15 Genius Gameplay Mechanics That Defined the 2000s

SOCIAL LINKS (PERSONA 3)

Atlus Persona series might be huge now, but it wasn’t until its third outing that it reinvented itself and carved out the identity that now defines these games. And at the heart of the experience was its slice of life mechanics- driven first and foremost by social links. Interacting with the varied cast of main and secondary characters and gradually improving your relationships with them over time wasn’t just a boon for the story and storytelling, it also tied into gameplay and progression in multiple ways, allowing the disparate parts of the experience to synergize in truly surprising ways.