Assuming thatMetaphor: ReFantaziois little more than a fantasy-themed Persona game would be doing the player and the title a great disservice. That said, there are plenty of similarities betweenMetaphorand director Katsura Hashino’s work on thePersonafranchise, especially where the general gameplay loop and social systems are concerned. One area whereMetaphor: ReFantaziodefinitively branches out on its own, though, is through its Archetype system, which abandons the classic monster collecting/taming and fusion ofSMTandPersonain favor of something more akin to a classic RPG Job system.
Characters inMetaphor: ReFantaziocall upon the power of Archetypes, magical forces said to have been wielded by the legendary kings of old in the game’s world of Euchronia. Calling upon Archetypes sees the player transform in battle akin to the heroes activating their Personas. Still, the ways that players carry out their attacks, synergize with other party members, and grow and develop their Archetypes take a sharp left turn away from whatPersonafans might expect. While there are some similarities between Archetypes and Personas, the former are far more personal and character-driven than the monster taming and collecting from Atlus' other flagship RPG series.
Metaphor: ReFantazio’s Archetypes Take a ‘Less Is More’ Approach
Personas, if nothing else, are numerous. InPersona 5 Royalalone, there are 259 different Personas split up across 22 Major Arcana. Trying to wrap one’s head around which Personas to hang onto or fuse into better, more powerful ones is a bit of a daunting task, and there’s a fair amount of trial and error involved in making sure that players end up with a party composition that works against the particular brand of Shadows in any given dungeon. One area whereMetaphor: ReFantazio’s Archetypestake a strong departure from thePersonaseries' namesake is in just how few of them there are, comparatively.
Rather than hundreds of different Personas each belonging to nearly 2 dozen types (Arcana), there are 46 Archetypes inMetaphor: ReFantazio, with each of them falling into one of 15 different class lineages. Fittingly, each of these class lineages falls into one of the many archetypical RPG classes players will be familiar with, such as Warrior, Healer, Mage, and Thief. The simplicity and familiarity of the Archetypes and how players can expect them to behave in battle immediately makecombat and progression inMetaphor: ReFantazioless intimidating than in Hashino’s previous work.
Social Bonds and Building Relationships Still Rule the Day in Metaphor: ReFantazio
Archetypes may transformMetaphor: ReFantaziointo an RPG that leans closer toFinal Fantasy 12rather than the monster-taming and collecting of bothPersonaandSMT, but the social systems and character relationships that are necessary to strengthen Personas are still just as important toward improving and unlocking Archetypes. If players are to have any hope of completing the more challenging dungeons in aPersonagame, it’s necessary to wisely manage time and engage in various activities with allies to strengthen Bonds with them. The same is true ofMetaphor: ReFantazio, as those social Bonds are the linchpin of the Archetype system.
Getting closer with the different party members and non-playable allies inMetaphor: ReFantaziois a prerequisite for unlocking some of the game’s best Archetypes, many of which require maxing out the Bond Level with certain characters before they become available. Of course, this is a carry-over from thePersonagames, where social Bonds between the protagonist and their allies strengthen the Major Arcana, in turn unlocking new Fusions for more powerful Personas that give players a fighting chance in challenging dungeons.Metaphormight not be aPersonagame, but it still borrows the unique fusion of RPG-style progression and character development mixed with social systems and relationship management that made the series an RPG mainstay.
