In late 2021, Atlus took to the web to tease tons of events on the way for the 25th anniversary of the Persona franchise. Going as far as to open an English site exclusively for the occasion, the company promised a “year-long campaign from September 2021 to Fall 2022,” packed with exciting announcements, merchandise, collaborations, and more. Fans instantly began getting their hopes up for a Persona 6 announcement, hoping that it would serve as an epic punctuation to the lengthy event. However, just as promised, no such information came, and fans are frustrated–despite the number of positives from Atlus over the last few months.
This past weekend, the Super Persona Live P-Sound Wish concert was held. Initially, fans thought this would be the perfect venue to announce something new–past Persona concerts have done this repeatedly. However, in September, the PR team at Atlus told fans not to expect anything Persona 6-related at the show. While many instantly went into denial, it seems that this was indeed the case.
The director of the Persona series, Kazuhisa Wada, made a statement about the end of the event period. “It is also with great sadness that we must bring an end to the everlasting momentum of Persona‘s 25th anniversary,” Wada said. “There are so many things I would like to tell you, but I deeply apologise for not being able to do so on this occasion. I would like to share them with you at the right time, so please look forward to more information about the Persona series in the future.”
According to sources, Atlus was hit hard by the pandemic, causing major delays to the Persona team’s initial plans.
The anniversary wasn’t a total bust. Persona 5 Royal is making its way to PC on October 21, bringing all 45 pieces of DLC with it, including costume and BGM packs to extra personas. A challenge battle mode will also allow players to test their skills against Persona 3 and Persona 4‘s protagonists.
Late last week, it was announced that Persona 3 Portable and Persona 4 Golden would launch digitally for Xbox Series X/S, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Switch, and PC via Steam and the Microsoft Store on January 19, 2023. A new visual was released alongside the announcement, which you can see below.
During the Persona concert this past weekend, a pamphlet was available for fans to purchase featuring interviews with a number of Persona staff, including the senior managing director of Atlus USA Naoto Hiraoka.
“Welcome to the first Persona Super Live in three years,” Hiraoka said. “A lot has happened ever since the last concert three years ago. This time around, it’s the “grand finale” of the Persona 25th anniversary, so we’re challenging ourselves with a set list that is appropriate in that regard.” The concert was the first to be streamed globally, and as promised, featured a number of songs that audiences had never seen live, including Our Light, I Believe, and Throw Away Your Mask from Persona 5 Royal.
