Persona 5

[dronology]

There are plenty of long-running successful video game franchises out there though only a few of them have achieved unprecedented popularity across the globe as Rockstar Games' Grand Theft Auto. Atlus' Persona seems to have gained quite the popularity in the west with Persona 5, and the company is looking to expand this even further with Persona 6. Interestingly, both Persona 6 and Grand Theft Auto 6 seem to be in a similar position right now. Information on both these supposed titles is paper-thin at the moment, the mystery of which makes them all the more exciting for fans of both. (...)

Persona 5 took the resounding success of Persona games to a global audience, with the title garnishing unprecedented popularity outside of its native country. Persona 5 not just became the fastest-selling Persona game in the series, but it also had the best debut of a Persona game outside Japan. This number was significantly boosted when Atlus released the superior version of Persona 5, named Persona 5 Royal, in 2019. (...)

Persona 5 isn't as popular nor accessible as Grand Theft Auto 5, but it strives to be exactly that for RPG fans. Aside from getting a re-release in the form of Persona 5 Royal, the game has gotten an action RPG pseudo-sequel spin-off called Persona 5 Strikers, and a rhythm spin-off game called Persona 5: Dancing in Starlight. All of this, including the base Persona 5 being available across three generations of PlayStation consoles, means that fans have enough on their plate until Persona 6 arrives.

Persona 6 is Atlus' Grand Theft Auto 6, and just like Rockstar Games is taking its time with the latter, Atlus is taking its time with the prior. While it's quite likely that both of these next-gen entries are deep in development, they are not likely to be released anytime soon. This is primarily because both Persona 5 and Grand Theft Auto 5 haven't aged as much as many people would like to believe.

Even though both games came out years ago, there are a vast majority of people that are still discovering, playing, and replaying these games. The release of Persona 5 Royal and the addition of the base game to the PlayStation Plus Collection has breathed new life into Persona 5. Furthermore, there are rumors of Persona 5 coming to Xbox consoles. Likewise, Grand Theft Auto 5 continues to sell incredibly well even to this date. The upcoming PS5 version of GTA 5 will likely boost that number even more. With Persona 5 and Grand Theft Auto 5 being consistently profitable to each's respective publishers, there is no immediate pressure to rush subsequent entries.

At this point, Persona 5 is one of the best JRPGs out there, whereas GTA 5 is one of the best open-world experiences available. For Persona 6 to exceed fans' expectations, it is no doubt that Atlus would take the GTA 6 route and take its time to craft what could be a defining next-gen JRPG.

Persona 6 is rumored to be in development.

Persona 6 is Effectively Atlus' GTA 6