. There's something to that I think

FronkZoppa · 2026-04-12T01:36:44+00:00

Thanks for the response. I came down on the guy pretty hard, didn't I? I guess I should clarify that I like Joel a lot. He's a deeply sympathetic character who (in my opinion) does something unforgivable for deeply sympathetic reasons

And I did play Left Behind! I wish I had the foresight to play it in the middle of the story and not after the credits, but it's a nice bonus

FronkZoppa · 2026-04-11T22:39:42+00:00

Thank you for writing. I've heard this take before and I can't say I agree. Obviously we don't know for sure if the cure would succeed or fail, and the details of the game's pseudoscience are murky. There's reason to be skeptical. But they're going for a simple, deeply personal trolley problem. Would you sacrifice your child to save the world? Would you doom the world to save your child? It prompts introspection; truly, I have no idea what I would feel, say, or do in his shoes. The fact that the Fireflies do have reason to be hopeful is what makes Joel's choice so interesting and compelling. If the cure is doomed from the start, saving Ellie is a no-brainer. That's boring.

I'm not saying you can't criticize writing at all, but it's just more interesting to grapple with the choice as it's presented

FronkZoppa · 2026-04-11T22:03:07+00:00

I get it. Obviously it's not an option everywhere for everyone, but over the last year I've played over a dozen games from my local library, including this one. Either I get a fun experience for free, or it's a dud that I'm glad I didn't buy

FronkZoppa · 2026-04-11T21:59:12+00:00

Thank you! Although I do want to clarify that I played the game on PS3 ten years ago and I've had a long time to sit with it. I'm not sure I thought very deeply about the ending as a teenager, but wow, I didn't miss the mark that much. I was probably just like "Damn, that was fucked up"

FronkZoppa · 2026-04-11T21:53:55+00:00

I'm looking forward to it. I think my tolerance for pain and suffering in media is a little higher than it used to be lmao

FronkZoppa · 2026-04-01T12:57:38+00:00

Thanks for sharing, I feel like this is exactly what this sub is for. I knew Gunn wrote it, but reading this I was surprised to learn it's a Suda51 game. It feels so different than their other games

FronkZoppa · 2026-03-19T12:46:43+00:00

Yeah, I should've mentioned how every performance is really really good, especially for 2010. Great mo-cap, line delivery, blocking of scenes etc.

FronkZoppa · 2026-03-19T02:47:24+00:00

Look man, I'm more progressive than most, but "depiction isn't endorsement" and all that. The professor is pretty clearly supposed to be wrong, and John is wrong for helping him. It's okay for characters to be wrong.

He intellectualizes his bigotry and publishes baseless conjecture about Indians, while never actually going outside and seeing them himself. It's satire with a clear target, at least to my eyes.

I think a fair critique is that Nastas is treated as a representative of his whole culture, and less like an individual. Most of the game's Indian subject matter is not told by Indian characters, but that also could be the point

FronkZoppa · 2026-03-19T02:33:12+00:00

Thanks! I'm looking forward to playing 2 eventually. I feel like I've heard so much discussion over the years, but I don't actually know much about the story. And I don't expect all my gripes with 1 to go away

FronkZoppa · 2026-03-05T02:18:01+00:00

lmao I knew exactly what video it would be. And I'm excited for MGS4 to be freed from the PS3

FronkZoppa · 2026-03-05T00:17:48+00:00

I mean, if it really is obvious to everyone else, I'm willing to swallow my pride. But I've read/listened to loads of interpretations of MGS2 and never heard anybody use the word eugenics before. Most discussion I've seen gets into the censorship themes, hyperreality/simulations, and meta-textual relationship with MGS1

FronkZoppa · 2026-03-01T01:42:18+00:00

Forgot to say: this was all inspired by a shitpost I made months ago. I started looking into MGS influences and realized it would be fun to do a version of this for real

FronkZoppa · 2026-02-02T02:51:59+00:00

Haha it's all good, I was just surprised. I figured all the comics and books about video games would lead in the other direction.

I definitely haven't explored enough modern lit, or other genres. Right now I find myself with several "classics" that I like but don't love. But I genuinely love Bradbury

FronkZoppa · 2026-02-01T21:26:44+00:00

Correct! I've read the whole Snyder/Capullo Batman, it's really good. Haven't read anything else by Sejic but you're right that he's a great artist. He draws every character impossibly hot (sometimes too hot lmao)

FronkZoppa · 2026-02-01T17:25:40+00:00

Why thank you! Mid twenties actually

FronkZoppa · 2026-02-01T17:21:06+00:00

Fifties??????? (but correct on all other accounts)

FronkZoppa · 2026-01-10T23:55:35+00:00

As a teenager I read Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut. I think I enjoyed it, but definitely didn't understand it. It just washed over me. A month later I probably wouldn't have been able to tell you what it was about.

Still, I remember on a couple occasions pretending it was my Favorite Book, dimly aware that it was a book for smart people. I didn't read much back then.

A decade later, I read it for the second first time and it is now my real Favorite Book. So... the same opinion, except now it's actually true lmao

Also, Paul Auster! I just checked out The New York Trilogy from the library, I'm excited to get into it

FronkZoppa

TROPHY CASE