Though the franchise’s success in the west may have begun withPersona 4 Golden, it wasn’t untilPersona 5thatPersonatruly achieved worldwide recognition.Joker’s journey in modern-day Tokyois as engaging as it is long, and it offered so many improvements over the games that came before. Its presentation was far more refined and memorable, and the jazzy soundtrack and audio flourishes quickly get stuck in players' minds after long play sessions. Nothing was revolutionized, but everything was tweaked, including the otherwise repetitive combat system.
Persona 5deploys a typical turn-based gameplay loop to give each unique Palace a level of challenge. As the leader of the Phantom Thieves, players can Hold Up enemies to shake them down for money or items, as well as attempt to recruit them, but the subtle differences betweenPersona 4’s battles and how its sequel handles confrontations aren’t enough to keep it from feeling outdated. It seems that Intelligent Systems got much of its inspiration forFire Emblem: Three Housesfrom Atlus' star IP, but it doesn’t compromise its stellar strategy RPG roots. It’s a startling reminder ofPersona 5’s biggest shortcoming, and shows that change is not only possible, but needed.
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The Problem with Persona 5’s Combat
Persona 5 Strikerswas the revision the franchise needed on a combat level, as it wielded an effective action-based system. There had to have been a thirst for change for it to even exist, and the release and acclaim ofFire Emblem: Three Housesshows that Atlus doesn’t have to uproot the essential philosophy ofPersonato implement something new.Persona 5feels fresh, exciting, and visually entirely new, but the turn-based battles that lack time sensitivity feel like a substantial break from the innovation. Turn-based combat needs mechanics that keep it compelling, asOctopath TravelerandFinal Fantasy’s ATB format shows.
Persona 5struggles with the same issue asDragon Quest 11in that there simply aren’t enough new changes to keep it from getting stale. Turn-based mechanics were a result of hardware restrictions and have since become commonplace because it’s such a reliable way to present conflict, andfranchises likeFinal FantasyandNi No Kuniare moving away from it in favor of something more fluid.Personashouldn’t necessarily change its approach entirely, but its core design can facilitate a wide berth of other combat systems.Fire Emblem: Three Housesis solid proof of this fact.
Fire Emblem: Three Houses Could Be Persona’s Guiding Light
Whereas previousFire Emblemgames are more linear and rigid in the way they tell their stories,Fire Emblem: Three Housesgrants players a level of customizability over their story as well as characters and abilities. Set atthe gorgeous Garreg Mach Monastery, it allows players to roam the school grounds, interacting with side characters, attending classes, and taking part in extracurricular activities to ensure that Byleth is in peak condition for battle. Its calendar is clearly inspired byPersona’s downtime design (though it will skip through the week to speed up play), and taking the time to invest in relationships outside the field of battle is critical to the game’s expertly-crafted progression.
Thedifferences betweenFire Emblem: Three HousesandPersona 5come at the way combat is presented. WhereasThree Houseshas one big battle take place at the end of each month,Persona 5presents a dungeon to be completed at the player’s leisure, within reason. The time each takes to complete is similar, though, butFire Emblem: Three Houseshas the more engaging battles due to the time pressure on the player that can’t be negotiated with. It’s evident thatPersona’s design can house plenty of combat systems, andFire Emblemis all the proof Atlus needs to show that it needs to change its approach moving forward.
Persona 5 Royalis available on PC, PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.
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