Persona 2: Eternal Punishment

Persona 2: Batsu, is my favorite of the Persona series from Atlus. The games are extremely popular in Japan, but in America, they are barely known. It's unfortunate, because everything about the Persona RPG series is top-notch. The plot, the characters, the battle system, the demons, the setting...I was swept in completely.

Although I like Final Fantasy, I found Persona to be much more enthralling. However, it is also much longer, and moves more slowly than most RPGs. Persona's greatest strength is its characters. Especially in Batsu, the characters feel very real and easy to relate to.

The game starts out like a murder mystery, but soon it turns into something much deeper, living in the realms of mythology, religion, science fiction, and technology.

Aside from the elements of story, the battle and rumor systems are unlike any other game. Each character draws on various Personae for their powers, and these Personae can be improved through battle. Although not as key to the game as I would have liked, rumors that the player chooses can be spread that change the course of the game.

All in all, Persona is a very fun game. It moves a little slowly, is very time-consuming, and some battles are just MURDER, but the characters and plot make it completely worth the effort.