Despite the last three mainline entries in thePersonaseries following more or less similar structures with how players engage with the world,Persona 6could take the series in a different direction. Much of what makes the series popular has to do with the social mechanics as players have to balance everyday life with dungeon-crawling over a series of deadlines, but since that has been what the series focused on for about 15 years, thePersona 6team could potentially want to explore ways to reinvent the games.
There is a lot of mystery surrounding whatPersona 6could be. Some fans could be under the general assumption that it will play out similarly to the previous titles given its formula has worked for so long. Although understandable to assume, important figures behind the more recent mainlinePersonatitles are working on othergames such asMetaphor: ReFantazio, meaning that the individuals in charge of the latest game in Atlus' most popular series are likely fresh faces whose vision for the series might radically change it.
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A New Team With New Ideas Could Be Behind Persona 6
A leaker named Midori recently shared thatPersona 6is being developed by new membersof thePersonateam staff and will differ a lot from other games. If this is the case, then the creative philosophies fromPersona 5toPersona 6will likely differ in ways that are significant in subtle and overt ways.
The leaker did clarify that what they meant from the game differing is not that it will play like one of the spin-offs, such as theaction RPGPersona 5 Strikers. It differs because the team comes from a development team created alongPersona 3 Reload,and artists from the spin-off were also contributing to the team. Assuming this is accurate, this could mean that while the team will have had at least some experience with the series, having only aided in spin-offs and remakes could offer a unique perspective on what the best move might be forPersona.
Based on this clarification, the next mainline game will likely retain most of what popularized it, including its social simulation elements and stylish combat. It might give these things a different context, namely how players balance social interactions with dungeon crawling.Persona 6could work as a refresh for the series since the past few entries have arguably felt arduous to get through at points thanks to being incredibly long titles where that division can feel somewhat jagged.
Not helping are dungeons that feel repetitive in the recentPersonagames as they mostly consist of procedural hallways that blend together. ThePalaces fromPersona 5help thanks to having themes centered around a specific person, but can also feel repetitive on repeat playthroughs that the game encourages. This point is only an issue for those who replay the games to experience all the changes found in New Game Plus, but considering a playthrough ofPersona 5could take over 100 hours, remixing dungeons in subtle ways for returning players could help replay value significantly.
Given that the creative staff behindPersona 6are likely new to developing mainline entries, the series could go through a reinvention much likePersona 3did. With the series being far more popular now than in 2006, the developers could also take the safe route in only improving upon what made previous entries work. The game is still a complete mystery, so there is not much of a way to gauge where it will go, but with former series creative director Katsura Hoshino working onMetaphor: ReFantaziowith Studio Zero, there is a chance thatPersona 6could buck trendsfound in its predecessors.
Persona 6is currently in development.
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