Are you ready for a live-action Persona film or TV show? Sega reckons you might be
Obviously, we'll only care about this if it's an adaptation of Persona 3 – the best one.
It's been a great year for Atlus: per its most recent financial statement (for the period ending March 31), we learned that the sales of games released from April 1, 2021 to March 31, 2022 were above and beyond what the developer was expecting.
So, with the Western releases of Shin Megami Tensei 3: Nocturne HD Remaster, the international release of Shin Megami Tensei V, and the worldwide remastered release of Persona 4 Arena Ultimax, the company has been raking it in. It's the best year the company has had since joining Sega, and has finally been able to contribute to the parent company's profits (in previous years, Atlus has reported overall losses).
The long and short of it all? Atlus wants to carry on as it hsa been for the last few years, making games players want to play, and bringing legacy titles back to modern formats (via PersonaCentral).
Sega, interestingly, has obviously been making a lot of money with its live-action Sonic the Hedgehog endevours: Sonic the Hedgehog 2 film is now the top-grossing video game adaptation of all time, and the appetite the movie has created for other Sonic projects is undeniable.
Emboldened by Atlus profits and the performance of the blue blur on the silver screen, it seems Sega wants to try more of its properties out in the land of Hollywood. And it may start with Persona.
In an interview with IGN, Toru Nakaharaon – a lead producer behind the live-action Sonic movies (and Sega’s head of entertainment) – noted that Persona is ripe for adaptations thanks to its bizarre lore, its deep and engaging cast of characters, and its overall setup.
“Atlus’ worlds are filled with high drama, cutting-edge style, and compelling characters,” said Nakaharaon. “Stories like those from the Persona franchise really resonate with our fans and we see an opportunity to expand the lore like no one has seen—or played—before.
“Together, Sega and Atlus are working to bring these stories and worlds to life through new mediums and for new audiences.”
After we see the Persona series hit a whole new audience when it lands on Xbox later this year, it'd make sense for Sega and Atlus to ride the wave of its popularity.
If you've yet to play Persona 5 Royal, Persona 4 Golden and Persona 3 Portable, you should do yourself a favour and play through them (ideally in order, so you start with the best one first). They're moody, deep RPGs with good characters and good systems – and when you're done, go back and play the SMT games. Because they're even better.