Persona 5 Strikers beginners guide – hints and tips

Persona 5 Strikers is an action-oriented game with some RPG mechanics like leveling, gear management, and plenty of dialogue. To get players off on the right foot, we will be going through a list of important hints and tips to help you settle into the game, and get off to the best start.

It’s a fun game with some deep mechanics that will reward exploration and experimentation despite the action focus.

You can change difficulty at any time

It is possible to change the difficulty at any time, so don’t be afraid to jump up or down the scale. This won’t affect the story at all so that you won’t miss out on any content.

Damage type really matters

Damage type is extremely important in battles, so make sure you are using the right Phantom Strikers members, and switch out your Personas on Joker as often as you need. The difference between winning and losing is using the best type of damage for the situation you are in.

Chat with the Phantom Thieves

As you are wandering the game’s various areas, make sure you chat with your friends. Not only does this help build the story, you can also get plenty of free items from them.

Bond Skills

As you play through the game you will unlock Bond Skills, and some of them are simply better than others. You can rack up plenty of Bond Skill Point by playing through the campaign and grinding in Jails, the game’s dungeons.

Bond boosting facilities

Some places in cities will give you a Bond level boost. You can juke the game a little by entering an exiting dungeons, then revisiting these facilities for an additional boost.

Don’t be afraid to spend money

Money can be earned by grinding dungeons, and you’ll need to do that a lot anyway, so don’t be afraid to spend your cash as earning more is very easy to do.

The Velvet Room

The Velvet Room is another mechanic you will get access to as you play through the game. Here, you can level up Personas, and fuse them together to create new ones. One of the most important things you can do is pass skills from one Persona to the other during fusion, so pick which ones you want extremely carefully, based upon the needs of your party. Skills that heal your squad are never a bad idea.

Don’t be afraid to leave a Jail

Jails are tough, and it is unlikely you will enter them with enough HP and SP recovery items. They are designed to play through for a while, then leave via one of the checkpoints, blue light columns that can be found scattered throughout the Jail. It’s not a failure to leave, it’s just how the game is designed. You won’t lose progress and can jump back in at the same checkpoint if you wish. This also forces ground loot (but not treasure chests) to respawn.

It’s a linear campaign

There is a single ending to Persona 5 Strikers, so don’t worry about choices and things like that, the story will always end the same way. What you should worry about is fully exploring areas of the world before moving on, because once you do you can’t go back.

Don’t ignore ads in boss fights

While it might be tempting to ignore lesser enemies in boss fights, you should focus them out as quickly as you can. They can have healing abilities that will top up the boss’ health if you don’t take them out quickly.

Combat is frantic, but you can slow it down

Combat is frantic, but you can slow it down to grab a moment to think. Using your Persona skill is effectively entering a pause menu, giving you time to check surround enemies, note you party health levels, and plan your next moves.

Switch characters regularly

When in combat, jump between characters regularly, this causes what is known as a Baton Pass, and will increase the rate of charge for Showtime abilities. Showtime abilities are powerful, hard hitting attacks and the more you use them, the easier time you will have in a fight.

Stock up on HP and SP recovery

Having lots of HP and SP recovery will be hugely helpful in fights, allowing you to spam abilities and recover from any damage you take. Hitting the down button on the D-Pad will have your characters automatically use any available items to heal up.

Learn how to start a fight

There is more to starting a fight that just walking up to a Shadow. If you can ambush them, you have a major advantage, but if they instigate on you then you’ll begin the fight stunned and taking damage. Your gun is a great way to start a fight, as it guarantees a neutral start, and you can avoid the risk of getting stunned.

Buy recipes and ingredients

Get as many recipes as you can, and cook them up for some great healing and SP recovery items. You can buy ingredients through Sophia’s shop, and you can use a Bond Skill to get a discount there, if you wish.

Stock up on Persona Ability Cards

Opening chest or doing certain missions can get you Persona Ability Cards. These teach a specific skill to a Persona. As tempting as it may be to use them at the time, hold on to them. You will need Personas with certain skills for late-game missions and Requests, and these cards are the easiest and fastest way to get them done.

Rotate your party

While everyone will have favorite members of the Phantom Thieves, keeping them all at a similar level is important. Make sure you regularly use them all in combat so nobody gets left behind. You don’t want someone you need in the late game to be hugely underdeveloped.