SPOILERS AHEAD for Persona 3 Reload
Summary
One of the most exciting things aboutPersona 3 Reload’s reimagining of its source material is getting to see the new forms taken on by the game’s central dungeon, Tartarus. The original version of Tartarus arguably suffered from repetition due to a lack of visual distinction between floors and being the game’s one and only central dungeon, butPersona 3 Reloadfixes this issue by giving a distinctive theme to each set of floors in the massive complex. And, just likePersona 4’s TV World andPersona 5’s many Palaces, Tartarus is a thematically relevant location withinPersona 3’s narrative.
Unlike its two successors in thePersonaseries,Persona 3 Reloadfeatures just one main location that players return to time and again as the game’s RPG-style dungeon. If the name Tartarus sounds familiar to players (especially those that have experiencedthe initial trilogy ofGod of Wargames), that’s because it has origins in Greek mythology. Nearly every naming convention in thePersonaseries is intentional, and the naming of the game’s central dungeon as Tartarus is important, given the location’s meaning and place in Greek mythology.
Sometimes referred to as “the prison at the bottom of the universe” or the place “at the bottom of the known world”, Tartarus is the location inGreek mythologycommonly understood to be the deepest part of the underworld. As the counterpart to Elysium (a place of eternal paradise), Tartarus is the location where lost and wayward souls end up, serving out an eternity of punishment within a giant world-sized prison. In some mythological texts, Tartarus is an actual being that personifies these aspects of punishment and damnation, acting as the Titanic counterpart to the personification of Earth itself, Gaea.
Perhaps most importantly, though, Tartarus is the prison in which the Titans are forced to serve out their eternal punishment for their tyranny over thegods of Mount Olympus. Following their defeat at the hands of Zeus and the other Olympians, the Titans were cast down into Tartarus. Essentially, Tartarus is a prison reserved for only the most wicked beings in Greek mythology.
Connecting Tartarus' Mythological Origins to its Relevance in Persona 3 Reload
Rather than split up the game’s dungeons into multiple separate locations, all ofPersona 3 Reload’s classic RPG dungeon-crawling takes place within Tartarus. During the Dark Hour, the secret window in which the lines between reality and dreams are blurred,Persona 3Reload’s protagonistswitness their school transform into a massive dungeon crawling with Shadows. That Gekkoukan High transforms into Tartarus is a cleverly utilized metaphor for how the protagonists might view their lives in school, equating their time in the real world to life in the mythological place of punishment.
This kind of metaphorical complexity establishes once again thatthePersonaseriesis rife with allegorical references drawing from relevant real-world subjects, which is fitting given how the series typically doesn’t shy away from addressing the very relatable struggles that many players might be personally dealing with. Everything inPersona 3 Reloadis intentional, right down to the naming of its main dungeon and the connections it shares with the game’s fellow Greek mythological figure Nyx.
Persona 3 Reload
WHERE TO PLAY
Step into the shoes of a transfer student thrust into an unexpected fate when entering the hour “hidden” between one day and the next. Awaken an incredible power and chase the mysteries of the Dark Hour, fight for your friends, and leave a mark on their memories forever.Persona 3 Reload is a captivating reimagining of the genre-defining RPG, reborn for the modern era.Experience the pivotal game of the Persona series faithfully remade with cutting-edge graphics, modernized quality-of-life features, and signature stylish UI. Fully immerse yourself in an emotional, gripping journey with new scenes, character interactions, and additional voiceover. Choose how to meaningfully spend each day through various activities from exploring the Port Island to forging genuine bonds with beloved characters. Build and command your optimal team to take down otherworldly Shadows and climb closer to the truth.
