Sega’s head of film and television and lead producer of Sonic films, Toru Nakahara, recently stated that the company is currently exploring live film and television projects for various IPs at Atlus, according to a report IGN. Nakahara spoke in general about their various privileges, but he specified that “Stories like this one from the Persona franchise truly resonate with our fans and see an opportunity to expand knowledge like no one has seen – or played – before.”
Atlus, a Sega subsidiary, is the popular Japanese development studio behind franchises like Catherine, Shin Megami Tensei, and most notably Persona. Shin Megami Tensei, although not well known in the West, is an iconic RPG series that popularized the now-popular concept of collecting creatures. Persona initially appeared as an offshoot of SMT but has now clearly risen above the original brand after the remarkable phenomenon that was Persona 5.
Released worldwide in 2017, Persona 5 has led the franchise to global recognition, near-universal acclaim, and earned a Game Award for Best RPG, and numerous nominations in other categories, including Game of the Year. The title received two separate items and a definitive release with a host of new content. Her story has also been made into a mini anime series. However, we may not be completely done with Persona 5 content.
After all, it makes sense that Sega would want to adapt the most popular Atlus game, however, we’ll have to wait and see what they do with it. As of now, Sega is not committed to any particular company or streaming service, and IGN wrote that they are exploring projects with “different studios and producers.”
Live-action adaptations of video games have had their struggles over the years, but Sega recently achieved two-time gold with each of its commercially successful Sonic films. Obviously they found this a profitable strategy, and they are now looking around to see which of their other IPs they can recreate this amazing victory. Atlus’ story-packed games aren’t a bad bet at first glance, but there are more hurdles to overcome compared to Sonic.
The Sonic films were children’s films at the end of the day, so their financial surplus didn’t really match their critical reception; They didn’t really need it. The same cannot be said for content aimed at a more mature audience. They should make sure they understand the story correctly. Moreover, this is not just an adaptation of a video game, but also an adaptation from animation to live life, which also had a rocky past.
Unlike Sonic, who is already a 3D cartoon character in his games, Atlus’ characters will go from being anime to being real humans. This visual difference is immediately more striking, and you’ll often find fans saying the characters don’t feel so well. Persona and SMT are notoriously demonic enemies; Very mundane, and often evil, creatures that might look strange in practical or CG effects if carried over to live action. Sometimes it’s best to leave things in their original style, but we’ll see if Sega can go three on three.
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