#PROJECT Re FANTASY

[ponderousorb]

Close enough, welcome back Ebony Dark'ness Dementia Raven Way!

I just think he's neat.

[morganmerylhodgepodge]

I FINALLY GOT OBS TO WORK :-D

The protagonist (thought to be canonically named "Will") and Gallica from the Metaphor Refantazio Demo.

[skullcula]

REFANTASY FINALLY REVEALED GRAAAH

[demifiendrsa]

Metaphor: ReFantazio — The Royal Tournament

Japanese version

Official website footage

Metaphor: ReFantazio will launch for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, PlayStation 4, and PC (Microsoft Store, Steam) in Fall 2024.

Key visual

Latest details

■ Story

This is a story of how people must find unity to elect a new king.

Our story takes place in The United Kingdom of Euchronia, where the assassination of the king brings chaos and unrest to the land.

Then, one fateful day, a magic known only to the king called the Royal Magic is invoked, and the world becomes embroiled in a royal tournament for the throne.

In the midst of this, the protagonist, together with his partner, the fairy Galica, must find a way to break the curse that has been placed on the prince that the kingdom believes to be dead. To do so, they depart on a journey across the vast land.

They will discover that in order to achieve their goal, they must participate in the tournament for the throne, and this great task shall require them to ally with many friends and followers of the various tribes inhabiting the world.

■ Characters

Protagonist (voiced by Natsuki Hanae)

Together with the fairy, Galica, he embarks on a journey to lift the deadly curse placed on his childhood friend, the prince of Euchronia.

He is a boy of the elda tribe, branded as a “tainted” people by the state religion who believe they have inherited dangerous and heretical magic. Being so rare among the populous, they are detested and discriminated against throughout the kingdom.

Gallica (voiced by Sumire Morohoshi)

Not only a traveling companion, Gallica is the guide who helps the protagonist carry out his mission to save the prince. Although she is too small to participate in battles, her knowledge of magic and ability to sense magla is superior to the protagonist due to her fairy nature. She doesn’t mince words, but she is a reassuring ally on his journey.

Strohl (voiced by Kensho Ono)

He is a young man of the clemar tribe who meets the protagonist in the recruitment centre for the State Army. A smart young man with a strong sense of justice, he hails from a noble family. And yet, it seems his circumstances are complicated, as it is rare for a noble to enlist in the army alongside commoners.

Hulkenberg (voiced by Saori Hayami)

A knight of the roussainte tribe and former member of the royal family’s Kingsguard who served by the prince’s side. Despite her young age, she excelled in the use of various weaponry, and was assigned to the personal guard of the prince. But when the prince was attacked, she failed to protect him and set out to wander, carrying the stigma of this failure in her heart.

Heismay (voiced by Akio Ootsuka)

A former knight of the eugief tribe. He has acute perception compared to most others, due in part to the eugief trait of being sensitive to sound.

With an appearance that differs greatly from other tribes, it’s not uncommon for eugiefs to be discriminated against—and it seems Heismay is no exception, his past his own burden to bear.

■ Followers

Meet and bond with your followers.

■ Game Mechanics

Unique battles that combine action and turn-based commands. Party customization offering a high degree of freedom and strategy. An evolution of the realistic day-by-day journey of the Persona series.

■ Staff

Director – Katsura Hashino (Shin Megami Tensei III: Nocturne, Persona 3, Persona 4, Persona 5)

Character Designer – Shigenori Soejima (Persona 3, Persona 4, Persona 5)

Composer – Shoji Meguro (Shin Megami Tensei III: Nocturne, Persona 3, Persona 4, Persona 5)

Concept Artist – Koda Kazuma (Notable Work: NieR:Automata)

Mechanical Designer – Ikuto Yamashita (Notable Work: Neon Genesis Evangelion)

■ Art and Sound

Journey through a vast and magnificent fantasy world. Explore the game alongside an intuitive and beautiful user interface that elevates the experience. Lend your ear to masterfully crafted music utilizing captivating unique chants.

■ New Screenshots

[satoshi-mochida]

Metaphor: ReFantazio also coming to PS5, PS4, and Steam

Gematsu Source

Metaphor: ReFantazio, the new fantasy RPG from Katsura Hashino-led ATLUS subsidiary Studio Zero, will also be available for PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, and PC via Steam alongside its previously announced Xbox Series and Windows PC versions when it launches in 2024 worldwide, ATLUS announced (via SEGA Korea).

If you missed our previous coverage of the game, read more here.

Watch the multiplatform trailer below.

Multiplatform Announce Trailer

Korean

(The video can’t be embedded on here)

Download video here.

[aliliceswonderland]

Archetypes in Metaphor: ReFantazio, and the Neverending Story

It seems like the new Personas in Metaphor are called Archetypes. This term is interesting because it's linked to C. G. Jung's psychoanalysis, that predates the Persona series and to a certain extent also Megaten.

Archetypes according to Jung are basically prototypes or templates that are present in the collective unconscious and, as a consequence, repeat in stories, myths or dreams along time and around the world. The Persona and the Shadow are also archetypes, and so are other Jungian concepts like the Anima and the Animus. But the archetypes also include figures like the mother, the father, the wise old man, the child, the maiden, etc, and other related to events such as birth, death or marriage. Oh, and the Tarot arcana! So it's a pretty broad concept, that has already been present in Persona even if not by name.

Metaphor: ReFantazio doesn't seem preoccupied with keeping the archetypes Jung mentioned. Not like that's a big deal, Jung himself considered that the amount of archetypes could be infinite. The ones used in the game seem taken from TTRPG classes, which doesn't surprise me given how at some point years ago they mentioned TTRPG as inspiration.

[ID: one of the very artistic menus from Metaphor. The word EQUIPMENT in big wide letters fills the top of the screen. On the left side, under the question "Change whose gear?" the characters are listed along with an eyes-focused close up of their "archetype" (as summonable monster) that fades into their own, as it follows: - Leader / Travelling Boy / he's a boy with slightly darker skin than the rest, blue hair and yellow and blue heterochromia / Seeker Rank Master - Party / Strohl / boy with a gray eyes and hair / Warrior Rank Master - Party / Hulkenberg / redhaired elf girl / Knight Rank Master - Party / Heismay / red-eyed animal creature with white fur / Thief Rank 15/20 - Navi / Gallica / auburn haired fairy, no archetype present The Travelling Boy is selected. The right side shows the art of an the archetype, presumably the Seeker, a somewhat robotic humanoid beast in white armor with vein-like red lights in their exposed parts and golden pieces. They're holding a black sword. On the corner right down it reads: "Learns a wide array of versatile skills including Wind magic, single target healing and attack buffs." Under them there are buttons for Archetype Details (Y), Confirm (B) and Back (A). A subtitle reads "Who shall take the throne?".]

Something I also noticed in this image is that Archetypes seem to have ranks. If you ever played the old Persona, you may be familiar with the rank system. It's basically levels for a Persona/Archetype that work independently from the player's level and are tied to skill learning. This makes me wonder if Archetypes will be interchangable between the characters as in the old Persona system, or similarly to FF5 job system.

[ID: Another screenshot from the Metaphor trailer. A man with long hair is sitting behind a book on a desk. In the background, a big metallic statue resembling a crowned Vitruvian Man with glyphs over his body hovers over the long-haired man. A menu on the left has the following options: Learning Archetypes, Inheriting Skills, Seeker's Research, Lectures and Listen. Big wide letters at the bottom read AKADEMEIA. Over them, the subtitle says "You've acquired a most interesting power." Some faint lines and glyphs that could belong in a technical sketch adorn the UI.]

The "Learning Archetypes" option definitely sounds like at least the protagonist is going to be able to change Archetype. The "Seeker's Research", however, makes me think that the Seeker will be inevitably linked to the protagonist. I really wonder how the system is going to be.

[ID: another screenshot. A dragon is performing an attack called Ripping Claw. At the top of the image, some stars sketch in several colors one over the other seem to indicate a press-turn system. On the bottom right, the life and SP bars are located. The characters are named not by their names but through the Archetypes: Ninja (the animal companion), Paladin (the elf), Trickster (the grey haired guy) and Soul Hacker (the protagonist). Their eyes are burning. The subtitle reads: "The truth of the humans is laid bare."]

In this screenshot we can appreciate the same characters with different archetypes. If you compare them to the ones in the equipment menu, there's a clear correspondance. These look like evolved Archetypes. Whether they evolve in the new Persona way or are obtained as in the old Persona games, remains to be seen, although this makes me think more of the first case, which would correspond to a fixed Archetype system.

Of course, there's one Archetype here that stands out. The Soul Hacker. I don't think you'll found this in any TTRPG. This seems to be the evolved form of the Seeker, which already deviates from the usual RPG classes or jobs. But it should be obvious to you where it comes from: the Devil Summoner's sequels. The first Soul Hackers game has the protagonist relive other people's last moments in Vision Quests. I'm not sure what this may mean for Metaphor. The fact that we can see the protagonist over a spaceship at one point in the trailer makes me think of visions of different worlds, but then again, it wouldn't be the first Atlus game to depict medieval fantasy and space in the same world (Last Bible games are crazy, I swear). I don't think the Soul Hacker Archetype was called like that as a mere reference, but it could be a symbolism I'm not totally grasping with the little context I have, for example, that he's good at making bonds, therefore "hacking" the souls of others (????). I don't know.

Anyway, this derailing about Vision Quests makes me thing of another point I wanted to make. This will get even more into theory territory, so take it with a grain of salt.

[ID: The screenshot has the protagonist in a black space surrounded by light or crystal fragments. Another man is out of frame. In the middle of the image it reads: "This is the mirror of reality."]

This sentence has haunted me. This along with the title of the game and that other phrase later on: "It all began with the novel in thy possession." And you know why? Because I know a book that started just like that. It also had a dying monarch, now that I think of it. A book that can be easily interpreted through a Jungian perspective, including archetypes. That had a scene about a mirror reflecting another mirror to symbolize the relationship between a world called Fantastica and the real world. That's The Neverending Story (and, if you've only watched the movie, I'm sorry but you're missing out A LOT here).

Now, I can't know if this book has had an influence here, but I have the feeling this is going to be a similar story. To those who don't know, The Neverending Story is a book about a boy called Bastian who steals a book and starts reading about a green skinned native boy (that probably didn't age well) that is chosen to save the world of Fantastica from the Nothing that is devouring it, by searching for a human that can give the Child Empress a new name. Now, spoilers. Jump to the next paragraph if you don't want them. That human is Bastian, and the moment he calls the Empress by her new name, he gets isekai'd to Fantastica, which is a world made of the collective human imagination. Then, he begins to travel around the world making up stories that become true while he forgets their own memories of the real world, and when he notices it, he begins to look for a way home, that he learns he'll only reach if he finds his True Will. Which ends up being to love (aww).

"What if the world we live in today is their utopia?" at the beginning of the trailer suggests a relationship between the real world and the world of Metaphor. Heck, the frigging Metaphor name suggests that. It's very likely that they know of the human world through books. Through stories (could books become Vision Quests to unlock Archetypes? That would be cool). The same way we know about them: through a story (this time in videogame format). Remember what I said at the beggining? Archetypes are found in myths and stories. It wouldn't be a surprise to me if this world was another Fantastica, a world made with human imagination. Or/and viceversa.

Related to this, there's the concept of the collective unconscious, ever present in the Persona series, and in Megaten through the Great Will, and where Archetypes reside. If this world is anything like Fantastica, it's bound to belong into the Sea of Souls. I don't think the human world in Metaphor is supposed to be the Persona world, since they've shown images more similar to the actual real world, but if that was the case, it wouldn't be too farfetched to think of it as a cognitive world. Lieutenant General Zula in P2EP PSP remake already talked about the existence of populated worlds into the collective unconscious. P5T seemed to show a similar thing, although it could still be just a personal world as in the PQ games.

Even if the human world is our world, I think the Metaphor world is supposed to represent a mirror of our own, made of our thoughts and anxieties. Truly, that could be said about pretty much every work of art ever. But not all of them treat that relationship between ourselves and art or storytelling as a theme. I can think of a bunch, though: Undertale/Deltarune, Utena and Princess Tutu, the already cited Neverending Story, the Quixote... Regardless, since the Jungian themes are so heavily present through the Archetypes, I think it's possible that this world is supposed to exist into our (or our representation in the game's) collective psyche.

Wow, I think my train of thought absolutely derrailed in the last paragraphs, sorry about that. Anyway, nothing more to say here. I hope you found my thoughts interesting.

[risingshards]

PROJECT RE FANTASY STILL REAL

[25thnightbaam]

It has been a few days since the official announcements of the three Atlus games. I have collected my thoughts on them and will be going over them, as well as some speculation and assumptions on Persona 6. Starting with the two Persona games.

First off, Persona 5 Tactica. Honestly, no matter how many times I've rewatched the trailer, I am not interested at all. The only reason being it's yet another P5 spinoff. I am tired of these spinoffs! Yes yes, we know Atlus, P5 is your moneymaker, but ease up on licensing more spinoffs! When I first saw the leak it did not surprise me to see another spinoff. I said this before, but it will not surprise to see a few more spinoffs. If you are looking forward to it, good for you, but it just doesn't interest me. Maybe if I see more gameplay later, I might gain some interest. For now Persona 5 Tactica is a pass for me.

Next, we got Person 3 Reload! Now this I am interested. Admittedly my want for a P3 remake has waned a bit over the recent years. While my want for remakes of the original Persona or the Persona 2 duology have heavily increased. Disappointed it is neither of the latter, but I'm happy the rumors turned out to be true for the former. I liked what I saw.

Though, some more disappointments have come out since the Xbox showcase. Like the whole voice cast being recast, but this quickly became an interest. Especially since KaggyFilms (Alejandro Saab) is in it! It's been years since I last seen any of his videos and, also, apparently he's a vtuber now! After checking out a Youtube video showing off the new voice actors' previous roles, I am intrigued in hearing their takes on the characters. Then there's the disappointment this isn't going to be a remake/definitive edition of P3. After taking some time to think on this, I accepted it. It's fine. I still got the original P3: FES to re-experience the Answer. And if I want to try out as the Female MC, I could get the recent P3P ports. It helps its cheap, especially when it goes on sale. Thankfully, thanks to a Famitsu interview, it has been corrected that content added in the FES for the main game, will be in Reload (https://noisypixel.net/persona-3-reload-producer-clarifies-fes-story-will-be-featured/). Just not the Answer or Female MC. I've seen some of you saying they could be added as DLC. Spending a bit of time thinking on this, I feel like the Female MC won't be. As they said, this is a remake of the original, vanilla version. The Answer has a higher chance, but not good enough to be DLC too. I will not be surprised if they do have the budget and the resources to do so. It is Atlus. Overall I am still very happy to see P3 remade and modernized. Like this new fans that started with P5 can experience P3 with the quality of life improvements P5 has.

Before I move on to the last announced, and best, game, I'd like to give some thoughts on Persona 6. So far, on Tumblr anyway, I have not seen anyone talk about Persona 6 after these announcements. You may be wondering why I'm bringing this up. Well if you haven't noticed or didn't think further on it, who is the team working on Persona 3 Reload? P-Studio! The team formed in the early 2010s to work on the mainline Persona games and maybe whatever other Persona-related project they pitch to Atlus to work on. If I remember correctly in a recent video posted by IGN, they said they started development in late 2019. Basically, Persona 6 is still years off. Who knows, they might have a small group on the side working on pre-production. Either way it looks like we still have to wait a bit longer for the next mainline Persona.

Finally, we have the best game to be announced from the Xbox Showcase! Metaphor: ReFantazio! I am hyped, excited, happy! I thought this project was dead, but so happy to be wrong! Some of you newer Atlus fans might be confused on this game or never heard about it. Sometime after P5 launched in Japan, Katsura Hashino, and some other heavy hitters of Atlus, formed a new internal studio to work on non-Persona projects, as some of the members were part of P-studio. Their first game was teased as Project Re:Fantasy with some art shown years ago. And here it is, alive and well, now officially titled as Metaphor: ReFantazio! I love everything I saw in the trailer. If I am given the choice to only be able to buy and play only one of these three announced games, it will be Metaphor: ReFantazio.

[pierrotdameron]

Metaphor: ReFantazio — Announcement Trailer

Enter the mirror of reality… into the pinnacle of fantasy. ⚔️ Fight for the future in Metaphor: ReFantazio, releasing on Xbox Series X|S and Windows PC in 2024!

[dunderella]

i finally submitted my entry for the cid&clive anthology project on twitter! i drew an 🔞 comic titled "Back in My Arms", and its 16 pages of kemonomimi goodness 😊

[kulapti]

Heart eater. Nov 2023, acrylic paint & fountain pen ink.

[catartac]

Absolutely obsessed with crazy cat teacher Aelwyn so I’m working on a little wip

[myceliomancer]

Some recent Menagerie City writing:

Oh, and how Jun loved its cities, springing right up around the Painted Mahogany like an ant-nest. Well, they were forest people after all, and what is a city if not a forest? And Jun’s cities were true jungles, great filthy towering things where buildings grew on buildings like galls, roads twisted and knotted and self-cannibalised, churches and temples of all shapes and sizes desecrated each other and themselves; they were hot and noisy with a cacophony of different tongues, spilling their chaos outwards and upwards and downwards uncontrollably, drunkenly.

And it was here, in the noise and the rank, amidst the monkey-lords and the beggars and fortune-tellers and the restless dead and bankers and the vermin and the gods, that the Mahogany stood, unchanging and unmoving, and she grew quiet and she grew thoughtful.

[hecksupremechips]

re: udg reblog,

clearly the solution to “oh i love this but i don’t think anyone should play it” is to write a fic with only the good parts and none of the bad parts but then you have this big empty space where the bad parts were so you just make something up that seems vaguely believable

that seems like a normal thing normal people do right?

RIGHT?

It’s always correct and totally won’t ever lead to agony as you look at the canon and scream because my god how are you supposed to salvage something this stupid why are you doing this you used to be so normal and not care oh god why does attacking the little girl make her pants fly off oh god why is delta a character

[demifiendrsa]

Metaphor: ReFantazio — Xbox Announcement Trailer

Director Katsura Hashino Message

Metaphor: ReFantazio, previously known as PROJECT Re FANTASY, will launch for Xbox Series X|S and PC via Microsoft Store in Early 2024.

Title logo

Key visual

Screenshots

Overview

Write your destiny and rise above fear as you step into a fantasy world unlike anything you’ve seen before. Fraught with unsettling mystery, the kingdom stands on a precipice. Now, you must embark on a journey, overcoming obstacles and forging bonds with friends. From the creative minds of the Persona series—Metaphor: ReFantazio marks ATLUS’ first ever, full-scale fantasy RPG, brought to you by director Katsura Hashino, character designer Shigenori Soejima, and composer Shoji Meguro. Metaphor: Refantazio is developed by Studio Zero.

[satoshi-mochida]

PROJECT Re FANTASY revealed as Metaphor: ReFantazio for Xbox Series, PC

Gematsu Source

ATLUS has announced Metaphor: ReFantazio, the new title from the Katsura Hashino-led Studio Zero previously known as PROJECT Re FANTASY, for Xbox Series and PC (Microsoft Store). It will launch in 2024.

It should be noted that ATLUS has a history of announcing its games exclusively for Xbox and PC via Microsoft Store, before announcing them for other platforms later. Last year’s announcements of Persona 3 Portable, Persona 4 Golden, and Persona 5 Royal were exclusive to Xbox Series, Xbox One, and PC via Microsoft Store for 48 hours before they were confirmed for other platforms.

Watch the announcement trailer below. Visit the official website here: English, Japanese.

Announce Trailer

English

Japanese