The Compelling Reason Persona 5 Royal's Confidant Urges a Streamlined Persona 6

Highlights

Persona 5 Royal has complex gameplay with mechanics that can feel convoluted and underutilized.

The Confidant system in Persona 5 Royal provides beneficial bonuses, however, certain skills such as Ohya's lack practicality and are deemed unnecessary.

For Persona 6, it is crucial to streamline gameplay, ensure skill balancing among all Confidants, and strike a balance between the complexity of Persona 5 Royal and the straightforwardness of previous installments.

Persona 5 Royal is an ambitious game with intricate mechanics that can sometimes become confusing rather than helpful. While there are improvements in certain mechanics compared to previous entries, there are some that end up being underutilized or ignored due to the overwhelming number of features players need to keep track of. One example of this overload is Ichiko Ohya's Confidant, which is unpopular among fans and highlights the need for Persona 6 to streamline its gameplay.

Confidants in Persona 5 Royal replace the Social Link mechanic from previous games, offering gameplay-enhancing effects when players reach certain ranks with each Confidant. For instance, Confidants like Kawakami help increase efficiency by performing mundane tasks for the player, while Hifumi allows backup party members to execute follow-up attacks. These bonuses are valuable and seamlessly integrate into Persona 5 Royal's gameplay. However, certain skills, such as Ohya's, have limited utility and only serve to modify an already unnecessary mechanic.

Persona 6 Should Streamline How its Confidants Interact with Gameplay

The Security Level system in Persona 5 Royal is considered one of the most unnecessary mechanics. It increases the threat of Shadows in a Palace when players are spotted by enemies. However, this mechanic doesn't make much of a difference as it is usually easy to sneak up on foes and players have ample time to avoid being seen. The penalties for increasing the Security Level also pose minimal threat since players can simply run away from Shadows in the overworld. Moreover, reaching a 100% Security Level will only result in the player being expelled from the Palace for the rest of the day.

While most players may not find this mechanic problematic, the game does provide a way to make it easier for those who struggle with the Security Level. The Devil Confidant Ohya offers skills that reduce the rate at which the Security Level increases and lowers it after reaching Safe Rooms in a Palace. Unfortunately, compared to the game-changing skills offered by other Confidants, this skill is not particularly useful. This renders the process of increasing Ohya's Confidant rank feel ultimately pointless, especially considering the limited in-game time available to players.

There is a possibility that Persona 6 will include some form of the Confidant or Social Link system, along with unique abilities associated with completing different ranks. However, Persona 6 should aim to streamline these skills to ensure a balanced utility across all potential Confidants. Persona 5 Royal has some Confidant skills that are clearly superior to others, indicating that the game's mechanics may be too overwhelming. Persona 6 should strive to find a middle ground between Persona 5 Royal and previous entries like Persona 3 and Persona 4. Many fans still prefer the simplicity of the older games compared to the bloated feel of Persona 5 Royal. It will be interesting to see how Persona 3 Reload approaches Persona 5 Royal's mechanics, as it could serve as Atlus' opportunity to achieve this balance and establish expectations for future installments like Persona 6.

Persona 5 Royal is available for PC, PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.