Soon the Phantom Thieves of Hearts return to experience another exciting adventure: In cooperation with Koei Tecmo and Omega Force, Atlus is working on the brand new action RPG Persona 5 Scramble: The Phantom Strikers, which will be available in Japan for Nintendo Switch and PlayStation 4 from 20 February 2020. Lastly, we got a rough overview of the history and game structure – this time Joker and Co. will be playing all over Japan during their summer holidays – but in the current, extensive wave of information, the developers reveal in more detail how the project came about and what fans can especially look forward to. Based on all the recently shared details, we’ve summarized everything important for you.

Common cause

Originally Persona 5 Scramble: The Phantom Strikers was initiated by the team at Koei Tecmo. Atlus was not averse to the project either – after all, fans have been showing interest in a Musou spin-off of the Persona series for quite some time – and got the development rolling. The game uses a Koei Tecmo engine, which should differ from the original game in some aspects. Nevertheless, some character models from Persona 5 have been adopted for the action RPG, others have been rebuilt from scratch. Omega Force, the responsible development team within Koei Tecmo, is supposed to have some passionate Persona fans working for them, who are currently giving the necessary fine-tuning. The development should be completed to 90% at the moment. The developers want Persona 5 Scramble: The Phantom Strikers to be recognized as a game in the Persona 5 series.

By camper trough Japan

Despite the action-heavy nature of the game, the plot is a big focus of Persona 5 Scramble: The Phantom Strikers. The story begins six months after the events of Persona 5 and tells of an unforgettable summer for the Phantom Thieves of Hearts. After the group reunites, they get involved in a mysterious incident and learn about the return of the palaces as they were found in Persona 5.

To get to the bottom of the mystery, the Phantom Thieves travel through Japan and stop at different places. Atlus hopes to use this story to show aspects of the characters that have not been dealt with before. Character development is an important key word. Players should also learn what is relevant in the life of the Phantom Thieves. Makoto and Haru, for example, are now students at a university.



© Atlus / SEGA / Koei Tecmo

In order to be able to represent the trip to Japan in an authentic way, Atlus recommended that the developers travel around Japan by camper. Developers say this venture was not always easy for them, but overall it was an educational experience. The story concept was proposed by Koei Tecmo and gradually developed in consultation with the Persona team. In retrospect, the first draft is nothing compared to the final product, Famitsu magazine laughs.

Along the way, Joker and company will also find new faces. Sophia, codenamed Sophie, is the newest member of Phantom Thieves of Hearts. She offers her help in the hope of making friends with people. She comes from another world, which raises many questions. In combat, she attacks with two yo-yos and controls a being named Pithos, who takes on the role of her persona. Another new figure is Hasegawa Zenkichi, a commissioner who is hunting the ghost thieves. Both characters play important roles in the story.

Action gameplay – wild but elegant

During a live broadcast, Atlus last presented the first gameplay material for Persona 5 Scramble: The Phantom Strikers. The PlayStation 4 version of the game was introduced, so potentially expect differences from the Nintendo Switch version. Before naming and explaining some game systems, let’s take a look at the video. The relevant scenes start at 31:32 minutes and 1:29:39 hours.

As is common in Musou games from Koei Tecmo and Omega Force, characters perform various combo attacks through a combination of weak and strong attacks. In Persona 5 Scramble: The Phantom Strikers, however, it’s not only beating but also shooting. Each Phantom Thief comes with his own firearm. Of course, the title-giving persona will also be helpful in the fight. In general, the persona determines the possible attacks and the attack surface. While a character can usually only lead one persona, Joker has the choice between several.

When selecting Attack or Persona, time stops and you can view details of the attack as well as analyze enemy strengths and weaknesses. This is something that was skeptical at first, but is now being well received. Tactics are sometimes actually necessary, because according to the developers, players can’t blindly fight their way through the masses of enemies, but have to develop a real strategy and use all the skills available to them. However, if you are overwhelmed by this or just want to experience the story, you can switch to the simple difficulty level at any time.



© Atlus / SEGA / Koei Tecmo