Survive the Dark Hour in Persona 3 Reload on a X3100i Gaming Projector

BenQ Game Zone Series

BenQ Writer: Alexandria Hulslander

2024/05/31

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Persona 3 Reload is the latest remake of the original Persona 3 game developed and published by Atlus, available on PS5, Xbox Series X/S, and PC. It’s an RPG that was completely different from the first two games and brought positive attention to the series following its original success. It has been remade before, but this latest remake introduced new elements to the game, redid certain aspects of it, and refined the graphics alongside the vibrant colors and incredible musical score. With BenQ CinematicColor and CinematicSound technology on the X3100i gaming projector, you’ll get the best RPG gaming experience possible! Welcome to the BenQ Game Zone Series!

An Unexpected Fate

Hidden beyond the regular day is an extra hour known as the Dark Hour, where Shadows lurk and individuals with Persona’s must fight to destroy Tartarus and eliminate the Dark Hour. As a captivating reimagining of the original game, Persona 3 Reload places you in the shoes of the protagonist as he is thrust into an unexpected fate after transferring to a new school. He’s a special case who can swap between Personas instead of being limited to one, you can take advantage of a wide variety of skills and attacks to defeat the Shadows. Though the Dark Hour is hidden and Shadows lurk beyond sight, you won’t miss a single detail with the vibrant colors and crisp visuals from the X3100i BenQ gaming projector.

One of the major differences from the original game to Reload is that all the characters are directly controllable now, meaning you can switch between them and decide every action they make. Each character specializes in certain skills, so developing the team and utilizing their abilities and Personas is crucial for success. On the menu, pictured right, you can quickly see what level each party member is at, what their HP and SP is, and access their full stats. Each character is defined by a distinct color on the menu, which is enhanced by the 4K HDR visuals and CinematicColor technology that you can only get on a BenQ gaming projector!

Each team member has to be leveled up individually, and their Personas are leveled up individually as well but only the one that is equipped will level up, unless a special skill is applied. While this can be a bit of a tedious process overtime, the results are strong attacks with stunning visuals for each Persona. On the X3100i, these attacks are projected as colorful and vibrant as they were intended by the game creators. A gaming monitor or TV screen don’t do the colors of this game the same justice that a BenQ gaming projector does. Don’t miss out on your chance to enjoy this game and its design to the fullest!

Leveling-up, item collecting, and battles are all done within Tartarus, which was entirely revamped for this version of the game from the design to the overall looks. Multiple passages and areas are accessible as they spawn now, and there is some randomization in the layout of the floors during visits. Sneaking up on enemies, understanding their weaknesses, and utilizing each team member’s unique skills will help you survive the Dark Hour and work towards ending it completely. With areas that shift constantly, shadows that creep and crawl across the floor, and vibrant colors on the wall that shimmer as you walk by, Tartarus is an intense and unique location to explore and grow within. Face the challenges of Tartarus and appreciate the reloaded details of each level on a BenQ X3100i projector, where cinematic colors come to life.

The Specialized Extracurricular Execution Squad

As an RPG with social simulation aspects, there are a lot of opportunities for unique character interactions and different storyline outcomes. You can choose how to spend each day, immerse yourself in the emotional journey of your peers, and build the ultimate team to take out the Shadows. Your relationships with your team strengthen their abilities, and you can change some aspects of the story based on how you interact with everyone. During these moments, the jazz-inspired electric music livens up the areas and with the two 5W treVolo speakers and CinematicSound technology, you won’t need a surround-sound system to fully enjoy the music. The spatial audio provided by the X3100i supports equal sound distribution regardless of the projectors location in your space, and every sound is crisp and clear. Additionally, the projector supports external sound systems with SPDIF and eArc support, so you can create a fully immersive experience in every setup!

When you’re not leveling-up in Tartarus, you can explore the new activities available within the dorm to boost your social stats or check out the new Mangastar Net Café to boost intelligence and etiquette skills. You can also explore the areas within the world and create connections with individuals you meet on the streets. Each of these areas are a great opportunity to appreciate the updated graphics of the game, which are a huge improvement from the original. The smaller screen of a monitor or TVs of varying sizes may not be enough to appreciate the remastered graphics and visual details of Persona 3 Reload. A TV screen of varying quality might not capture the subtle movements of the Personas in battle or the quick attacks of the enemies. The X3100i, however, offers a much larger screen where you can see everything clearly without overexpanding the images. With 4K projection and 3300 ANSI lumens, these updated graphics and vibrant colors create a truly immersive experience.

In contrast to the upbeat music and tone of the activities during the day, the musical score for Tartarus is much more intense. The soundtrack maintains some of its greatest hits from the original game, including the iconic battle theme “Mass Destruction,” but they’ve added a new battle theme called “It’s Going Down Now” that plays when you strike an enemy first. BenQ’s CinematicSound technology brings a new dimension to this music, and the difference between the battle sounds, the music itself, and the conversations between characters is not muddled thanks to the crisp audio that you can only get with the ultimate gaming projector, the X3100i.

Though a concluding chapter was removed from the original story, more context was given for the other characters to expand upon their stories. This new content is called “Link Episodes,” which are shorter side missions that each focus on a different character, though not every single side character gets one. These stories offer a different perspective to the overarching story for players to understand better the seriousness of the situation for the team. Just as the game offers different perspectives of the story, the X3100i offers different perspectives for viewing the projected image on a screen or wall. With vertical lens shift and digital zoom, you can adjust your screen size as needed without compromising the image and view the gameplay from any angle in the room clearly!

The Velvet Room

Persona 3 is known for redefining the Persona series with its extremely popular music and new story. Though they’ve continued to remake the game, it has not lost its value as the studio has found ways to improve and enhance it through new content, updated music, and stunning color vibrance. While every aspect of the game is enhanced by the X3100i gaming projector, the color vibrancy simply cannot be topped by any other device you game on.

The Dark Hour is upon us, are you up to the challenge to defeat the Shadows? Share your Persona 3 Reload experience with us on our ProjectQ Gamers Lounge!

*All images in this article were projected on a 75-inch screen with the X3100i gaming projector.