Although Confidants - previously referred to as Social Links - were only added to the Persona series with Persona 3, they have come to be seen by fans as an iconic element of franchise. Extensive social elements are one of the primary factors that separate Persona from the greater Shin Megami Tensei series, from which it originally spun off. Confidants will likely return in Persona 6, but they may see significant reworking. Persona 6 Confidants could draw inspiration from the Soul Matrix, a new social system introduced in fellow Atlus title Soul Hackers 2.
Described as a "spiritual sequel" to the 1997 Atlus game Devil Summoner: Soul Hackers, Soul Hackers 2 tells the story of Ringo and Figue, two beings sent from cyberspace to protect key figures on Earth during a war between different factions of Devil Summoners. It was described by fans and critics alike as feeling like a "hybrid" of a Persona game and a Shin Megami Tensei game. Ringo, the main playable protagonist, can bond with her party members using the Soul Matrix system, which paired the social element of Confidants with a series of dungeons drawing inspiration from Shin Megami Tensei. Following generally positive reviews for Soul Hackers 2, it might be wise for Atlus to turn to the Soul Matrix when designing Confidants for Persona 6.
Persona 6 Confidants Should Require Less Strict Scheduling
The protagonists of Persona 3, 4, and 5 can form Social Links or Confidants with around 20 other characters, as Confidants are inspired by the 22 Major Arcana of the tarot deck. Because there are so many Confidants available to choose from, and the player has only a single school year in which to secure these bonds, strict scheduling is required to maximize all or even most Confidants. Many players of the later Persona games find themselves turning to guides in order to determine how to optimally spend their limited free time. As each Confidant provides a unique bonus, it can be quite stressful attempting to choose between them.
Soul Hackers 2 simplifies the Confidant system by including Soul Matrix connections only for Ringo's three party members: Arrow, Milady, and Saizo. This makes it much easier to maximize each character's Soul Level and receive the bonuses this conveys during a single play-through. Additionally, Soul Matrix dungeons and Soul Level-raising hangout events gradually unlock as players progress through the game, removing the necessity to carefully schedule individual in-game days. While Persona 6 will likely continue to have many Confidants, as the tarot theme is unlikely to go away, it could benefit from making Confidants easier to access and level up.
Soul Matrix-Like Dungeons Could Be a Fun Addition to Confidants
In Persona 3 and Persona 4, Social Links primarily consisted of spending free time hanging out with the relevant characters and witnessing short events in their lives. A few Social Links, such as the residents of the mysterious Velvet Room, were quest-based, but these were in the minority. Persona 5 introduced the side dungeon Mementos and required protagonist Joker to sometimes defeat certain targets in Mementos in order to progress his Confidants. These battles were interesting, as they represented problems and stresses the Confidant was dealing with, allowing Joker to better understand the struggles of his friends.
The Soul Matrix system in Soul Hackers 2 replaces Mementos with a series of three mini-dungeons corresponding to each of the three party members. In order to bond with her party members and raise their Soul Level, Ringo must both spend time with them in the "real world" and make progress through their respective dungeons. In the Soul Matrix dungeons, she can view scenes relating to the characters' pasts and defeat Floor Guardians representing the characters' struggles. Persona 6 could benefit by replacing Mementos with Confidant-inspired dungeons, as the former received some criticism for its high number of floors and the sheer amount of time required to complete it.
Confidants Inspired By The Soul Matrix Could Put Greater Focus on Party Members
In the original version of Persona 3, out of all the playable characters, the protagonist could only form Social Links with the female members of his party. Later games in the series, including the remake Persona 3 Portable, added Social Links and Confidants for every party member, giving the players a chance to get to know all the characters outside of battle. Despite each party member having a Social Link or Confidant, some still received significantly less focus than others. Notable examples included late-joining party members like Persona 4's Naoto or characters added during updated re-releases like Yoshizawa from Persona 5 Royal.
Soul Hackers 2's Soul Matrix gives relatively equal focus to Arrow, Milady, and Saizo, which can be beneficial, as Arrow along with Ringo herself tends to receive the most focus within the game's story. In addition, some Hangout scenes to increase Soul Level include all members of the party interacting with one another, as opposed to Confidant hangout scenes which are typically one-on-one interactions. Persona 6 could establish a balance between returning Persona elements and new twists taken from Soul Hackers 2. For example, it could have the traditional tarot-based Confidants with only party member Confidants having related mini-dungeons. It could also include more group hangout scenes that can raise multiple party members' Confidants at once.
Other Elements of Confidants Should Stick Around in Persona 6
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While the Confidant system in Persona 6 should definitely draw some inspiration from Soul Hackers 2, it should not transition fully from Confidant to Soul Matrix. The association between tarot Major Arcana and Persona 6's Confidants should remain, as this is an iconic thematic element used throughout the Persona series. Confidants should also continue to provide a variety of bonuses, such as increasing money earned in battle, unlocking a greater variety of weapons for sale, or making it easier to map out the interior of dungeons. Having many Confidants that do not require strict scheduling, include both social and dungeon-crawling elements, and benefit the protagonist would likely be a winning formula for Persona 6.
Although Atlus has confirmed that Persona 6 is in development, nothing regarding the game has yet been revealed. While it is still possible that a Persona 6 announcement may be coming sometime in 2022, Atlus has stated that the upcoming Persona Super Live concert in October will not include any information related to Persona 6. In the meantime, fans will likely continue to speculate about which new and returning elements might feature in the game, as well as what inspiration Persona 6 might draw from recent titles such as Shin Megami Tensei 5 or Soul Hackers 2.
Persona 6 is in development.