Since the international release of the latest mainline game in 2017, Persona has seen significant popularity in the west. What was once a humble spin-off series of Shin Megami Tensei is now one of the biggest threats to Final Fantasy and Tales' JRPG crown, and considering the huge presentational jump between 4 and 5, there are high expectations on Persona 6 and how it will improve upon what has come before. Developer Atlus is familiar with surpassing expectations, as Persona 5 Royal improved the base game in more ways than many expected, but the sixth game will release in a largely different climate to the one that P5 launched in almost six years ago.
Persona is a trailblazer, and has given way to plenty of games that have drawn significant inspiration from its design. From The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel to Tokyo Mirage Sessions, it's clear that Persona was and still is influential. However, this means Persona 6 has to reinvent itself once again if it wants to have as big an impact on the JRPG genre as its predecessors. The formula that it coined has been massively overused, as it's a familiar, tried-and-tested design that has been proven to work; Persona's innovation may be its undoing.
Gaming Has Taken Much From Persona
Attending classes, managing daily activities, and battling enemies in a turn-based encounter are essential pillars of Persona, and while it's a rigid series of events that has done the franchise well, it's been replicated by plenty of other companies -- and even Atlus' other projects. Fire Emblem: Three Houses, Trails of Cold Steel, Soul Hackers 2, Tokyo Mirage Sessions, and plenty of others have taken cues from Atlus' crowning achievement. Some have evolved it, using a different combat system or offering more side activities that do well to make the game feel somewhat fresh, but others are more overt in their use of pre-established ideas.
In turn, when Persona 6 launches, it runs the substantial risk of having a dampened impact because the landscape it releases in is saturated with games inspired by previous games in the series. Persona isn't as new in 2023 as it was in 2012 with the release of Persona 4 Golden, so it won't feel anywhere near as unique this time around. Persona 5 certainly made a lot of worthwhile gameplay and presentational changes, and it had the means to reach a larger audience on the PlayStation 4. Now, however, the glut of games that are similar to Persona are forcing the company to make an even more significant change.
Persona Has Needed a Change for a While
Save for a few flourishes, Persona has adopted a standard turn-based approach to combat for years. It's worked well up to this point, but with the influx of action RPGs and existing franchises moving to a more fluid approach to enemy encounters Persona feels somewhat outdated as a result. The games that are inspired by Persona suffer from the same problem, so should the Atlus-developed series veer off and alter the combat formula with Persona 6 it would instantly feel unique, distancing itself from the games that look up to Persona.
Imitation is the best form of flattery, but it can also have a negative impact when the pioneering series looks to release its newest product. A market full of imitators in the JRPG space makes Persona, no matter its quality, feel unspectacular because there are plenty of other games that do the same thing. Persona has increasingly felt like a dinosaur because of its commitment to turn-based combat, so the sixth game could be the best opportunity to make critical changes, not just for the betterment of the series itself but also for those who need Persona to be the trailblazer it has been for years.
Persona 6 is in development.