Persona 6 is now on Steam, ready to wishlist as we wait who knows how long for the next big JRPG from Atlus.
As expected, the Persona 6 Steam page closely mirrors the existing pages on the PlayStation and Xbox stores. However, Atlus and publisher Sega have also shared a few moderately interesting breadcrumbs.
With just a short and vague reveal trailer to go on, we've had to resort to these store pages for any information sturdier than bread. Most of the details around Persona 6 have served only to confirm what hasn't changed since Persona 5, which is by far the most popular entry in the series. Today hasn't yielded any bombshells either, but sometimes no change is interesting news in its own right.
One thing that has changed a tiny bit is Persona 6's mature content description. This is unique to the Steam listing, at least for now, and reads: "This Game may contain content not appropriate for all ages, or may not be appropriate for viewing at work: Some Nudity or Sexual Content, Frequent Violence or Gore, General Mature Content".
For comparison, here's what Persona 5 Royal's Steam page says: "This game includes content such as blood, drug reference, partial nudity, sexual themes, strong language, and violence."
I'm really only pointing this out because, while Persona 6 shows very slight differences to Persona 5 Royal's mature content Steam description, it's identical to Persona 4 Revival's disclosure. This suggests Atlus or Sega have simply updated their boilerplate verbiage, so we shouldn't read it as a unique reflection of the tone or content of Persona 6, which, based on that graveyard reveal trailer, is currently suspected to be a bit darker than the more pop-flavored Persona 4 and 5 (though both of those also feature some grim scenes and subjects).
If nothing else, this does indicate that Persona 6 won't be a step back in terms of mature content or themes. Previously, we only had pending ESRB ratings, with the Xbox page predicting "likely mature 17+".
We can also look at the SteamDB page update history and find "content descriptors" which include "some nudity or sexual content," "frequent violence or gore," and "general mature content".
Speaking of Steam tags: separate from user-determined tags, Persona 6 has categories that include "single-player," "Steam Achievements," "Steam Cloud," and "Family Sharing". I look forward to seeing what tags Steam users brute force into the store page.
Another Steam update log matches a blurb on the live page: "Added 3rd-Party DRM – Denuvo Anti-tamper". This also comes as no surprise, as Persona 4 Revival uses the same tech.
Somewhat more interesting is clear confirmation that the Persona series' calendar structure hasn't changed. In store page descriptions, Atlus explains that we will "Live a Double Life in Modern-Day Japan". The Steam post co-published by Atlus and Sega notes that Persona 6 will see us "Live a Year Alongside Unforgettable Companions in Modern-Day Japan," recentering the calendar and putting us on a course for a year in "contemporary Japanese cities".
Additionally, Atlus and Sega continue to emphasize that Persona 6 is a completely standalone game, seemingly looking to avoid any confusion or fear around playing this as your first Persona. Atlus knows Persona 5 got a lot more attention than previous entries, and it obviously wants those people, and others, to play Persona 6. I've scoured every crumb of Persona 6 information, and I can't stress enough just how heavily this newcomer-friendly sentiment has been pushed.
That new Steam post reads: "While staying true to the distinctive atmosphere and innovative gameplay experience that have made the series beloved for years, Persona 6 introduces an entirely new setting and story. Each mainline title features a self-contained narrative with no story ties to previous games — so if this is your first Persona experience, jump right in!"
