Even though Persona 5 was a massive breakthrough for Atlus and the Persona franchise, it managed to top itself with Persona 5 Royal. The enhanced version of the original game does more than polish the basics; it offers players vastly more liberty in both combat and social interaction, making the game all the more engaging. Perhaps more importantly, though, it built on Persona 5's original story in some much needed areas. The Palace in the third semester introduces some valuable nuance into the Phantom Thieves' philosophy and journey, and Persona 5 Royal also builds on Goro Akechi's character by introducing detailed new story threads involving him.
These two new story elements come together in one important place: the true ending of Persona 5 Royal. If players fulfill the conditions necessary to get the game's true ending, then Persona 5 Royal makes some staggering implications about Akechi's ultimate fate. Those implications are so vast that they really beg for a game of its own. Persona 5 may already have a sort of sequel in the form of Persona 5 Strikers, but Persona 5 Royal deserves a true sequel or a closely tied spinoff that's based on Royal's true ending. It'd be a perfect way to continue the stories of the Phantom Thieves and their most persistent adversary. Warning: Persona 5 Royal spoilers ahead!
What Persona 5 Royal's True Ending Suggests
In the original Persona 5 story, Akechi is an undoubtedly tragic figure. Although the game spends most of its time setting him up as a teenage celebrity and chipper detective, his callous side and hatred for society stemming from childhood neglect eventually come forth when he betrays the Phantom Thieves. In the end, though, he sacrifices himself to save the Phantom Thieves in Shido's Palace, freeing himself from Shido's control. He returns in Persona 5 Royal's third semester, but Maruki later suggests that he brought Akechi back to life, rather than Akechi secretly surviving his own sacrifice. At the end of the game, Akechi returns to the dead once players undo Maruki's reality.
That's what players were told would happen, at least. The post-credits cutscene for Persona 5 Royal shows someone dressed exactly like Akechi being escorted by men in suits. The implication is clear: in the true ending of Persona 5 Royal where players complete Akechi's new Confidant arc and reject Maruki's reality, Akechi finds some means to survive. After everything he has gone through, the troubled antihero of the Persona 5 games is still alive.
However, that true ending isn't enough. It implies that Akechi quietly goes into police custody, presumably to atone for his crimes by testifying against Shido, and the Phantom Thieves never hear from him again. It's a vast disconnect from Persona 5 and Persona 5 Royal's overarching stories, which make it clear that Akechi's life is inseparable from those of the Phantom Thieves, especially his rival in Joker. Akechi shouldn't disappear into a quiet life; his redemption should take place before players' eyes. Persona 5 Royal's true ending needs a game that follows up on it, reunites Akechi with the Phantom Thieves, and explores Akechi's new life as a free man with a dark past.
Why Persona 5 Royal Needs a Sequel
There's several important reasons that a sequel or a spinoff would be the only way to handle Persona 5 Royal's true ending. For one thing, the game's ending isn't a truly satisfying conclusion to Joker and Akechi's relationship. The pair never say goodbye to each other in Persona 5 Royal; Joker gets separated from the Phantom Thieves, and by the time he's reunited with them, Akechi has vanished. Their final conversation in Leblanc does more to set them up as true allies than it does to serve as a conclusion to their relationship. A Persona 5 Royal sequel could finally provide some closure by letting Joker and Akechi interact again as Akechi finds his new direction in life.
Persona 5 Royal's ending also doesn't go far enough to explore the question of whether or not Akechi can be redeemed. Among Persona 5 fans, this is a crucial question. Akechi murdered many people in service of Masayoshi Shido, but Akechi's service under the duress of the abusive and tyrannical Shido complicates matters somewhat. A Persona 5 Royal spinoff focused on Akechi could focus on this question in greater depth, exploring the weight of Akechi's choices and what he could possibly do to make amends for his crimes. Akechi may not have seemed remorseful at any point in Persona 5 Royal, but it would be interesting to see if he feels differently months or years later.
What's more, a Persona 5 Royal successor could explore more than Joker and Akechi's relationship. The true ending focuses on Akechi's journey alongside the player, but the Phantom Thieves all have interesting opinions about Akechi too. Haru and Futaba agreed to work with Akechi twice even though they lost their parents to him, while Yusuke says that he could've become ruthless like Akechi without the Phantom Thieves' support. Persona 5 Royal's true ending is all about a single relationship, but a sequel or spinoff would make room for new relationships between Akechi and the individual members of the Phantom Thieves.
The Next Step for Persona 5
Although Persona 5 and Persona 5 Royal technically share a sequel in Persona 5 Strikers, the game doesn't do much to follow up on established story threads. Aside from the return of the Phantom Thieves, Persona 5 Strikers has an original plot that leans vastly more on new characters than old ones. Akechi has no presence in the game, which means Strikers skirts around his fate from time to time rather than confirming or denying that he's alive. Since Strikers has so little to do with Akechi and the first Persona 5 games, there's still room for a Royal sequel that takes place after Strikers.
As much potential as a Persona 5 Royal sequel has, there's no way of knowing if there's any hope for such a game. Atlus has said that it's starting work on Persona 6, but from the sounds of things, the game is years away, meaning there could still be room for games using the Persona 5 characters. The first reveals of the Persona anniversary might have been modest, but there's still potential for bigger reveals in 2022, including a brand new game. Persona 5 Royal weaves a truly mysterious true ending, but it'd be more satisfying to actually delve into what happens in the Persona 5 world next, rather than never knowing for sure what became of Goro Akechi.
Persona 5 Royal is available now for PS4.