In-Depth PDP: Advanced Mechanics

While I still have the thought in my head, I thought that I'd add in a quick guide to some of the more complicated mechanics of the game (although, much less complicated than Pokémon). Actually, complicated is not even really the word, but more like advanced and never fully explained.
These are IVs, Natures, and Attack Types (I don't know IVs and Natures are the word that's being used for them in this game, but they are the equivalent of Pokémon's IVs and Natures, so I'm going with it for now).


What are they?

IVs in Pokémon are hidden stat boosts to any particular stat. In PDP, they are not hidden. When you go into your Puppet's info and look at your stats, you will see a letter grade beside any stat. For example, your Starter will, by default, have an A+ next to every stat.

These letter grades represent your Puppet's IVs. S is better than A, which is better than B, and so on. The full thing goes S > A > B > C > D >E. +s are better than -s, and all that. The absolute best grade you can get is S (there is no S+, as far as I know).
However, just because you have an S in a stat does not mean you are all set. You need to have a high letter grade in important stats.

This, for example, is a pretty bad Kokoro. It has an S only in its HP, and the rest of the stats are Cs, with one E. This will have lower stats than a Kokoro with decent IVs in important stats.

Natures are the stat that your particular Puppet is naturally inclined to.

The nature is represented by the colored bar below the type. This Momiji has a Focus Attack nature, for example. This is then represented on the stat list by the stat in question being colored blue instead of black. Having a nature for a stat makes that stat naturally higher.

So, this Momiji will naturally have a higher Focus Attack stat than other Momiji Puppets due to its positive nature and good IVs. The Kokoro above, however, has a Focus Defense nature, which is also the stat that it has E- IVs, which makes the nature boost pretty much useless.

Finally, we have attack types. These are actually quite simple. A Puppet with high Focus Attack will really only benefit from using Focus Attacks, while high Spread means better Spread Attacks. You can tell if a move is Focus or Spread by pressing Z on the move to get more information, and then looking directly below the type on the right.
These aren't translated yet, but they are still quite simple.

Red = Focus Attack
Blue = Spread Attack
Black = Status-Raising/Lowering Attack

If they are part of your strategy, then Status-Raising/Lowering attacks are not affected by stats as they do not deal any damage directly.

The way to tell what type of attacks you should be using? Well, which stat is higher? Something with high Focus Attack should really only be using Focus Attacks, and the same goes for high Spread and Spread Attacks. If both stats are pretty much even, then you can probably get away with both!

None of these things are absolutely required, but they do make things easier. That said, don't worry about natures and IVs early on in the game, as they'll be easier to get end-game with the Reincarnation system! If you are a perfectionist however, these are good things to know, and they can sometimes make the game easier (although more tedious, since you have to hunt down the perfect Puppet!).