It seems 2020 will be a good year for Persona fans. After months of the game trending online, sometimes for no apparent reason, Atlus has confirmed that Persona 6 is in development. More announcements are expected this September as part of the franchise's anniversary, but fans have deduced quite a few things about the coming game.
Based on the design of the anniversary logo, many believe the primary color associated with Persona 6 will be white. The same happened ahead of the Persona 5 reveal, though of course this color was red. One more key detail fans should expect is the Arcana associated with the protagonist, and it's an important factor in all Persona protagonists. That is, their association with the Fool Arcana.
Persona Protagonist and the Fool Arcana
In short, the protagonists of the franchise are almost always associated with the Fool Arcana. Not only is this true of Persona 5's Joker, but of Persona 3, Persona 3 Portable, and Persona 4. It's worth highlighting how Persona is a game that goes heavy on themes, and the Fool Arcana is full of them. It covers everything from innocence and divine inspiration to chaos and freedom, and many of the Arcana's representatives fulfill this by being "Jack of All Trades" characters. From the protagonist's perspective, this represents the "blank slate" nature often found in Persona's main characters.
However, there is a bit of chaos sewn into this as well. For example, while Joker is meant to be a blank slate, the games often interject some personality details, by proxy or otherwise, into its characters. As such, players don't just fill in the character with their own personality, as there is a conflict of personality at play. It's an interesting element derived from the Fool Arcana, one common in all Persona protagonists, and the same will indubitably apply to the Persona 6 protagonist. While exact details are obviously still in the air, players should expect this "number 0"-style protagonist, in which all begins for both them and the player.
Persona 6 Protagonist: The Fool's Journey
In such a way, with each Persona character, they also take on the Fool's Journey aspect of the arcana. In Persona 3 and Persona 4, this journey is realized when their protagonists received a Persona of Judgement/Persona of the World, respectively, at the end of the game. It remains to be seen if and how this Fool's Journey manifests in Persona 6, but it almost certain will. The Fool's Journey is a common theme of the card that represents its position at 0 and at the beginning; simply put, it is the journey through life by which only the Fool's inexperience allows them. The Fool is the beginning, the point from which a person must go through hazards, heartache, and pain to realize their wholeness and ideals.
Of course, this theme is easily evident in any game of the franchise and may be one reason why Persona embraces a high school setting. To move on to higher education would mean that they are not beginning at number zero, and arguably, while elementary or middle school could represent that too, that is simply the Fool (in term of the theme), not the journey. High school is often where people begin to explore their identity, their own Fool's Journey, and it makes it ideal for the themes of Persona as well.
A proper Persona 6 reveal could come in September, and it'll be interesting to learn of the game's story, characters, and more. What fans should pay attention to, though, are the small themes that bind the game to its protagonists and arcana. Persona 6 could, in theory, go in any direction with its story even beyond its norm, but no matter which way it goes, it's the beginning of a journey.
Persona 6 is in development.