Persona 3 has gone through countless iterations and remasters over the years. But one of its greatest leaps came with the full remake released on February 2, 2024. Built entirely from the ground up, it featured overhauled graphics and art direction, an expanded selection of rearranged music tracks, and several dialogue adjustments to better suit the modern era. All of this was driven by fans of Persona 5 who demanded that its beloved predecessor receive the same modern treatment.
Now, more than a year later, the remake makes its way to the modern handheld space. Players can once again experience all the goodness of Persona 3 Reload on the go—attending Gekkoukan High School, enduring the Dark Hour, and climbing the mysterious Tartarus with the entire Specialized Extracurricular Execution Squad (SEES). Playing it on the Switch 2 has never been more convenient.
Booting up the game is impressively fast thanks to the Switch 2’s powerful hardware. Everything—from walking around town to navigating menus and engaging in combat—runs smoothly. However, after a few hours of gameplay, some minor frame pacing issues become noticeable. The uneven frame rendering during fast sequences or menu transitions can be a bit jarring. It also doesn’t help that the Switch 2 version doesn’t maintain a stable 60fps. It’s surprising how the port stumbled in this area, especially when most modern platforms deliver a consistently smooth experience. Fortunately, the developers have acknowledged the issue and promised a future patch to improve frame rate stability.
Despite these hiccups, the game runs natively at 1080p, comparable to the PlayStation 4 version, and benefits from 4K output when docked.
Although this version of Persona 3 doesn’t feature the expanded version of the original FES or the Portable 3rd version. However, fans are highly anticipating the handheld release of Persona 3 Reload, as it evokes fond memories of playing Persona 3 Portable (P3P) on the PlayStation Portable back in 2010. The combination of a full-scale modern remake and the freedom to play it anywhere makes this version an exciting addition to the series.
Persona 3 Reload launches on October 23, 2025. The physical release will be available as a game key card, serving as a DRM code for players to download the full game online. The Deluxe Edition includes a variety of in-game costumes for every character, while the Episode Aigis expansion will be sold separately as paid DLC.
Thank you again Sega Atlus, for the review code.
