Persona veterans' new JRPG Metaphor: ReFantazio bumps a major series staple by excluding romance

Metaphor: ReFantazio won't have any romance options whatsoever, in a stark contrast to past Persona games.

Yesterday, Atlus revealed Metaphor: ReFantazio would launch later this year on October 11, complete with a deep dive into the game's combat and world with director Katsura Hashino. Now, in a new Japanese Q&A segment, it's been revealed that the bonds the player can establish with certain characters won't lead to any romance scenes.

The news was revealed in the Q&A livestream just below, where host Mafia Kajita addressed the topic of romance around the one hour and 36-minute mark. The host revealed that Metaphor: ReFantazio doesn't feature any romance options with bond characters because the new RPG employs a very different bond level system compared to past Atlus games.

This might be a surprise, given that Persona games from Atlus have always allowed the player to romance certain companions. It's worth pointing out, however, that Metaphor: ReFantazio isn't being developed by Persona developer P-Studio at Atlus, but rather Studio Zero, who previously worked on Catherine: Full Body under Atlus. It's easy to understand the confusion since Hashino has headed up the Persona series for well over a decade now.

Although it's not romance, you will be able to unlock new Archetypes by increasing your bond level with characters. Yesterday's Metaphor: ReFantazio presentation from Hashino revealed the Archetype system is what grants new combat classes to characters, and the player can equip a different Archetype class onto any active party member in battle.

You can also read up on our new games 2024 guide for a look at all the other titles launching throughout the rest of the year.