Persona 6rumors seem to be picking up steam lately. While the game likely won’t release anytime soon, especially since Atlus is fresh off the critically acclaimed launch ofGame of the Year candidateMetaphor: ReFantazio, there’s hope for now that it’ll rear its head at The Game Awards 2024. Such an appearance could confirm or deny any number of popular leaks and rumors, such as claims that the game features dual protagonists. In particular, any trailer forPersona 6is bound to reveal its setting; supposedly, the game takes place in an art school. This rumor should be taken with a grain of salt, of course, but if its true, it could say a lot about the game’s party.
Personahas a long history of featuring artistic characters, from the teen idol Rise Kujikawa to the eccentric painter Yusuke Kitagawa, but making every character an aspiring artist would certainly be a new angle. It could definitely be fertile ground forPersonacharacters; themes of imagination, creativity, and aspiration fit perfectly with the franchise’s Jungian explorations of identity and self-image. It could also define the Personas that party members inPersona 6use. Much in the same way thatPersona 5focused on rebels and tricksters from international culture,Persona 6could focus on characters from art, rather than mythological figures.
Some rumors suggest that Persona 6 will release in summer 2025, but nothing is confirmed yet.
Persona 6 Might Continue The Phantom Thieves' Break From Mythological Personas
From its earliest days, thePersonagames have channeled gods, goddesses, and mythological heroes. The first game’s party awakened to Personas from a wide variety of sources, whilethePersona 2duologyhoned in on Greek myth a little more.Persona 3followed suit, further exploring Greek characters, andPersona 4turned to figures from Japanese Buddhist and Shinto mythology. Then,Persona 5made a big change. While party members could unlock mythological Personas, their core forms were drawn from literature, folklore, and art. Everything fromThe Three Musketeersto Lovecraftian lore finds a place in the Phantom Thieves' arsenal.
An Art School in Persona 6 Would Align With Persona 5’s Party Themes
Atlus picked these Personas to match the game’s picaresque themes of noble thieves, but the focus on cultural sources other than mythology matters too. Based on the game’s theme, it could stand to reason to maintain that broader search for Persona inspiration – andan art school setting inPersona 6could embody all the right themes. No matter what the broader narrative is, an art school setting would inherently make the game all the more appropriate for literary and folkloric Personas. It’s only a matter of choosing the right ones for the rest of the story.
Artistic Themes Can Take Persona 6’s Party in Many Directions
There’s a few ways Atlus could distribute artistic Personas, assuming most if not all of the characters go to the same school. On one hand, they might each study a different art; one party member could have a Persona that’s a character from theater, another has one from music, one from sculpture, and so on. On the other hand, all ofPersona 6’s party membersmight be painters who draw Personas from many different areas of their art, whether the Personas themselves are actual artists or characters from famous paintings. Regardless of the particulars, an art school setting would give Atlus all the more reason to dive into contemporary culture for innovative new Persona picks.
Persona 6 Can Continue What Persona 5 Started
Overall, moving further into literary Personas makes plenty of sense, given how thoroughly thePersonaseries has explored mythology. It’s bound to feature some figures from myths, at the very least for the Wild Card protagonist to fuse in the Velvet Room, but overall,Persona 6will hopefully expand its horizons in this department.The Phantom Thieves' roguish Personasmade the most of Joker and his friends' roles as outcasts at Shujin Academy and in Tokyo at large. Much in the same way, an art school setting can encouragePersona 6to find Personas that connect their identities at school to the core story and any number of possible themes.
Persona 5 Royal
WHERE TO PLAY
Don the mask and join the Phantom Thieves of Hearts as they stage grand heists, infiltrate the minds of the corrupt, and make them change their ways! Prepare for the award-winning RPG experience in this definitive edition of Persona 5 Royal, featuring a treasure trove of downloadable content included!Forced to transfer to a high school in Tokyo, the protagonist has a strange dream. “You truly are a prisoner of fate. In the near future, ruin awaits you.” With the goal of “rehabilitation” looming overhead, he must save others from distorted desires by donning the mask of a Phantom Thief.Explore Tokyo, unlock Personas, customize your own personal Thieves Den, experience alternate endings, and more. Become the ultimate Phantom Thief and defy conventions, discover the power within, and fight for justice in the definitive version of Persona 5 Royal.
