Given the series' 20th anniversary this year, the popularity of Persona is at an all time high. Many in the west spent last year playing their first entry in the franchise with Persona 5 Royal and/or Persona 4 Golden, experiencing the definitive version of both of those games. The Persona series definitely wasn't a cult-hit before 2020, but it certainly wasn't as mainstream as it has become this year, breaking Persona series sales records and seeing more widespread appreciation from mainstream JRPG fans. However, after the reinvigoration of the Phantom Thieves' and Investigation Team's adventures, the S.E.E.S. team from Persona 3 deserves the same treatment.
That could come true in time, as the same source that leaked the Persona 4 Arena Ultimax announcement from the Game Awards also made a surprise reveal as well. On their blog, leaker Zippo stated that "Persona 3 Portable is getting a remaster. Multiplatform," but that may not be entirely true. Based on a more recent rumor from Persona dataminer "RegularPanties," rather than remastering one version over the other, they stated that the rumored Persona 3 remaster would be a combination of Persona 3 FES and Persona 3 Portable's content into one release. Persona 3's release history is complex, but if this rumors is true, fans may get the best of both worlds next year.
The Problem with a Persona 3 Remaster
Ever since the idea was floated around of a possible Persona 3 remake or remaster, fans have always argued over an enduring problem for the third entry: Persona 3 FES, or Persona 3 Portable? Frankly players can't go wrong playing either version of the game, but there are some pretty distinct differences in design between both that make a Persona 3 "remaster" not as straightforward as it seems.
Persona 3 FES is essentially the definitive PS2/3D version of the game, expanding the original game with new content in The Journey (base game), along with an additional epilogue chapter titled "The Answer." Persona 3 Portable was the PSP-exclusive version of the title, which came with new content such as the female protagonist journey and a non-AI controllable party, but also made significant changes to fit the specifications of the original PSP. Many of the 3D environments were replaced with 2D pre-rendered backgrounds, along with an entire scenario redesign that adapted the original Persona 3 story into a visual novel-style presentation.
This, in turn, is the reason why a Persona 3 "remaster" ends up being so nebulous on its own. It poses the question of which version of the third entry truly is the definitive version of the game, as well as leaving fans wondering if they missed anything by playing one version over the other. Fans have likely advocated for a Persona 3 remake for this exact reason; that way there's a definitive version of Persona 3 that fans can, ideally, universally recommend. Obviously that kind of project would require way more resources than a remaster, but the distinct differences in design between both versions is what led meany to believe a Persona 3 remaster would be one version or the other.
A Hybrid Remaster of P3 FES/P3P Is The Best of Both Worlds
However, if Atlus has determined a method to merge both versions into a cohesive version of Persona 3, that'd easily be the best of both worlds for fans. Combining the content of Persona 3 FES and Persona 3 Portable would theoretically solve the problem facing a remaster of the third game, but it's hard to envision how that would work. Theoretically that would require an overhaul of Persona 3 FES with all of the new content based on Persona 3 Portable. That means all of the new dialogue, new social links, new scenes, and other additional content would need to be adapted into Persona 3 proper, which is a problem for Persona 3 Portable.
Given that a majority of Persona 3 Portable was converted into a 2D framework to account for the limited power of the PSP, reverse-adapting that content back into the original Persona 3 gameplay design seems like a significant amount of work. Conversely, overhauling Persona 3 FES to allow for additional content is similarly a significant amount of work as well. Making a unified Persona 3 experience is a tough ask, but assuming Atlus is willing to make that investment, that could be exactly what fans want. Outside of a total remake, assuming content from Persona 3 Portable isn't missing, this rumored Persona 3 remake would be the definitive version.
A Definitive Version of Persona 3
At the end of the day, this is all based on the assumption that these leaks and rumors of a Persona 3 remake are true. Atlus could simply remaster one version of Persona 3 and leave it at that, which would be disappointing for existing Persona 3 fans, but it would at least provide a modern re-release for new fans to play. However, one port of over the other (regardless of which version of Persona 3 is remastered) would inevitably disappoint fans of the Persona 3 version that's left behind. Persona 3 FES offers a content-filled version of the classic game, with all of its quirks and poorly aged mechanics, whereas Persona 3 Portable modernizes the gameplay with some downsides.
A hybrid remaster would be ideal because there are aspects of Persona 3 that haven't aged well. Since Persona 3 Portable added some gameplay modernizations that improved the experience, bringing those improvements to Persona 3 proper would improve the gameplay immensely. Things like controllable party members, skill cards, adjusted fusion spell changes, new personas, and more additional content would improve the Persona 3 experience. Persona 3 could definitely use some degree of modernization, but if a hybrid remaster of Persona 3 FES and Persona 3 Portable can accomplish that instead of a remake, fans could be in for a treat next year.