Metaphor: ReFantazio Review Scores are Out
While we may have to wait until this Friday to play Metaphor: ReFantazio, the latest game from the Persona devs, critics have been playing through the game over the last couple of weeks and, with the review embargo lifted, they are finally available to reveal their thoughts. The game is currently sitting at a mighty 92 on Opencritic with 98% of reviewers recommending it. Although not actually a Persona game, this release seems to live up to the lofty expectations placed onto this team.
Image by Atlus
Metaphor: ReFantazio is an ambitious release from Atlus. Taking elements from Persona and thrusting them into a very different high-fantasy world is certainly something that not many people would have expected. The Persona IP has become synonymous with its high school setting and social sim elements so seeing these ideas be integrated into a completely different setting with different races, kingdoms, and a race to become king is intriguing to say the least.
Whilst some elements of the Persona series have been transferred almost 1:1 (like the time limits and dungeon crawling systems), there are others that have been shaken up. This includes being able to traverse a world map, a new ability that allows you to easily take out weak foes without battling and ‘archetypes’ which replace the ability to summon Personas in a diverse job system. From what critics have been saying, the best parts of Persona have been elevated while interesting new ideas have been introduced. A mere reskin this is not.
One review site that was especially emphatic about ‘Metaphor’ was Gamespot, who awarded the release a coveted 10/10. They had the following write up:
“Metaphor: ReFantazio leverages its Persona influence along with more classic RPG inspiration to deliver an unmissable role-playing experience.”
Image by Atlus
TheGamer were similarly enamoured with Atlus’s most recent game. They gave it full marks and deemed it the best work from the company:
“Metaphor: ReFantazio is a new peak for Atlus. It takes so much of what was great about Persona, refines it, and throws that powder into an exciting fantasy setting with incredible lore, well-developed characters, and a fresh new battle system.”
If you’re still not sure on whether to pick this one up, a free prologue demo (which spans a ridiculous 5 hours or so) is available not on all major platforms. It’s the perfect taste of what is apparently a 100+ hour game.
