Persona 5

Mr Scratch · Feb 3, 2014

The Persona franchise is my favorite video game series. Persona 4 is my all-time favorite video game. So it probably goes without saying that I'm EXTREMELY excited for Persona 5, which is coming out for the PS3 this winter in Japan. I imagine it'll be out in early 2015 in English speaking territories.

And although the game is still a ways out with only a single teaser image and teaser trailer based on said image, the Official Persona Magazine did an interview with series director Katsura Hashino about the game. A fan did a scanlation which is available here, but I've transcribed it for convenience:

Famitsu: First things first, I think the biggest thing that's on fans' minds right now is that teaser image for Persona 5. What's up with that?

Katura Hashino: It's going to be a while yet before we're ready to put out the game proper, but I think that image at least reassures people that there is something definitely coming along. To answer your question more directly, I feel that in today's world, there's no shortage of people that are bored and discontent with their lives. They're at a dead end, chained down to a world of which they resent being a part. Persona 5, in that sense, is a game about freedom, the kind that those sorts of people haven't had living in the real world. I want them to be able to attain that sensation by playing through the game. Looking at it from that angle, I'd say that the image depicts the way that must be endured for that moment of freedom to arrive.

Famitsu: So it's essentially depicting the underlying theme of the game?

Hashino: Exactly. There's a lot of meaning imbued within it. I worked with our designer to make sure it really conveyed and embraced the game's visual motifs and greater overall worldview. The shackles you see in it are especially important. They naturally represent the idea of a person's immobility, of being unable to move ahead from their current position in life, but for us they also simultaneously represent our intent to make a game where the players can feel that they actually can, in fact, take that next step and move forward. That image is as much about the game's theme as it is our creative philosophies in approaching its development.

Famitsu: It's not just the chair and chains that leave a strong impression, though, but also the prominent presence of the red coloring it all. Would you say that red is going to be this game's defining color?

Hashino: Indeed it is. For Persona 3, we went with blue and then with Persona 4, we opted for yellow, so this time we're painting the world red in Persona 5. That being said, red can be a pretty hard color on the eyes, so it's not without some trouble in making things such as the interface visually palatable when people play the game. (Laughs.)

Famitsu: It goes without saying that fans are also interested in the actual meat and substance of Persona 5, too, and what sort of game it's going to turn out to be when it's finally out.

Hashino: People that have played Persona 3 and 4 should feel right at home with Persona 5 as well. I really want them to be at ease when they play this new entry. Still, I'd like to make it a little more thematically approachable than what we've previously attempted with our other games. The characters in this game, through sheer force of will, are out to destroy that which suffocates people in today's society and, again, keeps them chained down in place. I want players to come away from the game feeling like they have that power to take on the world around them and keep going in life. That's what I'm hoping comes across once people get to play our game.

Famitsu: So what you're saying is that Persona 5 effectively treads similarly complex grounds as the previous games, but in a more straightforward manner?

Hashino: Yes and no. Earlier in my career, I came to the conclusion that the key to making a game that really reaches out and grabs a lot of people is to keep the core theme simple. For instance, with Persona 3 and 4, the basic idea of those games was that by banding together and forming a community with other people, you can get a sort of freedom that you couldn't just by being completely on your own. That idea came from contemplating how people conceptualize and approach what they see in their lives. When you're a kid, you tend to have beliefs that aren't really founded in any rational thought, but feel absolute, right? And then as you grow up, they shift and change under the influence of what other people have to say. The freedom from those sorts of dynamics and to just be yourself was basically what Persona 3 and 4 depicted.

But for Persona 5, we're talking about a different sort of freedom that's set aside from what those previous games have discussed and operates under its own set of thematic principles. What we're doing as a team is taking all of these sentiments on various things that we've accumulated over the years making these games and portraying them in a new light. The part that's straightforward about all of this, then, is less the raw theme itself so much as how we go about portraying it in the game. We live in a time here in Japan where both teenagers and adults, regardless of who they are, can't just be idling their way through their lives. The world isn't a place that lets you be all that passive if you want to get things done and make something of your life. People have to be on their toes, thinking about and engaging with what's happening around them.

We want them to play our game and come away feeling like they've found a renewed sense of self and an understand that they can't be apathetic towards what's going on in society. But when you're playing the game itself, you don't have sweat the big philosophical stuff quite so dramatically. Persona 5 is first and foremost a work of entertainment and we want it to just ismply be enjoyable on its own terms as well. It's my hope that people will look forward to playing it without getting too anxious and worked up about how all of these sorts of things are going to pan out in the end.
Click to expand...

What I infer from this interview is that the game will be following a different cast from the previous games, who are slightly older (20-somethings?) that have found themselves in unhappy places in their lives. The themes of oppression and the need to move on... they resonate greatly with me, so I'm extremely stoked for this.

MissyT · Feb 3, 2014

I love the persona games!! I can't wait

Kasey · Feb 3, 2014

And here I was hoping for a direct sequel...

Please tell me that Nanako or Ken are in this all grown up. Tell me Aigis and Labrys are in it. Probably unlikely from this transcript but I like to dream.

MissyT · Feb 3, 2014

I was also hoping for a sequel but I'll be happy either way x3

Mr Scratch · Feb 3, 2014

I love the casts of 3 and 4, but I hope part 5 is going to continue the tradition of a new cast with new themes.

Having said that, I'm happy to see the Persona 3 and 4 story lines are going to continue in the form of spin-offs. There's at least two more games coming out featuring those casts (Persona 4 Arena 2 and Persona Q: Shadow of the Labyrinth) and I'd be very surprised if they didn't release more of them as time goes on.

Kasey · Feb 3, 2014

Well I look forward to stomping the person who commandeered Labrys.

Still... A direct sequel would be amazing.

Mr Scratch · Feb 3, 2014

I'd bet money on a direct sequel, and sooner rather than later. I just think it'll lack a number (or it will retain the number of whichever game's core cast it features the most, like Arena).

Kasey · Feb 3, 2014

You're telling me this wouldn't be badass?

BornAnew · Feb 4, 2014

Can't wait for it come out!! I hope they make a port for the PS4 though! (as I won't have my PS3 by that point!)

I still need to play through Persona 3/4 though! Got them, played a bit and had to stop each time due to house moves!

I preferred Persona 4's story, but there was something about Persona 3 that hooked me more...not even sure what! Maybe I prefer a more urban setting!

Kasey · Feb 4, 2014

P3 was a better story but P4 was a better game overall.

A P4 port would be great but I'm holding my ps3 anyways.

Mr Scratch · Feb 4, 2014

I've got too much money invested in my PS3 to chuck it out, but Persona 5 is one of the main reasons I'm holding on to it.

I expect a Persona 5 port will happen eventually -- every main game in the franchise has been ported thus far -- but goodness knows where it'd end up. There's always the chance that a slightly stripped down (hardware wise), beefed up (content-wise) port will hit the Vita. Given that all of the console games have ended up ported to handheld, that seems the most likely destination for it.

---------- Post added 4th Feb 2014 at 08:20 PM ----------

Forgot to mention which game I prefer: I go back and forth on which game I think has the better story. Persona 3 might just win out for story, but I think Persona 4 wins out for everything else (characters, gameplay, content). That cast is just so good, and the game had a pretty profound effect on my life.

Kasey · Feb 4, 2014

P3 changed my life... But we had this conversation on your wall right?

Tlarkul · Feb 5, 2014

Kasey said: ↑

You're telling me this wouldn't be badass?
Image

Click to expand...

I could see this happening in a case similar to Persona 2: Innocent Sin and Eternal Punishment. And yes, seeing them together would be awesome.

Persona 5

Mr Scratch
Regular Member

MissyT
Full Member

Kasey
Full Member

MissyT
Full Member

Mr Scratch
Regular Member

Kasey
Full Member

Mr Scratch
Regular Member

Kasey
Full Member

BornAnew
Full Member

Kasey
Full Member

Mr Scratch
Regular Member

Kasey
Full Member

Tlarkul
Regular Member

Persona 5

Thread Tools

Mr Scratch Regular Member

MissyT Full Member

Kasey Full Member

MissyT Full Member

Mr Scratch Regular Member

Kasey Full Member

Mr Scratch Regular Member

Kasey Full Member

BornAnew Full Member

Kasey Full Member

Mr Scratch Regular Member

Kasey Full Member

Tlarkul Regular Member

Mr Scratch
Regular Member

MissyT
Full Member

Kasey
Full Member

MissyT
Full Member

Mr Scratch
Regular Member

Kasey
Full Member

Mr Scratch
Regular Member

Kasey
Full Member

BornAnew
Full Member

Kasey
Full Member

Mr Scratch
Regular Member

Kasey
Full Member

Tlarkul
Regular Member