Persona 5 Royal: The definitive JRPG that managed to improve beyond the limit

The Persona saga has undoubtedly become one of the greatest exponents of the RPG videogames coming from Japan (abbreviated as JRPG) since each of its games has had an exceptional quality and has generated a great impact since they have always raised quite interesting social critics. The Persona saga emerged as a spin-off from the Shin Megami Tensei saga created by ATLUS, but the great personality and quality of Persona ended up overshadowing the main saga from which they came.

Persona 5 was a sublime game for PlayStation 3 and PlayStation 4 that even managed to be nominated as “The Game of the Year” when its original 2016 version was released. With this JRPG, ATLUS had delivered an intricate narrative, great characters, distinctive graphic design, fantastic soundtrack and above all, a unique style.

However, despite the fact that Persona 5 has become one of the best JRPGs in recent times, ATLUS decided to develop a reissue of this JRPG, which is common in the Persona saga, and after having recently been released for the PS4, it can be said that the result obtained practically improved the unbeatable.

Persona 5 Royal is the new reissue of the successful fifth instalment of Persona, which has been characterized by not only adding small details or adjusting some mechanics (as was the case with previous games in the saga) but has become a complete and improved expansion of the original Persona 5.

The Phantom Thieves return in perfect shape

Persona 5 Royal develops in a world with a realistic society where injustices abound, and those who have some kind of influence over others, whether economic, social or occupational, use it to take advantage of the weak. People with fewer resources are exposed to the twisted desires of these people. In addition, the police often do not help, since the same influential people are the ones who benefit the officers of the “law”. However, in this terrible situation, there is still hope, as the oppressed have on their side the Phantom Thieves, white-collar thieves who steal the hearts of evil people to redeem their sins by confessing their crimes and taking justice into their own hands.

In Persona 5 Royal we will become a student who, along with other high school classmates, forms the Phantom Thieves, a gang that breaks into the Palace to steal the Treasure. The palaces are dungeons that materialize the distorted desires of evil people, while the treasure is the very source of those desires, so by stealing it the person changes his personality to a more ethical one. 

In the Palace, they will fight against the Shadows, which are representations of bad human thoughts. During the battles, the Phantom Thieves will have the so-called Persona, creatures formed by the true being of the people, and one of the main elements of this videogame saga.

As with all Persona RPGs, players will have to balance student life (represented as a social simulator) with their work in the Phantom Thieves, which makes up the game’s RPG moments.

The plot and narrative of Persona 5 has been renewed and expanded to the maximum

One of the most outstanding features of the Persona saga is its plot, and Persona 5 Royal is no exception, as it has a long, deep and philosophical history. It deals with themes as imperishable as the acceptance of one’s own being or rebellion against injustice in a corrupt world.

In this section, despite the fact that Persona 5 Royal has practically the same story as the original version, however, this new version rewrites the entire plot and the evolution of the characters, to the point where it feels like a new videogame.

This re-edition not only introduced two key characters, Kasumi Yoshizawa and Takuto Maruki, but also deepened the relationships of the characters that had already been presented in the original Persona 5, and also managed to more clearly represent the problems of each Palace. This Royal edition also offers the player more opportunities to improve their relationship with their peers, as there will be more activities and will also allow them to do this in the time they want.

Expanded palaces and a more strategic combat system

Persona 5 Royal also offers new features in combat that make it more strategic, such as the introduction of enemies that not only affect the player but also their surrounding area. In addition, firearms become more important, as their ammunition can be reloaded after each combat, allowing you to use them with greater confidence.

In the Palace section, Persona 5 Royal presents a complete transformation to what was enjoyed in the original version, since new areas were added where “Seeds” can be collected, which develop the dubious morals of people, so they must be obtained in each Palace. Similarly, the battles against the bosses have also been greatly improved, because although they maintain their level of difficulty, their interactions have been increased, which increases their narrative development. Although the narrative within the combats is increased, this does not become annoying, as the enemies’ backgrounds also help a lot during the combats.

A unique feature offered by the original Persona 5 was the ability to interact or even negotiate with enemies when exercising their weakness. However, Persona 5 Royal extends this feature and allows enemies to also negotiate with our partners when their weakness is affected or even take them hostage, which increases the risk within the game.

This Royal edition also included a new attack called Showtime, which performs special attacks during the attack session, but this is activated at a random time.

Total improvement in the technical sections

Persona 5 Royal greatly improved the graphics of this game, as it takes advantage of the power of the PlayStation 4 much better, so you can notice a better resolution, improvements in the 3D modelling, increased lighting effects, and considerable improvements in the design of the scenarios. The 2D illustrations of the characters during the dialogues were also greatly improved, as they now present more reactions corresponding to the conversation, giving more life to the dialogues.

New songs were included in the sound section, which increases the variety, but these do not reach the level of the original BGMs.

Persona 5 Royal also expands the dialogue and improves the voice performance of the characters.

In addition, this JRPG also has constant updates that further improve its gameplay, which is quite a demonstration of ATLUS’ dedication to offering its players the best and most complete experience possible (an aspect that other videogame developers should take as an example).

Having said all this, Persona 5 Royal clearly marks the maximum limit of quality that a Persona videogame can reach, and manages to perfectly implement new elements that complement and expand the excellent gameplay already possessed by the original Persona 5, which is demonstrated in the approximately 100 hours it takes to complete this game. For these reasons, it can be said that Persona 5 Royal has easily become one of the best videogames in the entire PlayStation 4 catalogue.