Persona 5: The Phantom X Review – A Rebellious Gacha Gem

Persona 5: The Phantom X is a mobile spin-off of the famous Persona 5. It keeps the series’ style and spirit. But it adds gacha mechanics too. The result is fun and engaging. It stays close to the original, while also trying fresh ideas. Though rough in some parts, it’s worth playing.

What Is Persona 5: The Phantom X?

• A mobile game based on Persona 5, coming to PC too.
• You play a silent protagonist who is a high school student by day.
• At night, he becomes a Phantom Thief in a world known as the Metaverse.
• The game mixes social simulation and dungeon crawling.
• You explore Tokyo, hang out, build relationships, grind stats, then fight in palaces.
• But now it uses a gacha system for characters and gear.
• And it’s free to play, with generous rewards for players.

Pros & Cons

✅ Pros	❌ Cons
Authentic Persona atmosphere	Slow start, weak initial story
Good fusion of Persona and gacha	Reused assets, occasional jank
Friendly to free players	Grinding progression can tire you
Strong audio & cutscenes	Protagonist feels bland at first
Large palaces for replay	Early story villains feel light

Story – 8/10

The game begins in a casino palace. You meet Joker again and a new hero, Wonder. It’s exciting and nostalgic. You follow two teams—classic Phantom Thieves and a new crew. That’s interesting. It asks questions like “Why is Joker here?” and “What connects these two groups?”

But then the story slows. Your first enemy is a subway attacker. This arc feels weak and flat. It lacks emotion and urgency. The main character, Wonder, emerges without much spark. The writing doesn’t match the tone of previous Persona games.

Still, once you pass this part, the story takes off. Characters grow deeper. New team members like Riko, Motoha, and Shun slowly show their personalities. The pacing improves. The game starts asking big questions about desire, society, and justice. The second half is much more gripping than the start.

Cutscenes bring life to key moments. They use fully animated sequences. Awakening scenes for Phantom Thieves are bold and dramatic. The voice acting and music are strong throughout. They build the tension and emotion well.

Gameplay – 8/10

Persona fans will feel at home. The game keeps core systems like:

• Turn-based combat
• Persona fusion
• Dungeons (palaces)

But the lives of a student are changed. Instead of a full calendar, time moves in “today/tomorrow”. You have a small stamina bar instead of many free time slots. You spend points to do jobs, hang out, or gather resources. You earn social stats too, and build Synergy Links—improved versions of Social Links.

Combat is simplified. Each Persona has three active skills and two passive traits. You can use Gun Attacks, Baton Pass, and All-Out Attacks. You also get a new skill called Highlights, which you can unleash after saving up a special gauge. This system feels fresh and stylish.

An auto-battle feature is included. It helps speed up farming. Palaces are large and packed with puzzles, foes, and treasure. The subway castle is clever and fun. You can revisit palaces to grind materials.

The combat and dungeon loop work really well with gacha. It feels fun, not forced. You explore, fight, gather, and grow your team.

Visuals – 7/10

Persona has always looked cool, with bold menus and expressive art. Phantom X captures that style. UI, menus, and character portraits look great. Cutscenes stand out with high-quality animation.

However, many backgrounds and textures are reused from P5. Some are blurry or low-detail. Character animation can feel recycled—Wonder looks like a re-skinned Joker. Environment pop-ins also show up. These janky moments remind you it’s still a mobile spin-off.

Overall, it looks good most of the time. But sometimes, it cracks the illusion with polish issues.

Audio – 9/10

The music is stellar. It reuses tracks from the original Persona 5. That’s good, since those songs are iconic. New tracks also match the feel of the series. The opening music sets the mood well.

Voice acting is impressive. It brings scenes to life. Line delivery is solid. However, the audio mix sometimes stumbles. Fade-ins and fade-outs can feel rough. In some scenes, music feels too quiet or too loud. Despite those issues, the music and voices shine.

Value for Money – 10/10

This is a free-to-play game that really delivers. You get:

• Rich story content to start.
• Regular monthly events.
• Cross-progression between phone and PC.
• No paywall for the main story or playable thieves.
• Generous summons and rewards.

You can finish the story without spending a cent. Roll rates and pity systems are fair. You can build your team with patience and no fear of being left behind.

Gacha System

There are multiple banners for characters, Personas, weapons, and costumes.

• Character pulls cost 1500 currency for 10 rolls.
• Weapons cost 1000 currency for 10 rolls.
• Banners have good pity systems:
  • Characters: hard pity at 80 pulls, soft pity from 70.
  • Weapons: separate pity at 70 pulls, 50/50 chance.

There’s also a special “Lucky Coins” system dedicated for weapons. Get ten coins to exchange for any 5★ weapon. You also get event tickets and pity resets—very player-friendly.

Characters

The new Phantom team needs time to grow. Early on, they feel a bit bland compared to Persona’s past heroes. But soon, they pick up steam. You begin to like Riko, Motoha, and Shun. Their personalities emerge in later scenes.

Wonder, the main hero, comes off weak at first. He has no strong identity. Compare him to Joker or Yu Narukami, and he falls short. His look, dialogue, and persona design lack punch initially. But the bigger story mystery helps keep you engaged.

Endgame & Grind

Like all gacha games, there’s grinding. To improve characters you need:

• Levels
• Ascension materials
• Weapon and skill upgrades
• Tarots (like artifacts)

These systems layer on each other. The deeper you go, the more complex it gets. Strong gear can be farmed with time. But RNG luck can slow you down. Still, you don’t need to pay to progress. It may feel slow early on, but once you find your flow, it’s manageable.

Bugs & Jank

The game has flaws:

• Texture pop-ins in Mementos floors.
• NPC or character lag in cutscenes.
• Lip sync not matching lines.

These issues make the experience feel less polished. For a global release, the game needed more testing. Still, these are minor irritations, not dealbreakers.

Final Verdict – Should You Play?

Yes. Persona 5: The Phantom X is a strong spin-off. It keeps Persona’s charm while adding gacha flair. Fight systems are fun. Story grows richer as you go. Audio and style impress you. And it’s friendly to players who don’t spend money.

The game has a rocky start. Visual and story rough patches show it’s still growing. Combat and systems can feel heavy later. But with regular updates, polish patches, and a growing cast, the game shows promise.

If you love Persona 5, you’ll enjoy this spin-off. If you love gacha games, its fairness and design make it worth trying. It’s a free download, so you can decide if it grabs your heart—without spending a dime.

Overall Scores

• Story: 8/10 – Slow start, but later picks up depth and charm.
• Gameplay: 8/10 – Classic Persona with gacha efficiency. Occasionally grindy.
• Visuals: 7/10 – Stylish, but some reused textures and jank.
• Audio: 9/10 – Excellent music and voice acting with minor mix issues.
• Value: 10/10 – Free, fair, and generous gacha.

FAQs

Final Take: Persona 5: The Phantom X starts slow, but its charm shines after the first act. It’s a promising blend of Persona heart and gacha design. With high production value, fair systems, and endless updates, it’s a mobile experience destined to steal your heart. If it keeps evolving, it could become one of the top gacha titles out there.