Atlus make things Persona(l)

Can remakes, spin-offs, and spiritual successors hold the line until Persona 6?

Green paint, innocuous in the corner of Persona’s 25th-anniversary image, was enough to have fans frothing that it was a secret nod to Persona 6. Yet the celebrations throughout last year came and went with no other news about the long-awaited latest entry in the series (the fifth game, after all, was released on both PS3 and PS4 back in 2016). Will a high-profile remake, spinoff, and the revitalisation of a sister series keep the fires burning in the absence of a new mainline title?

Persona 3 Reload is the big remake, following on from the remaster of Persona 3 Portable earlier this year, while Persona 5 is getting another spinoff, this time a strategy RPG, Persona 5 Tactica. Meanwhile, Project Re Fantasy has resurfaced as Metaphor: ReFantazio, a more fantastical (surprise) twist on mechanics that still very much shares the Shin Megami Tensei and Persona DNA.

THREE SHOOTER

Persona 3, first released for PlayStation 2 in 2006, is a fan favourite for good reason – it established the modern Persona formula, and its melancholy, hip-hop-tinged aesthetic is unforgettable. Yet it’s often the subject of some grumbling thanks to the fact no rerelease has ever collected all additional content together. 2007’s Persona 3 FES added an epilogue story in the shape of The Answer, while Persona 3 Portable in 2009 added a divergent main story with a new female protagonist (and finally gave you the ability to control your other party members).