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Persona 3 is probably still my favorite video game of all time, since I first played it back in 2012. When I first heard it was being adapted into a film series, I was essentially a typical excited fanboy. But when I watched the movies, they left me disappointed with the final products. Fast forward to a couple years, I heard that the manga series that had been releasing in Japan were finally being localized to North America. I kept my expectations low at this point for obvious reasons, and thank the lord that I did. Because this manga series just blew my expectations out ... of the water and then some.

Unlike the film series, this manga series is much more faithful to the original game with just some minor tweaks. And even so, I think said minor tweaks actually enhanced the overall experience. Now one thing to note is there is one major difference between the manga and the game: the Protagonist's (named Minato in the manga) interaction with the supporting characters (i.e. Kenji and Hidetoshi) are almost non-existent. They still appear in the manga, but their stories aren't explored. This didn't bother me, since the supporting Social Links from the game was never a huge factor of the game compared to it's future sequels. So, in my opinion, this was acceptable. Aside from that, the manga is very much identical to the game.

Story - 10
Although the story of Persona 3 is fairly simple, it's the journey that makes it worthwhile. The dark atmosphere about the Dark Hour, the mystery behind Tartarus, and the plot twists as the story progresses (particularly towards the climax) are all what really pulled me in in the first place. The manga's presentation of the story also reflected that of the FES version of the game (which was also adapted in the Portable version on PSP). This story still holds a very special place in my heart, and I am so happy to see it done justice in this manga adaptation.

Art - 10
Not much to say about the art. Shuji Sogabe's illustrations remain faithful to Shigenori Soejima's original artwork. I guess the appropriate phrase to say is "if it ain't broke, don't fix it". And Sogabe definitely followed just that.

Character - 9
Now I know I just said that it was acceptable for this manga adaptation to drop the supporting characters from the game. However, I still think the manga could have still been able to briefly explore each character so that, without spoiling anything, the ending would make a little more sense. But nonetheless, the main cast were still the highlight of the story and they were presented exactly as they should, even towards the end.

Enjoyment - 10
I enjoyed Persona 3 to death back when I first played it in 2012. Going through it again, but in the form of a manga, that enjoyment is still as strong as it was. Though, I'd probably say it may be even stronger thanks to the minor tweaks, as I've mentioned. One thing that the manga added was more humor. I will admit, the amount of humor in the game was lackluster. So it was refreshing to see that even as dark as Persona 3 can get, Sogabe was able to fit a good amount of humor in the manga.

Overall - 10
If you can't/couldn't enjoy the video game because of it's gameplay (believe me, I know that was the game's major drawbacks), this manga adaptation is a perfect alternative. Again, I would probably go as far as to say that this is superior to the game. The Shadow battles are still exciting, the characters are still captivating, and the story is still one of the best stories that I've ever enjoyed. I can't recommend this manga adaptation enough because it is that damn good. All 11 volumes are out now, officially translated in English, so if there was anytime to start reading, it'd be now.