Pokémon, as a series, has mostly been exclusive to Nintendo platforms. Since releasing on the original Game Boy back in 1996, the series has been a massive title for Nintendo, ushering in a new style of RPG gameplay where the player character not only fights monsters but also captures them to use in future battles. This style of gameplay created an incredibly fun gameplay loop and encouraged players to collect all the Pokémon with a "gotta catch 'em all" mentality. Unfortunately, players without a Nintendo device never quite had an alternative to Pokémon on other consoles.
In recent years, there have been several indie games that have borrowed the monster-catching battles from Pokémon, but most have been released on PC with few making their way to consoles. While those games were never quite the same as classic Pokémon, they did provide an alternative for fans who wanted a Pokémon-like experience. However, several Xbox fans were still out of luck because most of the indie Pokémon-inspired games that eventually came to consoles usually appeared on PlayStation rather than Xbox. On top of that, the quality varied from game to game. However, that may have just changed with the release of Persona 5 Royal on Xbox.
Persona Shares the "Gotta Catch 'Em All" Mentality of Pokémon
Obviously, Persona 5 and the other entries in the series are not exact clones of Pokémon. Persona has a much larger focus on story, time management, and more mature themes, but the gameplay of the series puts a heavy emphasis on capturing monsters. Both games feature a wide variety of creatures to capture and collect, and they each have their own special powers and abilities that are effective against other monsters. Despite executing this design differently, Persona 5 Royal still encourages the player to capture monsters and experiment with different monsters' abilities. While Persona's parent series, Shin Megami Tensei, focuses much more on capturing monsters, Persona still features it heavily.
Xbox has never had a wide variety of JRPGs, so Persona 5 Royal is a great JRPG to have as well as a good Pokémon substitute. Players on Xbox who have always wanted to check out Pokémon or wished the series would release on multiple consoles will have a warm welcome waiting in Persona. It will enthrall players in a deep and mature story while also giving fans the monster-battling mechanics that appear in the Pokémon series. Fans will be able to "catch 'em all" while also traveling through a more traditional JRPG experience.
Will Personal 5 Royal be a perfect Pokémon substitute or replacement? The answer is no -- there are complete tonal differences, and each game has different priorities than the other. However, if an Xbox player loves the monster-capturing combat of Pokémon, but they don't have a way to play anything similar on Xbox, Person 5 Royal will be a safe bet. It takes that core gameplay element and puts a fun and engaging twist on it that's perfect for more mature players. It provides a fun experience with a gripping story, and it will certainly scratch that Pokémon itch.
Pokémon might never release outside of Nintendo consoles, and despite a few games attempting to create a similar style of game, no one has been able to recreate the success of Pokémon. It's possible no one ever will, but Persona is able to borrow some of Pokémon's ideas and use them to create something brand-new. The Xbox may not have many Pokémon or JRPG alternatives, but the ones that it does have are some of the best.