GamesJRPGMetaphor: ReFantazioFor fantasy JRPG Metaphor: ReFantazio, Persona director gave himself a crash course featuring classics like The Lord of the Rings, but “if we tried to copy that it would just be a copy"When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.
GamesJRPGMetaphor: ReFantazioFor fantasy JRPG Metaphor: ReFantazio, Persona director gave himself a crash course featuring classics like The Lord of the Rings, but “if we tried to copy that it would just be a copy"When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.
When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.
(Image credit: Atlus / Sega)
Metaphor: ReFantazio’s fantasy world was created after director Katsura Hashino immersed himself in fantasy classics before designing it, although ultimately it sounds like this crash course had little impact on the final product.
In case you’ve missed the rave reviews, Atlus’s new JRPG Metaphor: ReFantazio is one of the year’s highest rated games on Metacritic currently, matching PlayStation’s hit platformerAstro Botfor the top spot. If we’re counting expansions,Elden Ring’sShadow of the ErdtreeDLC is the third game this year to reach that 94 Metascore.
“I realized that if we tried to imitate this in any way, in the characters or setting or world, it wouldn’t really reach the originals,” Hashino said. “If we tried to copy that it would just be a copy. So I thought: let’s try to make a fantasy game that only we can make.”
Ultimately, of course, everything Hashino and the team at Studio Zero did culminated in a new dark horse contender for Game of the Year. GamesRadar+‘sMetaphor: ReFantazio reviewslapped a tremendous 4.5 out of 5 stars on the game and called it “a triumphant evolution of Atlus’ best.”
Persona director and JRPG veteran says the amazing menus in Metaphor: ReFantazio were “really annoying” to make, just as Persona 5’s were “impossible to read at first”.
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1Nemesis review: “A magical sense of tension”
1Nemesis review: “A magical sense of tension”
1
Nemesis review: “A magical sense of tension”
2Arcs review: “A whole lot of game in a small package”
2Arcs review: “A whole lot of game in a small package”
2
Arcs review: “A whole lot of game in a small package”
3Path of Exile 2 review: “A stellar start to a thrilling and brutal dark adventure”
3Path of Exile 2 review: “A stellar start to a thrilling and brutal dark adventure”
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Path of Exile 2 review: “A stellar start to a thrilling and brutal dark adventure”
4Indiana Jones and the Great Circle review: “The best adventure Indy has embarked on in over 30 years”
4Indiana Jones and the Great Circle review: “The best adventure Indy has embarked on in over 30 years”
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5Marvel Rivals review: “So preoccupied with trying to be like Overwatch that it forgets to play to its own strengths”
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1Sonic the Hedgehog 3 review: “Keanu Reeves as Shadow is wasted whilst Jim Carrey steals the show”
1Sonic the Hedgehog 3 review: “Keanu Reeves as Shadow is wasted whilst Jim Carrey steals the show”
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2Mufasa: The Lion King review – “It’s no Hakuna Matata but this Disney origin story is a class above the 2019 movie”
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4The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim review – “An uninspired expansion of the most iconic screen take on Tolkien”
4The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim review – “An uninspired expansion of the most iconic screen take on Tolkien”
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4Creature Commandos review: “James Gunn’s heartwarming, R-rated tale about super-monsters proves that the DCU is in good hands”
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5Cobra Kai season 6, part 2 review: “Returns to the sort of hard-hitting form that made it such a fan favorite in the first place”
5
Cobra Kai season 6, part 2 review: “Returns to the sort of hard-hitting form that made it such a fan favorite in the first place”