For gamers that enjoy JRPGs, Persona 5 is the must have game of the season. The series, as the name would suggest, has had four main installments and multiple spin offs over the course its almost twenty year run. People love the game series, and Atlus has earned a strong reputation for their work on the series. It should come as no surprise that everyone was really excited for E3. Lots of people were looking forward to hearing the new updates about the game, and its potential release date. The release date in particular has proven a touchy subject as Atlus has not yet given a set day for either the Japanese or North American releases. Instead, the Persona 5 website merely states that the game will be released in 2015.
Unfortunately, Persona 5 was absent from E3, and that left fans with lots of unanswered questions. In the days during and following E3, it was teased that the game may also be coming to North America in 2015, but it was never made clear when specifically the game would drop. Though this wasn't much, it gave North American players that hope that Atlus would be sending the gorgeous game to us sometime in the near future.
Then, we saw this: Persona 5
Yes, that's right. A new trailer showing gameplay, cut scenes, and voice overs that have never before been seen was released earlier today. Through this trailer we got to see a lot more about the main protagonists and the world that they will be inhabiting over the course of the game. Regrettably, there hasn't been an English subtitled version of the video released yet, and as such for people that lack in the Japanese linguistics department, it may be challenging if not impossible to understand what is being said in the video.
At the beginning of the trailer we see some chains that appear to be holding the main protagonist in his cell. The cell is within a new variation of the Velvet Room that has made an appearance previous Persona games. We then go through a flashback that references the second Persona Teaser Trailer. Small snippets of a train accident are then spliced with the old teaser trailer, and the main protagonist awakening in his Velvet Room cell. This train accident is reminisce of the train accident scenes portrayed in the Gameplay Trailer for Persona 5. In the Gameplay Trailer, viewers saw a conductor, with only the whites of his eyes showing, driving a train and then causing an accident. This could very well be the accident that alerts the protagonists to Shadows and Personas.
The video then cuts to a scene of the protagonist awakening to his Persona. There is a good chance that the voice over up to this point has been done by none other than Arsene. At this point, the protagonists eyes turn the same color yellow that is often seen by characters that being imitated by Shadows, as was the case in Persona 4. Blue flames then envelope the protagonist, changing his clothing and releasing Arsene who knocks back the Shadows that were originally holding the protagonist. By releasing his Persona, the protagonist casts of the chains that have been holding him and his Persona.
New cut scenes are shown of the protagonist walking around downtown, followed by a cut from the menus shown in the Persona 5 Gameplay Trailer. References to the genres and themes appear here labeling picaresque, adventure, juvenile, and Derriere Le Masque as important facets of the games ideologies. More cut scenes from the Gameplay Trailer appear before leading into a snapshot of the protagonist holding a prison number card. Another reference appears here, this time speaking to the gentleman thief motif that Atlus has created for the characters labeling Arsene and Voleur Dans La Nuit. This is followed up with still more scenes from the Gameplay Trailer.
At this point viewers get to see more of the world into which the protagonists dwell with their Personas. In the same manner as the television and Dark Hour operated for the casts of Persona 4 and 3 respectively, the casino depicted here seems to be the main area in which the main characters deal with Shadows. The probability of this being the case is strengthened by the follow up scenes showing gameplay and cut scenes from within the casino. One of the more interesting things that occurs here is the transformation of the security figures. Over the course of this trailer we see multiple security guard change into Shadows of varying degrees of strength. Additionally, many of the fights seem to take place against former Personas from the previous series, including Sandman, and Pyro Jack.
We then see the protagonist fighting off a Shadow by pulling it's mask off. Note that this Shadow was originally a human, and this may be a very important plot device. The next scene shows the Phantom's eyes bleeding, but the motion here is very similar to the act of removing the mask he wears. This scene is quickly replaced by a scene of Ryuji going through a very painful headache or transformative experience. A new character is then shown painting the question, "Never Give In?" A bunch of new visuals are shown before the screen goes black. The Phantom then jolts awake in his Velvet Room cell before we get to see the twin security guards who strongly resemble Margaret, Theodore, and Elizabeth. The twins then stand aside, allowing the protagonist to have a conversation with Igor. As with the past protagonists, we can assume that this is the initial conversation where the protagonist makes a deal with Igor in order to combine and keep a record of his Personas. This then leads to the end of the new trailer.
Through this trailer we got to see a lot of new and old stuff about Persona 5. Following the release of the Gameplay Trailer, hype has slowly begun to draw away from the next installment of the Persona series. However, this new trailer has helped to rekindle our excitement for what is to come. Hopefully, this is an indication that Atlus will be releasing Persona 5 sometime soon. For now, all we can really do is wait for more information, and pray that nothing upsets the games release schedule.
Unfortunately, Persona 5 was absent from E3, and that left fans with lots of unanswered questions. In the days during and following E3, it was teased that the game may also be coming to North America in 2015, but it was never made clear when specifically the game would drop. Though this wasn't much, it gave North American players that hope that Atlus would be sending the gorgeous game to us sometime in the near future.
Then, we saw this: Persona 5
Yes, that's right. A new trailer showing gameplay, cut scenes, and voice overs that have never before been seen was released earlier today. Through this trailer we got to see a lot more about the main protagonists and the world that they will be inhabiting over the course of the game. Regrettably, there hasn't been an English subtitled version of the video released yet, and as such for people that lack in the Japanese linguistics department, it may be challenging if not impossible to understand what is being said in the video.
At the beginning of the trailer we see some chains that appear to be holding the main protagonist in his cell. The cell is within a new variation of the Velvet Room that has made an appearance previous Persona games. We then go through a flashback that references the second Persona Teaser Trailer. Small snippets of a train accident are then spliced with the old teaser trailer, and the main protagonist awakening in his Velvet Room cell. This train accident is reminisce of the train accident scenes portrayed in the Gameplay Trailer for Persona 5. In the Gameplay Trailer, viewers saw a conductor, with only the whites of his eyes showing, driving a train and then causing an accident. This could very well be the accident that alerts the protagonists to Shadows and Personas.
The video then cuts to a scene of the protagonist awakening to his Persona. There is a good chance that the voice over up to this point has been done by none other than Arsene. At this point, the protagonists eyes turn the same color yellow that is often seen by characters that being imitated by Shadows, as was the case in Persona 4. Blue flames then envelope the protagonist, changing his clothing and releasing Arsene who knocks back the Shadows that were originally holding the protagonist. By releasing his Persona, the protagonist casts of the chains that have been holding him and his Persona.
New cut scenes are shown of the protagonist walking around downtown, followed by a cut from the menus shown in the Persona 5 Gameplay Trailer. References to the genres and themes appear here labeling picaresque, adventure, juvenile, and Derriere Le Masque as important facets of the games ideologies. More cut scenes from the Gameplay Trailer appear before leading into a snapshot of the protagonist holding a prison number card. Another reference appears here, this time speaking to the gentleman thief motif that Atlus has created for the characters labeling Arsene and Voleur Dans La Nuit. This is followed up with still more scenes from the Gameplay Trailer.
At this point viewers get to see more of the world into which the protagonists dwell with their Personas. In the same manner as the television and Dark Hour operated for the casts of Persona 4 and 3 respectively, the casino depicted here seems to be the main area in which the main characters deal with Shadows. The probability of this being the case is strengthened by the follow up scenes showing gameplay and cut scenes from within the casino. One of the more interesting things that occurs here is the transformation of the security figures. Over the course of this trailer we see multiple security guard change into Shadows of varying degrees of strength. Additionally, many of the fights seem to take place against former Personas from the previous series, including Sandman, and Pyro Jack.
We then see the protagonist fighting off a Shadow by pulling it's mask off. Note that this Shadow was originally a human, and this may be a very important plot device. The next scene shows the Phantom's eyes bleeding, but the motion here is very similar to the act of removing the mask he wears. This scene is quickly replaced by a scene of Ryuji going through a very painful headache or transformative experience. A new character is then shown painting the question, "Never Give In?" A bunch of new visuals are shown before the screen goes black. The Phantom then jolts awake in his Velvet Room cell before we get to see the twin security guards who strongly resemble Margaret, Theodore, and Elizabeth. The twins then stand aside, allowing the protagonist to have a conversation with Igor. As with the past protagonists, we can assume that this is the initial conversation where the protagonist makes a deal with Igor in order to combine and keep a record of his Personas. This then leads to the end of the new trailer.
Through this trailer we got to see a lot of new and old stuff about Persona 5. Following the release of the Gameplay Trailer, hype has slowly begun to draw away from the next installment of the Persona series. However, this new trailer has helped to rekindle our excitement for what is to come. Hopefully, this is an indication that Atlus will be releasing Persona 5 sometime soon. For now, all we can really do is wait for more information, and pray that nothing upsets the games release schedule.