Fans have been clamoring for a western for a long time, and finally the highly anticipatedPersona 5spin-off/sequel is coming to the west. Realizing one of the earliest gameplay concepts for the base game,Persona 5 Strikersadopts the musou format and meldsDynasty Warriorsaction combat withPersona’s elements of turn-based battles. The game’s been available in Japan for several months already, but after the leaked trailer, the localized version is coming a year later in February 2021. That being said, even thoughStrikers' localization is very good news, it does beg a pretty big question thanks to its release on Steam: Where’sPersona 5’s PC port?
Many would make the assumption that, sincePersona 5 Strikersis not only being localized but ported to PC as well, the game it’s based on would also theoretically come to the PC platform. As much asStrikersis a spin-off game, it is still very much a sequel to the events ofPersona 5/Persona 5 Royal. Players are going to get invariably more enjoyment out ofStrikersif they’ve playedPersona 5, which is obviously going to be very hard to do if PC players never owned a PS4. However, SEGA and Atlus have shown a renewed interest in the PC platform as a whole in the last few years, for multiple reasons. TheStrikersport is almost certainly a sign of what’s to come.
Persona’s Popularity on PC Specifically Lends Hope
ThePersonaseries in general saw a pretty big boost in popularity this year, but the PC platform in particular is seeing a lot of love from Atlus. For the first time since its release on PlayStation Vita,Persona 4 Goldenwas surprisingly ported to PC after spending years on the Sony handheld. The Steam port alone saw huge adoption from fans, withover 500,000 copies sold on Steam within the first month. SEGA and Atlus saw this as a clear success, and made several statements expressing renewed interest in old titles and bringing them to PC. However,Persona 5 Strikerscoming to Steam is a pretty clear indicator SEGA’s PC plans extend beyond just legacy content.
It’s also relevant to point out that, at the moment,Persona 5is technicallyplayable on PC currently via the RPCS3 emulator. However, you would need to rip an ISO from a legal copy ofPersona 5(or acquire one through more nefarious means) to play it. Of course, that ended up being a pretty big concern for SEGA and Atlus, as videos on YouTube and a Patreon page started gaining traction in 2017 for depicting the PS3 version ofPersona 5running on PC.
Atlus USA filed a DMCA takedown of the Patreon page for RPCS3, but specifically targeted any mention ofPersona 5rather than the software itself. ReleasingPersona 5officially onPersona 5may be SEGA and Atlus' way to circumvent that issue.
Strikers Releasing Without Persona 5 Wouldn’t Make Sense
As a result, theoretically speaking, it wouldn’t make sense forPersona 5Strikersto release on PC without releasing the game its based on. At least, not eventually.Persona 5doesn’t need to release day-and-date withStrikers, but at some point the base game should (and likely will) be ported to PC as well. Not portingPersona 5would be like ifPersona 4 Arenawas ported to PC beforePersona 4 Goldenhad been.Even ifStrikersis technically a spin-off, the game is largely regarded as a sequel (similar toPersona 4 Arena’s story) and wouldn’t have the same impact on new players. Character relationships and dynamics wouldn’t make any sense withoutPersona 5’s context.
Pair that with the public messaging SEGA and Atlus have stated regarding the PC platform, the publisher seems to hypothetically agree. In the past, SEGA has mentioned the company’s intentions to “aggressively promote the porting of previously launched titles to Steamand other new platforms,” in reference toPersona 4 Golden’s success.Persona 5, or more likelyPersona 5 Royalis likely on the way to Steam at some point, though it’s unclear when that may happen.
RELATED:Persona 4 Golden on PC Could Encourage More Down the Line
The Likely Release Window for Persona 5 on PC
WithPersona 5 Strikerscoming next February, there’s two big possibilities for aPersona 5 Royalport’s release date. Firstly, and perhaps the less likely scenario, SEGA and Atlus could shadow-dropPersona 5on the same day asPersona 5Strikers' release.Persona 4 Goldendropped on Steam in June with no pre-release announcement, and saw pretty great success regardless. Either that or it still releases in February, but there’s a short trailer announced beforehand at something like The Game Awards.
It’s less likely compared to the alternative, which would be toreleasePersona 5 Royalon the one-year-anniversaryof its release on PS4.Final Fantasygames have had timed-exclusivity on PS4 before, soPersona 5 Royalcould be in a similar situation. That would meanPersona 5 Royaltheoretically hits Steam on June 11, 2025, assuming a port is already in development. Either way, for most fans waiting for aPersona 5port to PC, it’s more a question of “when” than “if” at this point.
Persona 5 Strikersreleases on July 26, 2025, for PC, PS4, and Nintendo Switch.
MORE:How Persona 5 Royal Subverted Expectations, and Why Persona 6 Should Do the Same
