10 Games like Persona 5 with brilliant party members, epic stories, and plenty of style

a decade for good reason, blending together an epically scoped modern-day-set story with incredibly slick and stylish turn-based combat, and a cast of unforgettable characters to boot.

But, like leveling up in order to battle a mythological god, I'm up for the challenge. Persona 5 remains a very special game to me, but it's still part of a larger gaming conversation. Throughout the best JRPGs, plenty have attempted and succeeded at similar goals to Persona. Even outside of that genre, the sheer style of Persona 5 has some other contemporaries, whether that's pure aesthetic joy or similarly exploring modern-day Tokyo street culture.

Join me below as I count down my ten best picks for games like Persona 5. Some may surprise you, some may be obvious, but I'm sure you'll find something new to fall in love among them. I've also made sure to include what kind of vibe each title offers (which you can learn about in our FAQ section), so that you know what you are in for straight away. Also, to keep the recommendations going, I'd love to know what else you think Persona 5 fans should try in the comments below.

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The best games like Persona 5 to play, starting with...

10. The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel

I'm often asked where to start with The Legend of Heroes: Trails. For Persona 5 fans, I always have the same answer: start with The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel. These might not be the most modern entries in the series (it launched on PS Vita, after all), but they remain immensely playable, and recent ports mean the whole quadrilogy is readily available on current consoles.

Following a familiar calendar system, and revolving around a special military school class of capable young adventurers, there's plenty of options to grow closer to your classmates as the school year takes you through a series of field trip quests. Battles are fast-paced, with an in-depth system that means you can get pretty detailed with customizing your party's abilities. It might not have the level of stylish polish Persona 5 boasts, but Trails of Cold Steel still has plenty of heart, and if you're looking for character dynamics you can care about and a similar epic structure, this is a trip well worth taking.

9. Danganronpa: Trigger Happy Havoc

Simply put, if you like Persona 5, I think you'll like Danganronpa. Despite this being a mystery adventure game with loads of visual novel-style reading instead of, you know, a battling RPG, there's a lot of crossover appeal. Just look at the larger-than-life, colorful character designs, or those bopping tunes as you pick apart testimonies to get to the bottom of intricate murder mysteries. The "dark blend of macabre and comedic dialogue" we loved in our Danganronpa review has aged well enough to return to even today.

Just like Persona 5, Danganronpa also has a dense narrative centering on young adults in a school environment, with the murders you have to investigate also delving into the depths of the human psyche. Visually, it's devoted to being downright stylish at all times, especially during play. Danganronpa's bullet-based arguments that have you blasting evidence to shatter words that appear on screen have a similar vibe to Persona 5's slick action and battle menus that are consistently a thrill to interact with. I rest my case.

8. Demonschool

Demonschool's retro-inspired pixel aesthetic and grid-based battles more immediately calls back to the classic stylings of Persona and Persona 2, but the modern approach to storytelling still tips a cap towards the likes of Persona 5. In any case, there's absolutely no doubt in my mind that this supernatural RPG that has a huge cast of young adults kicking the heck out of grisly undead should be very much of interest to Persona fans.

In fact, in our Demonschool review, we said that "this Persona-inspired RPG is full of fun, flair, and ready to chomp away at your free time". Working through a school year means that Faye's quest to unravel the paranormal conspiracy of Hemsk College is hefty, but it also has a bite-sized structure that makes it easy to play through a bit at a time. Rather than lengthy dungeons, each major event has its own distinct battle that's as much a puzzle as it is a fight, having you work through character combos and plan out turns in advance in order to seal the demonic portal at the end of each map. You absolutely need to try this one.

7. Jet Set Radio

What do you mean Jet Set Radio isn't an RPG? In this stylish adventure, you're role-playing as a graffiti artist crew on a mission to tag up Tokyo-To and fight back against an oppressive government and, eventually, a bizarre mafia crew. Even over a decade on, we noted that "it's still got it" in our Jet Set Radio HD review. It's still true.

OK, OK, it's not really an RPG. Both this and sequel Jet Set Radio Future have an arcadey flair, challenging you to grind, leap, and trick across chunks of level in order to lay down your own, customizable artwork in each cyberpunk-tinged area of the city while avoiding rival gangs. But, not only is Jet Set Radio set in fictionalized versions of several locations that also appear in Persona 5, it embraces that flavor of modern Japanese street culture. If what really appealed to you about Persona 5 was its setting and sense of style, you'll find it in spades in Jet Set Radio.

6. Neo: The World Ends With You

Neo: The World Ends With You (or, equally, its predecessor, The World Ends With You) will appeal to any Persona 5 fans who are enamored with that game's presentation of modern day Tokyo. Just as, if not more, engaged with Japanese street culture than Persona 5, this has you questing across a colorfully presented version of Shibuya, Japan.

Thrust into the mysterious Reaper's Game, Rindo is forced to team up with classmates Fret and Nagi in order to survive against rival teams, running about Shibuya in order to clear each day's challenge. Each party member has special abilities that can help out in fast-paced battles, with special pin badges and even outfits providing bonuses. Abilities can also be used outside of battle, with Persona 5-like reality warping natures, like being able to supernaturally remind NPCs of certain topics.

5. Yakuza: Like a Dragon

Yakuza: Like a Dragon is the seventh game in the long-running crime series, but also acts as a soft reboot, shifting the action from brawler Kazuma Kiryu to the charming Ichiban Kasuga. While he's also handy in a fight, a devotion to Dragon Quest means that playing as him shifts the action from real-time combat to turn-based brawls, a job system having his party transform to use silly and over-the-top abilities. It's a switch we called "a confident step in a different direction" in our Yakuza: Like a Dragon review.

This set-up nods explicitly to Square Enix's famous RPG series, but Sega are also able to bring a lot of Persona 5 inspiration as well. Drink links, for instance, are a humorous nod to Persona 5's social links, and are a way of improving your party bonds over a cold one at your favorite bar. On top of that, set in the modern day, the urban backdrop is a close match to Persona's settings, and with just as stylishly presented combat, this is an easy recommendation for any Persona 5 fan.

4. Fire Emblem: Three Houses

Fire Emblem: Three Houses is so much like Persona 5 that it almost feels like a direct response. While modern entries in this tactical RPG series have always played with bonding systems between named units, Three Houses saw that come front and center, revolving around students attached to a particular house at a school – with you choosing which of the three you want to teach.

Not only does that give Fire Emblem: Three Houses a more young adult entrypoint to the RPG's epic narrative, similar to Persona 5, but also means you juggle setting out for battle with school activities, and with a calendar system to boot – a completely new element to this long-running RPG series. It's a combination so good that we called it "a masterclass in emotionally gripping tactics" in our Fire Emblem: Three Houses review. For any Persona 5 fan looking to check out Fire Emblem for the first time, this is an absolute must-play.

3. Metaphor ReFantazio

Conscious of not simply overloading this list with other Atlus games, I was between including Metaphor ReFantazio or the almost-as-excellent Shin Megami Tensei 5: Vengeance. The "almost" gives it away, though, right? I'm still stunned that this epic fantasy journey, though detached from sister series SMT and Persona, has quickly become one of my favorite RPG universes to explore. It's a tale that I'm still turning over in my head, and one we called "an evolution of Atlus' best RPGs" in our Metaphor ReFantazio review.

Cribbing systems from Persona directly, the hero builds social links on his quest to win magically mandated votes in order to ascend to the monarchy (with the true intention to use the contest to unravel a deadly conspiracy, of course). A calendar system is in place as well, but rather than balancing school life, it's to structure a travel-based journey between kingdoms on a sort of It's a MadWorld tour with the other ruler candidates to win the kingdom's population over to your cause. Real-time action provides runway for turn-based battles that inherit a lot of Persona DNA, with Archetypes fulfilling a similar role to Persona, blended with a mix-and-match skill system reminiscent of Final Fantasy's job system.

2. Clair Obscur Expedition 33

Boasting super slick combat and a cast of young adults, there's a case to be made that Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 is sort of a French combination of Final Fantasy 10 and Persona 5. That's not a bad thing at all, as a fresh take on two of the best RPGs ever made is very welcome.

Especially in an industry where big-budget adventures like this rarely lean into turn-based combat, it's great to see Clair Obscur not only embrace it, but evolve it. This isn't the first turn-based RPG to allow for timing-based interactions, but it's one of the most complete visions of it. Parries and dodges against even the biggest of opponents reward knowledge, and allow for not only full damage negation, but accrual of huge bonuses as well. Letting you stunt on deadly foes just always hits. In our Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 review, we called it "an old-school feeling JRPG as dynamic as Persona but with parry-filled battles as hard-won as Sekiro".

1. Persona 3 Reload

Persona 3 Reload is so much like Persona 5, that the whole concept of this full remake of one of the iconic PS2 games seems to be based around Persona 5-ifying it as much as possible. More often than not, this is a great idea, as we point out in our Persona 3 Reload impressions. Persona 5-style slick presentation enhances the moodier tone of Persona 3's angsty, noughties-era adventure, revelling in the moody blues and greens that paint the Midnight Hour – a hidden space of time in which Shadows prey on humanity.

Humanity except for, of course, the members of SEES, a group of high-schoolers with the power to fight back using summoned persona in battle. This is the Persona that actually introduced the now-iconic calendar system that has you juggling socializing with friends, academia, and clearing big dungeons. Except, in this case, barring small bespoke events, it's one truly massive dungeon. Tartarus has over 250 floors that open up throughout the year, meaning environments aren't as varied as Persona 5. But the combat continues to evolve on Persona 5's and, for many, Persona 3's grittier tale has always outclassed Persona 5 anyway.

Games like Persona 5 FAQS

For more recommendations, check out our lists of the best turn-based RPGs and the best Persona games of all time.