I wake up not knowing what time of day it is aside from the Dark Hour itself for most work days.
No phone calls, texts or conversations on a regular basis from friends or family. Maybe a meme, video or fragmented messages but nothing more.
More often than not, if I’m not proactive in reaching out, the sound of silence is equivalent to a deafening roar.
Is this what living in death is truly like? To know that you’re alive but to never heard or be touched by anyone as though you were six feet in the ground?
Has the overwhelming burden of duty and responsibility become so heavy that, despite expansive means of connection, I am as though cut off from the land of the living by those I love?
Is it until I’m to be an “In Memoriam” or a message about loss or unforeseen tragedy that I will even be acknowledged as a being of any consequence?
Or will it be as I’ve seen with many — many tears wept but once I’m six feet under or reduced to ash, the world will move on as though I never existed?
There will be no butterflies symbolizing my presence. No ravens or crows as my voice, a direwolf for me to roam free in the great northern lands nor an army of undead to haunt those who thought little of me.
I will be just a muted name in the wind. Is that what will become or me long after I’m gone? Someone that is just a mere amusement but once my story’s over, just a mere comma in the grand scheme of things?
While I am awake, even on a day or night of no duty, it’s worse than radio silence. You delete those that have agendas when approaching me, it’s a barren wasteland.
This must be what living in death is. To be alive to none, dead to all yet sentient of the situation.
Is this the metaphor we found with the Death-Prince? To be spiritually be cut off from all life yet physically living among others?
Then let it be that. Just black dust in the wind. Air people neglect yet ever present. Darkness ever-present yet ignored. A sentence longed to be read and yet cut off before reaching halfway. A voice muted before it can speak up.
AI art imagining Tampa recovering from Milton in the style of Junji Ito.
Here’s another sobering perspective on this whole aid situation w/getting the whole county to 100% — let’s talk about…South Park.
When parts of the town were gentrified, there was a lot of construction and renovation in the desired areas. All else was left to fall apart. Those areas were where the South Park local community lived, especially the Marshes, Cartmans, McCormicks to name some families. The new, upgraded areas were given priority while the older, lower income areas were either low priority or outright neglected.
I’m glad to see our city recover quickly. However, let’s be honest about where the immediate recovery has happened first. The areas with higher income, tourism and commerce. The rest of the city, though coming together, got the lag.
Let’s also look at another perspective — geography and vulnerability. 103 years, Tampa felt exempt to even 50% a Hurricane hit. Then Helene came by and shook it up like a warning shot. Pinellas County isn’t a surprise when it comes to it but it’s Hillsborough, actual Tampa, that had been extremely lucky. Milton wasn’t a direct hit but it did topple 3/4 of our power grid. Imagine if it did arrive at its full power and gave us a direct hit. We’d have a very different conversation.
Tampa was the most vulnerable to get whacked as far as preparation to mitigate hurricane damage. That’s what people said. Milton just exposed that weakness. This is similar to a fighter who always escapes defeat. Or worse, they always win. They know they are the most vulnerable to a vicious knockout punch or submission because of their approach to combat. Then they finally got rocked by some dude. Instead of being in the ER on life support, they’re just there for a surgery. The surgery is taking less time than expected.
I wasn’t affected in the manner 75% of the city was. However, setting foot outside my townhouse complex to go to work gave me an immense dose of reality. It was like living in an isolated, well-built castle. Stepping out felt like entering a dark land of shadow. Things outside looked grim. It made me feel incredibly grateful about how well I had it. The majority of others weren’t as fortunate.
In a post-Milton era in Tampa, I reflect on my blessings and practice gratitude. Throughout the hurricane, I had power as if nothing had happened. Strangely, I had a more intense experience with Hurricane Ian. During this time, I’ve been gradually working my way through Persona 4 Golden. However, the experience has ranged from indifference at best to frustration at worst.
AI generated art fusing the style of Persona 4 Golden with Junji Ito.
The premise and story isn’t the issue. I feel like it tells a good story overall. My 1st issue is the pacing. That first arc is a drag. The 2nd is how little there is to do at the start. It continues to be minimal when you approach The Long Fog period. After experiencing the stellar Persona 5 Royal, this game feels dated. Persona 3 Reload also sets high expectations, which make this entry seem lacking.
Now the social commentary, predominantly with Kanji and Naoto, are possibly the strongest points you can have conversations about. Despite a game whose timeline is 2011-12, in 2024, the conversation can be more elaborate with everything we know today.
As far as gameplay mechanics, in retrospect, still solid. The follow-up attacks vary from single hit, multi-target to even insta-kills. The tag team attacks, depending who’s in the party, is introduced here in a way that we can truly appreciate. It would open the door to the tag team follow-ups in P5R, as well as the Showtime attacks.
I have one of the biggest gripes to this day about P4G. Some characters lack compatibility with their assigned Arcanas. Naoto doesn’t go with Fortune at all. Yosuke as Magician is surface-level at best. The Fox is a total waste of Hermit. Sayoko with Devil arcana chemistry falls off post-discussion of her scandal and gives more of a Hanged Man vibe. Ai is pitiful representing the Moon arcana. The Moon arcana would’ve served Naoki best. He is reserved, with emotions having him sink in like the very Cancer zodiac that arcana represents. The poor use of Arcana in respect to characters frustrated me to no end.
I also found myself not truly enjoying the OST the way I did with Persona 3 or 5. Time to Make History is the only song I actually like while the rest of the soundtrack, while not forgettable, lack any sense of excitement. When the OST of a game isn’t all that exciting for me, it ruins the vibe.
The themes of mystery and truth versus rumors are great. The concept of how it stares you in the face as your most suppressed self is also compelling. The execution is hindered by its harrowing slow pace. At times, you want to speed the process. There are moments where good dialogue would be best when excess points could be omitted. When narrowing down the main motives of the mystery murderer, only half of those points are worth addressing. The latter half of the estimates are very on the nose. I’ll go on to say that, like typical teenagers, the common sense isn’t there. SEES in Persona 3 seem distant, but they are in sync in their saga’s matters. Persona 5’s Phantom Thieves weaponize their trauma bonding. They save the world in defiance of the Demiurge. Persona 4’s Investigation Team are quickly close to each other like real friends. However, they remain far from the truth that stares at them.
As for other enjoyable elements of the game’s story, look no further than every member’s Persona being a Japanese deity. Then add their school’s name symbolizing 10 gods. The White Hare of Inaba by Cheryl Hamada is said to inspire Persona 4. I appreciate how Yu, our protagonist, arrives in town with Izanagi as his Persona. The final enemy is Izanagi’s sister-wife, Izanami. She’s been there the whole time, manipulating all the madness that the town of Inaba suffers. I also enjoyed a parallel in Persona 4 with an unlikely and unrelated story. It parallels Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure: Diamond Is Unbreakable by Hirohiko Araki. They have the same yellow motif for its setting in a small town. Both involve a protagonist with a mighty being as its avatar of power. They both carry the element of mysterious murders, with its antagonist being around them the entire time.
Do I believe Persona 4 Golden is due for a remake like Persona 3 did? Yes! There are many holes that could be filled in retrospect. It could also make its NG+ cycle as good as P5R or P3R. Is the game bad? By no means! I just believe that, compared to its remade predecessor and its sequel, it hasn’t ages well and lacks balance. If it were me, I’d definitely rearrange some of the characters and their arcana story arcs. It would give a sense of congruence to them. In turn, it would enhance the meta aspect of the story. The lore would weave together more seamlessly. Even with a NG+ cycle, maxing out every Social Link in one playthrough is nearly impossible. I also find that it’s very challenging. That’s an issue P3 and P5 don’t have.
I hope you guys all enjoyed this review of my experience with the game. Eventually, my NG+ playthrough will be complete with a playlist, timestamps included, to facilitate the experience.
