There’s still no word on when we can expect to see Persona 5, but there’s still plenty of Persona-related content to keep fans satiated in the meantime. Arc System Works announced today that Persona 4’s fighting game spin-off will be getting a new-ish “sequel” that features the return of two more characters from Persona 3.
I put “sequel” in quotes because just like the frequent “sequels” to Guilty Gear XX and BlazBlue, Arc System Works’ P4 Arena sequel seems more like a big update to the game rather than entirely new product.
Japanese gaming mag Famitsu has published the first screens of the new revision, and they reveal that two of Persona 3’s central characters, Yukari Takeba and Junpei Iori, will be joining the game’s roster of fighters. Just like Mitsuru and Akihiko from the original version of the game, Yukari and Junpei look like they’re a few years older and sport brand new costumes — Junpei is wearing a baseball uniform for some reason, while Yukari is clad in a jumpsuit that sort of makes her look like a Power Ranger.
Yukari and Junpei are the only new characters that Arc System Works has announced at this time, but it looks like the character select screen still has enough space open for two more characters.
This new version of P4 Arena has only been announced for arcades: the game is currently undergoing a location test in arcades in Akihabara and Osaka. Given Persona’s popularity internationally, I wouldn’t be surprised if the new version of the game was ported to consoles and released worldwide. Since Arc System Works hasn’t officially announced the console version yet, there’s no word yet on if the additional characters will be DLC for the existing game, or if we’ll have to buy a brand new disc to get the update. Given the company’s love of re-releasing BlazBlue over and over again, I’d bet on the latter.
You can view more screens of the new characters over at Famitsu.