
Given that Metaphor: ReFantazio has a lot in common with the Persona games — especially in terms of gameplay structure and mechanics — many had simply assumed that it would also feature a Persona-style romance system, letting you forge a more intimate relationship with a party member or supporting character of your choice.
However, when we started to learn more and more about Metaphor earlier this year, developer Atlus confirmed that the fantasy RPG would not be following in Persona's footsteps, and would avoid player-driven romance altogether. Back in April, the studio basically said that the game is more about establishing camaraderie amongst your allies.
But if you're looking for a more in-depth explanation, director Katsura Hashino delivers. Speaking to GamesRadar, the veteran developer acknowledges that romance is an important part of the Persona series for a lot of people, but with Metaphor, it's just a different vibe.
"For us, the reason we included romance in previous games is that a lot of our games are based around the idea of teenagers living their lives," he explains. "What teenager doesn't want to have romance in their life? It's part of the realism of the setting."
"We know people really like this system and it's really popular, but for this game specifically, it's not about teenagers. It's about a person trying to become the ruler of the land. They are more focused on the relationships between a ruler and the people who support them," Hashino continues.
So, essentially, Hashino is saying that Metaphor has a more... mature tone, and that there are simply other elements that the team has chosen to prioritise. Hashino summarises things quite nicely: "You throw out what you think won't work and take what you think will."
How do you feel about Metaphor's lack of romance? Are you disappointed, or are you unfazed? Keep it platonic in the comments section below.
[source gamesradar.com]
Comments 17
Not every game needs romance. Plus, Persona’s romances kind of feel bare bones at times despite being my favorite franchise. I’m fine with Metaphor not having it if that’s the case
I respect that, and also prefer it this way for the story they're trying to tell.
Persona romances are awful and contribute nothing. There, I said it.
The protagonist never had the makings of a varsity romancer. Small hands.
Persona 1 & 2 doesn't even have romance / picked your fav waifu feature. So i'm okay they didn't have it for this brand new IP to separate it from Persona series.
As far as I've played and can tell, no other atlus series has romance other than persona. And this is not even a spin off of it. So idk why it's a big deal or why someone would even go into this expecting it to have romance options
It wouldve been neat to have I guess. It's not something I think about a lot when I think of persona but I wouldn't have been opposed to it being in this game
Persona has great romance and I don’t see why it would be an issue here, rulers often also like to use their power lol.
Strange. I think that it’s a fundamental part of all human life experience to look for a partner. Sure, there might be times in life when one is not actively looking, but should a situation arise, it is emotionally impossible to ignore irrespective of surrounding conditions. It may be that it was not what they wanted tonally for the story, which would be completely fair and right, but that’s not what they said.
No romances is a plus in my book.
@thefourfoldroot1 Yup,his explanation is nonsense. You would be more hard press to name any "mature" piece of mediums that doesn't have romance or a love interest within it plotline.
It has nothing to do with ones teenage years, so he isn't making sense here.
Don't get me wrong,I respect the decision to not have any romance in his story(because i do agree that it is not mandatory),but he would me more honest if he just said that the reason he didn't want any romance, is because he knows his fanbase would concentrate more on Waifu wars than the actual characters themselves and the plot,during online discourse.
He also probably knew everyone was going to pick the red head elf lady,so why bother? 😉
I’m playing smt5v right now there’s no Romance options in that game either.
The romance aspect in p5 was mechanical and boring. It was also kinda cringe since you as a teenager could be with your teacher and the ethics of the whole first month are ignored. Even the teen romances had such a weird power dynamic favoring the protagonist.
So I'm glad.
@Jay767 Lol, SMT has never been about romance.
Persona games are aloof and sort of lean into the corniness.
Probably a wise idea if they would have literally used Persona style romances in this game. And it is possible the team do not know how to do it any other way and don’t want to subcontract in some consultants like Sweet Baby to do it for them.
I'm not happy about this, even though it is true Persona romance's do lack substance. It's my hope that romance is vastly improved in 6, but I still enjoy picking a partner and getting what little scenes there are, it's part of the roleplay experience and I simply like romance.
As for this game, a ruler would absolutely look for romance, it may just not be something they want to invest time in. So be it, I'm still excited to see what they can pull off with this. But this is disappointing news
I don't really think about romance when I play persona. I only think about getting each arcana rank as high as possible, as well as my Courage, Academics and Charm.
I'm ok with that and he's right, it absolutely fits with the theme.
Persona settings have always been in a high school, and they're a horny bunch
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