My most anticipated RPGs of 2011: Day 7

Shin Megami Tensei: Persona 2: Innocent Sin - PSP - September 2011:

For a couple of years now there has been a perception in amongst the gaming fraternity that Japanese role-playing games (JRPGS) have become redundant and may very soon take the path of the adventure genre i.e disappear from the scene before a mini-revival takes place a decade later. Yes there maybe some truth behind it, where even the once invincible SquareEnix has faltered a little, but a matter of fact is that such a perception is far from the truth and there has been one company that has been hell-bent in proving this. Atlus is considered to be a messiah for JRPG fans as year after year their JRPG games make it to the top, literally culling the notion that the genre has become worthless. What separates Atlus from the other companies is how they still cling on the very Japanese mechanics of the genre yet making it slick and intriguing to make it a part of the current generation. What once was a niche company has now become one of the top players in the JRPG scene.

Shin Megami Tensei series has been Atlus's main franchise for more than 2 decades now. The series is well know for its references to the occult and cyber-punk as well as modern day settings, while it the series cuts no corners in sticking to turn based mechanics configured for any gaming generation. But for Atlus the spin-off of SMT series, the Persona series, has seen them become a house-hold name for JRPG fans around the world. Since Persona's inception in 1996 the series has gone from strength to strength and now a days every Persona release ends up creating a lot of hype. So what that has done is now Atlus is bringing out the older Persona games for the PS1 era and porting them over to the PSP with clean up graphics and a redone soundtrack. Last year the original game of the series was released, Persona, to mixed reviews, but that still didn't stop Atlus in announcing Persona 2 games as their next game in the porting scheme of things.

Persona 2 was a huge game. So huge that Atlus had to make two games out of it, the first game being Persona 2: Innocent Sin, while the other was named Persona 2: Eternal Punishment. Both games did not actually come out together, as Eternal Punishment was released a whole year later. The events and the characters maybe a little different in Eternal Punishment, but every thing was connected, which created an epic story line to follow. Back in the day the English localization of Innocent Sin was riddled with snags and hitches due to some sensitive matter present in the game (something to do with the appearance of Hitler), which saw that Innocent Sin never came out in English, rather Eternal Punishment was the only game which saw the light of day . This was indeed unfortunate as many thought that they were cheated by with just the concluding chapter to Persona 2.

But now after a whole decade, Atlus is doing it best to correct its mistake by announcing the PSP port of Persona 2: Innocent Sin for the English gamers. The PSP port came out a month ago in Japan, while the English version is a just a couple months away. This indeed is awesome news, as now I will have the chance to explore the haunting world of Persona 2 and check for my self what the whole fuss was all about. This game has got me all excited as it has been 3 years now since the last Persona game (not counting the Persona port), so right now any Persona game will do. Innocent Sin's setting is very unique where the game takes place 10 years ago in Japan in a fictional city of Sumaru City, where a cursed as gripped the city where rumours about a serial killing Joker are coming true with a spade of horrific murders.

The game is turn based, where the players have the ability to summon their inner personas to battle demons. An interesting twist to this formula is that the game encourages the players to make contracts with the demons through, oddly enough, dialogue. Say the right things at the right time and the demon will make a contract, (Alas wish life was that simple). Everything about Persona 2 is novel (at least for a 10 year JRPG) and has plenty of modern day references such as characters using mobile phones or the Internet. Even the main characters are very different from your run of the mill JRPG characters, who are made up of high school students, editors of a teen magazine or self proclaimed musicians. Yes the game is really old, with dated graphics even for the PSP, but its a Persona game, and you can bet your bottom dollar that the story and setting are a cut above the rest. The Persona series may not be a staple franchise in lieu with the Final Fantasy or the Dragon Quest series, but it still gives those series a run for their money.

So here's hoping the game is still relevant as it was 10 years ago, and fingers crossed that E3 has some sort of announcement of a new Persona game.