Speculation is running rampant about Persona 6's potential release as news of the upcoming RPG leaked online.
Not yet officially announced, Persona 6 feels like an inevitability. Atlus' demon-slaying life-sim series has stood more than eight years without a mainline numbered entry.
Persona 5 debuted back in 2016 (followed by the expanded Royal edition in 2020) and brought the highly successful RPG franchise to a new stratosphere. The title sold more than five times what Persona 4 did during its first week and has totaled over 10 million units across the Persona 5 series (including Royal, Dancing in Starlight, Strikers, and Tactica) - per Gematsu.
When Will Persona 6 Be Released?
Even though Persona 6 has yet to be officially unveiled, its release is still expected to be imminent.
According to a post on ResetEra from leaker Head on the Block, the game is "95% complete" and is setting up for a 2025 release:
"['Persona 6'] is a fully featured semi-open world game, it's 95% complete and is releasing next year with DLC. The bigger DLC will have story and characters yes but the full game is a full game. I just don't know why people are hampering on 'Persona' having DLC and don't question almost every other major single player game that gets bonus DLC. It's weird to me, this isn't a new thing."
While this is just one post from a forum user, Head on the Block's track record is pretty good. The online personality has had a few misses, but they were the first person to leak recent Persona tiles being announced at the Xbox Showcase, so they seem to have some credibility.
A 2025 release for the title could make sense, as the gap between Persona 4 and 5 was eight years. So, seeing as Persona 5 was released in 2016, a 2025 release would mark a similar gap between mainline titles.
However, there is one concerning thing to note about a potential Persona 6 release date. Persona series director Katsura Hashino, character designer Shigenori Soejima, and composer Shoji Meguro are all working on the incoming Atlus RPG titled Metaphor: ReFantazio.
Metaphor: ReFantazio is set to hit consoles sometime in late 2024, and while there is a chance these Persona figureheads have been splitting time between Persona 6 and Atlus's new IP, it could also mean Persona 6 is even further out than one may have expected.
Ultimately, 2024 will be telling for the hotly-anticipated next Persona title, as it feels like an announcement has been a long time coming. So, when it does get officially announced, will it come with a 2025 release window? Or will fans be left to speculate like they have been since the release of Persona 5?
Is Persona 6 PlayStation Exclusive?
For much of Persona's life as a franchise, the series has been synonymous with PlayStation.
While spin-offs like the Persona Q series have made their way to other consoles, the mainline RPGs have been locked to Sony's family of gaming consoles.
However, in recent years, that has all changed. Xbox, specifically, has gotten quite close with Atlus, bringing several previous Persona titles to Xbox Game Pass, and even launching the recently released Persona 3 Reload on the service from day one.
That means the possibility of Persona 6 coming to other platforms (along with PlayStation) seems higher than ever.
According to Persona leaker Midori, the next mainline title in the renowned RPG series is being developed for "multiple platforms," meaning the game could come to Xbox, PlayStation, and Nintendo's next-generation console (assumed to be named the Switch 2).
This came as the video game insider Nate the Hate teased - given the new relationship between Xbox and Atlus - it would be a "safe assumption" that "Persona 6 will be day-and-date Xbox and PlayStation" (via Eurogamer):
"I'm not 100% sure if it's, like, day-and-date with the PlayStation version, but considering the way the Persona games have been day-and-date with the multiplatform releases at this point, it may be a safe assumption to make that 'Persona 6' will be day-and-date Xbox and PlayStation."
He added that, if Microsoft and Xbox were to be able to secure the title as a part of their Xbox Game Pass subscription service, it would be a "really big deal," potentially shaking up what platform fans associate with the beloved franchise.
Persona 6 Story Leaks
No official Persona 6 story details have made their way out to the public, but there have been some small nuggets for fans to latch onto.
The biggest narrative leaks came from insider Head on the Block on ResetEra (via ComicBook).
According to the credible forum user, the upcoming Persona game will feature "two main characters," something that would be a change for the franchise.
The anonymous leaker said they had heard the two characters' names would start with K and S and would represent a "black and white" theme central to the game:
"Theme is black and white, two sides and you can do things day or night. The two main characters names start with K and S, there is a foreign exchange student and at least one DLC let's you 'fly.'"
While little else may be known about the game's story (with even those 'leaks' needing to be taken with a grain of salt), one can assume a few other things about Persona 6.
Like the rest of the series before it, the game will likely center on a group of high school students who are forced into some great demon-slaying conflict, as they are thrust into the minds of people from their real lives.
Whatever conflict is at the center of Persona 6, it will see players balancing the day-to-day lives of the game's core cast by building relationships, taking on part-time jobs, and doing various everyday activities to better themselves to explore the monster-filled dungeons that hide within other characters' psyches.
Persona 6 currently has no public release window.
