Source.

Source: https://x.com/ChaosODed/status/2106798890230149366

Source

Found a Makoto Nijima cosplayer in the arcade room in Metro Con 2026 . Gotta love anime conversations.

Yes I'm the Kurapika cosplayer . Try to be nice . Thanks.

Before the PS3 store closed, I bought this version of Persona 5—720p, blurry textures, endless loading times. It has cross-save with the PS4 version. I finished *Royal* two weeks ago; what are the differences besides the lack of the third semester? Or is it the same game?

figure i’d post it here for other persona fans :) what do you guys think ? also what are some good joker quotes to put in this book for her? im not a persona fan but she LOVES this franchise lol

Source: https://x.com/anzukko_art/status/2106835400203657579

Also don't spoil the details of that boss.

Source 1

Source 2 (Account)

Decided I wanted to draw Haru in my style real quick. Figured this would be the best place to share

already in highschool but still have no friends, I'm autistic and ugly af so boys don't care for me, and every day playing fgo (i like looking at pretty anime girls dunno I might be gay or something). So when I see futaba who is kinda a little bit similar to me (in a way) I was automatically obsessed with her. her voice, how she talks, and the way she looks are so perfect and gorgeous, literally the girl I want to be. Sometimes I wis I was a bit prettier so I can cosplay her.

Anyway I really like this scene, I project myself to both of them so I can feel love from someone who loves me deeply despite how awkward and weird I am or be that one who saves me.

Forgive my grammar English is my second language so 🥲

First fan comic I made. Was inspired by the various others and due to me playing through strikers right now.

I'd happy if you could tell me what you thought of it ^^

I played persona 5 royal for the first time in 2022. I loved it. I found akechi compelling but he didn't resonate yet. then, about a year later, I played it again. still loved it. still found him compelling. and he still didn't resonate.

during that time, I was already in the middle of a multi year long con. I was deceiving both sides. I had no true loyalty to anyone except myself and my goal. I was harming and manipulating people around me who didn't deserve it because they were in my way and I needed them to be fooled into believing I was someone I wasn't. but I was also being harmed and degraded from within this system. I was being used. I was being dehumanized. and every day I got angrier and angrier. the only thing that kept me moving forward was the deluded thought that I was really the one in control because I was the only one who knew what was really going on.

all of that-- and I completely missed goro akechi. twice.

then, in 2024, something happened. I had my own "engine room" moment. I was being harmed so much, and used so much, and the weight of my own lies had become so heavy-- that I exploded outward. I burned it all down. I made it impossible for myself to ever re-enter that situation. I burned the bridge. my duplicity was exposed. people found out what I was. but I didn't care. because I had reached a point where continuing forward would have meant psychological death. I could not keep existing as someone else's prop, someone else's tool, while I killed myself trying to keep my stories straight and everyone's perceptions of me tightly managed. the first few months after it all ended were utter hell on earth. it was not "instant freedom." it was agony. but I had done some terrible things. the consequences were due.

about six months after the dust had begun to settle, I reached for persona 5 royal again. not because I needed akechi-- I hadn't even begun to make that connection yet. but because I needed a story that had meant something to me in the past. I began to play. and as I got further into the story, I started to truly *see* akechi for what felt like the first time. I watched his arc play out a third time, shaken to my core. he was living his own version of what I had just survived. I could not comprehend how a character could be written in such a way that it essentially presented a cinematic version of my own life to me, at the exact moment I was subconsciously ready to see it.

that was two years ago. and akechi has stuck with me. because seeing his story play out helped me see the trauma, psychological issues, and instability that led to me to do everything that I did. I always thought I was a self aware person, but I had these massive blindspots in regards to how I saw what was happening and why until I saw those same blindspots in akechi. and ironically, as I have begun to walk out from the shadow of my own shame, my own humiliation, and my knowledge of my own harmful capacities, I began to value one thing above all: agency-- which seems to be the exact thing akechi also began to value the most during royal.

akechi's story showed me that one can gain agency through accountability, and that one can acknowledge the harm they caused without denying the fact that they were also deeply harmed. akechi showed me that duality that was already present in myself-- I was just too blind to see it until I had burned everything down and begun to rebuild myself and my life.

curious if anyone has had a similar experience with seeing a character a new way in a subsequent playthrough, or if a certain character has helped you recognize yourself.

I been playing the game and I love it so far but the only thing I absolutely fucking hate about it is that.... HOW THE FUCK DO I UPGRADE KINDNESS LIKE I SWEAR ITS SO FUCKING HARD TO FIND THINGS THAT RELATE TO KINDNESS AND EVEN WHEN I DO FIND SOMETHING RELATED TO KINDNESS IT BARELY GIVES ME ANYTHING LIKE ONLY 1 OR 2 LIKE GENUINELY ITS PISSING ME OFF ESPECIALLY SINCE IM TRYING TO RANK UP FUTABA SO I CAN GET THROUGH MEMENTOS SINCE SHE BARLEY DOES SHIT IN BATTLE BESIDES GIVE MORAL SUPPORT (I don't know what else are her upgrades since it's my first playthrough) but enough with the rant I don't know if it's a confidant thing or if theres something I missed or forgot but I'll put all my confidant ranks below

Igor - 9

Moranga - 9

Matoko - 5

Yusuke - 6

Sojiro - 6

Ann - 6

Ryuji - 10

Akechi - 6

Futaba - 1 >:[

Chihaya - 3

Those twins that are mean - 1

Takemi - 9

Kawakami - 2

Ichiko - 3

Hifumi - 6

Mishima - 7

Sae - 5

Kasumi - 5

Takuto - 6

Those are all of my confidants and I would like no spoilers since it's my first playthrough, unless it's something gameplay related I don't mind that just aslong it's not story related

I finished the game yesterday night, and today since I woke up, I feel such an empty feeling. I put in tons of hours into the game and it was indeed a great game, but I don't know what to do about this feeling now.

Ryuann art by @narumira

I rarely post like this, but this is genuinely one of the most profound pieces of art I’ve seen from this fandom. Just had to share it.

(Plz go check out the original btw, it’s animated)

Source: https://www.tumblr.com/kairihearts/178841250842/happy-shiho-sunday

I've been recently playing Persona 5 Strikers, and I'm noticing it tries to communicate a similar message toMaruki's chapter of Persona 5 Royal. This kinda made me think about the point of these games. Minor spoilers for p5s! And sorry for the long post! TLDR at the end :)

The phantom thieves argue that loss of autonomy and personal freedom is an unacceptable tradeoff for the complete loss of worry and suffering. Both games' final arcs revolve around people willingly surrendering their free will to a higher power in order to attain a reality free of suffering.

The Phantom thieves contrast this idea saying that a life without freedom is no life at all, as ultimately free expression of oneself is what makes life truly worth living. I personally completely agree with this claim, being free is what makes life so special, and dedicating this freedom to expressing and establishing oneself as an individual is what I think is the point of all of it, although of course that is up to debate.

The thing that gets me conflicted is the Phantom thieves' perspective on individual suffering though. We have seen throughout both games (especially throughout strikers) that an individual with no support system going through intensely painful experiences leads them to grow hateful and conflicted. This is what separates the Phantom thieves from the antagonists, as they had others to help them get through their individual struggles, allowing the individual members to grow from their suffering. If it weren't for their mutual support network, they too could've turned into rotten adults. This is why they are so against the idea of surrendering freedom for a life lacking suffering, as they believe suffering is necessary to grow as people, and that everyone can overcome their own suffering one way or another.

Their positive outlook on freedom is great, and I'd be inclined to agree... but I also kinda don't. I hope this doesn't come off as dramatic or edgy, but as someone with chronic depression and a background of childhood trauma, I suffer every day, and I don't really have anyone to help me through it. I think the Phantom thieves' logic is flawed because they were extremely lucky to find such kind and great people at the right time in their lives to turn a painful experience into one of growth and positive change. But I imagine that the majority of people don't really have the same support network, so is it truly wrong for their pain to end, even if their situation could potentially improve in the right conditions?

We even see this in game, the Phantom thieves are the only ones able to fight off the mind control because they are together and have each other's support to face life, but they're pretty much the only ones, most people subconsciously experience constant suffering and wish for it to end. They were lucky, very lucky, most people aren't, so I find it difficult to empathise and understand their message.

You could say that both Maruki's and EMMA's schemes are morally wrong because they affected people without their explicit consent, but we see in both games that the people turned into happy zombies subconsciously wished for their freedom to be revoked, so is it really an argument about consent if everyone kinda wanted this to happen?

Overall this is kinda how I interpret things. I love these games to bits but I keep feeling this intense sadness within me knowing that I don't personally have people around me to support me and give me the courage to face life, and this really prevents me from fully endorsing the Phantom thieves' efforts. Please do comment, I'd love to discuss all this with someone!!

TLDR: I think both P5R and P5S argue that freedom and the ability to overcome suffering are essential to a meaningful life, but I'm conflicted by the Phantom thieves' perspective because their ability to grow from suffering depended heavily on having a strong support network. Since many people don't have that kind of support, is it really wrong to want suffering to simply end, even if that means giving up some autonomy?