Over at Indonesia Comic Con 2023, we got to try our hands on a demo for SEGA and ATLUS’ upcoming title, Persona 5 Tactica.

As this was a demo made available for visitors, we were only given a short time limit to play. In total, we played through about 8 minutes, which was enough time to at least complete through one stage and try out the initial part in the next stage that also introduced a new tutorial.

From the short portion, we were only provided with a small part of three characters which included Joker, Morgana, and the new original character Erina. From a first glance, the game is packed with your fairly standard tactical gameplay, except that you’re equipped with more free character controls to change their position on the map. The set of actions provided are quite minimalistic as you’re only equipped with options to attack enemies: normal attack, gun, or Persona.

Persona 5 Tactica also brings some of the signature elements of the original Persona titles, but with a twist that’s more suited for tactical gameplay. An example being the new All-Out Attack system called “Triple Threat” which requires you to position three characters in a triangular formation around the enemy. In a normal scenario, this wouldn’t be as easy to execute considering you’d have to place three characters in close proximity within one another, which could be a risky play if the enemy is in a position that leaves your party more exposed to other nearby enemies.

Another familiar element from the original Persona series is the “One More” mechanic where you can launch a follow-up attack if you manage to weaken them. Furthermore, you can also execute Persona skills that also have a wide range of attacks, so you can attack several enemies at once within a 3×3 tile or more. Erina as a new character doesn’t (or perhaps hasn’t) have a Persona, but she still proves to be a very capable ally with her Spear weapon attack.

We also discovered that there’s a “Charge” status which is sort of a special buff for each character, and the way to get it is if all characters in the party play defensively for one turn without attacking any enemies.

To reiterate, we’ve only got to try out a small portion of the demo, so the overall combat of Persona 5 Tactica will be more complex and strategy-driven, including how the game brings in other elements like the Baton Pass, which we didn’t get to try in the demo.

Overall, the Persona 5 Tactica demo does bring in some interesting elements with some tied to the original Persona series. Throughout the course of combat, we felt comfortable thanks to the new music from Lyn which brings in a more relaxed melody; coupled with the casual strategy gameplay, the whole demo gave a sensation that leaned towards a more chilled experience, as opposed to Persona 3 Reload, which brought a more intense feel.