After a long hiatus I am back in the IGN blogging scene! Such a comeback would be meaningless if it was not coupled with a crazy blog post full of crackpot theories and near baseless speculation about future games to come. So with that in mind I humbly present today's post about the possibility of  Persona 5!

As Persona 4 Golden for the PS Vita has been getting oodles of attention lately (and for good reason) I figured that now was as good a time as any to look forward to the future of the Persona series, but before that lets take a look at Person's not so distant past.

Persona 3 was released for the PS2 in Japan on July 13, 2006. Americans were treated to the games release on August 14, 2007. Persona 4 was released for the PS2 in Japan on July 10, 2008 with an American release following on December 9, 2008. A new entry in the series would not come until the release of Persona 4 Arena for the PS3/Xbox360 which launched in Japan on July 26, 2012 and in America on August 7, 2012. It is this gem of a game that I wish to discuss.

(Some Persona 4 Arena spoilers follow)

As I'm sure any Persona fan knows, Persona 4 Arena continues the story from where Persona 4 left off, but the game is no longer an RPG, but rather a robust fighting game that pits characters from both Persona 3 and Persona 4 against each other. The gameplay is truly spectacular and just oozes the kind of personality that Persona games are known for. Any fan of fighting games or Persona games definitely owes it to themselves to give it a whirl. However, It is the game's ending that I wish to discuss.

I don't wish to get into the specifics of Person 4 Arena's story, but as the mystery behind the tournament inside the TV is unfolded throughout the game, the player starts to get a sense of who the villain is. This part of the story is great and I don't want to give too much away, but once you solve the mystery and save the day another villain reveals himself (sort of). All you see is his silhouette while he tells you part of his plan. The story then winds up with Mitsuru and the Persona 3 gang getting ready to find this mysterious man, while telling Yu Narukami (Persona 4's protagonist) and the Persona 4 gang to leave things to them. Yu agrees with no intention of keeping his word, of course.  That is how Persona 4 wraps up, with both parties going their separate ways to solve yet another shadow-based mystery in a chapter aptly called "Cliffhanger".

After I experienced this cliffhanger in late August I wondered where all the speculation of a squeal was and why no questions were being asked. This obviously reeks of something HUGE here, doesn't it? I surely thought so. After I finished Persona 4 Golden earlier this month I began to speculate as to what Atlus might have in store for us.

It seems that Atlus was trying their hand at something new with Persona 4 Arena while also setting the stage for Persona 5, which will most likely be a  crossover between Persona 3 and Persona 4 characters just like P4A leads us to believe. However, it seems like almost a given that Persona 5 will return to the franchise roots offering traditional RPG and social sim gameplay. This addition to the series is possibly being worked on as we speak, and the possibility of it being released for the PS Vita by the end of the year is not too much of a stretch as all the voice actors have been selected, the assets from Persona 4 Golden have already been created, and a plot has already been created. Furthermore, Persona 4 Golden already proved that the fan base for such a title exists on the Vita while it is also attracting more and more fans every day. The Vita is the perfect platform for the successor to Persona 4 and I see no reason why we won't hear more about plans for release soon.

http://www.ign.com/blogs/jakeball8/2013/01/18/persona-5-in-the-works