Persona 3 Reload: No Female Protagonist from P3P Expected

Discover why Atlus producer Kazushi Wada has once again clarified that the beloved female protagonist (FeMC) from Persona 3 Portable is unlikely to appear in Persona 3 Reload. Dive deeper into his reasoning below.

No FeMC for Persona 3 Reload

Adding Kotone/Minako Would be Too Costly and Time-Consuming

In a recent interview covered by PC Gamer, Atlus producer Kazushi Wada shared insights into the decision-making process behind Persona 3 Reload's content. Initially, the team considered including the female protagonist from Persona 3 Portable, known as Kotone Shiomi/Minako Arisato, especially during the planning stages of the post-launch DLC, Episode Aigis - The Answer. However, due to significant development and budget constraints, this idea was ultimately abandoned.

Persona 3 Reload, a comprehensive remake of the iconic 2006 JRPG, was released in February of this year. While it brought back many cherished features and mechanics, the exclusion of Kotone/Minako left many fans disappointed. Despite the fervent requests from the community, Wada emphasized that integrating the character was simply not feasible.

"The more we discussed it, the more it became clear that it wouldn't work," Wada stated. "The development time and costs were just too substantial to manage." Even the notion of adding her via DLC was dismissed, as Wada noted, "Given our current timeline for P3R, it's just not possible to include the female protagonist. I deeply apologize to all the fans who were hoping for her inclusion, but it's highly unlikely to happen."

The FeMC's popularity from Persona 3 Portable led many fans to anticipate her inclusion in Persona 3 Reload, either at launch or as subsequent content. However, Wada's recent statements have dashed those hopes. He had previously told Famitsu that incorporating the female protagonist would demand significantly more time and resources than developing the Episode Aigis DLC.

"For the female protagonist, I regret to inform fans that there is no possibility," Wada explained in an earlier interview. "The development time and cost would be several times greater than that of Episode Aigis, making it an insurmountable challenge."