Persona 3 is the fourth game in the Persona series.
The game was developed by Atlus for the Play Station 2.
Because there is no definitive version of Persona 3, FES and Portable are both recommended for the full Persona 3 experience.
Persona 3 was adapted into a four-part anime film adaptation called Persona 3 The Movie which covers The Journey from the perspective of the male protagonist. Persona 3 follows a group of high school students trying to cope with, understand and accept death in a world surrounded by it, as well as find their own reasons for living.
They form a group called SEES in order to investigate the Dark Hour, a mysterious time period between one day and the next that few people are aware of.
During the Dark Hour, SEES explores Tartarus, a large tower containing Shadows, creatures that feed on the minds of humans.
To fight the Shadows, each member of SEES is able to summon a Persona, a manifestation of their inner self.
Set in 2009, Persona 3 begins with the Protagonist returning to the city of Tatsumi Port Island ten years after his parents died from an accident.He is introduced as a transfer student that has just moved into the Iwatodai Dormitory, but arrives late (in the movie adaptation, it is revealed it was due to a suicidal subway train jumper).A mysterious boy, calling himself Pharos, introduces himself to the Protagonist and asks him to sign a contract that states the Protagonist will accept full responsibility for his own actions.He is quickly brought into SEES (Special Extracurricular Execution Squad) when his awareness of the Shadows and the Dark Hour is revealed.The Dark Hour is a secret hour which only a select few with the "potential" are aware of; the rest "transmogrify" into coffins.Shadows are also causing many people to become victims of Apathy Syndrome, a mysterious condition that puts them into a vegetative trance-like state.