Shin Megami Tensei: Persona 4 (ペルソナ4) is a role-playing video game developed and published by Atlus for Sony's PlayStation 2, and chronologically the fifth installment in the Shin Megami Tensei: Persona series. Persona 4 was released in Japan in July 2008, North America in December 2008, and Europe in March 2009. It features a weather forecast system with events happening on foggy days to replace the moon phase system implemented in the previous games. An enhanced remake for the PlayStation Vita, Persona 4: Golden, was released in Japan in July 2012, North America in November 2012 and in Europe in February 2013.Instead of the city locales of previous games in the series, Persona 4 takes place in a fictional Japanese countryside and is indirectly related to both Shin Megami Tensei: Persona 3 (in terms of gameplay, story and production) and the Persona 2 duology (in terms of confronting one's "Shadow Self" to awaken Persona). The player-named main 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 release of the game in Japan was also accompanied with retail merchandise revolving around the game's theme such as character costumes and accessories. The North American package of the game was released with a CD with selected music from the game, and, unlike Persona 3, the European package also contained a soundtrack CD. The music was composed by Shōji Meguro, with vocals by Shihoko Hirata who sang the theme song "Pursuing My True Self". The game was positively received by critics and developed into a full franchise. Various manga and light novel adaptations and spin-offs have been produced, and a television anime adaptation by AIC ASTA aired in Japan between October 2011 and March 2012. A fighting game sequel to the game, Persona 4 Arena, was released in 2012.
Minggu, 17 November 2013
Reception
Persona 4 was highly acclaimed by critics within and outside Japan, and remained on top of sales charts on its initial release. In Japan, the game sold 193,000 copies within a week of its release, while in North America, Persona 4 was the highest-selling PlayStation 2 game on Amazon.com for two consecutive weeks. A soundtrack disc was included in the North American and European releases of Persona 4, containing a selection of tracks from the full soundtrack released in Japan. Amazon.com exclusively sold the Persona 4 "Social Link Expansion Pack", which included an additional soundtrack disc, a t-shirt, a 2009 calendar, and a plush doll of the character Teddie. Persona 4 was awarded the "PlayStation 2 Game Prize" in the Famitsu Awards 2008, voted by readers of Famitsu. It was also recognized by the Computer Entertainment Supplier's Association as one of the recipients for the "Games of the Year Award of Excellence" in the Japan Game Awards 2009. The game was given the award for its "high quality of work", "excellent story, automatically generated dungeons and impressive background music".
Stage Production
A live stage production titled VisuaLive: Persona 4 (VISUALIVE『ペルソナ4) took place from March 15, 2012 to March 20. Actors starring in the stage production include Toru Baba as the protagonist (whose name was chosen by the audience within every performance), Takahisa Maeyama as Yosuke Hanamura, Minami Tsukui as Chie Satonaka, Risa Yoshiki as Yukiko Amagi, Jyōji Saotome as Daisuke Nagase, Motohiro Ota as Kou Ichijo, and Masashi Taniguchi as Ryotaro Dojima, and Masami Ito as Tohru Adachi. Kappei Yamaguchi reprised his role as Teddie in voice. Following the announcement, Youichiro Omi was cast as Kanji Tatsumi on December 1, 2011.
Anime
A 25-episode television anime adaptation of the game, produced by AIC A.S.T.A. and directed by Seiji Kishi, aired on MBS between October 6, 2011 and March 29, 2012. An additional 26th episode, featuring the story's true ending, was released in the 10th volume of Persona 4 on August 22, 2013. The series features most of the returning cast from the video game, whilst voice recordings for Igor were taken from the game as his actor, Isamu Tanonaka, passed away in January 2010. Aniplex released the series on DVD and Blu-ray Disc between November 23, 2011 and August 22, 2012, with the first volume containing a director's cut of the first episode and a bonus CD single. Sentai Filmworks licensed the series in North America, simulcasting it on Anime Network as it aired and releasing the series on DVD and Blu-ray in two collective volumes on September 18, 2012 and January 15, 2013 respectively. Like the Japanese version, the English dub retains many of the original voice actors from the English version of the game, although the Blu-ray Disc release omits the Japanese audio option. Kazé and Manga Entertainment released the series in the United Kingdom in three BD/DVD combi boxsets released between December 24, 2012 and July 22, 2013. A film recap of the series, titled Persona 4 The Animation -The Factor of Hope-, was released in Japanese theaters on June 9, 2012, featuring a condensed version of the story and new scenes of animation.
Light Novel
Mamiya Natsuki wrote a light novel titled Persona X Detective Naoto (ペルソナ×探偵NAOTO ) that focuses on the character of Naoto Shirogane a year after the events of Persona 4. She is hired to investigate the disappearance of a childhood friend in Yagakoro City where she is partnered with Sousei Kurogami, a mechanized detective. With illustrations by Shigenori Soejima and Shuji Sogabe, the light novel was released by Dengeki Bunko on June 8, 2012 in Japan.
Manga
Persona 4 was also given a manga adaptation. It is written by Shūji Sogabe, the artist for Persona 3's manga, and started serialization in ASCII Media Works' Dengeki Black Maoh Volume 5 in September 2008. The first tankōbon volume was released on September 26, 2009, and six volumes have been released as of February 27, 2012.
Shiichi Kukura also authored Persona 4 The Magician (ペルソナ4 The Magician), a manga that focuses on Yosuke Hanamura's life in Inaba before the game's start. Its only volume was released on August 27, 2012. A manga adaptation of the light novel Persona 4 x Detective Naoto, illustrated by Satoshi Shiki, began serialization in Dengeki Maoh magazine from November 27, 2012.
Sabtu, 16 November 2013
Merchandise
With the release of Persona 4, Atlus has also produced a line of merchandise, including action figures, published materials, toys and clothes. Atlus collaborated with the Japanese publishing company Enterbrain to publish the game's two strategy guides, an artbook detailing character and setting designs, as well a fan book called Persona Club P4 which included official artwork, fan art, as well as interviews with the design staff. Most items were only released in Japan, while other Japanese third-party manufacturers also produced figurines and toys. The action figures include a 1/8 scale PVC figurine of Yukiko Amagi as well as Teddie and Rise Kujikawa, produced by Alter. Licensed Atlus merchandise sold by Cospa includes Persona 4 t-shirts, tote bags, and the jacket and other accessories worn by the character Chie.
Udon recently announced that they will release an English edition of Enterbrain's Persona 4: Official Design Works artbook to be released May 8, 2012.
Developement
According to the game director Katsuro Hashino, while "ideas [had been] thrown around earlier", development on Persona 4 in Japan did not begin until after the release of Persona 3. The development team consisted of the team from Persona 3 and new hires which included fans of Persona 3. Atlus intended to improve both the gameplay and story elements of Persona 3 for the new game, to ensure it was not seen as a "retread" of its predecessor. Hashino said that "to accomplish that, we tried to give the players of Persona 4 a definite goal and a sense of purpose that would keep motivating them as they played through the game. The murder mystery plot was our way of doing that." The plot of Persona 4 was "greatly inspired", according to Hashino, by mystery novelists such as Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Agatha Christie, and Seishi Yokomizo. Persona 4 was officially unveiled in the Japanese gaming magazine Famitsu in March 2008. An article in the issue detailed the game's murder mystery premise, rural setting, and new weather forecast system. The game's North American release date was announced at the 2008 Anime Expo in Los Angeles, California. Atlus would not make an add-on disc or epilogue for Persona 4, as had been done with the Persona 3 FES.
The design of Inaba is based on a town on the outskirts of Mount Fuji. Its rural design was a source of conflict between Persona 4's developers, as "each staff member had their own image of a rural town", according to director Katsura Hashino. The entire staff went "location hunting" to determine Inaba's design. Inaba does not represent a "a country town that has tourist attractions", but rather a non-notable, "'nowhere' place". Hashino described the town as being "for better or for worse...a run-of-the-mill town". Unlike other role-playing games, which may have large worlds for the player to explore, Persona 4 mostly takes place in Inaba. This reduced development costs, and enabled Atlus "to expand other portions of the game" in return. A central setting also allows players to "sympathize with the daily life that passes in the game." To prevent the setting from becoming stale, the development team established a set number of in-game events to be created to "keep the game exciting."
Despite living in the countryside, Persona 4 characters were designed to look and sound "normal" and like "modern high-schoolers", according to lead editor Nich Maragos. Initially, he wrote the game's cast as being "more rural than was really called for." "The characters aren't really hicks...They just happen to live in a place that's not a major metropolitan area." While interviewing members of Persona 4's development team, 1UP.com editor Andrew Fitch noted that the characters from the city—Yosuke and the protagonist—have "more stylish" hair than the other characters. Art director Shigenori Soejima used hair styles to differentiate between characters from the city versus the country. "With Yosuke in particular, I gave him accessories, such as headphones and a bicycle, to make it more obvious that he was from the city."
During localization of the game, Teddie, known as Kuma in the Japanese games, was renamed for the western audience as the concept of a teddy bear was more familiar. Similarly, his verbal tic was translated from adding "kuma" to the end of his sentences to using "bear" in various words, such as a change from "very" to "beary". A similar change was done for Rise Kujikawa's stage name, "Risechie" (りせちー Risechī?) in Japan to "Risette" in the west, as it would not translate well for American and European audiences. "Risette" was chosen instead as French is considered cute in the west. This also changed a line she had in the game from "Rise-cheese" (りせチーズ Risechīzu?) to "Push Risette", the latter being a pun on the phrase "push reset". Nanba also explained the change from "Community" (コミュニティ Komyuniti?) to "Social Link", regarding the gameplay mechanic, as "community" has a different meaning in English, whereas Igor in his speeches often refers to "society" and "bonds". Dungeon items' names were also changed to English, such as the Kae Rail (カエレール Kaerēru?) becoming the "Goho-M", as the item's use of returning the player to the entrance was taken to be "go home". Other nuances include referring to a model robot in the protagonist's room, in Japan as the Mass Production Unit Brahman (量産型ブラフマン Ryōsanka Burafuman?) as the "MF-06S Brahman", making it a clearer reference to Gundam for the west, changing Junes's slogan from "Everyday Young Life! Junes!" (エヴリディ・ヤングライフ！ ジュネス！ Evuridei Yangu Raifu! Junesu!?, with "Junes" coming from the French Jeunesse for youth) to "Everyday's great at your Junes", and eliminating some Japanese cultural references that would not transfer such as the reference to Kosuke Kindaichi. There were also some issues regarding the translation of the names of Yukiko, Kanji, and Rise's dungeons, as the English names were made to fit the original Japanese graphics, and the "Void Quest" dungeon's graphics were specifically made to harken back to the NES. He also remarked on how popular the interpretations of Kanji's Shadow were in the west, and how it did not change how the character was seen by the other audience.
Atlus's senior project manager Masaru Nanba commented it was decided that "Shin Megami Tensei" was to be kept in the title of Persona 3 and Persona 4, as it was believed that they were part of the same series as Shin Megami Tensei: Nocturne; however the "Shin Megami Tensei" title was omitted from both Persona 4 Golden and Persona 4 Arena, as it would have been much too long. Similarly, Persona 4: The Ultimate in Mayonaka Arena and Persona 4: The Golden were shortened to the previously stated titles.
Jumat, 15 November 2013
Combat
Inside the TV World, the player explores randomly generated dungeons in the field map. each dungeon is of a certain theme, based on the victim that has been kidnapped. Dungeons are divided into floors, each containing Shadows, enemies the protagonist and his friends fight; and treasure chests, which contain items or equipment. To progress the story, players fight against Shadows as they navigate their way to a dungeon's final floor, where the missing person is located.
The player enters battle upon coming into contact with a Shadow in the dungeon, and the player can gain the initiative by striking the Shadow from behind. The battle system is turn-based, with similarities to the Press Turn system used in other Shin Megami Tensei games. Each character can perform a basic attack with their weapon, use a special Skill, or use an item. The player can choose to directly control the actions of all party members, or use the "Tactics" option to alter their battle AI.
Offensive abilities cause certain types of damage, such as "Physical", "Fire", or "Almighty". Enemies the player encounters may have a weakness to a certain type of attack. Exploiting an enemy's weakness will knock it down, giving the attacker the opportunity to act again. If all enemies in a battle are knocked down, the player may initiate an All-Out Attack, a powerful attack in which the player's party rushes the downed enemies, removing weaker enemies and inflicting heavy damage on stronger ones. However, as party members also have weaknesses, they are also vulnerable to being knocked down. At the end of the battle, players are awarded experience points, money, and items. Players may be given the chance to win a new Persona to summon in battle by a timing game.
Gameplay
Like its predecessor, Persona 3, Persona 4 gameplay mixes a traditional role-playing video game with a simulation game. The protagonist of Persona 4 is a teenage boy, named and controlled by the player. The game takes place over the course of a traditional Japanese school year. Outside of key events, the protagonist attends school, and can interact with other students and characters, spend time at part-time jobs to earn money, or engage in other activities. The player may also enter the "TV World", an alternate reality where the game's dungeon-crawling gameplay occurs. Each day in Persona 4 is broken up into different periods of time, such as After School or Evening. Certain activities are limited to certain times of day. In addition, the ability to engage in certain activities is based on the day of the week, or the weather.
By spending time with people, the protagonist forms "Social Links", friendships made with other characters as the game progresses, each represented by one of the Major Arcana. Social Links start at Rank 1, increasing over time as the protagonist spends time with that person, until it reaches MAX Rank (rank 10).Social Links grant the player bonuses when creating new Personas in the Velvet Room. Social Links are also influenced by the protagonist's five attributes: Understanding, Diligence, Courage, Knowledge and Expression, which can be improved through various activities, such as part-time jobs, school clubs, and sports teams. These attributes in turn may also affect the protagonist's interaction in daily activities outside of Social Links.
Persona 4's timeline is story-driven—the protagonist and his friends must rescue characters who disappear from the real world into the TV World, indicated through the "Midnight Channel". The one-week weather forecast indicates the amount of time players have to rescue people who have disappeared, in which the last foggy day of the week marks the mission deadline. The game ends when the player fails to retrieve the missing person in time, and is given the choice to return to one week before the fog appeared.
Rabu, 13 November 2013
Plot
Inaba to live with the Dojimas, consisting of his uncle Ryotaro and his cousin Nanako, for one year, as his parents are working abroad. Just after his arrival, a TV announcer is found dead, her body hanging from an antenna; Saki Konishi, the high school student who had discovered the body, is later found dead herself, hung upside-down from a telephone pole.After the protagonist and his friends accidentally enter the TV world, they encounter Teddie, who helps them travel freely between the TV and real worlds.They awaken their Persona abilities, and, realizing that the murders stem from Shadow attacks in the TV world, are able to rescue several would-be victims. Yosuke, Chie, Yukiko, Kanji, Rise and Teddie accept their other selves, which become giant Shadows in the TV world, and join the group as Persona-users. Mitsuo Kubo, a student from another high school who disappears following the death of Kinshiro Morooka, the protagonist's foul-mouthed homeroom teacher, claims credit for the murders; it is eventually learned that Kubo only killed the teacher and played no part in the other murders.Naoto Shirogane, a nationally-renowned "Detective Prince" investigating the case, is also rescued and joins the group, who learn that "he" is actually a girl who assumed a male identity to avoid the police's sexism.
Events come to a head when Ryotaro Dojima mistakenly accuses the protagonist of being involved in the murders.Nanako is kidnapped during the protagonist's interrogation, leading Ryotaro to engage in a vehicular pursuit with the culprit. The chase ends as they both crash; the kidnapper escapes with Nanako through a television set in his truck, and the gravely-injured Ryotaro entrusts her rescue to the group. The group tracks them down within the TV world; the culprit, Taro Namatame, attacks them as a god-like monster—Kunino-sagiri—but is defeated, and both he and Nanako are taken to the Inaba hospital. When Nanako appears to die, the group furiously confronts Namatame; as the protagonist, the player must help the others realize that Namatame is not the killer by pointing out the lack of a proper motive, and subsequently work to determine that Ryotaro's assistant, Tohru Adachi, is the true killer. Failure to do so ends the game with the party being unable to solve the case; Nanako's death being permanent; and the recurring fog permanently setting in, the latter of which will eventually result in humanity's demise.
Having identified the culprit as Adachi, the party chases and locates him within the TV world. Adachi explains that his actions were out of both boredom and the belief that humanity is better off existing as Shadows; his claims are dismissed by the party.After fighting Adachi, he is possessed by Ameno-sagiri, the Japanese God of Fog, who reveals that the fog is lethal to people and will eventually wipe out humanity.Upon his defeat, he agrees to lift the fog, congratulating the party on their resolve.Defeated, the wounded Adachi agrees to assume responsibility for his actions and turns himself in.The game moves forward to the day before the protagonist must travel home. If the player returns to the Dojima residence, the game ends with the party sending the protagonist off as he departs Inaba. Alternatively, should the player be able to identify the unexplained cause of the Midnight Channel and attempt to resolve this plot element, the protagonist meets with the party and together they decide to put the case to a permanent end.
The protagonist confronts the gas station attendant encountered at the start of the game, who reveals herself to be the Japanese goddess Izanami, the "conductor" behind the game's events. The cause of the recurring fog is established as an attempt to eliminate humans by merging the TV world with the human world, all for the "sake" of humanity.The group tracks Izanami down within the TV world and battle her, but is at first unable to win; the defeated protagonist is given strength by the bonds he has forged with those around him, and with this power awakens a new Persona—Izanagi-no-Okami—which he uses to defeat Izanami. In doing so, the fog in each world is lifted, and the TV world is restored to its original form. The game ends with the party sending the protagonist off the following day, and a post-credits scene depicts the group resolving to remain friends forever, as the protagonist examines a photo of the party.
Senin, 11 November 2013
Persona 4 Characters
