Persona 3 Reload has lots of social links to work through but how do party members like Junpei, Akihiko, Junpei, and Shinjiro fit into it? They technically don’t, but those who want more character development for the male party members can still find it in the game with Persona 3 Reload’s new date-sensitive linked episodes.
Social links remain the bread and butter of modern Persona games but those who didn’t play the original Persona 3 will be a bit surprised. While both 4 and 5 had a social link set aside for each party member, that’s not the case in Persona 3 where players can’t hang out with half the team.
While much of the discussion surrounding Persona 3 Reload has been what’s not in the game and what’s being held back for DLC, there are a fair few things that have been added. Among them is a social link alternative for Junpei, Akihiko, Ken, Shinjiro, and Koromaru here’s how it works, when you can do it, and what you actually get from it.
How Persona 3 Reload’s linked episodes are, and aren’t, like social links for Akihiko, Junpei, and Ken
Junpei, Akihiko, Ken, Koromaru, and Shinjiro don’t have social links in Persona 3 Reload, and instead have “linked episodes” that take their place. These function similar to social links as the player opts into spending a block of time doing them and they have a story that advances in a sequential fashion.
They do not, however, have prerequisites for starting or advancing them outside of being tied to specific dates. Each character only has five events, but the fact that each one happens on a specific date better intertwines them with the main story. Hangouts with Junpei, Akihiko, Ken, Koromaru, and Shinjiro do not have “correct” dialog choices, as players do not have to improve their relationship with the characters to advance their stories.
Linked episodes also confer an immediate benefit to the player. These social link alternatives improve the combat prowess of Junpei, Akihiko, Ken, Koromaru, and Shinjiro, or they provide a social stat boost to the player. As with social links, seeing them through to the end gives the player access to a new Persona they can create via fusion.
All Persona 3 Reload linked episodes dates, rewards
Each linked episode takes place on a specific date during daytime hours. Almost all of them will advance time.
Here’s every linked episode’s date and reward:
| Character | Date | Reward |
| Junpei 1 | 5/12 | Hermes St +3 |
| Akihiko 1 | 5/29 | Max HP +5 |
| Akihiko 2 | 7/24 | Items |
| Junpei 2 | 8/9 | Charm +1 |
| Koromaru 1 | 8/22 | Charm +1 |
| Koromaru 2 | 9/4 | Courage +1 |
| Koromaru 3 | 9/8 | Agility +3 |
| Ken 1 | 9/8 | Academics +1 |
| Koromaru 4 | 9/9 | Courage +1 |
| Shinjiro 1* | 9/11 | Courage +1 |
| Shinjiro 2 | 9/13 | Charm +1 |
| Shinjiro 3 | 9/14 | Academics +1 |
| Shinjiro 4* | 9/15 | None |
| Shinjiro 4 | 9/16 | Courage +1 |
| Ken 2 | 9/16 | Courage +1 |
| Akihiko 3 | 10/9 | Charm +1 |
| Shinjiro 5 | 10/28 | Unlocks Hell Biker persona |
| Junpei 3** | 11/7 | Academics +1 |
| Ken 3 | 11/10 | Charm +1 |
| Akihiko 4 | 12/12 | Max SP +3 |
| Junpei 4 | 12/19 | Courage +1 |
| Ken 4 | 12/22 | Max SP +3 |
| Akihiko 5 | 1/4 | Unocks Horus persona |
| Koromaru 5 | 1/5 | Unlocks Byakko persona |
| Junpei 5 | 1/15 | Unlocks Surt persona |
| Ken 5 | 1/19 | Unlocks Michael persona |
*- Player talks with Mitsuru to activate event
**- Tied to a time-sensitive story event, player is strongly encouraged to do immediately
Players have multiple opportunities to activate a linked event in most cases, but they don’t last forever. In general, it’s best to do them immediately as they come up.
There’s still plentiful missable content, but these are different from social links in that they are more closely associated with key story events. As such, Persona 3 Reload players should make sure to prioritize these linked episodes with Junpei, Akihiko, Ken, Koromaru, and Shinjiro ahead of social links and most efforts to advance social stats. Those who are desperate to see fully realized social links with male party members can do so, but they’ll have to pick up Persona 3 Portable or hope that its content makes it into Reload via a stealth DLC drop.
