Over the course of the Persona franchise, there have been tons of different takes on Persona users, including AI characters and even a plucky dog. While Atlus still generally prefers to cast human teenagers as Persona users, the Persona franchise tried some unique takes on super-powered protagonists in Persona 5 Strikers. For instance, Zenkichi Hasegawa is the first adult Persona user to join the franchise since the Persona 2 duology. Zenkichi's major role in Persona 5 Strikers could suggest Atlus will experiment with more age ranges for its protagonists in the upcoming Persona 6.
Zenkichi shouldn't be the only character model that Atlus borrows from Persona 5's hack-and-slash spin-off, though. Although they aren't playable characters, Atlus would be wise to look at Persona 5 Strikers' Monarchs when designing future Persona users. Although they serve as antagonists, these characters all go through arcs similar to Persona protagonists before awakening to their Personas. By using the Monarchs as models for playable characters in Persona 6 and beyond, Atlus could generate a range of characters whose complicated moral backgrounds lead to unique outlooks on life.
Examining Persona 5 Strikers' Monarchs
Although the usage of a Persona and discovering Persona looks different between games, there's something of a formula to Persona awakenings. In many Persona games, protagonists are forced to confront their own insecurities and fears, whether by literally meeting their own Shadow or by confronting some other supernatural threat that represents their inner demons. Once a Persona user pushes through their own doubt and sees themselves more clearly, they learn to call on the power of their heart to do battle in the world of Shadows.
In Persona 5 Strikers, the Monarchs of Jails go through a lot of similar steps, even though they never set foot in the supernatural world. When the Phantom Thieves first meet Monarchs, they're often at a point in their lives where adversity has made them bitter or vengeful toward the rest of the world. After the Phantom Thieves change their hearts, the Monarchs generally remember what they used to be passionate about before they started abusing EMMA. Once they remember who they were and return to their old passions, they sometimes even resolve to fight against the injustices that made them into villains.
This cycle of rising from internal strife in order to self-actualize is similar to what Persona users go through. If Persona 5 Strikers' Monarchs had closer ties with the Phantom Thieves and followed them into the Metaverse, it seems likely they'd awaken to Personas after finding those new depths of mental and emotional strength. The Persona 5 Strikers antagonists could inspire a new style of Persona user that gives the plot more depth and nuance.
A New Style of Persona User
The Persona franchise's character design sometimes suffers by falling victim to tropes and repetitive design. A lot of Persona 5's characters stem from recognizable anime tropes; for instance, Ryuji can easily be recognized as the hotheaded delinquent with a heart of gold, while Yusuke players the part of the aloof intellectual. Persona also tends to share these tropes between games. Longtime Persona fans might notice that Ryuji has a lot in common with Persona 4's Kanji, while Ann's beauty causes her to experience similar problems to Persona 4's Yukiko.
To a certain extent, these tropes serve Persona well because they result in comfortable, familiar character archetypes that fans can experience again and again. What's more, these specific archetypes are good at generating characters arcs that motivate Persona users. Persona characters get persecuted by demanding authority figures or harassed by their peers, driving them to think about their place in the world and their individual identities. Yet the repetitive structures can sometimes fall flat in a Persona game's overarching plot, since each character's smaller journey within the bigger story becomes a little too familiar and predictable.
That's why Persona 6 should consider taking notes from the Monarchs of Persona 5 Strikers. They're not protagonists, but the Jail rulers in Persona 5 Strikers have complicated, relatable pasts that make their missteps and villainous acts more understandable - all while giving them the right kind of difficult life experience to create a Persona user. Persona 6's team of playable characters ought to include a few decent people who veered far from the right path, but have pulled themselves back up from those mistakes and now intend to make the world a better place. Most Persona characters are wholesome teens who want to fix the world, but Persona 6 could introduce a bit of valuable nuance.
Moral Ambiguity in Persona 6
Persona 6's plot could be fascinating if it leans on at least a couple of reformed villains among its playable characters. Whether they're high schoolers who lashed out against their peers or adults who gave in to their own greed, characters who did terrible things before becoming Persona users would raise interesting questions about responsibility and redemption within Persona 6's story that most Persona teams don't. A little moral complication in Persona 6 would go a long way.
It's worth noting that Persona 5 did have a character in a similar vein: Goro Akechi. What ultimately sets Akechi apart from Monarchs is his refusal to atone for his crimes; by the time his true self is revealed, there's little room for Persona 5 to introduce moral ambiguity anyway. Hopefully Persona 6 will take Akechi in a different direction by weaving in different redeemed villains who look at the world through lenses tinted by their own dire missteps. Non-humans and adult Persona users would go a long way in diversifying Persona 6's playable character roster too, but totally new life perspectives based on Persona 5 Strikers' villains could be the best way to set Persona 6 character designs apart.
Persona 5 Strikers is available now for PC, PS4, and Switch.