Starting Persona 3 Portable - I'm not sure of the changes beyond the party no longer being AI controlled (which is already a huge improvement), but I'll see if I get further than I did in P3 FES. (In that case, I got to the point where Fuuka is recruited)

The method of summoning Personas in this game seems needlessly edgy, and I'm glad that it was changed in future titles.

I'm going to try playing through the game as the female lead; not sure how much of a difference that makes, but I know that you have a say over whether or not social links turn romantic, whereas for the male protag, it's automatic.

(at least, that was the case in P3 FES - not sure if it was changed for Portable)

from what I heard, it wasn't

It's automatically romantic for the male protag, I mean.

I'm always nervous about the social aspects for these games, especially this one. (By my understanding, in Persona 3, they can go backwards) Not sure if I'll stick to a guide or not.

it won't be easy to put it in reverse. at best, maybe ignoring them after a while, but that happened to maybe one character, and that was in the original.