A video suspected to be a remake of 'Revelations: Persona', the entry that kicked off the Persona series, has leaked online. Coming on the same day as the first teaser for a Persona 30th anniversary collaboration and just two days before the reveal of the collab's 'P1 Protagonist', some fans are connecting the two events. Atlus and Sega have yet to issue an official statement regarding the video.
Japanese merchandise manufacturer Algernon Product posted a '???×P30th' teaser on its official X (formerly Twitter) account on the 31st local time, followed by the reveal of the 'P30th' collaboration with illustrator Kei Mochizuki on the 1st. The video features an illustration of a high-collared figure wearing an earring alongside a 'P30 ANNIVERSARY' logo, and announced that 'Protagonist (P1)', referring to the protagonist of the first Persona game, will be revealed on the 2nd at 5:00 PM.
This announcement drew particular attention because a video presented as a leak of a remake of the series' first title, Revelations: Persona, had spread online on the 31st. Circulating on file-sharing sites and social media after being uploaded to YouTube, the video is about two minutes long with a resolution of around 360p. Despite the low video quality, it is split into 'Field' and 'Battle' sections like a game systems showcase, and the character appearing to be the protagonist wears an earring and a school uniform similar to past depictions of the protagonist as well as the illustration shown in the Kei Mochizuki collaboration video.
Consequently, some overseas users have pointed out that the collaboration illustration was released the day after the video leak, arguing that this lends credibility to the leaked video. Prior to its official announcement in June 2023, 'Persona 3 Reload' also had a 5-second footage clip labeled as in-development work leaked early in April. However, others suggest the video could be AI-generated or fan-made, citing reused assets and similarities to existing illustrations.
No official evidence linking the collaboration announcement to the leak has been confirmed.
Meanwhile, Kazuhisa Wada, General Producer of Persona Studio, stated during the 'Persona 30th Anniversary' special livestream on September 20 that he personally feels remakes and remasters of 'Revelations: Persona' and 'Persona 2' ought to be done. However, he noted that starting a new project is not easy and asked fans for their continued support.
