Turns out, Persona 5 and XCOM make a promising match

polygon.com:

At this point, XCOM is more of a genre than a game. What began as a reboot of the ’90s tactical series with 2012’s XCOM: Enemy Unknown has spawned imitators in the worlds of Warhammer 40,000, Gears of War, and even Mario (plus Rabbids). Firaxis Games’ potent blend of squad customization, turn-based skirmishes, and party recruitment works in just about any universe, it would seem. So is it surprising that it meshes well with the Jungian world of Persona 5? Not really. Is it exciting to see it in action nonetheless? Absolutely.

During a recent demo, I played the tutorial and an early-game mission from Persona 5 Tactica, Atlus’ upcoming spinoff that replaces the RPG’s static turn-based battles with grid-based tactical fights. Both missions were fast-paced as I moved returning characters Joker, Ryuji, and Morgana from cover to cover in order to flank enemies. (Said enemies are new to the world of Persona 5, taking the form of ghostly 18th-century foot soldiers.) Much like in Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope, movement happens in real time, but the character’s destination doesn’t get locked in until I end my turn or use an action. This freeform positioning lets me test out different sightlines before committing to an attack.

Once each Phantom Thief was in position, I could command them to fire their gun, do a melee attack, or cast an ability using their Persona companion. Little by little, the tutorial and early mission brought new wrinkles into the fold: Hitting an enemy in close quarters knocks them out of cover; shooting an enemy that doesn’t have cover stuns them; surrounding a stunned enemy gives the whole squad the opportunity to do a combined “Triple Threat” attack. Similar to the corresponding abilities in Persona 5,