ReFantazio Deserves its Own Version of Persona’s Most Iconic Spin-Offs

Posted by By our-little-miss-is-home February 9, 2025 93 Views 6 Min Read
ReFantazio Deserves its Own Version of Persona's Most Iconic Spin-Offs



After receiving a Game of the Year nomination at The Game Awards 2024, and multiple accolades at numerous other award shows, it’s safe to say that Metaphor: ReFantazio was one of the most acclaimed games of last year. Metaphor: ReFantazio gained tons of traction even before its release, thanks to its relation to the Persona series. Now that the game is on a victory lap, it would do well to take another feather out of Persona‘s cap.

Persona is associated with all sorts of common tropes between each game, with one of them being its large library of spin-off titles. Of course, these spin-off series aren’t all created equal. Some only have a single entry, while others boast several. Thanks to one of its best features, Metaphor is more than deserving to borrow from one of the most prolific Persona spin-offs there is.

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What Would a Follow-Up to Metaphor: ReFantazio Look Like?

Though no concrete plans are currently set for a Metaphor: ReFantazio sequel, its success begs the question of what a series approach might look like.

Persona Dancing is the Franchise’s Premier Spin-Off

Some of Persona‘s newer spin-offs simply haven’t had the time to delve into every corner of the series yet. For example, Tactica still hasn’t explored past Persona 5, despite making its debut shortly before the release of Persona 3 Reload. Ironically, the Persona Arena series still has yet to release a game featuring Persona 5 characters, despite being around for much longer than titles like Tactica. In this regard, the Persona Dancing series is seemingly unmatched.

Although the first two games have a cult following of their own, the modern Persona series is often defined from Persona 3 onward. Persona Dancing made its debut with Persona 4: Dancing All Night in 2015. Then, Persona 3: Dancing in Moonlight and Persona 5: Dancing in Starlight were released simultaneously in 2018.

Metaphor: ReFantazio’s Soundtrack was a Major Hit

Although not officially a part of the Shin Megami Tensei series, Metaphor: ReFantazio‘s combat system does borrow many mechanics from its predecessors. By the time award season rolled around, the game’s narrative was a major point of praise as well. However, in keeping with Persona and other Atlus titles, Metaphor: ReFantazio‘s soundtrack was one of the game’s most unforgettable features.

Metaphor: ReFantazio received a nomination for Best Score and Music at The Game Awards 2024, and only narrowly lost the award to Final Fantasy VII: Rebirth. A solid soundtrack should already be reason enough to give Metaphor its own rhythm game spin-off. Even if Metaphor‘s music does share a similar level of acclaim as Persona music, it is worth mentioning that the appeal of both soundtracks isn’t exactly the same.

Metaphor Dancing Would be a Risk Worth Taking

The Persona series features plenty of traditionally “catchy” tunes, while Metaphor often takes a more operatic approach with its soundtrack. Music in the Persona series is designed for a stylized modern setting, so hip-hop and jazz inspirations work perfectly. Meanwhile, Metaphor‘s fantasy setting is served equally well by its more “grand” sound. Despite this challenge, a Metaphor dancing game could still be worthwhile.

The Persona Dancing series has already adapted plenty of songs that one wouldn’t think lend themselves well to a rhythm game, with some of these arrangements being more infamous than others. Persona Dancing has always worked, not only because of its music, but also because of the opportunity for character interaction. Characters feature unique duets with one another, and best of all, the story of each game is canon. Where its music may prove a challenge, Metaphor: ReFantazio‘s characters could knock it out of the park.

Metaphor‘s aforementioned narrative received such acclaim because of its compelling cast of characters. As the villain of Metaphor: ReFantazio, a character like Louis may seem too self-serious for dancing. However, this irony only proves the game’s potential. Persona Dancing has become iconic both because of the earworms in its soundtrack, and the hilarity of seeing Tohru Adachi bust it down on the dance floor. Metaphor: ReFantazio can absolutely rise to the task, so Atlus may as well strike while the iron is hot.

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