It has been nearly a decade sincePersona 5first released on PlayStation consoles and Atlus had yet to even tease at the idea of Persona 6 being on the horizon. Because of this, fans ofPersonahave been in a drought and are desperate for games that scratch the same itch as Atlus’ JRPG series.
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Luckily, there are plenty of games available on modern platforms which share many qualities with Persona. As Persona has two types of gameplay, social mechanics and battle mechanics, this list shall judge how similar they are to Persona based on these two sides of the gameplay.
10YIIK: A Post-Modern RPG
Embrace Your Inner Hipster
If you are looking for another turn-based RPG that stars a group of ordinary people in a modern-day setting, the 2019 titleYIIK: A Post-Modern RPGmay be right up your alley. With a unique battle system and an utterly unforgettable script, Persona fans may feel right at home with this indie delight.
Review: YIIK: A Post-Modern RPG
Despite a few wonky issues with combat at times, YIIK: A Post-Modern RPG more than succeeds in delivering a fascinating and unique tale.
Unfortunately, YIIK places low on this list due to the poor public reception the game received upon release. With a critical score of 63 on Metacritic and a user score of 4.9, trying out YIIK may feel like too much of a gamble for some Persona fans.
9Fire Emblem: Three Houses
An Academy RPG Where You Are the Teacher
While most games in theFire Emblemfranchise are as far from being like Persona as possible, 2019’s Fire Emblem: Three Houses took a lot of inspiration from Atlus’ franchise. Three Houses took the classic Fire Emblem gameplay formula and moved the setting to an academy where you could interact with your students, have tea with them, and give them lessons to learn new skills similar to the social links in the Persona games.
Review: Fire Emblem Warriors: Three Hopes
Fire Emblem Warriors: Three Hopes is an utter delight that can be overwhelming at first, but is worth picking up.
However, it must rank low on this list, as while the social half of the game may scratch that itch Persona players are craving, the combat gameplay of Fire Emblem is still a very different beast than Persona’s and may dissatisfy you if you are looking for a similar experience.
8Tokyo Xanadu eX+
Fast-Paced Combat and Social Interaction
Are you playing through Persona because you love to see a story about high school students fighting paranormal creatures in between hanging out with each other? Then Tokyo Xanadu might be right up your alley. The game features a relationship system similar to social links in the Persona franchise, albeit more limited, as you may only hang out with characters a set number of times each playthrough.
Review: Tokyo Xanadu
With plenty of post game stuff to do, so there is little likelihood of feeling short changed by jumping on the Tokyo Xanadu wagon now.
Unfortunately, fans of Persona’s turn-based combat will likely not enjoy their time with Tokyo Xanadu as the game’s battle system is an action RPG much more reminiscent of one of Falcom’s other franchises: Ys. Thus, it must fall low on this list.
7Eternights
Romance before the Apocalypse
Now that Persona has become a mainstream JRPG title, other games and developers have begun to be inspired by it. Perhaps no game wears this inspiration on its sleeve more than 2023’s Eternights. Just like Persona, this game stars a group of high school students who get sucked into a parallel world and must fight off monsters. The game features romance and social mechanics which Persona fans may enjoy. However, the combat isn’t a turn-based JRPGbut rather an a simplistic action game.
Unfortunately, like YIIK before it, Eternights falls relatively low on this list due to the poor critical and online reception it received upon release. With a 68-critical score on Metacritic and several social media memes about the game’s script, Persona fans may be taking a risk if they try out this title.
6Sakura Wars
A Taisho Tale of Romance
Do you play the Persona games solely for the social elements, but wish there were more, but also like the anime vibes present in Persona? Well, Sega has just the franchise for you as their classic Sakura Wars franchise greatly influenced the social elements featured in the modern Persona titles. 2020’s Sakura Wars is no different with five romanceable leads and many other characters to befriend as you experience this tale in 1940s Tokyo.
While the classic Sakura Wars titles for the Dreamcast featured tactical gameplay similar to Fire Emblem, the most recent entry, Sakura Wars (released in 2020) for PS4 features action-RPG gameplay that will make Persona fans feel right at home. While it is easy to recommend this title to Persona fans, it only places in the middle of this list as later entries are even closer to Persona.
Sakura Wars is a personal favorite game of mine and I’d highly recommend it.
5Yakuza: Like a Dragon
The Gray-Zone Between Light and Darkness
While one may think that theYakuzafranchise and Persona could never be compared, 2019’s Yakuza: Like a Dragon brings the two IPs closer than one would imagine.
Not only does Like a Dragon feature turn-based battles with elemental weaknesses, but the game also features a small social mechanic directly inspired byPersona’s Social Linksknown as Bar Links. During these sequences, the player will grow closer to the game’s various party members and will even be able to raise Social stats in another mechanic similar to Persona.
If you are looking for another turn-based JRPG set in modern-day Japan with similar mechanics to Persona, then Yakuza: Like a Dragon and its sequel Infinite Wealth may be right up your alley.
4The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel
Falcom’s Trademark JRPG series
If you are looking for more turn-based JRPGs where a majority of the game revolves around going to school, then Falcom’s Trails of Cold Steel franchise is a fantastic substitute for Persona.
The battle system in Trails of Cold Steel is fairly different from other turn-based JRPGs on this list as the battle system has a major focus on positioning your units for their next attack. With engaging and unique turn-based combat, an incredibly large cast of characters, and many games that are available on most modern platforms.
If you get engaged in the Trails of Cold Steel franchise, you’ll have more than enough content to hold you over for the decade-long wait between Persona releases. Just make sure you talk to every NPC for that juicy Trails lore and a plethora of sidequests.
3Tokyo Mirage Sessions #FE
A Beautiful Combination of Two Series
When Nintendo and Atlus announced that they would be developing a crossover between Shin Megami Tensei and Fire Emblem, few people could have guessed the final form the game would take. Instead of being a combination of the two franchises' settings, the game was instead about idols in Tokyo summoning the spirits of Fire Emblem characters.
Both the concept and gameplay of Tokyo Mirage Sessions resemble Atlus’ Persona franchise, more specifically Persona 5 with the way dungeons are structured.The turn-based gameplaywhich focuses on exploiting enemy weaknesses will also feel familiar to fans of Persona. While this game was critically marred by Fire Emblem fans upon release, it has gained popularity as a niche title among fanbases who enjoy games like Persona and belongs near the top of this list.
2Soul Hackers 2
A More Adult-Take on Persona
While Atlus will likely never make the “Persona for adults” game that people are asking for, they did make a game that was just like Persona and starred an adult cast: Soul Hackers 2. Not only does this game feature a battle system almost identical to Atlus’ other JRPG, but it also allows you to capture and make use of all the same creatures that were available in Persona 5. The game even features a unique variant of Atlus' mascot Jack Frost that looks like the protagonist Ringo.
Review: Soul Hackers 2
Soul Hackers 2 has all the trappings of a great Shin Megami Tensei game, including heart, but lacks the substance to make it special.
With a unique cast of party members that the player can bond with via ‘Soul Levels’, a clear implementation of Persona’s social link system, and all the JRPG flair of Atlus’ other popular franchise, fans of Persona should consider hopping onto the Soul Hackers 2 train while they can.
1Shin Megami Tensei V: Vengeance
The Potential JRPG of the Year
It is almost common knowledge at this point that the Persona franchise is a spin-off of Atlus’ other JRPG seriesShin Megami Tensei. However, Shin Megami Tensei V takes this comparison to new extremes by implementing various gameplay mechanics from the Persona games such as making all buffs last three turns instead of stacking them. The game also features large explorable locations that will reward curious players.
If you are a fan of the Persona franchise’s battle system but want something that will actually challenge you, then please consider picking up the newly released Shin Megami Tensei V: Vengeance, which promises to improve on the original Switch release in all possible ways.
Your Guide to Shin Megami Tensei V: Vengeance Pre-Orders and Editions
Dear Nahobino, here’s all the editions and pre-order details for Shin Megami Tensei V: Vengeance.
