Persona 5 is a role-playing video game where the player takes on the role of a male high school student, codenamed Joker, who lives out a single year while attending school in modern-day Tokyo. The game is governed by a day-night cycle and weather systems that determine general behavior, similar to a social simulation game. The year is punctuated by scripted and random events as Joker attends school, and outside of school he can have part-time jobs, pursue leisure activities, or create battle items.[1][2][3][4] Joker's activities in the real world affect his social statistics; increasing these values grants additional activities and options.[5] When in the real world, Joker can develop character relationships known as "Confidants"; an evolution of the "Social Link" system from Persona 3 and Persona 4. With this system, he can converse with and improve his relationship with other characters he meets, with some leading to possible romances. Improving Confidant ranks with party members unlocks various abilities for use in combat.[3] Improving ranks with non-party Confidants grants other bonuses, such as access to new equipment or boosting experience point gains.[3]
Alongside the normal school life is dungeon crawling gameplay of two different types within a realm called the Metaverse: story-specific dungeons called Palaces and a randomly-generated dungeon called Mementos. Both are populated by Shadows, physical manifestations of suppressed psyches modeled after mythological and religious figures. Within the dungeons of Mementos, the party can fulfill quests received from Confidants and other non-player characters.[1][3][4][6] While navigating, the party can use stealth to avoid enemy Shadows, and some areas hold puzzles that can be solved using Joker's "Third Eye" ability,[7] which highlights interactable objects and enemy strength.[8] Throughout Palaces are locations known as "Safe Rooms", where the player can save their game and fast travel to other safe rooms within the Palace.[9]