Persona 5, one of the most highly-anticipated PS4 titles coming soon, has yet to offer a precise launch date besides the vague “Summer 2016.” That is possibly about to end, as the game’s Director has hinted that there may be an “announcement that will please users.” Could we close to getting an exact release date?
In a Japanese interview, Persona 5 Game Director Katsura Hashino said that, with the Persona series celebrating its 20th anniversary this year, Atlus is thinking about making announcement related to Persona 5. Here are his words, via a translation by Gematsu:
“Atlus is celebrating the 20th anniversary of the Persona series this year. Hashino says since Atlus is thinking about making an announcement that will please users, while first waiting for Persona 5, to look forward to something in that area.”
That is not all that Hashino had to say about the Persona 5 project. He also spoke about the game’s development, elaborating on the decisions made by the development team in the areas of Setting and Characters. Of particular note, he said that Tokyo was chosen as the game’s location “because Atlus wants to play out an unthinkable phantom thief drama in a world that we’re familiar with.”
Check out the full version of what he said here:
Setting
- The dungeon level design is vastly different from previous games. All of them incorporate different stories and can be thoroughly enjoyed.
- By choosing the cliched theme of “phantom thieves,” Atlus hopes to surprise users and put in more ideas than can be imagined. Atlus wants to skillfully combine contemporary drama with Persona to create something that expresses the fun of entertainment.
- The setting is Tokyo because Atlus wants to play out an unthinkable phantom thief drama in a world that we’re familiar with.
Characters
- Many of the characters are labeled, or look at things from a biased point of view and such, and are spending their days unhappily, feeling that it can’t be helped and don’t fit in. Breaking the status quo, rising up, and coming alive is how the introduction will develop.
- Regarding Ryuji Sakamoto: A “let’s change the world” character who pulls along the protagonist. The hero begins his phantom thieving after getting caught up with Ryuji. He’s insistent, but kind on the inside. His personality is a good match for his voice actor, Mamoru Miyano. And his Persona, “Captain Kidd,” matches Ryuji’s setting and episode.
- Regarding Ann Takamaki: A quarter-American character who has returned to Japan and is well liked, but doesn’t have friends and, though she stands out, is cut off and isolated from her surroundings. After becoming your friend, her bright personality makes her the lively mood maker of the group. Her Persona, “Carmen,” has a femme fatal side to her, and in an incident related to Ann, the protagonist and Ryuji will take on a fight in the other world. In this sense, Ann will have an influence on the fate of the protagonists.
- Regarding Morgana: A character similar to Persona 4‘s Teddie that will help you navigate the other world. Having previously been involved in the phantom thief business for certain reasons, she also bears the responsibility of training the protagonists as phantom thieves. In the real world, Morgana takes on the form of an ordinary cat, and Hashino wants you to look forward to the reason why that is. Morgana’s Persona, Zorro, is her admired form. Because she’s usually small and called with a “hey, cat,” Morgana’s Persona takes on a macho form.
- Regarding Yusuke Kitagawa: An eccentric character whose illustration may give off a different appeal. He has talent as a painter and is also an art scholarship student.
- There will be a system similar to “Social Links.” Is communication the driving force for those who are trying to make a change? With that question in mind, Hashino says that it will be good if Persona 5 depicted human relations a step above Persona 3 and Persona 4‘s Social Links.
Persona 5 is the next installment in the Persona series, one the most popular and critically-lauded RPG series in gaming. If you want to know more about the game, our own Patrick Anderson has written about how Persona 5 will improve on Persona 4 – check it out here.