Hands on: Persona 5 Royal Preview

Persona 5 is a positively massive game, with an average playthrough clocking in at roughly 80 hours – and that’s without diving into ample helpings of side content. Atlus’ colossal JRPG is a stylish behemoth, drawing players in with its ambitious story and charming cast of characters. But for the series faithful, will an enhanced re-release be enough to tempt them for another ride?

Royal is an enhanced version of the modern classic, bringing with it plentiful amounts of new content, refined mechanics and a built-in audience of fans ready and waiting to devour everything it has to offer. This isn’t the first time this franchise has made such a move, following in the footsteps of Persona 3 FES and Persona 4 Golden, both being the definitive way to play each one.

After spending a few hours with Persona 5 Royal, it has all the ingredients to build upon its progenitor in some fantastic ways. Many improvements are minimal, but they combine to form a cohesive whole so solid that even The Phantom Thieves would have trouble cracking it. I regret not spending enough time with the original, so now is the perfect opportunity to correct a glaring sin in my gaming portfolio. 

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If you’re unfamiliar with Persona 5, let me break things down. You play as Joker, a high-school student who transferred to a new school after being arrested for defending himself against a drunken idiot. Under probation and shunned by adults around him, he’s sucked into a mysterious group known as The Phantom Thieves. 

They’re capable of travelling to a mysterious dimension known as Mementos to steal the hearts of evildoers, transforming their emotions in reality to stop villains ranging from a perverted gym teacher to a corrupted art dealer. It’s a wonderfully compelling concept that leads to some absurd dungeon designs, showcasing Atlus’ industry leading talent for all things bizarre. Everything in Persona 5 Royal oozes style, from its weapons to the user interface. 

Persona 5 Royal takes us to a realistic rendition of modern day Tokyo, albeit dusted with an excessive helping of anime stylings. Popular districts such as Shibuya and Harajuku are recreated with the utmost accuracy, although they don’t quite match the virtual tourism presented by Yakuza. That being said, exploring each new area is a delight, and you’ll come to memorise every character, storefront and landmark after a handful of hours. This isn’t just the hero’s home, it’s yours. 

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You’ll balance your time in Persona 5 Royal between school, your social life and The Phantom Thieves, all of which intertwine in some fascinating ways throughout the story. Relationships with fellow characters grow thanks to social links, a mechanic which rewards you for spending time with relatives, schoolmates and other folks to learn what makes them tick or pull them out of a jam. Each piece feels genuinely meaningful, building towards emotional crescendos you’ll experience over and over again. 

Royal will see the introduction of a few new characters, the headliner being Kasumi Yoshizawa. At first glance she’s a gifted young gymnast, but she’s clearly hiding something more sinister behind the curtain. I only saw a handful of scenes with her, but it hints at a fascinating story I’m keen to uncover. She’ll also join your party, changing the dynamics of battle with acrobatic moves and new tools to tear shadows apart. It’s unfortunate that Atlus hasn’t introduced a gender-swapped protagonist for Royal, but this is the next best thing. 

Exploring dungeons is rooted in traditional JRPG conventions, although the personality of Persona 5 Royal shines through and bathes in creativity. A grappling hook has been added which removes the vanilla releases’ mundanity of trudging through corridors fighting cookie-cutter enemies. It’s far easier to reach your objective, although streamlined exploration also incentivises you to search out secrets like never before.

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Stealth is incorporated into combat. Getting the drop and unmasking foes before they notice you gives Joker and company the upper hand to dish out a plethora moves before monsters have a chance to react. Attacking with a foe’s weakness and following it up can result in a devastating ‘All Out Attack’ which, more often than not, leaves adversaries in the dust. It all feels great, and Royal sands down a few rough edges to boot.

I admire how Persona 5 Royal never leaves behind the turn-based roots that helped define this genre, yet does everything in its power to modernise them. A slow, archaic system now feels swiftly dynamic, gelling with myriad other systems to create something quite magical. I still feel the pacing is a little inconsistent at times, as you’re forced to jump between dialogue, high school lessons and dungeons in a way that doesn’t always work.

However, once Atlus hits a stride, it swings for the fences and never looks back. Even though I’ve spent a few hours with Persona 5 Royal, it’s evident the surface has barely been scratched. Relationships you don’t prioritise can be focused upon in repeat playthroughs, through either a platonic or romantic lens. There’s additional dungeons, ample sidequests and a whole world to uncover and you only have a certain amount of time in each day to see them. Like a real teenager, life moves a million miles a minute.

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Persona 5 will introduce The Thieves’ Den, a new area which is accessed directly from the main menu. It’s basically a hangout spot for Joker and his companions outside of the campaign, filled with endless amenities for players to experiment with. You can view previously unlocked cutscenes and use a special currency to purchase trailers, clips and other pieces of memorabilia that are well worth diving into. There’s even a bespoke card game to play alongside a music player and other goodies that provide a solid reason for double-dipping.

First Impressions

If you loved Persona 5, Royal expands upon Atlus’ monolithic JRPG in all the right ways, building on its foundations with warranted refinements that simply make it feel better in every conceivable way. If you’re a first-timer, I can’t recommend it enough for fans of the genre, with this stylishly beautiful adventure offering so much across its massive campaign that it’s almost absurd. It’s a big commitment, but one you won’t regret undertaking.

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