Fans of Atlus and the Persona series were treated to a trailer for what’s being deemed as “fantasy Persona” at the Game Awards 2023; a new title called Metaphor: ReFantazio (2024).
About Metaphor: ReFantazio
From the creators behind the latest 3 main titles in the long-running JRPG phenomenon Persona, comes a new title in a completely separate time period and universe. Taking on medieval high fantasy, Atlus created Metaphor: ReFantazio, a new, seemingly experimental JRPG with similar gameplay to that fans have come to adore.
Since the initial announcement back in June, prospective players have been eager to learn more about what’s to come in this unexpected turn of events. The Game Awards on December 7th finally answered many prayers, giving fans insight into the gameplay, story, characters, and even more stylistic aspects of this new title.
Story and Characters
The most crucial piece of information in the Metaphor: ReFantazio trailer is the main coverage on plot, and a hint into the deeper stories of the world. With such an obviously diverse universe full of elves, fairies, demons, mages, and anthropomorphic bat creatures, there’s a lot to unpack past just a simple overture-esc trailer.
The story follows a claim for the royal throne, hinted at by the trailer’s name, and the fight for inauguration within this mirror of the real world. The protagonist is lumped into this journey across the lands to lift a curse put on the prince, his childhood friend. Along the way he picks up companions including but not limited to Gallica (the guide and partner) Hulkenberg (the knight) and Strohl (the young man with a firm sense of justice).
Though there is little known about the core story beats at the moment, the characters and major plot points show high stakes, and an expansive land to be discovered through trials and tribulations. As hinted by the developers, there’s going to be many twists and turns that the player experiences, keeping them on their toes throughout the duration of the story.
Gameplay and Style
The gameplay style looks like a mix of multiple franchises of Atlus’ past, including the Shin Megami Tensei series, with the Press Turn mechanic. From the trailer, certain heart-to-heart moments shine through as well, showing a more vulnerable social link side the Persona series is known for. The most crucial system shown is the turn-based combat, with a style closer to Persona 5 (2017). The mix of melee and powers seem to mesh well with similar colors to that of the health bars in Persona 5. It can feel familiar, but still has its own spice of new mechanics spread across the user interface. Though we have yet to hear anything on them yet, the mechanics visually pull the viewer’s attention.
Perhaps one of the more interesting decisions is the scale of the world, being much larger and expansive than ever before. The sets are astonishing, wide, and vast, with a tone of imminent danger around every corner. It’s a nice spice of fresh visuals, with an aesthetic closer to that of Neir: Automata (2017). The open world segments with intermittent enemies reflect that of a 3D landscape that can then focus into the JRPG gameplay Atlus has mastered.
Most evidently, the style of the game is astonishingly creative and eye-catching, as Atlus is known for. The centered combat mechanics and menus make the game feel like a fairytale, with a more mythic take on the menus and splash art. The rough, splattered grunge aesthetic fits tremendously well with the dark fantasy story, and feels much more fitting to the time while having that Atlus spark. The dynamic user interface can seem both regal and rebellious when it needs to be; fitting for the story.
Release Date
Though there is not a concrete date for the Metaphor: ReFantazio release just yet, this latest trailer gave us a drop window of Fall 2024, being much sooner than many fans were expecting. With such a build in excitement behind the newest IP, there’s no doubt that the Persona developers are excited for the world to see what’s behind the royal gates.
Where to Find Metaphor: ReFantazio
Leave a Reply