5 Things That Set Metaphor: ReFantazio Apart From Shin Megami Tensei (2025)

Initial reactions have shown that however high the expectations for Metaphor: ReFantazio were, the end product has surpassed them, showcasing a game that has all the makings of a classic that will be remembered for years to come. Metaphor: ReFantazio has the perfect combination of high fantasy wanderlust and genuinely innovative gameplay mechanics to draw fans of RPGs, JRPGs, and narrative-focused titles together.

But this is not Atlus' first hit. Indeed, it's not even Atlus' first genre-defining title. Among the many games that make Atlus stand out, Shin Megami Tensei is perhaps its flagship, the enduring game series that has a plethora of mainline and spin-off successes. Metaphoir: ReFantazio bears the maker's mark of Atlus through its similarities to this monolithic demon-capturing title, but there is also a good number of differences between the modern classic and the Shin Megami Tensei games.

5 The Fantasy Setting

Euchronia Is A Distant Departure From Tokyo

Both the Shin Megami Tensei games and their flamboyant younger sibling series, Persona, have a special connection to Tokyo. That connection is, in essence, that all the games take place there. Perhaps this is just Atlus taking a 'write what you know' approach to setting design, or the team knowing their intimately designed articulations of Tokyo (or of a gruesome, demonic version of Tokyo) are part of the massive draw their games have.

Metaphor: ReFantazio takes a very different approach, basing itself in a fantasy realm known as Euchronia, comprised of various Tribes. Each Tribe is an entirely unique collection of peoples and cultures, and as focused as Shin Megami Tensei's settings are, the geographical and cultural diversity in Metaphor: ReFantazio is one of the game's biggest strengths.

4 The Combat System

ReFantazio Departs From Turn-Based Combat, But Remains Close By

Turn-based combat has been a pillar of Shin Megami Tensei since its original title on the Super Famicon. Though the series' combat has evolved considerably since then, there are a handful of concepts and gameplay principles that have remained the same since these early days. Combat is based around a very complicated game of scissors-paper-rock, where elemental strengths, affinities, and weaknesses can give players a massive boost or setback in each battle. This is one of the ingredients that goes into Shin Megami Tensei having a handful of incredibly difficult titles.

In ReFantazio, combat begins in the overworld as a real-time affair. Attacks don't necessarily deplete enemy HP at first, but it does deplete their break gauge, which if depleted entirely, leaves them stunned and open to high damage once more traditional turn-based, affinity-focused combat begins. This adds a level of vitality and dynamism to Metaphor: ReFantazio's combat while retaining the tactical nature of combat Atlus games are known for.

3 The Emphasis On Companions

Shin Megami Tensei Is Usually A Solitary Affair - Not So With ReFantazio

Shin Megami Tensei games are usually terse affairs. It's all very grim, and philosophical, and fantastic. Each game has a handful of memorable characters, usually in the form of the increasingly unhinged Atlus remake girl, or in someone that's especially vocal and eloquent regarding their philosophical views. In general however, even in games where companions can be valuable supporters like Apocalypse, the moral alignment of the character is far more important than their individual relationships with these characters - it's just necessary for the story these games are trying to tell.

Metaphor: ReFantazio lets players prioritize companions to spend time and develop bonds with, increasing their favor towards the protagonist and effectiveness in battle. This system falls more in line with the Persona games, albeit with an important omission of romance as a possibility. This is once again endemic of the story Atlus is trying to tell, capturing the grandeur of a ruler accruing followers, not the joy of young love and relationships.

2 The World Navigation

The Gauntlet Or Magatsuhi Rails - They're Both Cool

Shin Megami Tensei has never really been an open world series. Some of the newer titles, such as Apocalypse and Vengeance have been semi-open world, holding a handful of expansive areas to explore, each walled off as its own individual zone. This harkens back to older titles as well, such as the different tiers of the Schwarzwelt in Shin Megami Tensei: Strange Journey Redux. Traversal within these zones often speeds up, returning to older areas or discovering new ones, such as Vengeance's magatsuhi rails.

The airship known as the Gauntlet in Metaphor: ReFantazio instead serves as a vehicle to take the player to various regions across the kingdom, and beyond this, to the individual dungeons within and around these regions, that tend to take priority over the singular zones found in Shin Megami Tensei titles.

1 The Class System

ReFantazio Reframes A Classic RPG System

In terms of Shin Megami Tensei 's class system, there is no class system. Players can choose to specialize into certain skills by allocating their stats accordingly with every level up, but their demon party members have their own preset attributes that raise on every level up. Some games like Strange Journey let players specialize into magic despite the protagonist never learning a single magic skill, which is a very reasonable and human-oriented design choice.

Metaphor: ReFantazio takes a more focused approach to Persona's archetype system, with its namesake in ReFantazio comprising 46 Archetypes across 15 classes. These classes mix Atlus flare with classic high fantasy roles.

Metaphor: ReFantazio

RPG

Systems

OpenCritic Reviews

Platform(s)

PS4 , PS5 , PC , Xbox Series X , Xbox Series S

Released

October 11, 2024

Developer(s)

Studio Zero

Publisher(s)

Atlus