Atlus’ mega-smash JRPG hit Persona 5 saw unprecedented success for the company when it was first released in 2016. With commercial sales high and critical praises never-ending, it made sense for Atlus to capitalize on the success and keep the franchise going. But while the company has seen success with follow-up titles like Persona 5 Royal, the enhanced version of the original game, and Persona 5 Scramble, an official sequel to the game, there is one title in the Persona 5 series that has been a big disappointment to critics and fans alike - Persona 5: Dancing in Starlight.
A Brief History of the Persona Rhythm Games
Lack of Songs
While Dancing All Night and Dancing in Moonlight featured songs from various titles within Persona 3 and 4’s respective series, Dancing in Starlight only features songs from Persona 5, as that was the only game in the series at the time of release.
There’s no doubt that Persona 5 contains a number of bops, like “Last Surprise” or “Rivers in the Desert.” But given the amount of great music that has accompanied Persona 5 Royal and Persona 5 Scramble, it’s unfortunate that players will never have the opportunity to dance to any of the songs from other games, like Royal’s “Take Over” or Scramble’s “You Are Stronger.”
Missed Character Opportunities
Additionally, Dancing in Starlight features the eight main Phantom Thieves from Persona 5, but both Royal and Scramble introduced new characters who could’ve easily been great additions to the dancing roster.
Take Kasumi, the playable Phantom Thief character in Persona 5 Royal. She’s a gymnast, who even shows off her dancing moves in a cute cutscene in the game. Sure, Haru once studied ballet, and Ann’s modeling background is helpful - but Kasumi is a literal dancer. She should’ve been in the game! Or what about Sophia, the tiny and adorable red-haired AI from Scramble? If Morgana can have his moment to get down in the club, Sophia should’ve had her moment too!
Why The Rush?
So why didn’t Atlus wait? It’s probably because, compared to all the other planned games in the Persona 5 series, it was the quickest one to make. In their eyes, the rhythm game was likely an easy cash grab they wanted to jump on, especially after the unprecedented and international success of Persona 5, something that Atlus hadn’t seen with any other of their past titles in the entire Persona and Shin Megami Tensei series.
While it’s entirely possible the characters from Royal, Scramble, and any other future Persona 5 games could be added as DLC in the future, Atlus should have trusted its fans, not been so greedy, and taken the time to make sure Dancing in Starlight could reach its full potential.
Persona 5: Dancing In Starlight is available now for the PlayStation 4 and PlayStation Vita.
