When booting up Persona 5 Royal for the first time, it is easy to be overwhelmed with everything there is to do. Not only do you need to try and increase your social stats in five different areas, but you can spend time with your newfound friends, or your confidants. However, it is nearly impossible to complete absolutely everything within the amount of time you have, despite having nearly a year. 

Each confidant offers unique abilities, but some are great just to watch and learn about the characters. Here are five that you should do your best to max out, whether for laughs or the abilities they give you.

5. Chihaya Mifune (Fortune)

Can she really see the future?

Chihaya is the fortune teller that hangs out in Shinjuku, so long as the weather permits. While you may think she just scammed you, her confidant abilities are worth maxing out. She can do luck, money, affinity, special fate, celestial, and special bond readings. To unlock her social rank, you do have to shell out 100,000 yen, but… It’s worth it, okay? 

The most valuable ones are affinity and special bond readings. Affinity allows you to deepen your bond with other confidants, while special bond readings will show you the correct dialogue to select when spending time with a confidant that day. These will better help you max out your other confidants, like the ones at the top of this list!

What Makes Chihaya Great:

• She offers special readings that help increase other important assets of gameplay such as your stats and social link ranks. 
• Chihaya increases your bonds, tells you what to say, increases your stats… Her special readings are pretty useful.
• Getting a reading from Chihaya doesn’t spend time, so you can get a reading and still go about your day to hang out with other social links, go to Mementos, or whatever else you want!

4. Hifumi Togo (Star)

Hifumi's moves will save you.

Hifumi is a shogi player that spends her evenings practicing in the church. She is worth spending time with specifically for the ability you get when you max her out: Togo System. This gives you the ability to swap party members on any turn, when previously you were limited to Joker’s turn. 

Now, for example, if Joker has a persona that you need to use in this battle but Skull’s lightning moves are not doing anything, you can swap Makoto in and still use Joker on this turn. Hifumi’s social rank grants you many other useful abilities, but you need to max her out for this one, making her a must. She greatly helps you in battle with her master shogi skills, like how to get out of an ambush!

What Makes Hifumi Great: 

• Hifumi gives you the ability to swap out party members while in battle. This starts out only during Joker’s turn, but upon maxing out, you can do it during any member’s turn. Sometimes you don’t know who you need until you’re fighting!
• Increasing your social rank with Hifumi also increases your ability to escape from an ambush! 
• In fact, Hifumi grants you the power to instantly escape from battle upon reaching rank 9! Another reason you need to max her out.

3. Tae Takemi (Death)

Do you have the guts you need to see the doctor?

I’ll admit it, I had mixed feelings about spending time with Takemi and increasing my social rank with her. However, upon realizing just how useful it is, I changed my mind. You’re going to her for helpful medicines, right? That perk only gets better the higher your social rank is. 

This increases the stock that Takemi will sell to you. She increases healing items, support items, gives you a discount (which we can never complain about), and at rank 10, increases the revival items sold. As the enemies get tougher and your party loses all HP, those revival items are important! Definitely worth maxing out for.

What Makes Tae Takemi Great: 

• Rank abilities aside, spending time with Takemi increases your guts. You need to increase all of those stats!
• When money is tight, and you’ve spent 100,000 yen to unlock Chihuya’s social link, that discount is great!
• Takemi also has a really sweet, emotional storyline. Don’t judge people based on their appearances!

2. Goro Akechi (Justice)

Something about delicious pancakes?

Ah, Akechi. I truly love this man! Akechi and Joker have a complicated relationship. Some say it’s hate, some say it’s love… Regardless, Joker has strong feelings for Akechi. I do not want to give too many spoilers, but Akechi really is a must on maxing up. Keep in mind, you must reach rank 8 with Akechi by November 17th.

Upon reaching rank 4 with Akechi, you’ll learn Sleuthing Mastery, which can reveal all of an enemy's strengths and weaknesses at the start of a battle. This is an upgrade from Sleuthing Instinct at rank 2. 

Akechi does join your party, so later his abilities become Follow Up, Endure, the abilities that all your party members get. Honestly, Akechi’s social link is more important story-wise. In fact, 9 and 10 rank up automatically (so long as you’ve reached rank 8 by the deadline),  Akechi’s bond is so vital to the story that you really do need to max him out.

What Makes Akechi Great:

• Akechi has two very different sides to him that you need to learn. The kind Detective Prince that the media sees, and the guy who is a little deranged around Joker. We get to see his true self.
• Once again, his storyline intertwines with the main story of Persona 5 Royal, so maxing him out is necessary.
• Once you meet him, I think you’ll understand why he’s ranked so highly. When he texts you that he’s alone, run to him! 

1. Takuto Maruki (Councillor)

Meet Dr. Maruki.

I cannot stress enough how important it is for you to max out Dr. Maruki’s confidant! You need to reach rank 9 with him by November 14th. If you do not, you will be locked out of the Persona 5 Royal True Ending.

Plus, he offers great buffs upon raising his confidant, such as the chance to raise your SP. In late game, you definitely need all the SP you can get! Hanging out with Dr. Maruki even raises your max SP each time. Nice!

Dr. Maruki may seem like a… weird, bumbling counselor when you meet him, but he has a very important role that comes into play that differentiates Persona 5 from Persona 5 Royal. This is something that even surprised me! He has a lot of insight into the lore of the game. 

What Makes Maruki Great: 

• Dr. Maruki is needed to play Persona 5 Royal in its entirety, making him one of the most valuable confidants that you NEED to max out.
• Upon leveling up his social ranks, you inherit the abilities to raise your strength and magic abilities for a time.
• You also get nice SP boosts!
• Plus, Dr. Maruki is voiced by the late Billy Kametz. He truly was an incredible voice actor. 

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