Joker and the rest of the Phantom Thieves are back in Persona 5 Tactica, the latest game from Atlus. The rag-tag group of spry and strong-willed teens takes on nefarious baddies in a tactical RPG setting where it introduces character positioning and cover mechanics as essential strategies on top of the usual turn-based Persona gameplay mechanics players know and love to accomplish their missions.
Persona 5 Tactica: All Status Effects, Explained
Persona 5 Tactica has a number of status effects that both the player and the enemy can exploit to great effect, so here's how they all work.
But which among the Phantom Thieves is the strongest in Persona 5 Tactica? From Ryuji’s devil-may-care style to Joker’s cool, calm, and collected way of dishing out justice, here’s the ranking of the playable characters in the game.
8 Erina
The Headstrong Leader of the Rebellion
- Decent Arts abilities for damage and follow-up combos
- Gun Attack can hit multiple enemies, increasing the chance of Downing them
Erina is introduced in Persona 5 Tactica as a Rebel Leader who is steadfast in her volition to foil Lady Marie’s evil plans of subjugating their reality to her whims. In the early stages, Erina is a good fighter who has decent Attack and Gun damage on top of her Partisan abilities.
However, her one fatal flaw is her lack of Personas. Erina cannot use Personas, which becomes a challenge since having Personas is essential in later stages to either push back enemies or inflict elemental damage. She also has a relatively short Gun range and Movement compared to the other Phantom Thieves. That said, her Voltage is a good support skill, especially when other characters need to heal.
7 Haru Okumura / Noir
Hard-Hitting Hypnotizer
- Strong Melee attacks
- Persona abilities allow enemy position manipulation (towards Haru)
Ranking seventh on the list, Haru retains her high-damaging melee and Gun attacks at the expense of relatively low defenses in Persona 5 Tactica. She can mop up crowds with her Gun attack since it’s a grenade launcher, and can even splash enemies in cover. While she hits hard, she can get overwhelmed if she doesn’t have the correct Sub-Persona to get her defenses up.
In terms of utility, her Psi Persona, Milady, allows her to fish out specific enemies by attracting them to her location when they get hit by Psi attacks. This opens up her teammates to take advantage of enemies who are lured into the open for a quick Down and take an Extra Action.
6 Yusuke Kitagawa / Fox
Action-Stopping Sniper
- Good Gun range that allows for additional movement to set up All-Out Attacks
- Persona attacks Freeze enemies, hindering them from Attacking for one turn
Ever the cool and eccentric artist, Yusuke lands on the sixth spot. He is always trying to get the best vantage points for his masterpieces, and this is also the case in Persona 5 Tactica. Yusuke is best when following up attacks from his teammates and perching on higher ground to shoot at targets.
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Persona 5 Tactica has a significant advantage ahead of its release, but there's a chance that it could turn into a problem eventually.
His Freeze attacks from his Persona, Goemon, are also an amazing tool to have since they have a chance to Freeze enemies, which renders them unable to do any action until the next turn. However, if the Frozen enemies are hit, they will thaw out and can perform their actions, so it’s best to leave the Frozen enemies where they are.
5 Makoto Niijima / Queen
Magnetic Gunslinger-Pugilist
- Excellent Melee and Gun attacks
- Amazing enemy position manipulation with Johanna's Vortex attacks
Making her way to the fifth spot is Makoto. She provides the heavy-hitting melee prowess she showcased back in Persona 5. She has one of the strongest base damage with her melee attacks, second only to Haru. When it comes to handling multiple enemies, she shines at clumping up targets thanks to her Persona, Johanna.
Vortex attacks from Johanna create a vacuum that sucks enemies into their center. This makes for an excellent set-up ability that can be followed up by Makoto’s allies with their own Personas for massive damage, or to hit them with melee or Gun attacks to give them One More move counter. Doing the latter opens up enemies for an All-Out Attack which can clear up swathes of enemies.
4 Ann Takamaki / Panther
Damage-Dealing Aspiring Actress
- Strong Initial and Persistent Burn Damage
- Gun attack can hit multiple targets, allowing a chance for Extra Turns
For players who are looking to deal massive Fire damage to enemies, Ann, the bubbly but fiery model and actress is the go-to PhantomThief. She lands in the fourth spot, and is one of the best damage dealers in the game, thanks to her Persona, Carmen, whose Fire attacks have good range and a good spread on the battlefield. This makes her an excellent first salvo or follow-up when dealing with clusters of enemies.
Persona 5 Tactica Teases New Persona User
Persona 5 Tactica teases a brand-new Persona user that will join the Phantom Thieves in Atlus' in the upcoming tactical RPG.
Ann’s Gun attack can also hit multiple targets, but in most cases, players will utilize more of her Persona abilities. That said, her Fire-based attacks tend to cost a ton of SP, so it is best for players to use these attacks appropriately to ensure maximum impact during battles.
3 Ryuji Sakamoto / Skull
Movement-Hindering Shockmaster
- Good Melee attacks that can shove enemies away from Cover
- Persona's abilities paralyze enemies rendering them unable to move for one turn
Since Persona 5 Tactica relies on movement and positioning, having the ability to disable enemies' movement is an amazing trick. This is why Ryuji goes up to the second spot on the list. Ryuji is one of the early members of the Phantom Thieves, and he carries his loyalty to his friends and sense of justice to this game as well. He is particularly good at face-to-face combat, having one of the better Melee attack stats in the game. His Gun attack has him shoot a shotgun slug onto a cone in front of him that can hit multiple enemies.
Captain Kidd, his Persona, allows him to inflict Shock status onto enemies, which has a chance to render them unable to move during their next turn. In crucial situations, hitting enemies with Captain Kidd’s lightning attacks can help turn the tide in the Phantom Thieves’ favor.
2 Morgana / Mona
Feisty Not-Feline Fighter
- Amazing Persona abilities that blow out enemies from the position
- Strong set-up character for Follow-Up combos and All-Out Attacks
Morgana lands second as the best Phantom Thief in Persona 5 Tactica. Morgana is still as faithful as ever in this game as he was in the original Persona 5 games. He excels in ranged combat, often relying on his slingshot to pelt at enemies. In Persona 5 Tactica, his Persona, Zorro, and his Voltage skill allow him to sweep enemies back.
This gives players more options to manipulate the battlefield to their advantage, as sweeping away enemies opens up more breathing room for the other Phantom Thieves to follow up and attack them with their Guns, or to Down enemies for an All-Out Attack. Depending on what Sub-Persona players equip Morgana with, he can double down on his area manipulation tactics, or focus on a more supportive role like buffing and healing his teammates.
1 Ren Amamiya / Joker
Cunning and Highly-Mobile Leader of the Phantom Thieves
- Good balance between melee and Gun Attacks
- Arsene allows him to cover large distances around the battlefield
Joker reprises his role as the de facto leader of the Phantom Thieves in Persona 5 Tactica. He is a well-balanced character who can be molded to deliver Melee and Gun Attacks while also capitalizing on sapping enemy movement with Arsene and its Despair attacks.
Joker’s specialty is to increase his chance of Downing opponents by giving him extra turns. His Voltage Attack enables him to remove the Cover buff from enemies, leaving them in the Down state and susceptible to follow-up damage and even All-Out Attacks, provided Joker’s allies are positioned to execute the maneuver.
Persona 5 Tactica
- Platform(s)
- PC , Xbox Series X , Xbox Series S , Xbox One , PS5 , PS4 , Switch
- Released
- November 17, 2023
- Developer(s)
- P-Studio
- Genre(s)
- Tactical
