Here come the buffs!
Fresh off the release of the trailer for Makoto Niijima, Atlus has dropped another video reintroducing us to Persona 5 Royal‘s posse The Phantom Thieves. Today sees the spotlight shine on one of the JRPG’s most popular – if not the most popular – characters, Futaba Sakura.
The severely-troubled teen is introduced midway through Persona 5‘s marathon narrative. At first she seems to be a problematic blackmailer, but upon deducing her identity, The Phantom Thieves learn of the master hacker’s plight, leading to one of Persona 5‘s more tragic and upsetting arcs. Eventually taking her spot as the team’s navigator, the newly-monikered “Oracle” offers logistical advice, status updates and buffs in battle.
Outside of the fight, Futaba has easily one of the most fulfilling “Social Link” stories presented in Persona 5, as she comes to terms with her upsetting past, as well as the social anxiety and crippling agoraphobia that confines her to her dimly-lit bedroom, where she views her lonely world through the monitor. Combined with the social link story of her guardian Sojiro, Futaba’s narrative is arguably the best in the entire game.
In the new trailer, we see Futaba – in cute new winter gear – visiting a cafe with Joker, and hanging with the whole gang in full kimono getup. We also see the debut of her all-new All-Out Attack, which ends with a very cool piece of artwork. No doubt the cheeky genius’ expanded role in Royal will make her fanbase very happy.
Persona 5 Royal launches in Japan on PS4 October 31, before heading west sometime in 2020.
