As both an Atlus RPG and the next original project fromPersonamastermind Katsura Hashino,Metaphor: ReFantaziohas an expected number of similarities with thePersonaseries, especially where its blending of RPG gameplay and social systems is concerned.Metaphor: Refantazioeven has some signature versions of elements that have come to be synonymous with thePersonafranchise, with characters visiting a Velvet Room-style location to enhance their power inMetaphorknown as Akademia. But the way that the game handles Akademia’s liaison, More, is in stark contrast to thePersonaseries' utilization of the Velvet Room’s Igor.
A recurring figure in everyPersonagame to date, Igor is the custodian of the Velvet Room, the space between the waking world and the dream world where each game’s protagonist discovers and then further develops their true power. Despite being such a crucial figure acrossthePersonafranchise, players never get much insight into Igor’s backstory or personality beyond his casual, friendly demeanor and self-proclaimed purpose as the servant of Philemon. In contrast, More is a fleshed-out character with direct ties to the world of Euchronia whose story takes on an important part of the hero’s journey inMetaphor: ReFantazio.
More Plays a Direct Role in Shaping the Plot of Metaphor: ReFantazio
Though he shares a similar role to that ofIgor in thePersonaseries, when it comes to More, there’s, well, more than meets the eye. Not only does the character serve as the party’s power broker and gateway into understanding Archetypes, but he also plays a pivotal role in the overarching plot ofMetaphor: ReFantazio. The game’s protagonist and antagonist are deeply invested in a book banned by Eucrhonia’s state religion, Sanctism, that tells of a utopia that sounds eerily similar to an idealized version of the real world. The author of this book is none other than More himself, and his vision for what Euchronia can and should be drives bothMetaphor’s heroes and its villain, Louis Guiabern.
While Igor plays a direct role in shaping the future of the protagonist in eachPersonagame, helping them understand the power that resides within them and providing the means to awaken and develop it, he never shapes the events that unfold in any meaningful way. As a result, Igor is more of a passive observer than an intentional participant in the journey that the party takes through each game. In contrast, More isn’t just a guiding force, his ideas and written work provide the initiating event that drivesMetaphor’s central conflict.
More’s Ties to Metaphor’s World Open Up Opportunity for Further Exploration
The following contains minor spoilers forMetaphor: ReFantazio.
There’s no denying thatPersona’s Igor is one of the most iconic characters in the entire franchise and a major player in the development of each game’s protagonist, but his custodianship ofthe Velvet Roomrelegates him to being trapped in between planes of reality. Conversely, More is very much a corporeal figure within the world ofMetaphor: ReFantazio. Players eventually learn that the location of Akademia is sealed within a part of the Mage Academy, a former force for research and advancement shuttered by Sanctists, leaving More and his seemingly dangerous ideas trapped therein.
After learning of More’s fate, the party resolves to see their journey through to the end to both realize the dream contained within his idealistic novel and allow for him to continue his travels, researching boththe world of Euchroniaand its inhabitants in pursuit of developing new philosophies. More’s place as an actual physical being withinMetaphor’s rich world, as well as his interesting backstory and importance as a figure in the past, present, and future of that universe, make him an ideal subject for DLC that tackles either the rise of Sanctism, his research into Euchronia’s kings of old, or his future in the new and improved version of Euchronia.
