Kotaku: Persona 4

Persona 4 North American Release is December

Owen Good — Sun, 06 Jul 2008 13:15:00 MDT

Atlus has announced that Persona 4, the sequel to its well regarded RPG/turn-based combat/dating sim Persona 3, will hit North America for the Playstation 2 on Dec. 9. (Japan release is still July 10). The date comes at the end of the trailer above. If you have played the game and are familiar with the series, this should make sense to you. If you haven't, it won't. There's just no other way to put it.

I went to its wiki page (does that make me a hypocrite?), which says the game will be set in the countryside and the story involves a murder mystery. Weather replaces the moon as an event trigger. Also, no more shooting yourself in the head to get your magic on; the Evoker has been replaced by cards, which you destroy to unleash whoopass.

Persona 4 Web site [Atlus]

Upright New Persona 3, Oneechanbara VorteX Figurines

Brian Ashcraft — Thu, 05 Jun 2008 04:00:00 MDT

Japanese figure maker Alter has put up new listings for its fall figurine line-up which includes a Persona 3 Elizabeth from sculptor Fumiki Saitou and an Oneechanbara VorteX Aya from Goutarou Takeuchi. The Elizabeth (pictured) is 22cm tall and books at ¥6,090 (US$58), while the Aya (after the jump) is 25cm tall and priced at ¥8,190 (US$78). Aya, of course, is more expensive because she is 3cm higher and not because she is in her skippies and carrying swords. Oh no.

Out This October [Heisei Democracy]

More Persona 4 Goodness - Character Trailers

Mike Fahey — Fri, 28 Mar 2008 09:40:00 MDT

The rabid fan following Persona 3 drummed up has gotten Atlus asset crazy for the next installment of the RPG series. Here's a series of three character introduction clips meant to familiarize you with some of the new faces you'll be seeing in Persona 4. Of course it's all in Japanese but I'm sure we've got someone in the Kotakuite stable willing to translate any pertinent info for us in the comment section, if only to show us how completely awesome they are. This guy here seems to have issues with bike riding.

UPDATE: The host site is suffering some technical difficulties. Should be back soon.

And just about everything else. Poor guy. And then, when everything looked like PlayStation 2 graphics, everyone got hit by an animated cutscene!

If only there was a pill that taught you Japanese. *sighs*

Persona 4 Character Trailers [Gemega]

Persona FES Webisode Dump

Mike Fahey — Mon, 24 Mar 2008 19:00:23 MDT

Shame on us, getting all excited about Persona 4 when Persona 3 FES still hasn't come out yet. Atlus has been busy releasing tiny webisodes from the upcoming updated version of P3, in which the Specialized Extracurricular Execution Squad tries to unravel the mystery of a day that seems to keep repeating itself. It's like Groundhog Day, only with more kids shooting themselves in the head. Hit the jump for the complete set of six shorts, featuring the three C's: cutscenes, combat, and more cutscenes. Can it be? Are they really giving up their guns? You'd figure after months of shooting themselves in the head on a nightly basis they'd have developed an addiction or something. See? They're still itching to go out of fight. You can't just stop doing that sort of thing. They're like head shooty junkies. I'd say something witty here about them going right back to fighting, but I can't think about anything other than the music when I watch this clip. It's just so awesome. I loves it. A cutscene of the more mysterious, animated fashion. And cue Bill Murry! Sure, they've got the date wrong, but other than that it's basically the same thing.

First Persona 4 Screens Surface

Mike Fahey — Mon, 24 Mar 2008 09:20:44 MDT

Here's the first set of screenies for the upcoming sequel to Persona 3, the aptly named Persona 4. Between these and the trailers that popped up last week, it doesn't look like Atlus is straying too far from the formula that made P3 such a success. Just some subtle graphics tweaking and interface style changes, wrapped around a whole new story and 60-70 hours of gameplay goodness. I would have been satisfied with them simply adding bonus material to P3. Oh wait.

First Persona 4 Screens [Famitsu via Akayuki]

First Persona 4 Promo Trailers Hit The Tubes

fdemarco — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 12:40:00 MDT

Persona 4 was just previewed in Famitsu yesterday and already someone has ripped the promo videos that came with the magazine. (Of course they are both in Japanese) They are both pretty lengthy, one being ten minutes, the other coming in at around eight. I've only recently been inducted into the angsty, head shooting world of Persona 3 and I must admit I find it quite fascinating. Sadly there is no head shooting in the new Persona but hopefully this new game will be just as intriguing as its predecessors.

Make the jump to check out promo number two!

[via Akayuki - Thanks, Squall]

Famitsu Reveals Persona 4

Mike Fahey — Tue, 18 Mar 2008 08:20:22 MDT

This week's Famitsu magazine arrives in Japan with tons of information about Persona 4, the next installment of the quirky Atlus RPG series for the PlayStation 2. The sequel to one of the best RPG experiences on the PS2 so far moves the action from the city to the countryside, with the story taking the form of a murder mystery, chock full of twists and turns that will leave you guessing. The game includes a weather forecasting system that indicates when a murder is going to occur. Atlus is packing tons of gameplay into the new title, with 60-70 hours of gameplay and over 180 Personas (Personae?) for you to play with. Persona 4 is slated for a July 10th release in Japan, with a North American release almost a no-brainer, considering the reception of P3 in the states. Follow the link beneath the gallery to Akayuki for more scans from the latest Famitsu.

Weekly Famitsu Info & Scans [Akayuki]

Persona 3 FES Shooting For April

Mike Fahey — Mon, 25 Feb 2008 08:20:49 MST

Who saw this coming? I mean, aside from just about everybody? The countdown has ended and those that signed up for the Atlus Faithful (including myself) were served an email this morning officially announcing the expansion to the award-winning Persona 3, Persona 3 FES! Atlus is releasing the disk as a standalone game, containing both the original P3 with the new episode, higher difficulty level, new personas, sweet costume changes, and much more. P3 FES is heading our way April 22nd, for the low, low price of $29.99! If you haven't played one of the best console RPGs of 2007, now's your chance. Check out the gallery for a look at some new persona and some rather revealing new costumes. Mmmm, Yukari maid.

Atlus Counting Down To Persona 3: FES?

Mike Fahey — Tue, 19 Feb 2008 08:20:19 MST

Not another timer! While I am sick to death of countdown timers, this one is from the creators of about 25% of my favorite games, so I am torn. Luckily they made it sort of easy to figure out what the timer is counting down to. It's definitely Persona 3 related, as sharp-eyed Kotakuite Jim points out that the countdown clock matches the clock seen at :54 in the original Persona 3 intro, seen here on YouTube. My guess? Personal 3 FES is finally going to be announced for North America. The expansion disk for Persona 3, released last April in Japan, included new quests and missions for the original game, a hard difficulty setting, new costumes, a new weapon synthesis system, twenty-three more Persona and a continuation of the story called Episode Aegis, starring Aegis as the main character. Two voice actors for the game have already leaked the info that it was on it's way, and now this, which could wind up being the least surprising countdown timer ever. We'll find out at 7AM Eastern time next Tuesday!

TIME [Atlus.com - Thanks Jim!]

Persona 3 Gets Anime

Brian Ashcraft — Thu, 08 Nov 2007 02:00:23 MST

PlayStation 2 RPG Persona 3 is getting its own TV anime spinoff. The show, called Persona -trinity soul-, takes place ten years after the game in a city where the dead have risen with their skins turned inside out. Yummy! The cartoon character designs are being created by the game's character designer, so expect the to hopefully have that same Persona 3 look. Show starts this January in Japan.
P3 TV anime [Moon Phase via AnimeNewsNetwork]

What Persona 3?

Mike Fahey — Tue, 18 Sep 2007 20:00:38 MDT

To: The Japanese Contingent
From: Fahey
Re: I forgot to write a night note.

Day 2 of my solitary writing has come to an end, and while I managed to make it through relatively unscathed, it did seem a bit harder to keep up today for some reason. As a side note, I moved the extra television I had laying around onto my computer desk!While the whole harder keeping up thing will forever remain a mystery, I still managed to cover the day in what I hope is an acceptable fashion. See for yourself as we take a look at...

What you missed:
Force Unleashed Coming To The Wii
Holy Lesbian Aliens Bioware!
Sack
Super Smash Bros. Brawl Goes Online
Apparently Nintendo Thinks We're Gay

Once more the sleep of the sleepy calls, and I answer. Till tomorrow!

Persona 3 Delayed, Quality Blamed

Michael McWhertor — Mon, 23 Jul 2007 15:20:31 MDT

Sorry, occult horror RPG fans, but your copies of Shin Megami Tensei: Persona 3 aren't going to land in your hellfire hot little hands this week. Word from Atlus is that the game has been slightly delayed. Unfortunately, we have no specific new ship date for you to look forward to, but can chalk the delay up to Atlus demanding a higher standard for its PlayStation 2 release.

According to the company, a manufacturing error in the Persona 3 art book—included with every copy of the game—caused them to withhold the game until the issue can be resolved. On the silver lining side, this will result in a higher quality, better bound book.

Atlus sent the following e-mail notice to its fans earlier today:

Due to a manufacturing error with regard to the Persona 3 Art Book, the title will regretfully narrowly miss its scheduled ship date of July 24th, 2007. This was an unforeseen scenario, and one regretfully out of our control.
Presented with the choice of compromising on the quality of the art book, or shipping the game without said extra, we decided to have the art book redone with a higher quality binding, which will cause a very short delay in the ship date of the title.

While all other materials and packaging related to the game are complete, we were unwilling to sacrifice the art book, and as such will expedite the manufacturing process to the best of our ability in order to release the title as soon as is possible.

We appreciate your understanding and will release a formal announcement when Shin Megami Tensei: Persona 3 ships.

It's hard to fault them for maintaining quality standards, but doesn't make the wait any easier.

Week in Games: Guitar Hero Rock The Eighties Edition

fdemarco — Sun, 22 Jul 2007 19:00:00 MDT

Looks like some good titles coming out this week, so here's a smattering of the best ones! Guitar Hero 80's is a sure fire sale for me, but unfortunately my game budget is rather small so that's all I'll be able to afford. there's actually several other games I'd like to pick up like Persona 3 and Alien Syndrome. I'm even slightly intrigued by Escape From Bug Island despite my earlier suspicions that it will suck. Anything on here look like it will end up in your console for days on end?

Guitar Hero Encore: Rocks the 80s (PS2)
Oh my god, dude! It's like totally tubular! It's Guitar Hero 80's!

Civilization IV: Beyond the Sword (PC)
Expansion pack number two includes ten new civilizations.

NASCAR 08 (X360, PS3, PS2)
The power of NASCAR on your next gen and one last gen console.

Shin Megami Tensei: Persona 3 (PS2)
High school and the occult. No it's not Harry Potter, it's Persona 3!

Alien Syndrome (PSP, WII)
Blast off into space and battle aliens in this action RPG.

Escape from Bug Island (WII)
Giant bugs block your escape from an island. Will you make it out alive?

Final Fantasy II Anniversary Edition (PSP)
The Square Enix classic is revamped for the PSP.

Dynasty Warriors DS: Fighter's Battle (DS)
The popular and seemingly never ending series comes to the DS.

Combat Mission: Shock Force (PC)
Help restore order in Syria after a coup.

What Are You Playing This Weekend?

Michael McWhertor — Fri, 20 Jul 2007 14:40:50 MDT

It's going to be a straight up PLAYSTATION 3 weekend for me, as I'm slogging through Ninja Gaiden Sigma—I'm somewhere around chapter 13 right now and not that skilled yet—and I recently had a revelation. It turns out the Motorstorm is pretty damn fun. I had totally forgotten about the game, despite hyping it for months and picking it up day one. It just didn't get that much play in my PS3 since its release, but I've realized I'm pretty damn good at Motorstorm.

I've also gotta buckle down and spend more time with Persona 3, largely out of obligation. I hope to start posting impressions and semi-review snippets starting Monday, with updates continuing throughout the week. If anyone has questions about the game, feel free to leave 'em in the comments.

Anyway, let's get down to business. What are you playing this weekend?

What Are You Playing This Weekend?

Michael McWhertor — Fri, 22 Jun 2007 14:40:59 MDT

With E3 just a few weeks away, I've got plenty of planning to do to prepare. This work is seriously cutting into my game time, as I think I've only played mere minutes worth of Diablo II and Shadow of the Colossus this week. Much of my weekend will also be dedicated to this pre-E3 work, but I'm going to take a few minutes to finally crack open this review copy of Persona 3 for the PlayStation 2.

I've also got a few Virtual Console games collecting virtual dust, so some ActRaiser and attempts to take out Mr. Dream in Punch-Out!! will also dazzle my television. They may even bedazzle it!

Other than that, no real plans but to take it easy and get some work done. Any new purchases this week? And what are you playing this weekend? Michael McWhertor

Gallery: Persona 3's School Demon Daze

Mike Fahey — Wed, 02 May 2007 15:30:52 MDT

While I'm still a little worried about Persona 3 (the 4th Persona game) and its shift from standard linear storyline to a schoolboy management sim / demon battling hybrid, flipping through this latest batch of nearly 60 screenshots makes me feel a whole lot better about preordering the latest US Megaten game. Game mechanic inconsistencies aside, Atlus really knows how to make a pretty RPG. Enjoy. Michael Fahey

Persona 3 Incoming

lsmith — Thu, 09 Mar 2006 17:20:20 MST

How will the parents of North Americans anxiously waiting for Persona 3 respond to the gun-in-your-face battle beginning? Pretty well, I'm sure. When entering combat in Persona 3 putting a gun-like item to your head and pulling the trigger will unleash your Persona. The RPG is due in Japan July 13 and no North American date has been announced. Somewhere, senators Clinton and Lieberman are counting the days down.

A New Persona Game? [Gaming-Age Forums]