History Franchise / Persona

* OneHitPointWonder: Not in the sense Personas are fragile, but ''VideoGame/Persona4Arena'' shows whenever a Persona is struck by anything which actually causes damage, its projected form is forcefully dispelled and {{Synchronization}} transmits the pain to the user's mind. The Persona's aura still protects the user even when dispelled and they can reform instantly, but if this happens too many times too quickly the Persona would be rendered unable to form for a certain amount of time, denying the user from using certain abilities (this is called Persona Break). Anime adaptations of ''Persona 3'' and ''5'' display this to a degree, but ''Persona 4 The Animation'' instead has Personas taking damage alongside the user (not unlike ''Manga/JoJosBizarreAdventure''), and displaying [[OminousVisualGlitch static-like effect]] when they are too damaged.

* BarrierWarrior: This is how Personas protect their users from harm. With the user's life force, a Persona forms a protective aura which shields the user from all manners of assault -- effectively acting as HitPoints, so to speak. Healing spells restore this in addition to wounds, which is why it works on RidiculouslyHumanRobot characters; while their mechanical bodies aren't healed, it still refreshes their Personas. This is why Persona users don't suffer injuries or even ClothingDamage unless they are worn down to the point their auras can no longer defend their bodies, or if they are attacked when their auras aren't present, at which point they become as vulnerable to injuries and death as any normal human.

* HealingMagicIsTheHardest: The original ''Persona'' shows that healing skills used by Persona users don't work properly on non-Persona users, its effects only comparable to massaging. ''Persona 2'' further implies, when outside realms of the collective consciousness (i.e. the real world), healing spells don't work to heal body injuries (though it does refresh the Persona's ability to protect the users), forcing them to visit various clinics in the city (many of which are supernaturally influenced by rumors turning into reality, accomplishing what isn't possible with normal treatment). Notably, this only applies to the human Persona users; dwellers of the collective consciousness who can manifest in the real world like Philemon's butterfly form, Igor, the fairy Trish, and Nyarlathotep have no issue applying healing effects in the real world.
** Persona users of ''Persona 3'' appear to be exceptions; early on Yukari tells the protagonist to come ask her help when he is injured, and Junpei rationalizes Chidori's astounding HealingFactor (which works even outside the Dark Hour) on account of her Persona abilities. Chidori can also revive dead flowers with her powers. Even so, there are clear limits; in the first month of the game Mitsuru doesn't ask Yukari to heal Akihiko's injuries which confine him to a hospital for some time, it makes sense as Yukari only has access to starter healing skills at that point. [[spoiler:Similarly, Shinjiro's death occur at a point in time when no party member is expected to have access to their most powerful healing skills [[note]]Arcana Fortune and Strength fought in the same day as Shinjiro's death are at Level 46, whereas Yukari's Io only learns the full heal spell Diarahan at Level 52 and the earliest Personas the protagonist can fuse which learn Diarahan are at Level 53[[/note]]]].

** The Reaper is a BonusBoss which appears in ''P3'', ''P4'' and ''P5'' if you linger in one place for too long.

* OneHitPointWonder: Not in the sense Personas are fragile, but ''VideoGame/Persona4Arena'' shows whenever a Persona is struck by anything which actually causes damage, its projected form is forcefully dispelled and {{Synchronization}} transmits the pain to the user's mind. The Persona's aura still protects the user even when dispelled and they can reform again immediately, but if this happens too many times too quickly the Persona would be rendered unable to form for a certain amount of time, denying the user from using certain abilities (this is called Persona Break). Anime adaptations of ''Persona 3'' and ''5'' display this to a degree, but ''Persona 4 The Animation'' instead has Personas taking damage alongside the user (not unlike ''Manga/JoJosBizarreAdventure''), and displaying [[OminousVisualGlitch static-like effect]] when they are too damaged.

* PiecesOfGod: When Earth was young, a living celestial body collided with the planet — or more precisely, with life itself on the planet, as the entity defies physics and the collision did not have physical momentum (otherwise it would have destroyed Earth from the impact). The entity's psyche was left on Earth while its body became the Moon; and the psyche influenced all life on the planet with its energies. Lifeforms evolves to seal these fragments in their own minds as Shadows. Every human has a piece within them representing the repressed parts of themselves, and these Shadows can be accepted to transform them into Personas. [[spoiler:Humanity named this entity Nyx, and the major conflict of ''Persona 3'' is caused by various forces trying to awaken her.]]

** In ''Persona 3'', [[spoiler:the Main Character sacrifices his/her life to become the Great Seal — a barrier which prevents Nyx, a CosmicEntity who represents Death itself, from being contacted by Erebus, the AnthropomorphicPersonification of humanity's self-destructive unconscious desires — thus becoming the ultimate representation of hope in the ''Persona'' universe, and visualized as a massive golden gate with the protagonist's soul keeping it closed. On that note, Pharos who later becomes Ryoji is also a manifestation of Death.]]

*** The BigBad Nyarlathotep is an EldritchAbomination, the incarnation of humanity's tendency towards chaos and destruction, and he's a MagnificentBastard of epic proportions, as he manipulated all the heroes and villains in both ''P1'' and ''P2'', and [[ForTheEvulz had a blast doing it]]. And in ''Innocent Sin'', [[spoiler:[[TheBadGuyWins he wins]]]], which is more than what other villains can claim.

*** Nyx is the only deity in the series who doesn't draw her power from human belief, as she is older than our species. In fact, other than responding to desires for death, she doesn't seem to care about anything at all.

** The events of ''Persona 3'' ultimately lead to TheEndOfTheWorldAsWeKnowIt, complete with a doomsday cult and brain-dead people uttering prophetic warnings. This is all due to the subtle influence of the reawakened Nyx, a vast and an ancient entity being called down to the earth. Her presence causes people to explode into puddles of black ooze and random organs. In all likelihood, she doesn't care in the slightest. Oh and she's mainly summoned by the AnthropomorphicPersonification of the malice and despair in the hearts of humanity. Despite your best efforts, [[spoiler:the best action taken was a reverse seal; the protagonist makes a HeroicSacrifice to keep said personification of malice and despair away from Nyx]].

** The various deities in the series all gain their power from the secret desires of the people as a whole. They only seek to destroy the world because humanity secretly wants them to. The only exception is [[spoiler:Nyx from ''Persona 3'']].

** In ''Persona 3'', [[spoiler:the Main Character sacrifices his/her life to become the Great Seal, the final barrier between Nyx, Death itself, and Erebus, the AnthropomorphicPersonification of humanity's self-destructive unconscious desires, thus becoming the ultimate representation of hope in the ''Persona'' universe, and visualized as a massive golden gate with the protagonist's soul keeping it closed. Ryoji is the literal embodiment of death, and serves as the game's final boss and the first person you meet in game.]]

*** Nyx is the only deity in the series who doesn't draw her power from human belief, as she is older than our species. In fact, she doesn't really care about humanity at all.
*** [[spoiler:Erebus]], is the manifestation of humanity's desire for death. Unlike other deities in the franchise, [[spoiler:Erebus]] is a completely mindless monster with the single goal of bringing Death to the world.

* PiecesOfGod: When Earth was young, Nyx collided with the planet, fragmenting its psyche. Life evolved to seal these fragments in their own minds as Shadows. Every human has a piece within them representing the repressed parts of themselves, and these Shadows can be accepted to transform them into Personas.

** A major theme in ''VideoGame/Persona3'', especially since [[spoiler: you actually have to choose to adapt a screw destiny approach in order to complete the game. Faced with the revelation that your friend is actually the harbinger of Nyx, the resident BigBad, you're given the choice to kill him or let him live to become one with Nyx. Killing him erases the cast's memories of the entire adventure, allowing them to live peaceful lives for two months until Nyx arrives and destroys the world. Not killing him means you'll have to fight Nyx... except the story tells us over and over again that you CAN'T fight Nyx, since Nyx is death herself, and thus you're destined to lose. Our heroes choose to ignore this and spend the next month preparing for the final battle with the attitude that destiny can suck it and Nyx is just as killable as anything else. Well, she's not, but you end up winning anyway by [[SealedEvilInACan sealing]] her instead, at the cost of [[HeroicSacrifice the main character's life]]]].

* ''Megami Ibunroku Persona: Shadow Maze'' (1997)

* ''Anime/PersonaTrinitySoul'' (2008)[[index]]

** ''VideoGame/Persona5Tactica'' (2023; PC, UsefulNotes/XboxOne, UsefulNotes/XboxSeriesXAndS, UsefulNotes/PlayStation4, UsefulNotes/PlayStation5, and UsefulNotes/NintendoSwitch)

** ''VideoGame/Persona5Tactica'' (2023; PC, UsefulNotes/XboxOne, UsefulNotes/XboxSeriesXAndS)

** ''Persona 3 Portable'' (2009; UsefulNotes/PlayStationPortable, 2023; Windows (UsefulNotes/{{Steam}} and [[UsefulNotes/XboxLive Windows Store]]), UsefulNotes/PlayStation4, UsefulNotes/XboxOne, UsefulNotes/XboxSeriesXAndS, UsefulNotes/NintendoSwitch UpdatedRerelease) [[index]]
** ''VideoGame/Persona3DancingInMoonlight'' (2018; UsefulNotes/PlayStation4, UsefulNotes/PlayStationVita RhythmGame SpinOff)

** ''VideoGame/Persona5Tactica'' (2023; PC, UsefulNotes/XboxOne, UsefulNotes/XboxSeriesSAndX)

** ''VideoGame/Persona5Tactica'' (2023; UsefulNotes/Playstation4, Windows (UsefulNotes/{{Steam}} and [[UsefulNotes/XboxLive Windows Store]]), UsefulNotes/PlayStation5, UsefulNotes/XboxOne, UsefulNotes/XboxSeriesXAndS, UsefulNotes/NintendoSwitch)

* SurprisinglyGoodEnglish: A good chunk of the soundtrack from the later games is made up of songs with English lyrics, and they are perfectly understandable. The PSP soundtrack of ''Persona 1'' averts it, as it's GratuitousEnglish instead.

* ''VideoGame/Persona5'' (2016; UsefulNotes/PlayStation3, UsefulNotes/PlayStation4): A juvenile delinquent sent to Tokyo as part of a year-long probation for a crime he did not commit discovers another world linked to people's distorted desires, and within it, a means to exact justice on those who abuse their power.

* ''LightNovel/PersonaXDetectiveNaoto'' (2012) (Japan only)

* LostInTranslation: Arguably more prominent here than in ''Megami Tensei'' in general. The UpdatedReRelease of the earlier games generally fail to translate Japanese words which denote important concepts related to Jungian psychology, Japanese Buddhism or other religious concepts. Philemon and Nyarlathotep's explanations at the end of ''Innocent Sin'' lost so many meanings from the original Japanese that it actually paints Philemon as even more StupidGood than he really is. While games post ''Persona 3'' are generally better about this, certain elements and references to Japanese culture simply can't be translated and must be changed -- particularly prominent for class quizes and tests.

* LostInTranslation: Arguably more prominent here than in ''Megami Tensei'' in general. The UpdatedReRelease of the earlier games generally fail to translate Japanese words which denote important concepts related to Jungian psychology, Japanese Buddhism or other religious concepts. One example is translating 自己 (lit. "self") into "soul", which derails Philemon's explanation about himself and Nyarlathotep as the source of selves (the things which reinforce and weaken the sense of self to be exact) in humans rather than their souls. While games post ''Persona 3'' are generally better about this, certain elements and references to Japanese culture simply can't be translated and must be changed -- particularly prominent for class quizes and tests.

** The awakening of Persona is to reach deep into the heart and call forth the Shadow Self — the other self who dwells in the collective consciousness, alongside gods and demons — and use its power as your own. The method with which one can awaken it wildly varies — the denizens of Velvet Room Belladonna and Demon Painter use MagicMusic, while Igor and his Attendants use Device Magic in different forms ranging from a phone which calls to the depths of the soul, to Tarot cards. Exceptional humans can awaken Persona in the real world with sheer force of will (example: [[VideoGame/Persona3 Mitsuru]] and [[spoiler:[[VideoGame/Persona5 Maruki]]]]) but most require external assistance (from beings of the collective consciousness like Philemon and Nyarlathotep) or the use of Evoker, a type of Device Magic which harnesses Plumes of Dusk — minuscule fragments of the CosmicEntity which influenced life on Earth to begin with. Inside cognitive realms in the collective consciousness however, Force Magic is in full effect and humans have a much easier time awakening their Persona.

* BreakoutCharacter: A fair few of the main characters in the franchise have ended up being more recognizable than their respective games due to their particularly fascinating circumstances, quirks, and interesting personalities. Examples include [[FormerTeenRebel Yukino]], [[AllLovingHero Maya]], [[RidiculouslyHumanRobot Aigis]], [[ActionGirl Chie]], [[AmbiguouslyGay Kanji]], [[SweetPollyOliver Naoto]], [[JerkWithAHeartOfGold Ryuji]], Futaba, and [[HeelFaceRevolvingDoor Akechi]].

*** ''Persona 5 Royal'' (2019; UsefulNotes/Playstation4, 2022; Windows (UsefulNotes/{{Steam}} and [[UsefulNotes/XboxLive Windows Store]]), UsefulNotes/PlayStation5, UsefulNotes/XboxOne, UsefulNotes/XboxSeriesXAndS, UsefulNotes/NintendoSwitch UpdatedRerelease) [[index]]

** ''Persona 5 Royal'' (2019; UsefulNotes/Playstation4, 2022; Windows (UsefulNotes/{{Steam}} and [[UsefulNotes/XboxLive Windows Store]]), UsefulNotes/PlayStation5, UsefulNotes/XboxOne, UsefulNotes/XboxSeriesXAndS, UsefulNotes/NintendoSwitch UpdatedRerelease) [[index]]

** ''VideoGame/Persona5ThePhantomX'' (TBD; Android, iOS)

** The UpdatedReRelease of ''Eternal Punishment'' introduces Kadath Mandala, also known as the Dreamlands by the first few Persona users in history. It also appears as an abyss with portals and shrines, but it exists one level above Monado, where "archetypes" as Jungian psychology defines them are formed. It contains memories from all which have lived, and thus also every single identity ever conceived by humankind (including multiple interpretations of any entity), the blueprints which give rise to gods and demons -- and by extension, Personas. The Shadow Self/Persona within every human resonates with an appropriate identity from here, one which reflects the human's own experiences, which is why they usually take the form and powers of gods and demons. The realm is guarded by all manners of entities, but especially Yog-Sothoth (who in this verse is the incarnation of the boundaries of human mind, that which divides the conscious from the unconscious), as well as Philemon and Nyarlathotep. Normally, a human can only enter this realm (and implicitly, Monado) with the assistance of one of these entities, but it is stated a sufficiently trained master of Persona could reach this realm through dreaming, while one person -- Randolph Carter -- is the only known person in all of history who can ''physically'' open a gate to the Kadath and enable others to enter it.

** ''Anime/Persona4GoldenTheAnimation'' (2014)

** ''VideoGame/Persona4'': ''[[UpdatedReRelease Golden]]'' added Marie, who while very much hyped up by the game and [[Anime/Persona4GoldenTheAnimation its animated adaptation]], [[DownplayedTrope wasn't that much more prominent]] than other possible love interests in this regard. She gets ''one'' scene near the end that's explicitly romantic, but that's about it.