Persona 5
A JRPG mixing high school life with dungeon crawling.
Where Persona 5 comes up2 episodes and tests
Gcreator of Game Maker's Toolkit testThe 100 Games That Taught Me Game Design
Gcreator of Game Maker's Toolkit testWhy is it so hard to make game design decisions? (Developing 3)- Friends are partners and party members
- Switching helps the game's pacing
- Cost: jarring for one-half fans
- Forces switching between two games
- Puzzle fans put off by platforming
- Speedrunners slowed by puzzles
Mark Brown calls life sim plus JRPG acceptable
From Mark Brown on genre mixing
What was said about Persona 5
Persona 5 alternates a life sim with a dungeon RPG to pace play. Moving between the high school life sim and the dungeon crawl helps the game's pacing. Friends do double duty as social partners in the life sim and as party members in dungeons.
The cost is that jumping between the two genres can feel jarring for players who like only one half.
Persona 5 is held up as a genre mix that works. Mark Brown names life sim plus JRPG as an acceptable combination. He contrasts it with a platformer-puzzle mix, which would force players to switch between two different games.
His reasoning is that puzzle fans get put off by platforming demands and speedrunners get slowed by puzzles. He says making one part optional is only a way of deluding yourself. He compares a bad mix to a Super Meat Boy level that suddenly becomes chess: "This is like playing Super Meat Boy and then suddenly having a level where you have to play a round of chess."
The 100 Games That Taught Me Game Design
It alternates a life sim with a dungeon RPG, which helps pacing, and friends serve as both social partners and party members. Jumping between genres can feel jarring if you like only one half.
Persona 5 alternates a life sim with a dungeon RPG to pace play. Moving between the high school life sim and the dungeon crawl helps the game's pacing. Friends do double duty as social partners in the life sim and as party members in dungeons.
The cost is that jumping between the two genres can feel jarring for players who like only one half.
Why is it so hard to make game design decisions? (Developing 3)
It mixes a life sim and a JRPG, but a platformer-puzzle mix would force players to switch between two different games.
Persona 5 is held up as a genre mix that works. Mark Brown names life sim plus JRPG as an acceptable combination. He contrasts it with a platformer-puzzle mix, which would force players to switch between two different games.
His reasoning is that puzzle fans get put off by platforming demands and speedrunners get slowed by puzzles. He says making one part optional is only a way of deluding yourself. He compares a bad mix to a Super Meat Boy level that suddenly becomes chess: "This is like playing Super Meat Boy and then suddenly having a level where you have to play a round of chess."
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