Persona 5 Confidant Guide

As with any game from the Persona franchise, your relationships with the game’s characters are also front and center in Persona 5. It is perhaps the most crucial gameplay mechanic that you should pay close attention to in order to make the most out of the excellent game. In Persona 5, the mechanic of developing and nurturing friendships with various characters is called the Confidant system. Basically, it is a fancier name for the customary Social Links. By deepening your relationships with Confidants, you can gain incredible benefits such as new abilities that may help you both in and out of combat.

In this article, we aim to give you a guide to Persona 5’s Confidant system. However, do take note that this article does not intend to show every unlockable Persona 5 Confidant. Instead, we will be talking about the ways how you can maximize the benefits of the system. This is by detailing its basics and intricacies while giving you some tips along the way. With that out of the way, let us begin.

Understanding the Persona 5 Confidant System

The Confidants you find in Atlus’ Persona 5 involve your party members as well as the many NPCs that you find around Tokyo. Each of them represents a different Arcana and requires a certain something to officially unlock. While some are as straightforward as just continuing the game’s story, others need more attention to unlock. This includes leveling up your Social Stats in a certain rank or reaching a specific Confidant level first. 

Each Confidant has a unique story and set of abilities associated with their respective Arcana. Simply put, the higher your level is on a particular Arcana, the more benefits you’d receive that are exclusive to it. 

So, how do you level up Confidants? To increase your Confidant rank, you need to spend time with them and engage in activities that resonate with their interests. Do take note that most of them are only available on specific days and times. Indeed, planning your schedule in this game is crucial. 

Additionally, you will often encounter dialog choices whenever you start a conversation with Confidants. Keep in mind that your responses can impact your bond with them. Correct choices add significant points toward the progress of their respective Confidant levels, while mediocre choices lead to nothing. 

So pay attention to your Confidant’s personality and try your best to choose answers that resonate with them the most. Being attentive and supportive will yield better results. Let me give you one crucial tip to level up your Confidants more effectively. Always have a Persona of the corresponding Arcana in your possession to maximize your progress during interactions. Doing so along with answering correctly to dialog choices will make leveling up Confidants a breeze, believe me.

Time Management is the Key

Most of Persona 5’s outside-combat gameplay loop revolves around you managing your time as effectively as possible. This involves raising your Social Stats, finishing side-quests, reading books, and, of course, leveling up Confidants. In fact, we highly recommend that you prioritize spending time with your Confidants over everything else whenever you are outside Palaces or the Metaverse. 

Engage in various activities with your Confidants to deepen your relationship. These activities range from simple conversations to going out for meals, visiting locations together, playing games, or helping them with their personal problems. Each activity provides a different level of bond increase, so choose wisely.

Benefits of Leveling Up Persona 5 Confidants

As you level up your Confidant rank with various characters, new abilities will unlock at your disposal. These abilities can range from enhancing your negotiation skills with Shadows, increasing your combat capabilities, unlocking new fusion options, and so much more. Take note that you can view the benefits or unlockable skills for a certain Confidant on their respective menus. That said, invest your time in Confidants that align the most with your current goals and specific playstyle.

Here are the Confidants that we recommend you focus on the most:

• Temperance (Sadayo Kawakami)

Filling up the levels for the Temperance Confidant, Sadayo Kawakami, your homeroom teacher working overnight as a maid, offers a crucial time management ability that effectively freezes up your evenings. This allows you to do several things in your evenings which is otherwise impossible without it. Prioritize leveling up this Confidant as soon as possible to maximize your daily activities.

• Fortune (Chihaya Mifune)

Like Temperance, Fortune also gives you a unique ability that will play a major role in you maximizing the game. Filling up the level of the Fortune Confidant, Chihaya Mifune, grants you the ability to receive affinity readings. These readings allow you to temporarily increase your bond with other Confidants, making her an invaluable ally in boosting your overall progress.

• Party Members

Again, your party members are also Confidants that you can level up. Doing so makes them more invaluable allies in combat. For example, ranking up their levels can enable them to cure your status ailments automatically. Additionally, they can even shield you from attacks that may otherwise knock you out. However, the best thing about leveling up your party members’ Confidant levels is the fact that maxing them out will result in their personas evolving.