Skip to main content
  1. Home
  2. Gaming
  3. Reviews

Digital Trends may earn a commission when you buy through links on our site. Why trust us?

Persona 4 Arena Ultimax review

Anthony John Agnello
By
Persona 4 Arena Ultimax screenshot 1
Persona 4 Arena Ultimax
MSRP $60.00
Score Details
“Ultimax is practically a fandom fortress. It could be savory or bitter; that depends on the player's palette.”
Pros
  • Spectacular character art.
  • Deep story and fan service for followers.
  • Approachable, unique, deep fighting.
Cons
  • Visual novel storytelling ill-suited to television.
  • Completely impenetrable for newcomers.

Persona 4 Arena Ultimax is one of the unlikeliest late-era PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 games out this fall. It also happens to be a game suited only to a deeply specific audience, even moreso than other recent fighting games to land on the increasingly lonely last-gen consoles. Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure All-Star Battle at least comes with a decades-long comic book cult following and Ultra Street Fighter IV is the latest revision of the genre’s most popular mainstay.

Ultimax, on the other hand, is a game built for only the weirdest fighting game gourmand. A sequel to a two-year old fighting game that was itself a sequel to not one but two 90-hour role-playing games about Japanese teenagers, Ultimax requires a serious investment in both its narrative source material and the fighting specifics of its characters.

Related

Ultimax is a game built for only the weirdest fighting game gourmand.

Arc System Works, the studio behind it, is best known for mixing beautiful art with insanely complex fighting game controls and strategies. Forget a single barrier to entry; Ultimax is practically a fandom fortress. But beneath the layers of colorful character, deep technical fighting, and thick continuity is a delicious game. It could be savory or bitter; that depends on the player’s palette.

Persona, by the way, is not just a reference to Jungian identity constructs in Ultimax. Atlus’ long running role-playing game series follows young people who control fantastical Personae, fighting demons that reflect their inner selves. They use these and other magical demons to fight evil and Shadows, the dark reflections of people’s psyches. That psychologically fraught background actually makes for some sweet video game fisticuffs that are simple on the surface but profoundly versatile and hard to challenge in the hands of a master.

Each character has two basic strikes and two attacks that summon their Persona. Newcomer Yukari, a star in Persona 3 who was absent from the first Arena, uses kicks and shoots arrows but can summon her Persona, Isis, to disrupt airborne enemies Hitting an opponent’s Persona can actually break it briefly, creating new windows for attack while they’re on the defensive.

Picking up characters like Yukari or older fighters like Chie for the first time instantly feels great, their fast flashy moves bleeding one into the next with a few simple button presses. But it takes real practice to effectively capture the interplay between a character and their Persona. Typically in fighting games, you only have to worry about one body’s personal space, but maneuvering a Persona attack properly changes all of that.

On top of that are status effects straight of the RPG, like poison or charm which can respectively drain health or redirect rival attacks. These add an even deeper layer of strategy, and one you don’t typically encounter in fighting games. Not as forbidding as other Arc System Works releases like BlazBlue, but still a deep pool of learning.

Ultimax has broadened and refined those fighting game basics. There’s a fleet of new characters, including other Persona 3 heroes like the goofball-cum-baseball star Junpei and Persona 4 villain Adachi, creating more treats for series fans but also more variety for newcomers. Every character offers that feeling of speed and ease; they’re less easy to abuse with cheap moves like in the first Arena. It’s a concession that caters towards hardcore players interested in competition but doesn’t sacrifice the immediate tactility of the game, essential for making a fighting game fun and approachable.

If you enjoy fighting games but don’t know what a Persona is, look elsewhere.

The package in which that approachable fighting comes, however, is difficult to penetrate. In addition to a solid online mode with easy to set up lobbies, an arcade mode for quick solo fights, and a standard versus mode for when friends are around, Ultimax‘s most substantial feature is it’s story mode. Broken into two campaigns following the respective casts of Persona 4 and Persona 3 during one crazy night in the sleepy town of Inaba, Ultimax‘s focus on story is stronger than almost every other fighting game ever made. Mortal Kombat‘s always stuck intently to continuity, but how many of those games follow each individual character for hours at a time, right down to their inner monologues?

Told through barely animated dialogues over static backgrounds and predominantly through text, each lengthy chapter of the story mode follows one character as they try to solve the mystery of the demonic Midnight Hour, their mysterious tormentor, a new red-headed villain, and the P-1 fighting tournament that’s pitting friend against friend. There are 15 to 20 minute chunks of the game comprised almost entirely of a character reflecting on what’s happening before getting to a one-round fight. Sometimes chapters end with no fight at all.

Some players might think that sounds like pure drudgery. A visual novel like this isn’t particularly suited to television gaming, with reams of text and voiced dialogues better suited to handheld devices. If you love these characters, though, and are invested in what happens to them after playing the original RPGs, Ultimax is pretty awesome. As surprising, weird, and well written as those far-longer RPGs are, Ultimax is pure candy for the faithful.

Persona 4 Arena Ultimax screenshot 15
Image used with permission by copyright holder

What’s Yukari been up to since Persona 3? What’s happened to Labrys since Arena? Will Yu stay in Inaba? If those names mean nothing, then so does Ultimax, but if they’re the names of old friends, than this is game is a cool glass of water in the desert.

As uncomfortable as it may be to sit and read or listen to most of that story unfold, at least it’s easier to digest. Arena‘s 12-hour plus story, complete with alternate endings, was a slog because you had to play through each character’s campaign individually. Ultimax takes a smarter approach, with a branching single story mode that has you bouncing between characters with each chapter.

Plus, there’s an excellent story-free single player mode called Golden Arena that’s far better for playing solo and training up to fight other players. Broken into four difficulty categories, Golden Arena has you run through a gauntlet of 50, 100, 200, or even infinite fights. Picking a character for a Golden Arena run also lets you level them up, unlocking perks as you go and upping stats like strength and magic to help tackle increasingly powerful versions of the fighters. A level 1 Teddy might have trouble making it more than ten rounds, but a level 5 Teddy with a healing perk has a better chance.

Golden Arena is far more satisfying for fighting game obsessives just looking to pore over weird move sets and learning combos, or even anyone who just wants to enjoy the gorgeous art. Polygonal backgrounds in Ultimax may not be much to look at, but the characters themselves are beyond compare. Fluidly animated and lovely, backed by killer music as music to boot.

Even with all that quality art, tight fighting, an ample roster of characters, and strong solo and multiplayer fighting, Ultimax‘s appeal remains limited. If you enjoy fighting games but don’t know what a Persona is, look elsewhere. If you have a Rise tattoo on your arm and a Shoji Meguro playlist on your iPod, welcome back; the party’s even better this time.

This game was reviewed on a PlayStation 3 using a code provided by Atlus.

Highs

Spectacular character art.
Deep story and fan service for followers.
Approachable, unique, deep fighting.

Lows

Visual novel storytelling ill-suited to television.
Completely impenetrable for newcomers.

Available at Amazon

Editors' Recommendations

Topics
Anthony John Agnello
Anthony John Agnello
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Anthony John Agnello is a writer living in New York. He works as the Community Manager of Joystiq.com and his writing has…
Best skills to get in Persona 5 Tactica
Erina holding flag of freedom in Persona 5 Tactica

The Persona series has always treated skills in a unique way. While different from its JRPG older sibling, Persona 5 Tactica takes a slightly more traditional approach to how you will get new skills and abilities. Instead of being tied exclusively to leveling up and fusing your Persona together, this time each of your characters has their own skill trees that you work through. The trees themselves are broken into various categories, including elemental moves, passive buffs, and A Rebellious Resolve that impacts HP, SP, and movement. These trees aren't too complex, but GP doesn't come so easy in the early game, and plotting out your path is just another part of the tactical experience you need to master. Here are the best skills to get in Persona 5 Tactica that your enemies will never see coming.
Best skills to unlock

While each character's skill tree is unique in the sense that the branches have different names, the way they function is similar (except for Futaba). The only real difference is what element you're upgrading for each character's specific Persona. Remember that you can always respec your character if you want to rebuild them for a stronger set of skills.
Soul Repose
Every character needs Soul Repose, and it's almost nonnegotiable. Just like in the mainline games, SP, or your mana, is always at a premium. This is required to use any of your Persona powers, which are by far the most lethal moves you have. Being a limited resource, you will be forced to pick and choose when you can afford to spend it as it won't come back for free. Soul Repose alleviates that somewhat by restoring a bit of your SP when that character is in cover.
Elemental boosts and Single-target elemental attacks
Now that you don't have to worry as much about casting spells, it's time to buff them. Simply increasing your Persona's elemental strength is great, but we would also suggest focusing on the single-target version of their attacks as opposed to ones that can hit multiple targets. These are stronger, but also actually can hit more than one target if they're close enough. Plus, you'll be glad for the increased damage on a single unit when facing the bosses.
Healing
Also in the main Persona tree are the healing moves. Depending on the character, you will either start with a single- or multi-target healing move and then upgrade to a stronger version that almost always also becomes multi-target. Once you know who you want your healer to be, get them going down this branch first.
Everything for Futaba

Read more
Red Dead Redemption is coming to Nintendo Switch and PS4 this month
red dead redemption switch ps4 release date key art

The original Red Dead Redemption is coming to two new platforms, PS4 and Nintendo Switch, later this month. It'll retail for $50 on both platforms.
Red Dead Redemption and Undead Nightmare Coming to Switch and PS4
Rockstar Games' open-world western game first launched in 2010 for Xbox 360 and PS3. It was critically acclaimed and a smash sales hit, creating a new franchise for Rockstar that could stand alongside the likes of Grand Theft Auto. It received a sequel, Red Dead Redemption 2, in 2019, but the original Red Dead Redemption remained stuck on older platforms outside of backward compatibility support on Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S.
That's why fans got excited when a rating for the game from the Game Rating and Administration Committee of Korea popped up. We've now learned that this rating is for new Nintendo Switch and PS4 ports of Red Dead Redemption by Double Eleven Studios. Red Dead Redemption will release across both of those platforms digitally on August 17, with a physical launch to follow on October 13.

It will cost $50 and includes the base campaign as well as the zombie-infested Undead Nightmare expansion; the Red Dead Online multiplayer is not included. This is the first time Red Dead Redemption will ever be on a Nintendo system, although it doesn't look like the port will have much in the way of Switch-exclusive features. That said, a press release does reveal that this will be the first version of the game to include Brazilian Portuguese, Korean, Latin American Spanish, Polish, Russian, Simplified Chinese, and Traditional Chinese localizations.
Red Dead Redemption comes out on PS4 and Nintendo Switch on August 17. 

Read more
The best places to find Purple, Ice, Pink and Rock Pikmin in Pikmin 4
The player stands with Oatchi and some Red Pikmin in Pikmin 4.

While there were only the base Pikmin types of Red, Blue, and Yellow in the original game, there are now nine different types in Pikmin 4. All the originals return, as you would expect, but plenty of new and exciting ones are introduced. Each one still has a unique advantage that allows you to do new things and get to new areas of the massive zones, meaning you will need to utilize each and every one to complete all your tasks. That said, there are some types that are more difficult to find than others. Yes, you could make each type yourself by finding their corresponding onion, however, some onions aren't unlocked until very late into your playtime, or even after you've beaten the game. If you want to know the best places to track down the Purple, Pink, Ice, and Rock Pikmin in Pikmin 4, follow our lead.
Where to find Purple Pikmin

The Purple Pikmin are the first type that is somewhat tricky to find. This type is useful because each one has both the carrying capacity and weight of 10 Pikmin, creating shockwaves when you throw them, but is the slowest of all the types. The first level you can encounter them on is Seren Shores. On this map, head into the Engulfed Castle cave. This is a very dangerous cave, but if you're just looking to bolster your numbers, you can rush in, collect them, and run away.
Where to find Ice Pikmin

Read more