Cyber Monday deals have conveniently made my job a lot easier by making most of the best games I played this year cheaper than ever before and even easier to recommend. This was an especially rich year for JRPGs, as my personal GOTY list reflects, so if you're looking for a big juicy game with engrossing systems and an enthralling story to play over the holidays, you're in luck. Several massive games have gotten equally sizable discounts this deals season, so while I don't fully buy into the hours-of-fun-per-dollar argument, there's no denying that Japanese RPGs are among the best buys this season.
The last JRPG I finished is also the best one I've played this year: Metaphor: ReFantazio, the latest 100-hour saga from a team of Persona and Shin Megami Tensei veterans. Amazon has the launch edition of this instant classic for $49.99 – a solid 29% off, serving up a new record low for one of the best JRPGs in recent memory, and an excellent discount for any game that isn't even two months old.
Metaphor: ReFantazio is available on PS5, Xbox Series X, and PC. This discount is only available for the PS5 and Xbox Series X launch edition. The Xbox and Windows 10 digital code isn't eligible, and Steam has its own, slightly worse offer at $52.49. This is collectively the cheapest Metaphor: ReFantazio has ever been, and this JRPG masterclass was already well worth it at full price.
Should you buy Metaphor: ReFantazio?
You could fairly describe Metaphor: ReFantazio as Fantasy Persona. It is more than that, but this is still a useful shorthand description because if you don't like Persona – turn-based combat focused on hitting enemy weaknesses, calendar-based objectives, light dungeon-crawling, character builds with magic and physical skills – you probably won't like this. Metaphor looks and feels a lot like Persona 5 Royal and Persona 3 Reload, especially, with some notable twists. But thematically and musically, it's an exciting new direction for developer Atlus, and arguably its best work yet.
As an underdog contender in a desperate kingdom's last-gasp tournament to choose the next king amid a worsening monster crisis, you assemble and get to know a crew of playable characters and non-playable supporters whose personal quests tie into the main story and directly influence combat, exploration, and more. When you aren't scouring dungeons, either to finish the next story objective before the deadline or to hunt down a side quest bounty for some extra resources, you'll spend a lot of time in conversations and cutscenes with some of the finest English voice acting to ever grace a game.
Metaphor is partly about doing as much as you can as quickly as possible, but it doesn't feel hectic or uncomfortable. There is a sense of urgency, but there's also time – and good reason – to stop and take in the moment. I was able to finish absolutely everything – every side quest, every character storyline, and much more – with plenty of time to spare and without obsessive planning, so don't stress over the calendar system. Embrace it and prioritize.
The biggest departure from Persona would be Metaphor's Archetypes, which frame a more JRPG-typical job system that replaces the collectible Persona and demons Atlus is known for. If that was your sticking point with Persona, this may win you over. Archetypes might be mages, thieves, warriors, or healers, to say nothing of stranger branches and specialist evolutions I won't spoil. There are over 40 Archetypes in all, they're closer to Shin Megami Tensei: Digital Devil Saga than anything, and they present one of the best job systems in the whole JRPG genre, with whip-smart progression and powerful skill combinations that keep you thinking.
There's no fat on Metaphor: ReFantazio and there's not a single weak link among its many sprawling systems. In a lighter year, it would be a shoo-in for global GOTY. There will never be a bad time to buy or play it, and under this Cyber Monday deal, there has never been a better time to jump in.
Metaphor: ReFantazio is easily one of the best Cyber Monday deals for gamers, and there are plenty more going around. Here are our picks for the best Cyber Monday PS5 deals and Cyber Monday Xbox deals.
