Persona 4
Persona 4 is a role-playing video game developed and published by Atlus for Sony's PlayStation 2, and chronologically the fifth installment in the "Persona" series, itself a part of the larger "Megami Tensei" franchise. The game was released in Japan in July 2008, North America in December 2008, and Europe in March 2009. "Persona 4" takes place in a fictional Japanese countryside and is indirectly related to earlier "Persona" games. The player-named protagonist is a high-school student who moved into the countryside from the city for a year. During his year-long stay, he becomes involved in investigating mysterious murders while harnessing the power of summoning Persona. The game features a weather forecast system with events happening on foggy days to replace the moon phase system implemented in the previous games.
Revelations: Persona
Reviewing the PSP port, Eric L. Patterson of "Play" was highly positive about the game's old-school mechanics and the chance to replay it with an improved localization and the Snow Queen route reinstated. He did say that for fans of the PlayStation 2 "Persona" games, "["Persona"] could very well feel like a punch to the face and a boot to the crotch." Jeremy Parish, writing for 1UP.com, said that the way "Persona" broke away from RPG norms through the communication with demons during battle made it essential playing for fans of the genre. He was generally positive about most aspects apart from its visuals. "Game Informer"s Joe Juba, despite noting awkward navigation and the inability to appreciate character and enemies designs due to their small sprite size, generally praised the game for improving on the original game's flaws. Ben Reeves, giving a second opinion on the game as part of the review, generally shared Juba's points of praise, though found the minimap inadequate. "GameSpot"s Lark Anderson was more critical than most, praising the story and improved localization, but finding the combat, navigation and graphics fairly dated compared to both recent and contemporary RPGs. IGN's Sam Bishop shared critiques about the graphics with other reviewers, but enjoyed most other parts of the game, and particularly appreciated the inclusion of the Snow Queen route. RPGamer's Glenn Wilson and RPGFan's Neal Chandran generally echoed other reviewers' sentiments: Wilson cited it as a less enjoyable game than the PlayStation 2 "Persona" entries while still being a quality project, and Chandran called it "a killer trip down memory lane with a pair of high-definition rose-colored glasses." "Shin Megami Tensei: Persona" was also awarded RPGFan's Editor's Choice Award.
"Revelations: Persona" was successful enough to establish the "Persona" series in North America and become a cult classic. The game’s success prompted the development of a sequel. "", which was released in 1999 and involved many of the same staff. "Persona" was adapted into a manga titled "Megami Ibunroku Persona". Originally serialized in 1996, it was later reissued in 2009. In 2006, Atlus and mobile company Bbmf released a mobile version of the game, "Megami Ibunroku Persona: Chapter of the Foreign Tower of Emptiness". The game is a 3D dungeon crawler set within the locations of "Persona". The unexpected success of the PSP port led to the development of enhanced remakes for both "Innocent Sin" and its sequel, "". Both these ports were also directed by Meguro.