It’s no secret that Atlus had a phenomenal 2020 with the massive success of thePersona 4 Goldenport and the release ofPersona 5 Royal. WithPersona 5 Royalselling over 1.4 million copies andPersona 4 Goldenselling over 500,000 copies on Steam, the series has brought the franchise worldwide recognition and mainstream attention. Sega, Atlus’s parent company, has taken note ofPersona’ssuccess, and hopes to bring more Atlus ports, remasters, and remakes to a number of different platforms.
Releasing its annual online customer survey, Atlus asked fans if they wanted to see more franchises ported or remade on other platforms. Receiving a record number of respondents, the survey contained questions regarding Atlus franchises such asPersona, Etrian Odyssey, Shin Megami Tensei,and more. Following thesuccess of the PC port ofPersona 4 Golden,it’ll be interesting to see what other Atlus games will make a comeback as ports.
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Persona Series
With the massive success ofPersona 4 Goldenon Steam and thepopularity thatPersona 5 Royalhas generated in 2020, olderPersonagames seem like the most obvious choice for Atlus ports and remakes. ThoughRevelations: Personaand thePersona 2duology are fantastic games in their own right,Persona 3is the entry which established the social simulation mechanics that define the series. As a result, it’s most likely thatPersona 3will appear as the next port or remaster from Atlus.
The recent survey from Atlus seems to imply thatthey favor the Nintendo Switch and PC as platforms for future portsandPersona 3would be a perfect fit for either option. Although there are three versions ofPersona 3,the original can be ruled out asPersona 3 FESis a direct upgrade with a new epilogue and content. BetweenPersona 3 FESandPersona 3 Portable,it’d be a good idea for Atlus to release a definitive edition combining the two as they each have exclusive story and gameplay elements.
A number ofPersonaspinoff gamescould also be ported to the PC or Nintendo Switch. ThePersona Qspinoff series could make an appearance considering its popularity on the Nintendo 3DS. Fusing elements of Atlus’s dungeon-crawling franchiseEtrian Odysseytogether withPersona,thePersona Qseries allows players to team up their favoritePersonacharacters to explore labyrinths and map their layouts. ThePersona 4 Arena Ultimaxspinoffcould also make for a great port considering the popularity of fighting games on the Nintendo Switch.
Shin Megami Tensei Series
TheShin Megami Tenseiseries is going to have a big 2021with Atlus announcing a port forShin Megami Tensei 3,and a new mainline gameShin Megami Tensei 5for the Nintendo Switch. With the popularity of thePersonaseries, it’s inevitable thatShin Megami Tenseigets its time to shine as the series that started it all. ThoughPersonahas overshadowed the series lately, Atlus portingShin Megami Tenseigames would be effective in popularizing the series again.
The most obvious choices for ports of theShin Megami Tenseiseries would be the three mainline Nintendo DS/3DS games:Shin Megami Tensei: Strange Journey, Shin Megami Tensei 4,andShin Megami Tensei 4: Apocalypse.TheShin Megami Tenseiseries is known for its dark tone and apocalyptic settingalong with its high difficulty. The exploration and combat mechanics would feel great on the Nintendo Switch if Atlus makes minor changes to the original Nintendo DS/3DS dual screen features.
Etrian Odyssey Series
It’s a little strange that a newEtrian Odysseygame has not shown up on the Nintendo Switch given the franchise’s commercial success and critical acclaim. Whilethe lastEtrian Odysseygame hinted at the return of the series, Atlus has yet to publish a new game. The Nintendo Switch is a fantastic platform for the series given its portability, and there’s currently a lack of great dungeon-crawlers available in the Nintendo eShop.
However, even if theEtrian Odysseyseries doesn’t get a new game on the Nintendo Switch, the series has a lot of fantastic titles available to port. The biggest difficulty would bethe transition to the docked Nintendo Switchas the mapping feature ofEtrian Odysseyrelied heavily on the Nintendo DS/3DS’s touchscreen capabilities. Nonetheless,Etrian Odysseyis a fan favorite series from Atlus, and porting the dungeon-crawling series to the Nintendo Switch could attract a lot of newcomers.
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The Vanillaware ARPGs
Developer Vanillaware has worked closely with Atlus in the past to deliver two fantastic ARPG titles:Odin SphereandDragon’s Crown.Odin Spherewas heavily driven by a unique narrative experience, whileDragon’s Crownoffered a fantasticmultiplayer experience reminiscent of loot-based ARPGs likeDiablo.Both games featured a distinct artstyle that Vanillaware has become known for, and enjoyed a moderate amount of success.
Odin SphereandDragon’s Crownwould both be great ports for the Nintendo Switch or PC given their mechanics. Both games would also be fairly easy to port, and the popularity of ARPG games, especially loot-based ones, have been skyrocketing lately.Odin SphereandDragon’s Crownboth appeared on the Atlus customer survey so there’s a good chance that they will appear as ports even if they areovershadowed by thePersonaandShin Megami Tenseiseries.
Trauma Center Series
Although the Atlus customer survey included a lot of potential ports and remakes,the belovedTrauma Centerseries unfortunately didn’t show up. While the original gameTrauma Center: Under the Knifeunderperformed in Japan, it sold extremely well in North America and Europe. As a result, the series continued with a Wii remake,Trauma Center: Second Opinion,and a DS sequel,Trauma Center: Under the Knife 2.
TheTrauma Centergames combine surgery-based simulation with a story told in the form of a visual novel. Using the touchscreen capabilities of the Nintendo DS, players would perform operations and utilize surgical tools. Like theEtrian Odysseyseries,Trauma Center’sreliance on a touchscreen would require Atlus to make some changes before porting it to the Nintendo Switch. However, the Wii remake,Trauma Center: Second Opinion,has already demonstrated the capabilities of the series usingmotion tracking and the Joy-Cons would be a perfect fitfor potentialTrauma Centerports.
Thesuccess of the PC port forPersona 4 Goldenhas reignited speculationamongst fans on which Atlus series will receive remasters or ports next. With the release of the 2020 online customer survey, it seems that more and more classic Atlus games will show up on the Nintendo Switch or PC in the future. With a record number of respondents giving their opinions, this hopefully means thatPersona 4 Goldenwas just the beginning in Sega’s decision of porting more Atlus series.
Persona 4 Goldenis available on Steam for PC.
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