Persona 5 Strikers preview: A new way to play with the Phantom Thieves

We got the amazing opportunity to get our hands on the long-awaited sequel to Persona 5, Persona 5 Strikers. We are excited to share our early experiences with this wonderful new adventure with the Phantom Thieves.

I have made it no secret that Persona 5 Royal is my favorite game of all time. I have played my share of games, especially JRPGs and RPGs, and never has a game captured me and engulfed me completely like P5 and P5R did/has. I am infatuated with everything in the game: the soundtrack, the characters, the gameplay, the writing/story-telling, the tone, the attention to detail, even the UI. I have played and replayed these games over and over again, and then went through the rest of the Persona and Shin Megami Tensei series, and then played P5 and P5R again.

I have been dying for an opportunity to return to the world of the Phantom Thieves. An opportunity to see and hear from Ann and Ryuji and Futaba and Haru and Yusuke, but especially the characters I was closest to, Sojiro, Morgana, and Makoto. I wanted to return to the Metaverse, change the world, and stop cognitive tyrants from making a mess of society.

And I have now gotten my wish with Persona 5 Strikers. 

Persona 5 Strikers (called Persona 5 Scramble in its Eastern release) is the direct sequel to Atlus’ blockbuster hit, Persona 5. After a critically successful Eastern launch in February of 2020, many in North America and Europe were chomping at the bit for the opportunity to reunite with the Phantom Thieves. In early December, Atlus announced that they would be getting that opportunity when Persona 5 Strikers made it’s way to the West in February of 2021.

Atlus gave us the awesome opportunity to get our hands on P5S a bit early so that we could give readers a first look into what the Phantom Thieves are up to in their next big adventure!

The Phantom Thieves Reunite!

About half a year afterlife sent the Phantom Thieves in different directions, the crew returns to Tokyo and Cafe Leblanc with the intentions of going on a summer roadtrip together. The whole team is here: The wise and energetic Morgana, the loud and soft-hearted Ryuji, the kind and beautiful Ann, the inspired and elegant Yusuke, the smart and disciplined (and unquestionably best character) Makoto, the technical wizard with tactical brilliance Futaba, and the wholesome but powerful Haru. Of course, the leader of the Phantom Thieves is right back with his chosen family where he belongs, in the place where he rebuilt his life: Cafe Leblanc.

The original VAs all retain their roles; Xander Mobus (Announcer in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate)  as the Joker, Cassandra Lee Morris (Sothis from the Fire Emblem series) as Morgana, Max Mittleman (Saitama from “One Punch Man” or Red XIII from Final Fantasy VII Remake) as Ryuji, Erika Harlacher (Violet Evergarder from “Violet Evergarden” or Venti from Genshin Impact) as Ann, Matthew Mercer (Jotaro Kujo from “Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure” or Chrom from the Fire Emblem series) as Yusuke, Cherami Leigh (Asuna from “Sword Art Online” or Rottytops from the Shantae series) as Makoto, Erica Lindbeck (Jericho from “Seven Deadly Sins” or Jessie from Final Fantasy VII Remake) as Futaba, and Xanthe Huynh (Ui from “K-On” or Miwako from 13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim) as Haru. Even Jamieson Price (The Colonel from “Akira”) retains his role as the loving father figure, Sojiro.

All of the OG VAs are performing at an elite level in this title, with Max Mittleman, Xanthe Huynh, and Cherami Leigh (All I am saying, is that if the Persona 5 Royal vinyl set that I pre-ordered just so happens to come with a calling card signed by the voice of Asuna, Makoto, Anaak, Rottytops, and Iris, I would not complain) all having standout performances that rival their Persona 5 Royal performances.

Although, the best performance does not come from a returning voice, but an all new one!