Persona Newbie

[Blink]

I come to you, fellow nerds, in my time of need.

I have never played any Persona game and any time I tell an RPG-nerd that, they almost disown me and/or start doing life-saving medical maneuvers. So, with Persona 5 coming out (which, again, people won't stop talking about even though I don't know what is going on), I would like to jump into the series and give it a try. What is the best way to do this? I have a PS2, PS3 and PS4. Should I go as far as back I can or can I just jump in on a later game? Should I wait until Persona 5? Is the series worth it to begin with? Those who have me on Skype are welcome to bother me about it there, too.

Thanks for anyone who helps me out =o

[Artoria Pendragon]

Well a good starter is do you like turn based combat and JRPG's in general.
If not, Persona 5 probably ain't/won't be your cup.

[Blink]

Ya, I have all those checks in the boxes.

[Omni]

I've also never played a Persona game and I'm starting to sweat whenever I talk to the cool weeb kids who hang out on the corner. Might grab Persona 5 someday, I'm guessing all the stories are basically standalone but take place in the same world?