Persona's Producer Talked About Atlus' Approach to Making Games

At the CEDEC+KYUSHU 2024 developers' conference, Kazuhisa Wada, Creative Producer of the Persona series, discussed how ATLUS' approaches to making games now compared to the past.

The creator reportedly shared that Persona 3 became a turning point for its development company. Before, it embraced an uncompromising "Only One" policy, edginess, and the priority of making niche games. It was even "uncool" to think if a game would sell. However, Person 3 transformed the company's view, and its policy can now be described as "Unique and Universal." The developers started considering marketability more and began making content that was relatable and unique.

"To put it more succinctly, it's like serving players deadly poison wrapped in a sweet coating," Wada noted. According to the producer, the poison would be the company's pursuit to produce striking content, and the sweet coating refers to appealing design and characters that attract a wide target audience. This is the strategy that the development company wishes to follow in the Persona series in the future.

The third game in the Persona series was released in 2006, and currently, the franchise has six entries, with Persona 5 launched in 2016 and Persona 3 Reload in 2024. The latter became the fastest-selling game for ATLUS, with the first million copies sold in a week. Recently, there was a report that Persona 1 and 2 are set to receive remakes.

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