In the last few years, the cultural gravitas ofPersona 5has been a frequent talking point. Somehow,Persona 5just keeps providing influence that it’s an extraordinarily influential game. ThePersonafranchise definitely owes a lot to this best-selling mainline entry, which brought in tons of newPersonafans and enabled a very innovative spinoff in the form ofPersona 5 Strikers.Beyond thePersonafranchise, thePersona 5cast of characters keeps cropping up in other places, spreading the word about the series and letting fans show their love of the Phantom Thieves. At Gamescom 2021,Persona 5fans learned that there’s yet another game crossing over withPersona 5.
Super Monkey Ball: Banana Maniakeeps announcing guest characters lately. As a Sega product, it has access to a lot of beloved characters, so it’s not surprising that Sonic the Hedgehog and Beat fromJet Set Radioare making appearances inBanana Mania.Atlus, the creator of thePersonaseries, also belongs to the Sega family of studios. Therefore, it’s not too surprising to see Morgana fromPersona 5as the latest guest character announced forBanana Mania.Persona 5and the Phantom Thieves just keep cropping up all over the place, making them seem more and more like a mainstay than a temporary high point inPersonahistory.
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Persona 5’s Morgana is Perfect for Super Monkey Ball
Of all thePersona 5characters that Sega could’ve invited to joinSuper Monkey Ball: Banana Mania,Morgana was definitely a great choice. The Phantom Thieves' proud, adorable, catlike companion through the Metaverse happens to already be a very small individual, making him easy to put in a ball and roll around. His inherent cuteness also makes him look totally at home next to AiAi andSuper Monkey Ball’s other charming animal characters. A human Phantom Thief shrunk down toSuper Monkey Ballsize would’ve worked too, but Morgana is already just right.
In the broader scope ofSuper Monkey Ball, Persona,and Sega properties, Morgana is a good choice in general. On the whole, Sega seems determined to advertise its most popular franchises through the guest characters inSuper Monkey Ball: Banana Mania.That means Sonic is a shoo-in, as istheYakuzaseries' Kazuma Kiryu. However,Personais more popular than ever because ofPersona 5’s international success. Morgana’s inclusion inBanana Maniashows that Sega is more than happy to acknowledge thatPersona 5’s Phantom Thieves are now classic characters that Sega and Atlus can use to their benefit for as long as they like.
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Persona 5 Seems Like It’s Here to Stay
ThePersona 5crossover withSuper Monkey Balldoes perhaps suggest that Sega and Atlus aren’t done working with thePersona 5IP. It’s been quite some time since the most recent title in thePersona 5family of games released, but Atlus' parent company seems determined to celebratePersona 5anyway. It certainly could’ve opted for a character from anotherPersonagame if theBanana Maniaslot was simply meant tocelebratePersona’s 25th anniversary in 2021. Since Sega opted to pick Morgana specifically, it seems interested in adding to ongoing excitement for and interest in thePersona 5cast.
ManyPersonafans want to know what’s next for the Phantom Thieves, if anything. Atlus promises it’ll announce a ton ofPersonaprojects in September 2021, which makes odds high that there’s one more adventure for the Phantom Thieves on the way. That seems especially likely considering the fact thatPersona 6seems far away for now. Although the Phantom Thieves have already been the faces of thePersonaseries for about five years, they’ve still got more than enough charisma and personality to keepPersonagoing untilPersona 6is ready. Hopefully, Morgana’sSuper Monkey Ballappearance suggests thatPersona 5will stick around for a little longer.
Persona 5is available now for PS3 and PS4.
