Persona Fans Should Keep an Eye on New Kickstarter Game

28.02.2024 - 23:12 / gamerant.com / Dominik Bo / Nintendo

Indie RPG Bestiario is confirmed to be coming to PC and a variety of consoles following an immensely successful Kickstarter campaign. The still-ongoing crowdfunding effort has seen the game hit its Kickstarter pledge target almost four times over with the promise of Persona-like gameplay in a setting inspired by Spanish mythology.

While games that scratch the Persona itch do exist, those that actively borrow multiple elements from the seminal franchise are a much rarer breed. Other than the 2015 Tokyo Xanadu and 2023 Eternights, there haven't been that many attempts at capturing the magic of Atlus's JRPG formula.

Bestiario seeks to do just that, with its developers at Spanish studio Wiggin Industries promising a mixture of turn-based combat, time management revolving around a calendar system, and dating sim elements. The Bestiario Kickstarter campaign has raised the equivalent of over $207,000 from more than 4,400 backers as of February 28, thus hitting its $54,000 (€50,000) funding target nearly four times over with three days to spare. This Persona-like indie game is currently aiming for a December 2026 release, but as tends to be the case in all remotely complex software development, that time frame is far from firm.

For the remaining duration of the crowdfunding campaign, gamers interested in supporting the project can secure the promise of a digital copy of Bestiario for their platform of choice by pledging the equivalent of $22 (€20). The game's list of target platforms is rather comprehensive, comprising the PS5, Xbox Series X/S, Switch, and PC. Wiggin Industries even vowed to bring Bestiario to the still-unannounced Nintendo Switch 2. Meanwhile, the PC version of the RPG is meant to be treated to a simultaneous launch on both Steam and Epic Games Store. The Barcelona-based developer is planning a limited physical release for consoles.

Other than its clean art style and the promise of a «mature adventure,» one of Bestiario's standout features is its fantastical world inspired by Iberian mythology. The game's story is said to take place across Europe, but will seemingly be focused on Spain. Wiggin Industries said it's aiming to deliver an experience that will take around 30 to 40 hours to beat for completionists. Bestiario's story-to-side-quest ratio is currently unconfirmed, but the game shouldn't be lacking in optional content, with the developer promising everything from conventional side quests to activities like Chinchón, a traditional Spanish matching card game.

The indie studio said that Bestiario should soon be available to wishlist on Steam, as it's currently awaiting approval from Valve to list the game on the company's digital storefront. On a related note, the upcoming RPG has also been