Each character in Persona 5: Royal's main cast stands out in their own way. For characters with such special personalities, it was imperative for their character designs to capture them just right. After all, would Ann be the same without her giant pigtails? Would Joker give off the same vibes without his messy black hair and slightly oversized glasses?

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Character designers usually go through several concepts to figure out how the characters' personalities can be expressed just through their appearance, and Persona 5: Royal's artists nailed it, but only after much iteration. This means the characters you love could have looked much different.

10 Joker

Concept art via Shigenori Soejima, official art via Masayoshi Suto and Shigenori Soejima

Being the face of the game, it makes sense that Joker would have gone through a few different designs before settling on the final one. One of the concept ideas had small doodles of a woman, so there seems to be a chance that Atlus thought of going with a female protagonist at one point in development.

Hair can tell a lot about a person, and two of the three pieces of concept art give Joker a hairstyle that makes him look unassuming. However, there was also a concept of him having longer, more unkempt hair, making him look more outwardly rebellious. The school uniform in one of the images even looks more like Yusuke's bedraggled school uniform.

9 Morgana

Concept art via Shigenori Soejima, official art via Masayoshi Suto and Shigenori Soejima

Some people may assume Morgana is a girl at first, as "Morgana" is a name typically given to girls. And looking at the initial concepts, the developers might have been thinking of making this feline fella a girl too at first. Some of his original concept design shows a taller and more curvy cat than the round and small Morgana we know.

The eyes were also red and had spiral symbols on them, perhaps as a reminder of Mementos. However, his trust slingshot and dapper yellow scarf seem to have been a thing since the beginning, though.

8 Ryuji Sakamoto

Concept art via Shigenori Soejima, official art via Masayoshi Suto and Shigenori Soejima

Ryuji's character design probably went through at least one or two concepts, but there isn't any confirmed art of different early designs for him. He may have been one of the easier characters to finalize a concept for. After all, when you think of a rowdy but kind-hearted friend who isn't the brightest, an image similar to Ryuji's probably pops up in your mind.

He's a rebel from the start, and his dyed blonde hair and bright yellow shirt not even slightly concealed by his uniform do well to show that and seem like they were planned from day one.

7 Ann Takamaki

Concept art via Shigenori Soejima, official art via Masayoshi Suto and Shigenori Soejima

Ann Takamaki seems to have gone through several designs for both her uniform and her Phantom Thief outfit. The big pigtails are always there, but they might have initially turned red in the Metaverse when she was inhabiting her Panther persona.

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It's also worth noting that one of her early Phantom Thief outfits looks more like her school uniform, while another was a bodysuit that just had more coverage and different colors than her official one, but they both have goggles that didn't make it to the final version. The panther motif has always been there, though. However, it also seems like she almost got a crossbow as a weapon instead of her whip and rifle.

6 Yusuke Kitagawa

Concept art via Shigenori Soejima, official art via Masayoshi Suto and Shigenori Soejima

Yusuke's eyes are different from the other characters', and that was still true when the character designer was drawing his initial concept art. Yusuke still retains the same vibe of an eccentric artist, but he could have had much longer, brown hair that he'd possibly put into a braid sometimes.

Also, though his initial outfit is similar to his official one, it looks less like a school uniform and more like something he'd wear on the weekends. Finally, the keyring that's always on his belt seems to have been added later on.

5 Makoto Niijima

Concept art via Shigenori Soejima, official art via Masayoshi Suto and Shigenori Soejima

Even in earlier concept art, Makoto had her short bob hairstyle, though it was missing the hair braid headband. But her school uniform was much different from the final design, looking more like a traditional school uniform.

It's interesting that her Phantom Thief outfit seemed like it was originally the same as her uniform but with a cape, mask, and goggles added, implying the characters' Phantom Thieves' Metaverse outfits might not have been as drastic of a change as they became in the end. Also, she could have gotten a katana to use as a weapon instead of her fists. Which one is cooler is up to you.

4 Futaba Sakura

Concept art via Shigenori Soejima, official art via Masayoshi Suto and Shigenori Soejima

The general idea for Futaba's design in the initial concept art can still be seen in her final design. Her hairstyle and glasses are the same, and headphones were an early idea. The game's art book revealed that Futaba's natural hair color is actually black, and it appears that early Futaba wouldn't have dyed it.

Also, the Futaba we know seems to love the color green, but she opts for more black in early designs. One of the designs had her in more of a jersey outfit, so her signature shorts appear to be an idea they came up with later on.

3 Haru Okumura

Concept art via Shigenori Soejima, official art via Masayoshi Suto and Shigenori Soejima

Haru's gentle nature and elegant style are reflected well in her official design. But even in her initial concept art, she gives off that sort of feel. One idea had her hair in a bob slightly similar to Makoto's, but it's a bit longer and definitely fluffier. Though her outfit isn't the same as in her official design, it still looks like something she would wear in-game, or when she was a younger student at Shujin Academy.

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Her school uniform also went through some changes, as she doesn't wear the blazer in her official design. In the end, her hair ended up shorter and fluffier than the initial concept.

2 Goro Akechi

Concept art via Shigenori Soejima, official art via Masayoshi Suto and Shigenori Soejima

Being Joker's rival and parallel, Akechi went through a few hairstyles himself. The one he ended up with was already one of the initial ideas, but he could've appeared without his bangs. There's also a concept of him with much shorter hair, which makes him look more innocent.

His Persona also initially looked more like an outlaw compared to its final design, which can be described as heroic, and it looked similar to Zenkichi's Phantom Thief outfit from Strikers. Also, rather than the giant bow and arrow Robin Hood has, this one had a gun and rapier.

1 Kasumi Yoshizawa

Concept art via Shigenori Soejima, official art via Masayoshi Suto and Shigenori Soejima

Kasumi is an entirely new character in Persona 5 Royal. Like Ryuji, she doesn't have initial concept designs to look at. At least, not for her regular outfit. On the other hand, her initial Phantom Thief outfit had a few differences from its final design.

The biggest thing is her mask, which is almost the exact same as Joker's in the concept art. Her Phantom Thief outfit already has a lot of similarities to Joker's, but this original design would've taken the similarities to the next level. Also, her hair looked brown rather than red, and her leotard had a heart window on her chest.

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