Now that we’ve entered the last few days of 2023, the yr’s bumper crop of latest sport releases has slowed to a trickle. With lengthy, lazy days looming forward, it’s a beautiful time to cuddle up with one of many largest, beefiest video games in your backlog. And in case you’re in search of beef, RPGs are the best way to go. On December 15, Atlus introduced that Persona 5 crossed a serious gross sales landmark. The fashionable fantasy RPG and its spinoffs have now bought more than 10 million copies worldwide. These days, the Persona sequence looks like a certain wager. However only a few years in the past, itwas a distinct segment fascination for just a few devoted weebs. For those who haven’t checked it out already, now’s your likelihood.
Again in 2017, when Persona 5 first debuted outdoors Japan, critics and audiences had largely soured on turn-based role-playing video games, waving them off as dated and passé. The earlier yr, Remaining Fantasy XV ditched menu-driven gameplay for rapid-fire motion fight that was flashier and sooner than the venerable Sq. Enix sequence had ever been. It appeared like turn-based RPGs had been a factor of the previous—till Persona 5 set the world on hearth.
Purchase Persona 5: Amazon
The sport takes place in modern-day Tokyo, and follows a bunch of youngster vigilantes often known as the Phantom Thieves. By day, they’re simply conspicuously engaging highschool college students. By evening, they summon demonic Pokémon often known as Personas to battle crime and corruption in supernatural dungeons often known as Palaces. P5’s trendy, anime-inflected presentation stood out within the late PlayStation 4 period, which skewed closely towards realism. Progressive combo mechanics stored enemy encounters feeling snappy and distinctive. The sport drew sky-high overview scores and presently sits at an enviable 93 on Metacritic. Not too dangerous for a style previous its prime, proper?
An expanded and enhanced version, Persona 5 Royal, was launched worldwide in March 2020. Royal got here to Nintendo Swap, PlayStation 5, PC, and Xbox consoles in October 2022. And like every good online game phenomenon, Persona 5 spawned a heap of crossovers and spinoffs. Along with a devoted anime sequence, the forged appeared in a rhythm sport (2018’s Persona 5: Dancing in Starlight), a Swap-exclusive motion RPG (2021’s Persona 5 Strikers), and this yr’s technique RPG, Persona 5 Tactica. Oh, and protagonist Joker additionally joined the roster of Tremendous Smash Bros. Final.
Persona 5 isn’t with out flaws. Okumura’s palace, which you’ll encounter late within the sport, is an absolute chore. And the sport’s portrayal of same-sex relationships is about as delicate as a sack of hammers. Oh, and it simply takes greater than 100 hours to beat. For those who can forgive these shortcomings, it’s a wonderful option to wile away the ultimate hours of 2023—whether or not you play the vanilla model or Royal.
Persona 5 Royal is obtainable on PC, PlayStation, Xbox, and Swap, and is usually on sale for $30 or much less. (Used copies of vanilla P5 on PlayStation 4 are even cheaper!)