Persona 5[a] is a 2016 role-playing video game developed by P-Studio and published by Atlus. The game is the sixth installment in the Persona series, itself a part of the larger Megami Tensei franchise. It was released for PlayStation 3 and PlayStation 4 in Japan in September 2016 and worldwide in April 2017. It was published by Atlus in Japan and North America, and by Deep Silver in PAL territories. An enhanced version featuring new content, Persona 5 Royal,[b] was released for PlayStation 4 in Japan in October 2019 and worldwide in March 2020. It was published by Atlus in Japan and worldwide by its parent company Sega. Persona 5 Royal was later released for Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 5, Windows, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S in October 2022. Taking place in modern-day Tokyo, the story follows a high school student known by the codename Joker who transfers to a new school after he is falsely accused of assault and put on probation. Over the course of a school year, he and other students awaken to a special power, becoming a group of secret vigilantes known as the Phantom Thieves of Hearts. They explore the Metaverse, a supernatural realm born from humanity's subconscious desires, to steal malevolent intent from the hearts of adults and change their hearts. As with previous games in the series, the party battles enemies known as Shadows using physical manifestations of their psyche known as Personas. The game incorporates role-playing and dungeon crawling elements alongside social simulation scenarios. Persona 5 was developed by P-Studio, an internal development division within Atlus led at the time by game director and producer Katsura Hashino. Along with Hashino, returning staff from earlier Persona games included character designer Shigenori Soejima and music composer Shoji Meguro. Preparatory work began during the development of Persona 4, with full development beginning after the release of Catherine in 2011. First announced in 2013, Persona 5 was delayed from its original late 2014 release date due to being unfinished. Its themes revolve around attaining freedom from the limitations of modern society: the story was strongly inspired by picaresque fiction, and the party's Personas were based on literary outlaws and rebels. Persona 5 has been cited as one of the greatest video games of all time, with praise for its visual presentation, gameplay, story, and music. Persona 5 (including Royal) had sold over 7.2 million units by April 2023, making it the best-selling title in the entire Megami Tensei franchise. Several pieces of related media have also been produced, including four spin-off games— Dancing in Starlight, Persona 5 Strikers, Persona 5 Tactica, and Persona 5: The Phantom X—as well as manga and anime adaptations. The game's cast has also appeared in other games, with Joker appearing as a playable character in the 2018 crossover fighting game Super Smash Bros. Ultimate.
Final Fantasy IX[b] is a 2000 role-playing video game developed and published by Square for the PlayStation video game console. It is the ninth game in the main Final Fantasy series. The plot focuses on a war between nations in a medieval fantasy world called Gaia. Players follow a thief named Zidane Tribal who kidnaps princess Garnet Til Alexandros XVII as part of a ploy by the neighboring nation of Lindblum. He joins Garnet and a growing cast of characters on a quest to take down her mother, Queen Brahne of Alexandria, who started the war. Game development occurred in parallel with Final Fantasy VIII. Envisioned by developers as a retrospective for the series, it departed from the futuristic settings of Final Fantasy VI, VII, and VIII by returning to the medieval style of the earlier games. Consequently, it draws heavy influence from the original Final Fantasy and features allusions to the rest of the series. The game introduced new features to the series despite this approach, such as "Active Time Event" cutscenes, "Mognet", and skill systems. Final Fantasy IX was the last game in the main series whose music was composed solely by Nobuo Uematsu. Final Fantasy IX was released to critical acclaim and commercial success, selling more than 5.5 million copies on PlayStation by March 2016. It was re-released in 2010 as a PS1 Classic on the PlayStation Store—this version was compatible with PlayStation 3 and PlayStation Portable; PlayStation Vita support arrived in 2012. In 2016 Square Enix released an enhanced port featuring minor gameplay and graphical enhancements, which would be released on several platforms. An animated series adaptation by Square Enix and Cyber Group Studios was announced in 2021.
