Summary
Persona 5 Royalis a very ambitious game full of complex, interweaving mechanics that sometimes end up feeling more convoluted than helpful. Although some of the mechanics it introduces are a major improvement over past entries,Persona 5 Royalhas a few that end up underutilized or largely ignored due to how many features players need to keep track of as they make their way through the game. This mechanic overload is embodied by Ichiko Ohya’s Confidant, and her unpopularity among fans makes a strong case forPersona 6to streamline its gameplay.
Confidants inPersona 5 Royalreplace the Social Link mechanic from past games in the series, but improve upon it by giving players gameplay-enhancing effects for achieving certain ranks with each Confidant.Persona 5 RoyalConfidants like Kawakamihelp increase the player’s efficiency by doing menial tasks for them, and Hifumi allows backup party members to perform follow-up attacks. These bonuses are quite useful and fit naturally withinPersona 5 Royal’s gameplay, but some skills like Ohya’s have very little utility outside of tweaking an already unnecessary mechanic.
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Persona 6 Should Streamline How its Confidants Interact with Gameplay
One of the most unnecessary mechanics inPersona 5 Royalis the Security Levelsystem that increases the threat of Shadows in a Palace the more players are spotted by enemies. Most of the time, this mechanic doesn’t make much of a difference since it’s fairly easy to sneak up on foes, and the game is pretty generous when it comes how much time players have to get out of their line of sight. Even the penalties for increasing the Security Level are not that much of a threat since players can often run away from Shadows in the overworld, and reaching a 100% Security Level simply kicks the player out of the Palace for the day.
Most players shouldn’t have too much of a problem with this mechanic, but the game does offer a way to make it easier if they find themselves struggling with the Security Level. TheDevil Confidant Ohyaoffers players skills that decrease the rate at which the Security Level will increase as well as lowers it after reaching Safe Rooms in a Palace. Unfortunately, this skill isn’t all that useful compared to some of the game-changing skills offered by other Confidants, making taking the time to increase Ohya’s Confidant rank feel ultimately pointless when players only have a limited amount of in-game time to spend.
It’s likely some variation of the Confidant orSocial Link system will return inPersona 6, and including unique abilities associated with completing different Confidant ranks should return as well. However,Persona 6needs to trim the fat off these skills in order to balance their utility across all potential Confidants.Persona 5 Royalhas several Confidant skills that are clearly much better than others. It’s evident that the game’s mechanics might be too bloated and could benefit from a streamlined system that encourages players to improve their Confidant levels with all candidates rather than just the few with the best skills to offer.
Persona 6should strive to strike a balance betweenPersona 5 Royal’s mechanics, and those of past entries likePersona 3andPersona 4. Even today, many fans prefer the simplicity of the older entries due to how bloatedPersona 5 Royalcan feel at times. It will be interesting to see what approachPersona 3 Reloadtakes toPersona 5 Royalmechanics as it may be Atlus' chance to try this balancing act and could set the precedent for what fans can expect from future entries in the series likePersona 6.
Persona 5 Royalis available for PC, PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.
