Summary
Personaspin-offs keep going in new directions lately, which is an encouraging sign of creativity from Atlus in the leadup toPersona 6. Although it did get the same dancing game spin-off asPersona 4andPersona 3,Persona 5has also dipped into the musou genre, and soon it’ll try strategy gaming inPersona 5 Tactica.Now rumor has it that thePersonaseries will add a party game as well. Atlus hasn’t confirmed anything about a party game, but it would fit in with the pattern of genre experiments, and it’d be a sensible take on thePersonafranchise in general.
Persona 6hasn’t been officially revealed, and the current state of franchise projects suggests it won’t be revealed anytime soon, but it’s supposedly in development. In the meantime, thePersona 5era of games is going strong, propping up a variety ofPersonarevivals such as thePersona 3 PortableandPersona4 Goldenports as well as thePersona 3remake. Atlus has an extensive history of releasing multiple spin-offs to keep fans occupied betweenPersonagenerations, and this era doesn’t seem to be any different. APersonaparty game sounds like the perfect way to wrap up this generation before P6.
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How a Persona Party Game Could Work
The social aspect of party games is the core of why the genre is a surprisingly good fit forPersona.Games likeMario Partyare designed to be fun, approachable experiences with an easy learning curve that bring people together for a good time. That reflects a key pillar ofPersona; they may be JRPGs, but they’re also social sims where players must strengthen their friendships by working, studying, and hanging out.Personais all about relationships and bonding time, which is precisely what party games are great at fostering.
One last spin-off before the next generation would also make sense if it’s true thatPersona 6is releasing in 2025. 2023 may be in its last few months, but depending on when in 2025 Atlus might be aiming for, it could take another two full years beforePersona 6releases. In that case, one morePersonaspin-off released in late 2024 or early 2025 would be a perfect buffer. Releasing a party game in that window could even expand the fanbase a little beforePersona 6. Since party games are usually so easy to pick up and play, it could be the perfect way to introduce potential new fans to its world, themes, and characters, getting them interested in the mainline games.
IfPersonadoes have a party game on the way, then the franchise has more than enough material to inspire it. APersonaparty game would have around two dozen playable characters if it only included party members from the last three generations; it could still add important NPCs like Igor, Marie, or Lavenza on top of that. Minigames could include everything from small combat trials to Social Link/Confidant-inspired dialogue trees to challenges based onPersona’s many part-time jobs. If it has boards likeMario Party, they could be based on bothPersona’s rich overworld maps and its various themed dungeons.
Ultimately it remains to be seen if thePersonaparty game is real, and even if it is, fans probably won’t hear about it until well into 2024. Right now,Persona 3 ReloadandPersona 5 Tacticademand the majority of the developer’s attention; announcing another spin-off in the next few months might result in cluttered marketing. However, if early 2024 rolls around and Atlus reveals aPersonaparty game in the wake ofPersona 3 Reload’s release, it’d be a welcome addition to the franchise. Hopefully there really is yet another genre experiment around the corner.
Persona 6is in development.
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