Persona 5continues the series tradition of bonding with characters. Renaming these bonds Confidants after the two previousPersonagames called them Social Links,Persona 5nonetheless follows a similar formula. Confidants give players an opportunity to bond with their party members, important adults in their life, other characters that have major roles in the story, as well as miscellaneous inhabitants of the game’s setting that players can encounter. Like in previousPersonagames, the Confidants do not just provide supplementary information about the world and characters that the main game would have otherwise hidden. There are alsogameplay benefits of inconsistent qualitythat come with bonding with these characters.
Although most ofPersona 5’s Confidants were well received, the most popular one is most likely Sadayo Kawakami’s. The player character’s homeroom teacher, she is among the few adults in Tokyo that are considered to be trustworthy among the Phantom Thieves, especially Joker. In her case, it is obvious when she is compared to her eccentric and sometimes corrupt colleagues. Despite her reasonable demeanor, Kawakami is also negatively affected by her environment. If Joker helps her out with her problems, the rewards prove to be spectacular.
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Kawakami’s Confidant
Representing the Temperance arcana, Kawakami isone of the lucky side charactersthat can bond with the player. Her Confidant begins when Joker, Ryuji, and Mishima call a private maid, unintentionally hiring their teacher in the process. To initiate it, the player has to talk to Kawakami and the English teacher, Ms. Chouno, after school to give off the impression that Kawakami is tutoring Joker, then call Kawakami with Leblanc’s public phone when his Guts level is at least 3. Aside from fanservice, this predicament has humorous potential, which already won people over. Her schedule is also one of the few Confidants to exclusively occur at nighttime, giving players an opportunity to be flexible with their own schedule, and potentially bond with several characters simultaneously. Kawakami’s Confidant consists of callout services for housekeeping. Joker can have her do a variety of chores, from cleaning his room to doing his laundry. As the Confidant progresses, the player slowly learns about Kawakami’s financial situation and why she has to work for a callout maid service.
Kawakami is revealedto have of the most sympathetic backstories in the game, making players heavily appreciate a character that was already among the saner members of the cast. Initially claiming that her work is for her sick sister that needs expensive medical treatment, Kawakami eventually reveals that she moonlights for money. Before teaching at Shujin Academy, she tutored a student called Takase because his status as an orphan that worked three part-time jobs to support himself made him unable to get good grades. When Kawakami was threatened with resignation over her kindness, she had to give up on Takase, who died in a car crash after the exhaustion from his jobs and schoolwork made him fail to notice the vehicle. Takase’s relatives, who adopted him, blamed Kawakami for his death and threatened a lawsuit unless she can pay them back as an “apology."
As the Confidant goes on, their demands become more unreasonable, and Kawakami eventually goes to the hospital after being overworked. This leads to the Phantom Thieves stealing the guardians’ hearts. By the time her Confidant ends, some things happen regardless of Joker’s decision regarding his relationship with his teacher. Kawakami quits her part-time job, although she is still available for housekeeping services.
The Benefits of Kawakami’s Confidant
The narrative and genuinely saddening backstory surrounding Kawakami’s Confidant,optional questionable romance aside, makes her character easy to root for. As a result, players are more inclined to help her out. The effective writing is only to the player’s benefit because while her story is appreciated, Kawakami has one of the most beloved Confidants because of how much it improves the player’s quality of life. Although her visits are initially costly, they are free by the time her Confidant is at Rank 8. She allows the player to slack off, read, or work on tools in class. Eventually, she can make not only coffee but curry, which both restore SP, and infiltration items, which are not all that common and exceptionally useful in dungeons. Finally, once her Confidant has been maxed out, she can give Joker a message after the player spends time in the Metaverse, allowing them to go out at night.
In a game where properly planning out activities is key for better abilities and items, Kawakami provides benefits that are among the most compatible with this design philosophy. Her rewards allow players to take a breather and do numerous tasks simultaneously, making individual days productive without having to compromise anything. While someConfidants' benefitshave little use aside from specific circumstances, Kawakami’s benefits are relevant to the core ofPersona 5’s gameplay, making her Confidant a must for players that want to avoid as many burdens as possible.
Persona 5 Royalis available now on PS4.
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