Highlights

  • Persona 3 Reload introduces dorm hangouts, a unique way to deepen bonds with allies and gain new skills for party members.
  • Unlike Social Links, dorm hangouts in Persona 3 Reload offer benefits to characters other than the protagonist, adding diversity to party setups.
  • Managing time effectively is key in Persona 3 Reload, and spending time with dormmates during hangouts can make exploring Tartarus easier.

Social simulation elements have become an important part of the Persona series alongside the core JRPG gameplay, and Persona 3 Reload expands upon these mechanics in some clever and unique ways. While the classic Social Link system returns in Persona 3 Reload, players are given other opportunities to deepen their bonds with allies and get to know them in different ways. One of the new ways players can interact with characters in Persona 3 Reload is through dorm hangouts, which seem to run in the opposite direction to Social Links.

While some fans were wary of Persona 3 Reload due to it missing content from other releases of the game, such as the female protagonist and her exclusive Social Links from Persona 3 Portable, Persona 3 Reload makes up for this missing content by adding new ways to get to know certain characters through activities like dorm hangouts and Link Episodes. These activities are separate from Social Links and mostly involve spending time with fellow SEES members during the player's free time. However, participating in these activities can be just as rewarding as Social Links, as they grant new skills to party members.

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Persona 3 Reload Social Link Tier List

Forming bonds and creating Social Links with characters is a crucial part of Persona 3 Reload, but some of these Social Links are better than others.

Social Links in the Persona series have always been about watching the protagonist grow as they build bonds and develop relationships with acquaintances they meet throughout the game. These bonds tend to directly benefit the protagonist from both a lore perspective and a gameplay one since leveling up Social Links allows the player to fuse more powerful Personas. In Persona 5, Confidants even grant players new skills in battle, like the ability to Baton Pass to teammates they've reached a high enough rank with.

However, Social Links and Confidants have historically only granted new abilities to the player, despite their relationships with these characters going both ways. Persona 3 Reload turns that idea on its head and extends the benefits to characters other than the protagonist with dorm hangouts, as participating in these activities grants new abilities to the SEES member the player is spending time with. Not only does this add diversity to the build potential of Persona 3 Reload's party setups, but it elevates the series' social mechanics to a new level that deserves to see a return in future titles like Persona 6.

Why Persona 3 Reload's Dorm Hangouts Are Worth Their While

It can be tough to manage time effectively in Persona 3 Reload given all the new activities available to players in their free time, but spending time with fellow SEES members during dorm hangouts can be well worth the player's time. Players can choose from several dorm hangout activities to take part in during their free time, including watching TV, reading a book, cooking, or tending the rooftop garden. Participating in these activities when they're available allows the character the player spends time with to unlock new abilities that can help make exploring Tartarus much easier, meaning it's worthwhile to hang out with dormmates when possible.

It usually takes a few dorm hangout sessions with a particular character before they unlock their new skills. However, the game makes up for this time spent by granting the protagonist bonus points to their Social Stats, Charm, Courage, or Academics, depending on the activity. The time invested to unlock these skills can make a huge difference in battle, since a character like Junpei can potentially learn Critical Boost and Critical Amp, making his impressive Critical Hit damage even more deadly, or Yukari, who can learn Healing Master and Healing Apex which both drastically reduce the cost of her healing skills.