How Persona Explores Death | Vacated's Ultimate Persona 3 Analysis

Channel:

Vacated

Subscribers:

3,200

Published on December 21, 2023 7:00:08 PM ● Video Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hyARv_f5-hU

Game:

Persona 3 (2006)

Duration: 2:18:18

106,603 views

5,600

One of my all-time favorite series of video games is the Persona series. There are countless things I love about each of the individual games, but something about the third numbered entry, Persona 3, and its particular story and themes has just always stood out to me as being so uniquely brilliant.
P3's main thesis is very heavy, but strangely simple: Death is something that each and every one of us will eventually have to face, and is an aspect of our existence that we mustn't ever let become lost on us. This theme is established as soon as the very first opening cutscene, and is then carefully explored through just about every single aspect of the experience, from the characters, to the lore, to even the game mechanics.
Persona 3 is just teeming with stuff to talk about, and having first played and completed the game almost exactly two years ago now, I'm still to this day regularly reminded of and wowed by just how innovative it actually is. So that brings us to this particular video: An in-depth analysis and breakdown of Persona 3 and its themes of death and mortality. I'm SUPER proud of this one, so please let me know what you guys think in the comments! Thank you so much for watching, and Memento Mori!!

Chapter Guide: I get it, you may not want to watch EVERY single bit of this video, so here's how you can pick and choose!
Chapters that are designated with Part:(Roman Numeral)-Re are simply sections that are dedicated to laying out and recapping the story elements. So if you're already intimately familiar with P3's story, you may totally skip these if you'd like.
Chapters that aren't designated with Re, however, are the analysis sections. These are the parts of the video where I really dig into the themes of the game by making certain observations, drawing literary parallels, discussing character dynamics/story elements and their deeper meanings, etc. (AKA, the stuff that you don't want to skip)
Enjoy the video!!

Chapters:
0:00 - Intro
3:06 - Part I-Re: The Beginning | Main Story Introduction
10:05 - Part I: Time and the Calendar System
13:25 - Part IS: Social Link Introduction
14:46 - Part II: Bunkichi, Mitsuko, and Immortality Through Legacy
20:14 - Part III: Akinari Kamiki: The Dying Young Man
26:41 - Part IV-Re: The Calm Before the Storm | A S.E.E.S. Renaissance
37:44 - Part IV: Akihiko, Ken, and Death Portrayed Through Loss
45:46 - Part V-Re: Revelations | The Betrayal of S.E.E.S.
53:36 - Part V: Strega, Ikutsuki, and Death As Deliverance
58:01 - Part VI-Re: Strega's Rebirth | The Dark Ages of S.E.E.S.
1:02:29 - Part VI: Chidori, Bonds, and The Myth Of Sisyphus
1:12:04 - Part VIS: Aigis, Humanity, and the Sisyphean Pursuit of Protection
1:15:49 - Part VII-Re: The Rejuvenation of S.E.E.S. | First Omen of the World's End
1:22:18 - Part VII: Shadows, Ryoji, and the Humanization of Death
1:29:10 - Part VIII-Re: Death Notice for the World | The Return of the Mother Entity
1:32:15 - Part VIII: NYX: The Origin of Everything
1:39:50 - Part IX-Re: Harrowing Dilemma In A Dying World | Ryoji's New Year's Ultimatum
1:43:05 - Part IX: Ending I: To Forget Death
1:48:20 - Part X-Re: Memories of the World | The Death and Rebirth of S.E.E.S.
1:52:00 - Part X: The Arcana | A Fool's Journey
1:59:07 - Main Story COMPLETED | Ending II: Remember Death
2:14:17 - Video Ending and Conclusion | Memento Mori

Works Referenced:
The Epic of Gilgamesh - Maureen Gallery Kovacs
Komm, süßer Tod - Johann Sebastian Bach
Persona 3 & Japan’s Lost Generation - LadyVirgilia
The Myth Of Sisyphus - Albert Camus
Jung’s Theory of Personality - Carl Jung
Persona 3 Club Book: World Guide Q&A - Atlus
Megami Ibunroku Persona - Atlus
Persona 2: Innocent Sin - Atlus
Persona 2: Eternal Punishment - Atlus
Persona 3 FES: The Answer - Atlus
Persona 4 - Atlus
Persona 5 - Atlus

Forgot to put this in the actual in-video credits because I'm a dingus, but the English translation of the Q&A section of the P3 Club Book was done by Nenilein, a creator here on YouTube, and the fan who first discovered and delivered this information to us western players! Go check them out!
https://www.youtube.com/@UCRHreaYNrR9eeOX_gtfk81w

Soundtracks Present:
Persona 2 IS Original Soundtrack - Atlus
Persona 3 Original Soundtrack - Atlus
Persona 3 The Movie Original Soundtrack - Atlus
Trauma Center: Second Opinion Original Soundtrack - Atlus
Persona 3 Portable Original Soundtrack - Atlus
Shin Megami Tensei III: Nocturne Original Soundtrack - Atlus
Trauma Team Original Soundtrack - Atlus
Shin Megami Tensei V Original Soundtrack - Atlus
Persona 3: Dancing In Moonlight Original Soundtrack - Atlus
Persona 3 Reincarnation Album - Atlus
With Celebrity Bonus Appearances From:
Nine Inch Nails and Aphex Twin

Overwhelming Bulk of Gameplay Footage from: JohneAwesome's Persona 3 FES Walkthrough
B-Roll Footage From Noire Blue's No Commentary Persona 3 Walkthrough

(Far more detailed credits for everything can be found at the end of the video's runtime).

Thanks For Watching!!

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