That's right, the good folks at Atlus have seen fit to fulfill my dream of having my very own English copy of Persona 3 for the PSP. This hand-held adaptation of the award-winning PS2 title isn't just a straight port, either. This time you can play with a chick! Wait, that came out wrong. Atlus gods please forgive me, for I have sinned.
If you were following the release of the title in Japan, you'll know all this, but here's a rundown of the features and changes in the portable version, all of them are very welcome and will do nothing but add to the value of this title.
- New female protagonist, so you can choose to play with either the original male or the new female.
- Many improvements that were made for Persona 4 are now included in this title such as one-button town navigation, part-time jobs and the ability to directly control all your party members.
- New social links, interactions and romance possibilities for the female protagonist.
Aram Jabbari, Manager of Public Relations and Sales at Atlus had this to say about the portable incarnation of Persona 3:
"Persona 3 introduced a revolutionary social element to role-playing games. Players weren't just progressing through a story; they were a part of it, and their decisions and the relationships they chose to foster or neglect became a powerful complement to the game's satisfying combat. Persona 3 Portable takes everything that made Persona 3 such a tremendous, award-winning hit and translates it into the perfect handheld RPG experience."
SMT: Persona 3 Portable is currently scheduled for release on July 6, 2010, well after the RPG blitz of the spring. I'm definitely keeping my eye on this, especially since Atlus is likely to throw something special into the mix, as well. Perhaps a soundtrack CD or art book? We'll see when the time comes.
In the mean time though, check out the screens below, as well as the video that depicts the game's opening.