Persona 3 Reload Will Have Every Social Link Rank Up Scene Voiced; Highest Amount of Voiced Lines in the Series

Japanese outlet 4Gamer recently interviewed Persona 3 Reload general producer Kazuhisa Wada, director Takuya Yamaguchi, and producer Ryota Niitsuma. One of the questions and responses regards the familiar Social Link system’s implementation in this new release.

Firstly, Persona 3 Reload will have every Social Link rank-up scene voiced, but it’s not specified if they will be fully voiced. Still, that is a drastic increase compared to previous games in the series, where only a select few Social Link events had voice acting.

Secondly, Persona 3 Reload will boast the highest amount of voice-acted lines in the series.

The following was translated by our team’s Ryuji:

Wada: The way of playing the game has also changed between the original and the present. At that time, the game was not designed in such a way that you could max out all the Social Links in a single round. But players have made a lot of effort to achieve it, and I’m really surprised.

Niizuma: I also want you to pay attention to the voice acting. I think the voice acting is one of the most anticipated aspects of the current Persona series. All of the voices are newly recorded, and the volume has been considerably increased to match the story and event scenes.

Yamaguchi: For example, in the past games, voices were often included only partially, but in Reload, all the characters speak whenever they rank up. Even before the development of P3R, as a player, I have seen many of the Social Link episodes. Still, when the voices were added, I could feel something that deeply appealed to me again. Even those who have played the game before can experience the scenarios in a fresh new way.

Interviewer: That would seem to indicate that the text and voices are quite extensive.

Yamaguchi: [Persona 3 Reload contains] the largest number of voiced lines in the series. The title is originally quite long to play, but if you listen to the voices carefully as you progress through the game, I think you will enjoy it that much more.

Persona 3 Reload is a remake of Persona 3 made in Unreal Engine. The game is confirmed to release for PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Steam, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, and Windows in early 2024. It will also be playable for Game Pass subscribers on launch.

Atlus also confirmed that Persona 3 Reload will receive special teasers on “each official full moon.”

• The producer clarified that the game will feature added main story content from Persona 3 FES but lack The Answer epilogue and the female protagonist from Persona 3 Portable.
• Staff confirmed that Tartatus will feature new elements, such as a dash function, to make exploration more enjoyable.
• Will feature new events to focus on characters who did not receive as much focus in the original game.
• Development Began in Late 2019
• Development for Reload is in its Final Stages; Will be a Deeper Dive, Not an Evolution
• New Commercial
• Implied Fatigue System Removal

Persona 3 was initially a PlayStation 2 title that birthed the concept of Social Links that would follow in Persona 4 and Persona 5. Then, a director’s cut version named FES launched later, featuring a new playable epilogue called The Answer and added enhanced gameplay features.

Years later, Persona 3 Portable was released for the PSP, which removed The Answer and the ability to walk around town but added the option to play as a female protagonist and new post-game challenges.