References to Megami Tensei in Persona (Series)

This is a list of references to the Megami Tensei franchise in the Persona series.

Megami Ibunroku Persona

• While not visible in-game, Masao Inaba is wearing a graphic tee featuring a color inverted headshot of the Shin Megami Tensei: Devil Summoner protagonist.
• There are posters of the cover art for Shin Megami Tensei: Devil Summoner on the walls of the Mikage Subway.

Persona 2: Innocent Sin

• The Kuzunoha Detective Agency is named after the Kuzunoha Detective Agency from Shin Megami Tensei: Devil Summoner.
  • The character Daisuke Todoroki, who runs the Kuzunoha Detective Agency, is heavily implied to be possessed by Kyouji Kuzunoha from Shin Megami Tensei: Devil Summoner, and this is confirmed in Persona World Guidance.
  • Tamaki Uchida and Tadashi Satomi, who work for the Kuzunoha Detective Agency, are dressed as Rei Reiho and Kyouji Kuzunoha from Shin Megami Tensei: Devil Summoner, respectively.
• Near the manga workshop festival stand on the third floor of Kasugayama High School, a pixelated version of the cover art for the Devil Summoner: Soul Hackers Original Soundtracks (1998) is visible hanging above a classroom door.
• There is a model of the Goumaden from Devil Summoner: Soul Hackers in the Jolly Roger restaurant in Konan.

Persona 3

• The Online Game social link has several references to past Megami Tensei titles. The MMO game in it is titled Devil Busters Online, a reference to the Devil Buster game played by the Hero in Digital Devil Story: Megami Tensei II. The game begins with a message from STEVEN, a reference to Shin Megami Tensei and Shin Megami Tensei II, and the player's character is named N-jima (reference to Nakajima) and the other character's character is named Y-ko (a reference to Yumiko). The characters in the MMO are in the location of the Keihin Shelter No. 3, a reference to Megami Tensei II.
  • The localization changes this to reference previous Persona titles. Devil Busters Online is changed to "Innocent Sin Online" after Persona 2: Innocent Sin, STEVEN to "PHIL" (likely referencing Philemon), N-jima to Tatsuya, Y-ko to Maya, and the Keihin Shelter No. 3 to Lunarvale Hospital.
  • In Persona 3 The Movie 2: Midsummer Knight's Dream, It briefly shows a screen that references the Shinjuku area from Shin Megami Tensei: Nine.
  • In Persona 3 Reload, the game's logo is similar to Devil Summoner: Soul Hackers's logo.
• In the English localization of Persona 3, the drink Yotsuya Cider is named Cielo Mist, a combination of Cielo from Digital Devil Saga: Avatar Tuner (evident by how the English description mentions Jamaica, which is how Cielo was localized), and the real-life soft drink Sierra Mist (as cider drinks in Japan are citrusy).
• The Fusion Spell Best Friends references the friendship between Forneus and Decarabia from Shin Megami Tensei III: Nocturne.
• The texture for Junpei's portable gaming system has the PlayStation Portable version of Shin Megami Tensei: Devil Summoner on the screen with Sid Davis being shown.
• The Lily Petal, an item required to fuse Lilith, originates from Yuriko. 'Yuri' means 'lily' in Japanese.

Persona 3 Reload

• While viewing Elizabeth's requests menu, she may ask if the protagonist has any siblings, and that she has "a useless younger brother" whom she could possibly introduce someday.
• The crane game outside Game Parade at Paulownia Mall plays an instrumental arrangement of "Satomi Tadashi Pharmacy's Theme" from Megami Ibunroku Persona.
• When exploring the hotel on the 7/7 Full Moon Operation, interacting with a TV leads Junpei to say, "What if there was a Shadow in the TV!? Yeah right, like that would ever happen...", a reference to Persona 4's TV World.
• On 9/7, a new scene featuring Strega has Takaya showing Jin a prototype Evoker. He reflects on the Kirijo Group's experiments forcibly awakening Personas in people, and explains how that Evoker was the product of one such experiment where the test subject's Persona itself killed them, quoting "I am a shadow, the true self..."
• When watching detective films on DVD with Ken Amada, some of the background music is directly taken from that of Crossroads in Persona 5.
• Several dialogues that can appear while exploring Tartarus also reference Persona 5:
  • Ken will wonder if since Koromaru, a dog, can use a Persona, maybe a cat could too (i.e. Morgana).
  • Fuuka wishes there was a safe place to take a break while exploring, with Mitsuru responding, "like some sort of safe room?"
  • Junpei has a comment wondering if Shadows gather anywhere else, like underground (i.e. Mementos).
  • Junpei also has a comment remarking how it would be convenient if they had a vehicle with which to explore Tartarus and run over Shadows, referencing the Morgana Car.
• In the Velvet Room, the introductory quotes when fusing the DLC Personas from other games generally quote lines those Personas (or their users) said when awakening. However, the English localization did not preserve the same wording as was used in the English versions of those games.

Persona 4

• In the English manual, the protagonist is named Raidou Kuzunoha.
• The calendar in the protagonist's room shows the cover of the Persona 3 Original Soundtrack.
• When the protagonist sees Teddie in his new outfit during July, he can reply, "Brilliant!", one of the English phrases that Mitsuru Kirijo uses in the Japanese version of Persona 3. Since Mitsuru instead speaks French in the English localizations of the game, that option is replaced by "C'est magnifique".
• During the class trip to Tatsumi Port Island, the Investigation Team stay at the same hotel that S.E.E.S. fought the Lovers at. Teddie appears on the building opposite the hotel and recreates a scene from Persona 3 with himself quoting Takaya Sakaki and the two cats next to him as stand-ins for Chidori Yoshino and Jin Shirato.
• When Naoto talks about the Shirogane family, Chie says that it reminds her of a Kuzunoha that she saw in a movie before. In Japanese, it is a reference to Kosuke Kindaichi and his grandson who stars in The Kindaichi Case Files.
• When entering chapter 3 of Void Quest, the game world displays fictional dialogue that represents Mitsuo Kubo's mother talking to him. This dialogue is a reference to what the protagonist's mother says at the beginning of Shin Megami Tensei.
• One of Teddie's weapons is named the Strega Claw after Persona 3's Strega.
• In Kanji's Social Link, a boy asks for a Pink Alligator plush, referring to Akinari Kamiki's story.

Persona 4 Golden

• When discussing their plan to get scooters, Yosuke claims their pheromones will attract girls. In the Japanese dialogue, Kanji mistakes the word pheromones for "Phi-Phile? Mon?" Yosuke misunderstands him to be saying "filet (mignon)" and asks if he is Chie.
• Shadow Mitsuo's new boss bgm for Golden is a chiptune version of Persona 4's boss battle theme, "I'll Face Myself". In Japanese, the piece is called "Shin Mitsuo Tensei". On the English release of the OST, it is named "Revelations: Mitsuo" after the English localization of Megami Ibunroku Persona.
• During the skiing trip, Yosuke tells a ghost story about events that happened "3 years ago", referring to the events of Persona 3 with Natsuki Moriyama, Apathy Syndrome, and Fuuka Yamagishi.
• During the quest to help the owner of Marutake Hobby Shop, the protagonist can build robots named Agni, Dyaus, Varna, Prithvi, Harihara, and Brahman. The first four are also Atma Avatars used by Embryon in Digital Devil Saga: Avatar Tuner and Digital Devil Saga: Avatar Tuner 2, and the last two are entities that appear in those games.
• In Adachi's Social Link, Nanako reads the Pink Alligator for school.

Persona 4 The Golden Animation

• During the audio drama Boo: I Bear a Grudge On You, the Investigation Team get into Yasogami High at night for their test of courage thanks to Yosuke Hanamura leaving a door unlocked earlier in the day. When Yosuke describes this, "Mass Destruction" starts playing indicating this scene is meant to a reference to Junpei Iori doing the same thing in Persona 3. However, unlike how S.E.E.S. were impressed with Junpei, none of the Investigation Team are impressed with Yosuke, and "Mass Destruction" abruptly quits playing. Only Yu thinks Yosuke is cool, and he calls him "Brilliant" and "Good job", quoting what Mitsuru and Akihiko tell Junpei in Persona 3.

Persona 5

	This section is a stub. You can help Megami Tensei Wiki by expanding it.
	No reason provided.

• Station Square in Shibuya contains several advertisements depicting Rise Kujikawa and Kanami Mashita. During a hangout event in Harajuku with Ann Takamaki, the protagonist can obtain a copy of the advert depicting Rise as a poster to display in his room.
• During the summer break, Yusuke Kitagawa will offer to read art books together in Leblanc. However, the cover of the book he reads shows that it is actually The Pink Alligator by Akinari Kamiki.
• When negotiating with Shadows with Jack Bros.-type speech and Timid personality (of which the only actual demon is Jack-o'-Lantern), if Joker selects the option "Don't care.", they will respond, "Is that what they call "apathy syndrome", ho?" However, in Persona 5 Royal, this was changed to "indifference".
• In class on 5/7, Ms. Kawakami will ask "What do people generally call a woman who has a charm that sometimes leads men to their doom?" One of the possible answers is Elizabeth. This question was changed in Royal to "So what's the literal translation of the phrase "femme fatale"?", and the answer with Elizabeth removed.
• The TV in Leblanc has various mentions of and references to other Persona characters:
  • On April 29th, a TV program about Goro Akechi, termed "the next Detective Prince", refers to Naoto Shirogane as the original Detective Prince.
  • On June 1st, the train monitor has a headline that a Wild-Duck Burger employee was fired after posting a nude selfie at work, despite his usually serious demeanor. That evening, the TV in Leblanc reports that Wild-Duck's stock plummeted after because the incident happened right before a stockholder meeting, causing turmoil in the fast-food market, and a customer remarks the employee apparently had no memory of it. This is the first of several incidents continually reported on the news noted to be happening in the restaurant industry by suspects with unclear motives, later pointed out to be competitors to Okumura Foods.
  • On July 1st, a news host mentions Rise's new album is releasing, and a panelist remarks that she has gained sex appeal since she turned 20.
  • On July 4th, a line in the detective drama features a suspect mocking a detective by calling him "defective" instead, possibly referencing the "Ace Defective" nickname given to Junpei Iori by Yukari Takeba in Persona 3. This reference was added by the English localization and not present in the original Japanese, where the suspect merely insults the detective for stumbling over his words (note that the original "Ace Defective" line was also a creation by the localization; in Japanese, Yukari simply calls Junpei stupid twice).
  • On July 22nd, it is announced that the Love Meets Bonds Festival (referred to as "Kizuna Fest") from Persona 4: Dancing All Night will be held again by the idol group Kanamin Kitchen. In Persona 5 Royal, this was replaced with a duplicate of the previous day's news broadcast about Medjed, albeit without Morgana's comment.
  • On November 30th, Marukyu Tofu is mentioned on TV as being Rise's family's tofu store.
  • On December 2nd, a program will introduce Yukari Takeba as a model and college student who acts on Featherman.
  • On December 7th, the news mentions Taro Namatame running as an independent candidate after his start in politics as a secretary.
  • On December 9th, there is a TV report about notable police officers, including a police officer with red shades, an officer who fought a bear, and a girl at the police academy who does kung fu.
  • On December 12th, a suspect being investigated on TV references the murder case from Persona 4 and says a well-known quote from the culprit. However, unlike the news reports referencing Persona 4 characters, this is not actually meant to be the culprit, as the program in question is a recurring police procedural drama, referred to as such by Morgana on May 2nd, and on October 3rd shown to be set in Tokyo starring "Detective Sakyo Hinoshita". Additionally, the actual culprit's confession was different than on the TV program, and the culprit was also no longer under investigation but rather awaiting trial during the epilogue of Persona 4 Arena Ultimax.
  • On December 14th, a TV show does a special about the Amagi Inn and mentions the young innkeeper.
• Listening to the radio with the old man in Yongen-Jaya in late December features another reference to Rise as having one of the top songs of the year.
• When the protagonist watches a movie either at a movie theater or on DVD, BGMs from previous Persona games can be heard:
  • The Goodfather (Yongen-Jaya): Plays "Ramen Shiraishi" from Persona 2: Innocent Sin.
  • Like a Dragon (Shinjuku): Plays "Sauna", the BGM from the Steamy Bathhouse.
  • The Duhvengers (Shinjuku): Plays "Final Boss Battle" from Persona 2: Innocent Sin.
  • Soraemon (Shibuya): Plays "Too Dangerous" from Persona Q: Shadow of the Labyrinth.
  • Merry Christmess: Plays "Tranquality" from Persona 2: Innocent Sin.
  • Pach Saw: Plays "Xibalba" from Persona 2: Innocent Sin.
  • Admission Possible (Shibuya): Plays the Dancing All Night mix of "Zone Time", a cutscene BGM from Persona 4.
  • Love Possibly (Shibuya): Plays "Traumerei" from the Never More: Reincarnation: Persona 4 album.
• The UFO catcher machine at Gigolo arcade in Akihabara plays a sped up version of the "Junes Theme" from Persona 4.
• The "Wanna-B-Alert" security company, which can be seen in Shinjuku behind Chihaya Mifune's booth as well as advertised on the radio, has a mascot called Wanna-kun (Wannawanna-kun / ワナワナくん in Japanese), as named with the Wanna-kun Doll winnable at Gigolo Arcade. It is presumed to be named after the "Wanna Wanna Syndrome" (わなわな症候群), a joke on the video site Nico Nico Douga where people would comment "wanna wanna" on videos before the hook with the "Wanna know" lyrics starts in "Key Plus Words", the second opening of Persona 4 The Animation.

Persona 5 Royal

• A sign inside Jazz Jin has the words "Law", "Neutral" and "Chaos" carved into it, referencing the alignment mechanic from several other series in the franchise.
• The vocal version of "No More What Ifs", the song that plays in Jazz Jin, has a lyric referencing the song "Burn My Dread" from Persona 3 ("Someone once said burn my dread, babe").
• The music that plays inside Penguin Sniper in Kichijoji, titled "Kichijoji 199X", is a remix of the Kichijoji overworld theme from Shin Megami Tensei.
• During exams on May 13th, a possible answer to "Name the book that defined malefactors as the chief factor in the progress of the human race" is Digital Devil Story (a joke on the correct answer, The Devil's Dictionary).
• On TV on January 14th, the upcoming episode of Featherman is titled "Dancing in Featherlight", referencing the titles of Persona 3: Dancing in Moonlight and Persona 5: Dancing in Starlight.
• When Navi is trying to figure out how to pronounce Violet's new codename, Crow remarks that this is a group of idiots. The Japanese dialogue, terming them バカ軍団 (lit. "an army corps of idiots"), is a reference to a well-known line from the King's Game part of Persona 4 where Naoto says the same thing about the Investigation Team.
• On 3/19, interacting with the sports store in Kichijoji will lead Morgana to comment that it would be fun for the group to travel around the country in a camping van together. This may reference the premise of Persona 5 Strikers, which was in development at the same time as Royal and takes place a few months after (as this remark is at the end of the game).

Persona 5 Strikers

• In the Sapporo Jail, there are several snowmen that have a scarf and buttons similar to Ryoji Mochizuki's outfit.
• On 8/21, the Phantom Thieves stay at a hot springs hotel in Kyoto, much as S.E.E.S. did on Gekkoukan High's trip in Persona 3; both games also feature very similar scenes of the male members of the group accidentally going to the hotel's onsen at the same time as the female members. However, the specific hotels they stay in appear to be different, as Gekkoukan stayed at Godaigo Inn, while in Persona 5 Strikers less of the hotel is seen and the sign outside reads 南天屋 Nanten-ya.

Persona 5: The Phantom X

• The book Devil School Summoners makes reference to a demon-commanding student named Tamaki and a girl named Reiko.
• Narumi Nashimoto works at a café called Nyan 2 Claw, which is a parody of the recurring Mewling Claw weapon. In the English localization, the reference is lost as the café is referred to as the Cat's Claw.
• A poster parodying the Persona 4 Arena cover art is displayed in front of Game Parade in Paulownia Mall.