I'm not normally a very superstitious man, but it seems that Persona 5 is cursed. A lot of games that collaborate with it seem to shut down a few years later, and while this may just be because games come and go, it could also be a sign of something more sinister.
The latest victim of Persona 5 is War of the Visions: Final Fantasy Brave Exvius. The collaboration between the two games started on April 28, 2022, and now, just over three years later, it will shut down on May 29, 2025. This isn't the first time this has happened.
the curse continuesEvery gacha/japanese MMO that colabs with persona 5 will close in the next 4/5 years https://t.co/hQExVsK07Z pic.twitter.com/N0dav9aDGSMarch 26, 2025
January 31, 2021, Draglia Lost began its collaboration with Persona 5, and it shut down in November 2022. Sword Art Online: Memory Defrag had its collab on February 17, 2020, and the game shut down on August 30, 2021. Star Ocean: Anamnesis also partnered with Persona 5 on October 10, 2019, and the game shut down for good in June 2021. The Neir Reincarnation and Persona 5 crossover began on September 9, 2022, and the game's servers were shuttered on April 30, 2024. Are you seeing a pattern yet?
Now, video games are expensive to make and maintain, and most live service titles don't last that long. It's tough to compete with the likes of Fortnite, World of Warcraft, and League of Legends, so it could just be that these games would always die.
It may also be the case that developers and publishers noticed player numbers dwindling and decided to get more fans by appealing to similar audiences and so they get a Persona 5 collaboration. In this instance, if the game is already on its way out, Persona 5 is more of a sign of things to come rather than a curse in and of itself.
Of course, some games have had Persona 5 crossovers and are still alive and well today. The Granblue Fantasy collaboration started in June 2018, and that game is still going strong today.
Or the curse could be real, I'm not attuned to the spirit world so what do I know?
In the meantime, check out our list of the best anime games you can play right now.
