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In the original version of Persona 5, Mementos is a repetitive dungeon without much to do aside from collecting items and defeating Shadows. Persona 5 Royal changes this by adding three new music tracks, special maps and conditions that show up on random levels, and a mysterious boy named Jose.
Jose's main function is to give players a shop they can use during Mementos runs and a way to improve Mementos by making it pay out more EXP, money, and items. And because the Persona 5 Royal team couldn't resist, he's also a new bonus boss players can fight under the right conditions.
How to Find Jose
Jose will start appearing in random Mementos areas after players unlock and enter the Path of Aiyatsbus for the first time. This is the second Path in Mementos, and players can enter it during their second visit. This means players can start encountering Jose during the Kamoshida arc.
Every time players travel to a new area (not counting rest areas and final floors), there's a chance Jose will appear. Players will always know when he does because he'll drive past the Phantom Thieves on his way in, and this happens whether players are going up or down a level. In fact, a good way to make Jose appear is to constantly go up and down the same escalator. However, once Jose appears in an area, players will need to move at least two floors away before he'll start showing up again.
When Jose appears, he'll sit in a dead end and wait for players to reach him. The path to Jose doesn't automatically appear, but players can see his icon on the map even before they reach him. Jose will stick around if the Reaper shows up, and he'll stick around when players enter a special area to defeat a request Shadow and then return to the regular area.
Jose's Shop
As a Metaverse inhabitant, Jose doesn't need any money. Instead, he wants flowers. Specifically, he wants the flowers players can find in flower-covered orbs floating throughout Mementos. Each orb gives the Phantom Thieves a random number of flowers, but the average amount goes up the deeper into Mementos players go. For instance, in the Path of Qimranut players get 2 to 5 flowers per orb while in the Path of Aiyatsbus players get 3 to 6 flowers.
Players can then find Jose and trade flowers to him in exchange for items. These items include status ailment consumables, SP restorers, Stamina Kits, Ofudas, incense items, and transmutation items for the Electric Chair. If players manage to miss a Will Seed in a Palace, Jose will sell Joker a replacement for 400 flowers each.
As players unlock new Paths in Mementos, Jose will refresh and improve his item stock. The ailment items will apply more dangerous ailments, the incense items switch from Ambergris to Nirvana, and the SP items start with Soul Drop and eventually include Soul Food and Soma. Note that Jose refreshes his shop when players first enter a new Path, so players can buy all his Snuff Souls in one Path, enter the next path for the first time, and then buy up his restocked Snuff Souls. Sadly, this trick only works once per Path per playthrough.
Jose can also take Crystal items and upgrade them into Rings. He does this for free, and it happens automatically the first time players speak to Jose after getting a Crystal. Each Ring is a clear upgrade compared to the Crystal it's made from, so players should never worry about bringing them to Jose.
Castle Ruler | Sin | Crystal Bonus | Ring Bonus |
|---|---|---|---|
Kamoshida | Lust | Diarama | Champion's Cup (Diarama + Tarukaja) |
Vanity | Holder's weak affinities disappear | Bleeding Dry Brush (target Drains next non-Almighty attack) plus holder's weak affinities disappear | |
Kaneshiro | Gluttony | Marakukaja | Vault Guardian (Marakukaja) plus holder starts every battle with magic and physical barriers |
Wrath | Speed Master | Wings of Wisdom (Amrita Shower) plus Speed Master | |
Okumura | Greed | Attack Master | President's Insight (Concentrate, can cast on any ally) plus Attack Master |
Nijima | Envy | Masukukaja | Gambler's Foresight (Masukukaja) plus holder starts every battle with Concentrate |
Pride | Defense Master | Tyrant's Will (Charge, can cast on any ally) plus Defense Master | |
Third Semester | Sorrow | Life Aid | Guiding Tendril (Knock Down all foes, only works during Ambush) plus Life Aid |
Jose's final service is to convert stamps into permanent buffs in Mementos. Each Path has a set number of stamps, including one stamp by the exit to each Area. Extra stamps can randomly appear in any Area, and they often hide behind breakable walls. Players may need to travel through the later Paths several times to get all the stamps available, but since stamps are random they can save some time by moving between the same two floors over and over.
After finding Jose, players can cash in their stamps to boost several Mementos features. Experience can eventually double the EXP gained from each combat, Money increases the yen earned from every Mementos combat, and Items increase the number of items players get from each search object (the floating cages found on the tracks). Since the items in search objects include treasures, and since the Item bonus is cheaper than the Money bonus, players should focus on the Item bonus first.
Players can reset the stamp bonuses for a flower fee, but there are exactly enough stamps in the game to max out all three bonuses. However, players unlock the third semester and explore the last Mementos Path to get them.
How to Fight Jose
If players collect around 120 stamps (out of a total of 165 stamps), unlock the third semester, reach the last area of the Path of Da'at, and then go back to the last area of Da'at, they'll find Jose parked right next to the central computer console. He has tons of questions about humanity at this point, and he's convinced that he can get his answers by fighting a human. He'll ask Joker to fight him, and players are free to refuse if they need time to prepare or swap party members. Unlike the rest of Mementos, players will always find Jose in this area, though he won't offer any of his normal services.
Jose will fight the Phantom Thieves using his little car, and his first action in combat is always Drift. This deals heavy Physical damage to all party members. After that, he throws Balls at the party, and he has one ball for every magic element in the game. In every case, the Ball deals heavy damage to the whole party. Jose also has Confuse Ball, which causes the Confusion status ailment, and he usually uses this as his 1 More attack.
After knocking Jose down to around one-third of his health, he'll start to use his special attack, Launch. Be sure to guard after seeing this, because on his next turn Jose will use Special Fireworks, an attack that deals colossal Almighty damage to the party.
Beating Jose won't give players an item or other bonus, but it does come with a Thieves Den award. He'll also answer some of Joker's questions, but not completely enough to explain who or what he really is. As such, Jose remains one of the biggest mysteries in Persona 5 Royal.
Persona 5 Royal is available now on PC, PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.
