Persona's highly anticipated 30th Anniversary livestream has left a lot of fans feeling like the victims of a bait-and-switch, as their prayers for new game announcements and updates have gone unanswered. There was a lot of hype surrounding the Persona livestream, but some fans have walked away from it feeling like it was more a merchandise commercial than an actual showcase.
With the launch of its first game in September 1996, the Shin Megami Tensei: Persona series, now usually just referred to as Persona, has held its own as one of the top JRPG franchises on the market. Featuring timeless elements like turn-based combat and silent protagonists, the six games that make up the main series have increased in player appeal, particularly following the 2006 release of Persona 3 on PlayStation 2. Additionally, the main series has been bolstered by a broad mix of Persona spin-off games and remasters, especially after the success of Persona 5 in 2016.
Persona 4 Revival is All But Guaranteed to Miss a Golden Opportunity
It's looking like Persona 4 is still quite far away, making it unlikely to hit an especially ideal release window in the coming year.
Persona 30th Anniversary Livestream Reveals Nothing New About the Games
With its newest main-series game now nearly a full decade old, many fans were hoping that the livestream, which accompanied the full opening of the official Persona 30th Anniversary website, would be filled with new game announcements. Instead, the presentation was a "Goods Event," intended to show off official T-shirts, hoodies, buttons, lanyards, keychains, acrylic stand figures, and the like. There was also the announcement of upcoming promotional events with other Japanese companies, like department store chain Daimaru and Tokyo railway operator Keio, along with a symphonic concert series with music from the games. And while a collaborative project with Sanrio, which recreates the games' protagonists in the style of Hello Kitty and friends, has gone over surprisingly well, it's being treated as one of the few bright spots among the international community.
Many fans had been hoping for the official announcement of plans for Persona 6 during the special anniversary livestream. While the presentation included a brief message from series producer Kazuhisa Wada, in which he thanked the fan community for its continued support, his minute-long speech did not make any mention of a potential next game in the series. One nearly three-year-old Twitter profile that has been actively counting the days that Persona 6 has not received an official confirmation announcement reposted Wada's portion of the presentation, commenting, "Wada, you make it so hard to be normal right now with the words you are saying."
Others were disappointed at the lack of any new updates on Persona 4 Revival, a full remake of Persona 4 that was confirmed to be in development during the Xbox Games Showcase in June 2025. This topic hit some fans particularly hard, as the presenters mentioned Persona 4 Revival less than a minute into the 40-plus-minute live presentation. Specifically, Ami Koshimizu, who voiced Yukiko Amagi in the Japanese voice track of Persona 4, said she knew that people had a lot of questions about the upcoming game, but the discussion instead meandered into a history of the Persona games and her experiences playing Yukiko without ever revealing anything new.
While there is a lot of disappointment in the fan community right now, the actual 30th anniversary of Persona doesn't happen until September 20, so there's still plenty of time for Atlus and Sega to reveal new information on upcoming Persona games. Additionally, recent leaks about Persona 6 and Persona 4 Revival have suggested that the development of both games is progressing well, even if one has yet to be officially announced. Furthermore, multiple fans on social media who have been browsing the updated 30th anniversary website have noted that a release timeline of games is included, with Persona 4 Revival on the tail end. But a "to be continued" message following that entry suggests more is coming down the pipeline, and a lot of fans are eager to see Persona 6 added to the timeline in the near future.
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- Genre(s)
- JRPG, Simulation, Adventure
