Metaphor: ReFantazio merges Atlus’ expertise in creating emotionally resonant RPGs with stunning plot twists, an adventurous spirit, and whimsical idealism, culminating in one of its most remarkable games to date.
By Jessica CogswellTwitter on October 7, 2024 at 7:00AM PDT
In my younger years, I was advised to steer clear of two topics in polite discussion: religion and politics. These subjects, I was told, could spark divisions and disagreements. This perspective puzzled me even then. Politics and religion shape our worldview—they are our strongest institutions—yet we should avoid discussing them? That felt implausible. As I matured, I encountered numerous individuals who adhered to this guideline, along with countless others who feigned ignorance to the tension around them, even when the flames of conflict were all too visible. Feeling engulfed in such a fire can be profoundly isolating. Recently, I’ve grappled with a mix of profound anger, disappointment, and anxiety, verging on despair. In my quest for solace, it’s shocking to discover that I found it within a fantasy RPG.
Metaphor: ReFantazio brilliantly recognizes the significant influence of religion and politics on society and isn’t hesitant to engage in conversations that many would prefer to avoid. It also appreciates the vital role that fiction plays in shaping our core beliefs, treating that influence with deep respect. The game kicks off with its narrator posing a crucial question to the player: Do you believe that fantasy can incite genuine change? My heart responded affirmatively. Yet, an element of that underlying anxiety made me pause. In a world plagued by warfare, inequality, injustice, and hunger, what value do art, fiction, and fantasy hold? I remained uncertain. However, as the game unfolded, my conviction about the answer solidified.
Metaphor: ReFantazio is an engaging adventure game filled with captivating characters, poignant narratives, and enhanced elements characteristic of Atlus’ renowned gameplay, art style, turn-based combat, and expansive dungeons. This title is also deeply sincere, offering solace to those in need while encouraging players to remain hopeful for the future, their loved ones, and themselves. By the time I wrapped up my 80 hours with Metaphor, I felt lighter—almost rejuvenated. Its themes and myriad stories provided a sense of restoration, while the game’s environments transported me back to the RPGs of my youth—those that shaped my desire for friendship and grand adventures. Metaphor exemplifies Atlus at its finest and most heartfelt. It serves as a reminder of the idealist you once were, the person you aspire to be, and how fantasy can influence reality.
Set against the backdrop of the Kingdom of Euchronia, Metaphor: ReFantazio centers on a young boy whose original task—delivering a message to a northern contact about the rightful but comatose prince—morphs into a monumental quest. We learn early that the protagonist was a close friend of the prince and yearns to see him ascend the throne following his father’s mysterious demise. However, the prince has been afflicted by a curse, leaving him in a deep slumber until those few aware of his existence can devise a means to save him.
While the prince sleeps soundly, his kingdom is in turmoil. Enormous creatures, playfully dubbed Humans, rampage through villages reminiscent of scenes from Attack on Titan, while societal issues drive communities apart. Moments after the main character arrives in the capital, Grand Trad, he witnesses a series of public executions. Nearby, a canine-like Paripus—a member of one of the game’s tribes—pleads for coins. We soon discover that this tribe often suffers harsh treatment, complicating their ability to find decent employment or even coexist in cities dominated by more favored tribes. Our protagonist can relate, being an Elda, the most despised tribe of all. In fact, the country’s beliefs declare that his presence is an ill omen. Yet, despite his Eldan lineage, he resolves to undertake a daring feat: participating in the first-ever royal election to win the support of the citizens and reclaim the prince’s throne, all while getting closer to those who cursed him.
The journey that follows is unforgettable, offering exhilarating peaks, tender moments, heartbreaking losses, and plot twists that, even if anticipated, reveal themselves in surprising manners, fostering a sense of tension reflective of our heroes’ experiences. During discussions with Atlus developers earlier this year, they expressed their commitment to crafting a journey within Metaphor: ReFantazio. They executed this vision with enthusiasm, as navigating the world in your robust Gauntlet Runner—serving both as your means of travel and a second home—feels akin to embarking on a road trip with dear friends.
As you journey through new landscapes, numerous events and activities come into view, ensuring that the game’s straightforward navigation remains engaging and never makes you wish you had control over the vehicle. I found endless enjoyment in dueling with Strohl, listening to Heismay’s amusing laundry stories, and playing chess with Hulkenberg, each of which contributes to the enhancement of your social attributes. I particularly cherished the moments when Neuras—the Gauntlet Runner’s driver and head mechanic—would call out from below, urging us to come witness something intriguing. The group would then assemble to gaze upon a stunning sight, whether it be the heartbreaking remnants of a village destroyed by humans or a sea bustling with neon fish that appeared to float above the planet’s surface.
Undoubtedly, much of the narrative’s charm arises from its richly developed and well-voiced characters. I became quite fond of the honorable Strohl and couldn’t help but grin as Hulkenberg, a typically composed knight, devoured whatever local treat she could find in each city, much to the horror of her friends. Heismay emerged as a particularly poignant character, providing a heartbreaking backstory and many moments reminiscent of Uncle Iroh. In truth, there wasn’t a single one of the six fellow party members that I didn’t adore. Furthermore, even though I couldn’t stand him, the main antagonist, Louis, is undeniably a captivating villain, brimming with charisma, cleverness, and charm. It’s easy to see why he is so admired and feared, serving as an overwhelming force throughout the world. I also appreciated how several major characters initially take on seemingly minor roles, only to return later with more significant contributions, enhancing the game’s sense of life and progression.
Atlus also chose to give the protagonist of Metaphor a voice, a change for a studio that typically prefers the quiet hero archetype. The way he delivers certain lines injects a great deal of personality and humor into the game, which would otherwise be absent, significantly enriching the experience and making me genuinely invested in his quest to claim the throne and rescue his best friend. My sole criticism regarding the characters is my wish for additional voice acting, as some social interactions—unfortunately—are not fully voiced; it’s disappointing when the characters and actors are both so delightful.
Nonetheless, their narratives serve as exceptional conduits for the game’s overarching themes. While not particularly groundbreaking—fantasy and sci-fi have frequently served as mediums to explore social issues set apart from our reality—Metaphor: ReFantazio impressed me by focusing on sustained collective action and empathy, while also acknowledging that we may never truly discover how to “get things right.” The game addresses its themes and politics with thoughtfulness and sophistication, honoring the player’s intellect and steering clear of two major pitfalls: “everyone is correct/respectable and the world is entirely grey,” and “there is an indisputable right and wrong and you are the savior who establishes what is what.” It also successfully incorporates a sense of real-world context into the game, creating a metanarrative that emerges in unexpected ways, without overstaying its welcome or diminishing the overall experience.
The themes in this narrative are enhanced through various side stories, often revealed through social links, which delve deeper into the emotions of grief, prejudice, vengeance, and forgiveness. Throughout these tales, we observe characters as they attempt to navigate their existence in a world that has wronged them. What does it take to resist the pull of fear or hatred? How does one continue living when their motivation is stripped away? How can you contribute positively to the world when part of you desires to see it destroyed? Atlus has a history of tackling somber subjects, yet Metaphor: ReFantazio ventures into even more poignant territory than previously while maintaining a fittingly whimsical idealism throughout the experience.
This contrast is beautifully mirrored in the game’s visuals and soundtrack, which juxtaposes angelic choirs with delicate orchestral compositions and transitions to intense tracks featuring frantic chanting. The sound design evokes a transient ethereality and a sense of adventure while simultaneously hinting at themes of religious zeal and fanaticism—an ongoing motif in the narrative. It exudes a dynamic beauty, encapsulated by both its strangeness and intensity.
Metaphor’s artistic direction distinguishes itself from many titles by parting ways with Atlus’s previous reliance on a singular color to express thematic elements. This creative decision is particularly intriguing given the strong focus on the dichotomy between anxiety and hope, idealism and fanaticism. Rather than being confined to one hue, Metaphor embraces a vivid palette that includes raspberry pink, teal, aquamarine, a rich leafy green, and deep cornflower blue across its interface. The inclusion of splatter effects, fades, and distortions injects an aura of anxiety and turmoil into colors that, in isolation, might seem more tranquil. This approach works effectively: colors serve as motifs linked to specific characters, factions, and environments, fostering a sense of variety and movement that the Persona series, which tends to stay within a single setting, struggles to achieve. Initially, I harbored concerns that the abundance of visual effects and the game’s bold use of textures—most notably the misty film grain evident in many scenes—might prove distracting, but in practice, I found it quite appealing. The interplay of texture, floating particles, and grain creates an atmosphere thick with tension and magic.
It’s also important to highlight that Metaphor may represent Atlus’s most accomplished effort to seamlessly integrate fully animated cutscenes with in-game sequences. Admittedly, while the anime-inspired clips differ noticeably from the gameplay’s aesthetics, the game cleverly employs intriguing camera angles and aims for color harmony, bringing together the best aspects of both styles in a cohesive presentation.
Metaphor’s clever use of contrasting elements and themes ensures that every moment remains engaging while its captivating narrative steadily advances the plot. In fact, Metaphor may be the most well-paced game yet from the former Persona team. Although it employs numerous systems familiar to the Persona series, particularly its calendar, social links, and social stats, everything feels more purposeful; the activities for skill enhancement, social connections, and various side quests hold greater significance. This design erases the sensation of merely passing time or mechanically pursuing skill upgrades. Furthermore, the time frame provided for each mission feels perfectly balanced, allowing enough opportunity to accomplish everything if utilized wisely; I was neither rushed nor searching for tedious ways to fill time.
Typically, I am not inclined to pursue every side quest and bounty offered in a game, nor have I ever aimed to fuse every persona in past Persona titles. However, I found myself eagerly engaging with everything Metaphor presented, whether it involved defeating monsters, setting off on a quest to find a magical toothbrush, exploring dungeons, or carefully developing a character’s Archetype tree. The experience is enhanced by how streamlined yet thoroughly developed everything feels. Dungeons are thoughtfully designed and contain minor puzzles that make them more memorable than those encountered in the Persona series. While there are fewer social links and, to my initial disappointment, none that involve romance, I eventually appreciated this choice. It leads to relationships feeling more authentic and less transactional, reinforcing the idea of fostering connections to gain both insight and the rewards of companionship.
Many of the advantages of the Archetype system become evident, which, despite initial worries, bears no resemblance to Atlus’ Persona system. Archetypes function more like job roles, enabling each character to master any of the game’s 30 or so classes. Social links are intricately connected to this structure, as it is your allies who ultimately unlock new Archetypes and provide you with the capacity to mix spells and abilities across different classes. You can enhance your classes using magla, or MAG—a currency acquired through various gameplay activities, including combat or interactions—allowing you to buy new classes or transfer known skills to another Archetype. It was immensely satisfying to have a nimble Ninja capable of wielding powerful black magic or a sturdy Knight able to heal the entire party. I was truly impressed by how brilliantly this system is integrated within the game’s context, highlighting how, fundamentally, Metaphor is a fairy tale that uses literary archetypes and established narratives to communicate its themes. Atlus excels at subtly weaving literature and Jungian psychology into the gameplay.
The combat in this game may represent the finest iteration of turn-based battles that Atlus has ever crafted, offering flexibility while demanding greater strategic thinking than before. Turn counters float like stars in the top left corner of the screen. Landing critical hits or exploiting an enemy’s weaknesses consumes only half a star, allowing you to strike an enemy up to eight times before they can retaliate, assuming you play your cards right. This feature proves advantageous, as concluding an encounter without taking damage rewards you with a considerable Unscathed Battle bonus. If you’re like me and strive to emerge unscathed, you can quickly reset the battle with a single button press, enabling you to explore various strategies and uncover an enemy’s vulnerabilities.
Every character in your party has the ability to team up with another member to activate formidable Synergy abilities. These abilities are influenced by the chosen classes rather than the specific characters, allowing for an engaging strategy where you can rotate party members within a single turn. Typically, these abilities require two to three turn counters to utilize effectively. However, striking an enemy’s weakness while executing these abilities enables you to inflict substantial damage while conserving your turns. Enemies operate with their own turn counters, and through experimentation, you can discover ways to turn their mechanics to your advantage. It was immensely gratifying to witness the resilient Hulkenberg taunt an opponent and then leverage her exceptional capability to repel attacks, causing the enemy to forfeit all of its turns.
As someone who appreciates and advocates for turn-based combat, I acknowledge the gradual shift towards action-oriented gameplay. Nonetheless, I can recognize certain flaws in this system; grinding through battles can prove tedious, particularly when you are made to wait for both entry and exit from a fight, while also feeling pressured to spend MP on lesser foes when a formidable boss is lurking nearby. Metaphor offers a solution to these frustrations by allowing you to engage with enemies while exploring dungeons. When you hit a certain level, particular enemies will be surrounded by a blue aura, indicating that you can defeat them without formally entering into combat and still earn experience, MAG, and gold from that encounter. Sneaking up on a powerful monster or delivering enough strikes to defeat it before it can retaliate grants you significant advantages at the start of each battle. This advantage can be crucial, especially since some of the encounters in the game are quite challenging. Thankfully, the game allows you to modify the difficulty at any moment, a feature I admittedly relied on to conquer specific optional endgame bosses with formidable mechanics and attacks.
In a remarkable way, Metaphor: ReFantazio surpasses the mere sum of its parts, with each individual element crafted with precision. The entire experience was transformative for me, blending novelty with familiarity—offering a modern yet nostalgic feel reminiscent of the fantasy RPGs I enjoyed for countless hours on my classic grey PlayStation. Most importantly, it served as a poignant reminder that we cannot afford to lose hope. Though it may sound trivial or cliché at times, it holds true; it certainly doesn’t extinguish the fires ravaging the world. It instilled in me the understanding that succumbing to despair and fear benefits no one, not even ourselves. The game reinforced the idea that fantasy and storytelling hold significant power—words and narratives can inspire and provide solace, aspects that are essential to nurture. Ultimately, it reminded me that the evidence of goodness in the world can be us, and this realization marks a positive beginning.
