The year is 2020.
Persona 5 Royal has finally arrived in English on PlayStation 4.
Japanese fans are enjoying Persona 5 Scramble on the Nintendo Switch.
The game’s developer, Atlus, are even porting midlife crisis simulator, Catherine: Full
Body, to the Switch.
It’s possible to play as Joker in Super Smash Brothers.
It’s possible to play Xbox exclusive games like Cuphead on the Switch.
It’s even possible to play as a Sonic the Hedgehog character in Joker cosplay on the
Switch.
So why is it still impossible to play Persona 5 on Switch?
Atlus have been cagey about the true logic behind keeping Persona 5 locked onto the PlayStation.
A Frequently Asked Questions page on Atlus’ website says that there are currently no plans
to bring the game to other platforms, but beyond that, there’s no explanation or this
decision.
At a special Persona 5:The Royal event last year, Sony Interactive Entertainment director
Atsushi Morita made remarks claiming that the Persona brand is not only important for
Atlus and Sega, but is also a “platform holder” for Sony.
As to what a “platform holder” might be, that’s anybody’s guess.
It seems that Atlus and Sony have some kind of deal that keeps the original Persona 5
connected to the PlayStation, whether that be an exclusivity contract, or some other
deal entirely.
Things are less than clear on this front.
What is clear is that Atlus is not above finding a way to get Persona 5 onto the Switch, on
one condition.
During a preview event for Persona 5: The Royal, Atlus Communications Manager Ari Advincula
was asked whether the game would, or even could, ever see a release on the Switch.
She responded by saying, “I am a strong believer in ‘never ever give up on hope’.”
Indeed, Ari went on to make it clear that, if anyone’s to blame for Persona 5 not being
on Switch, it’s fans of the game.
Apparently, we’re just not shouting loud enough.
Said Ari: “You want what you want, and if you don't
let us know it we’re never going to be able to make it.
It’s important to always voice your opinion.”
Interestingly, Ari said that while she’s not a decision maker within Atlus, she is
an “internal champion” for porting Persona 5 to Switch.
It sounds as if there may be some debate within the company about whether this port would
be feasible, with at least Ari firmly on the side of trying to make it happen, and wanting
fan support to bolster the success of this movement within Atlus.
Indeed, it does seem as if Atlus is considering finally porting some of its games to the Switch,
and from the sounds of it, if they want fan feedback, they’ve just received more of
it than they could possibly imagine.
At the start of every year, Atlus releases a customer survey where they try to gauge
what their audience wants in the near future.
This year, the survey included a question about ports.
Participants were asked which Atlus games they’d like to see ported to the Nintendo
Switch.
Atlus’ potential list was very comprehensive.
Would players like any of the Persona series?
What about some Shin Megami Tensei titles?
Etrian Oddysey?
Devil Summoner?
What about Catherine: Full Body?
Participants could express interest in a Switch port of basically every game Atlus has made
in at least the past decade.
The market research exercise didn’t exactly go as planned.
What was meant to be a small survey of hardcore Atlus fans ended up getting significantly
more attention than any similar survey from previous years.
Gaming news media outlets around the world reported on the survey, as hopeful Nintendo
Switch owners saw this as a possible hint that Persona 5, or, indeed, any of the Persona
games, might finally be on their way to the Switch.
With more attention came a lot more people filling in the survey.
Not long after the questionnaire closed on the 10th of February, Atlus’ official Twitter
account tweeted out a message of thanks.
Apparently the company has received a “record high” number of participants that “far
exceeded expectations”.
So, if anyone at Atlus were in doubt about their audience’s desire for a Persona 5
Switch port, or a port of any other Atlus game, they’ve now been made very well aware
of just how many people want to see Joker, Morgana, and the Phantom Thieves’ first
grand adventure on the Nintendo Switch.
If you’re watching this video from the far-flung future, you might already know the outcome
of this, in which case, take this as a snapshot of Persona 5 Switch eagerness at the very
start of the 2020s.
Apparently the moral of the story is that if you want something, you’ve got to keep
making noise until you get it.
That’s actually what Atlus wants you to do!