Even though the series has reached peak popularity with its fifth entry, thePersonafranchise has been around as long as many other long-running JRPGs. The games never really had a solid footing in western audiences until recent years, butPersonahas seen great success in its home market of Japan. But with a more global audience,Personahas become quite a more mainstream JRPG thanks to the Phantom Thieves modernizing the franchise.
Now thatPersonahas reached a new peak in popularity with a more diverse audience worldwide, there’s plenty of ways the series can evolve or change over time.Persona 6is rumored to be in the works, presumably for PS5, which sets up a whole new avenue for the franchise. Opening up romances to all sexual orientations and emphasizing more customization for the game’s protagonist, there’s plenty of ways for the franchise to lean further into encouraging more player freedom. Perhaps the most impactful change the developer can make is something the series has experimented with before: making a mainlinePersonagame with a female protagonist.
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Women in the Persona Series
Every mainlinePersonagame has had a straight male protagonist as the player’s main character. Spin-off games likePersona 2: Eternal Punishmenthave had a female protagonist for additional stories, but never for a mainlinePersonaentry. The closestPersonahas come to afemale lead character was inPersona 3 Portable, but even then it was only a gender choice and the canon character is still male. Traditionally games with social simulator or dating aspects likePersonahave starred a male protagonist simply because of preconceived demographics and the status quo of the time. It’s not necessarily a bad thing for existingPersonagames, and the gameplay experience isn’t lesser for it. But consideringPersona 5modernized the series in a big way, why not further evolve the series and improve inclusivity for everyone?
Previously,Persona 5’s director Katsura Hashinohas discussed the potential addition of a female main character in the series, but Hashino’s response was disappointing. In the context ofPersona 5, Hashino had stated that adding a female protagonist option in the game would be “not worth it,” likely citing the additional writing and scripting required to adjust for gender differences. Hashino also stated that the narrative inPersona 4andPersona 5"seemed more natural for a male character to fulfill that role" in each game. It’s a disappointing take, one that’s hopefully remedied now thatPersonahas received significant mainstream acclaim.
Persona 6: Why it is “Worth It”
EachPersonagame’s general structureis almost exactly the same, so there’s no realistic reason why a female protagonist couldn’t find themselves in a similar situation. The main protagonist of aPersonagame is typically an outcast in a high school social situation, forced to tackle a hasty coming-of-age with the support of their friends around them. Based on the core concepts alone, there’s no reason why a female protagonist could not handle the trauma, progression, and growth that a male main character could. This makes the comment coming fromPersona’s director a bit strange because it is in spite of the franchise’s several examples of genuinely strong female characters.
Games in other franchises have welcomed female protagonists and/or gender choices for the main character with open arms. In the past, several developers had made arguments before that developing female characters would have “doubled the work,” as made famous byAssassin’s Creed Unity’s controversy. Since then, Ubisoft andAssassin’s Creedhas made huge steps in that regard, even making the female main character Kassandra the canon choice forAssassin’s Creed Odyssey. Not to mention she’s the better written, better performed character in comparison to Alexios.
Dishonored 2also championed the female protagonist even further, providing a gender choice between Corvo and Emily, but also making their abilities and playstyles vastly different.Horizon Zero Dawnsolely featured a female main character, and was one of the most critically acclaimed and highest selling PS4 games this generation. Not to mention countless TV shows and films likeLadybirdthat have proven a coming-of-age story is not exclusive or only relatable to men. There’s no empirical reason whyPersona, a video game series all about the growing confidence and expression of a teenager, wouldn’t be “worth it” to feature a female protagonist. Even if the game is about using various mythical beings to battle selfish adults manifested as monsters, that’s just a method of delivery for the same core narrative.
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Persona’s Future
Video games, from a thematic and narrative standpoint, have evolved and improved drastically in the last few decades. Female leads in games has never even really been some kind of caveat or exception.FuturePersonatitlesshould look story-driven adventures and other RPGs for inspiration, and understand that not every corePersonatitle has to feature a male lead. Even if a gender choice is the more preferable design decision, cutting content for the sake of a male lead due to perceived development complications is not a valid excuse anymore. Plenty of games have proven a female protagonist is as relatable and capable as any male main character. ThePersonaseries is capable of crafting inspirational and intelligently written female characters, so it’s time for them to take the leading role.
Persona 6is rumored to be in development.
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