Persona Locations Guide: Palaces, Mementos, Tartarus, More

There are a lot of locations that have been featured in the Persona series up until this point. With six mainline games, there are several different cities, schools, dungeons, and more that we are going to go over in our Persona locations guide.

The Persona locations guide includes all of the major places that players can visit across all six of the mainline games. From high school life to fighting in various dungeons, here are all of the Persona franchise locations that you need to know about, whether you are a veteran or newcomer to the series.

Bottom Line Up Front

There are many different Persona locations that you are going to visit during your time with these six mainline games, as well as the spin-off title, Persona 5 Strikers.

With a stark divide between everyday high school life and exploring the different dungeons in the game, there are plenty of different places to visit. Here is the full list of all of the locations that we are covering in this guide:

• Velvet Room
• Mikage-cho
• Sumaru
• Iwatodai
• Inaba
• Tokyo
• Hawaii
• Japan
• SEBEC
• Alaya Cavern
• Ice Castle and the Three Towers
• Seven Sisters High School
• Xibalba and the Four Elemental Temples
• Castle Sumaru
• Tartarus
• Midnight Channel
• The Hollow Forest
• Palaces Mementos
• Jails
• School
• Shops/Restaurants
• Jobs
• Movie Theater

Persona Locations Guide

Without a doubt, there are so many different locations that are featured in the Persona games, and this largely has to do with the fact that they are sequels but feature their own standalone stories and characters, for the most part.

This means that, effectively, every game in the series will take place in a new city and with new locations to explore there. There is also a different conflict that is at the core of the story, allowing for very different dungeon styles in each of the games as well.

As such, we have divided up the various Persona locations into different categories, starting with the overarching place that connects everything, then the cities that each game has, and the various dungeons that you will explore throughout your JRPG adventure.

Velvet Room

Above all else, there is a single place that connects every single Persona game, and that is the Velvet Room. This is the one through-line that links all of the games together, similar to the Cathedral of Shadows, for instance, that is featured in Persona’s parent franchise, Shin Megami Tensei.

The Velvet Room is a common area in all of the mainline games and is typically a place that is blue in color and theme. There are a lot of recurring characters here, like Igor, but there are some cases where different hosts of the Velvet Room are featured instead.

Despite the change in faces in the Velvet Room, this location is a permanent fixture in the series, and that does not look to be changing anytime soon. Though the visual appearance of the area can differ from game to game, its purpose is largely the same.

The Velvet Room exists as a location that is found on another plane of existence, perhaps in the shadow world where many of the games take place. In this room, players can manage and initiate various features regarding the Persona, or shadows of the other-self, that they collect.

In general, the idea of the Velvet Room is to look at the Personas that you currently have, examine the Compendium where you can summon old ones, and fuse existing ones together to make new Personas. As such, it is a very important location for each of the games.

Cities

The settings for each of the Persona games are where they start to differ greatly. Except for the Persona 2 duology, every title in the series is in a different town and region of Japan. Some of these are fictional locations based on real-world places, while others are actual cities found in Japan today.

For the most part, the entirety of the games will take place in these cities, with very few exceptions. All of the dungeons, streets, and neighborhoods that you visit are confined to the main city for each game. Here’s what you should know about each of them.

Mikage-cho: Persona

Mikage-cho is the setting for the first Persona title. It is a fictional location that does not exist in the real world, and it also seems to be one of the only places in the franchise that is not directly inspired by an actual place in Japan. This is pretty unique since later games would almost all contain inspired locales.

What is notable about the town of Mikage-cho, though, is the fact that it is unique in that the English version of the first Persona game had a different name for this place. In the PS1 version of Persona, the town was changed to the name “Lunarvale” while being touted as a city in the United States rather than Japan.

This was eventually fixed in the PSP remake of the game, with that localization updating the locations and other names to be more in line with the Japanese versions. From then on, even the English version of the game referred to this place by Mikage-cho and its placement in Japan.

The town itself is not too notable, for the most part. It is home to a public high school, casino, shopping mall district, hospital, and other features that you would normally find in a town. However, the one exception is the SEBEC building, which is home to a large corporation that is at the heart of the Persona 1 storyline.

Sumaru: Persona 2

The city of Sumaru, Japan, is the home of the Persona 2 set of games. What is unique about this town is that it is the only one in the series to be featured in two mainline games thus far as the main setting. Both Persona 2: Innocent Sin and its sequel Eternal Punishment are set here.

There are more than a million people that are touted to be living in this oceanside dock city in Japan. While Sumaru does not exist in the real world, it is likely based on the real city of Yokohama, which is the second-largest metropolitan city in the country today.

This is seen in the lore surrounding the city and the fact that it has six wards that you visit across the two Persona 2 titles, some of which share their names with locations that are found in the real Yokohama. There are also notable nearby mountains that are likely based on real ones near the city of Yokohama and its prefecture of Kanagawa.

This is a relatively large city with the urban fixtures that you would expect and plenty of districts to explore in the games. It has various high schools, shopping areas, factories, and the like. The city is also known for rumors that are spreading like wildfire there, playing a huge role in the story for the Persona 2 games.

Iwatodai: Persona 3

The setting for Persona 3 takes place on Tatsumi Port Island, where the city of Iwatodai is found. It is an artificial island location in Japan that features an entire town and all of the usual fixtures there. This is where the bulk of the game takes place in this urban environment.

It is home to Gekkoukan High School, the school that the main character of Persona 3 attends and where the main dungeon location is found as well. There are plenty of areas that the player can visit on Port Island, like the train station, shopping mall, and more.

The dorms are also found in the city of Iwatodai on Port Island, where the protagonist lives. As for the real-world counterpart of Tatsumi Port Island, there are a couple of possibilities. The main one has to do with the fact that the artificial island is also referred to simply as Port Island.

It just so happens that there is a Port Island in the real world, and it is found in the city of Kobe as another man-made area with its shops and so on. It is most likely the source of inspiration. But there is also a chance that it could be at least partially inspired by the man-made island of Odaiba in Tokyo as well.

Inaba: Persona 4

Inaba is the setting for Persona 4 and its Golden variant on PlayStation Vita. It is a very small town set in the countryside, which is vastly different from the urban environments of the other games in the series. This small town is where the protagonist, Yu, moves to for a year to live with his uncle and cousin.

The fact that it is in the Inaka, or Japanese countryside, is a major point for the residents of the town of Inaba. It is noted to have nothing going for it, and the high school students find it to be a rather boring place. There is the main shopping district, convenience store, supermarket, and the like that you would expect.

There is a high school with Yasogami High School that the main character attends and a department store known as Junes that plays a key role in the game. Other than that, there is not much else going on for the town of Inaba in Persona 4.

The town of Inaba is a fictional location like others in the series, but it is based on the real-world town of Fuefuki that is found in Yamanashi prefecture in Japan. Lots of the places like the train station, high school, and more are visually inspired by actual locales.

Tokyo: Persona 5

Persona 5 is the latest mainline game in the series and is the first to be set in a real city in Japan without a fictional name for it. Persona 5 is set in the capital of Japan and the largest city in the world, Tokyo. Joker, the protagonist, moves there temporarily after an event occurs with him.

While you do not get to see every part of Tokyo in the game, you do get to see a good portion of the 23 wards that are featured in the city. The player lives in the residential ward of Setagaya and goes to school at Shujin Academy in the Minato ward.

There is also a lot of focus on Shibuya, which the player frequently visits, and other areas like Akihabara and more that you can visit. There are many different parts of the city that you can visit in this game and even more in the Persona 5 Royal version, like Kichijoji and more.

Hawaii: Persona 5

While the bulk of the story takes place in Tokyo during the story of Persona 5, there is one main exception to this in a particular moment where you go on a school field trip. During this point, the game takes place temporarily in Hawaii in the United States rather than in Japan.

You do not get to explore too much here, but it is a drastic departure for the series, representing the first time you visit another country and the US, in particular.

Japan: Persona 5 Strikers

While that is it for the mainline games, it is also worth noting about Persona 5 Strikers, the spin-off and sequel to Persona 5. Unlike other spin-offs in the series that usually are in familiar places, this one takes place across the entirety of Japan.

Players can visit several different major cities in the country, including Kyoto, Sapporo, Sendai, and more. Many of these cities are based on their real-world counterparts visually.

Dungeons

While playing the Persona games, there are many different dungeons that you will come across that are the focal point for the turn-based battles and collecting various Personas.

SEBEC

In the first Persona game, one of the major dungeons is the SEBEC building. This is home to the Saeki Electronics and Biological and Energy Corporation. It plays a major role in the story of Persona 1, featuring a mega-corporation that is at the center of the SEBEC route for the game.

Alaya Cavern

Alaya Cavern is one of the final dungeons that is also featured in Persona during the SEBEC route. It is a bizarre place that connects to the Sea of Souls in the other realm where the Persona is.

Ice Castle and the Three Towers

What is unique about Persona 1 is that it is split into two distinct storylines that the player chooses from. The alternate story follows the Snow Queen plot, and the central location for it is the Ice Castle. The Ice Castle takes over the entire high school that the protagonist attends.

In the Ice Castle, the students are trapped, but there are shops, a casino, and more that you can visit there. Also among the Ice Castle are the three towers known as the Thanatos Tower, Hypnos Tower, and the Nemesis Tower. There is also an optional fourth dungeon location with the Devil’s Peak.

Seven Sisters High School

Moving on to the Persona 2 games, one of the main dungeons that you visit is Seven Sisters High School near the beginning of both games. This is home to the high school where the main protagonist, Tatsuya Suou, attends. It is an early dungeon location that you visit.

Xibalba and the Four Elemental Temples

One of the final dungeons in the first of the Persona 2 games, Innocent Sin, is Xibalba. Before players can visit this final place, they must go through the four elemental temples in the city of Sumaru that are based on four elements and Zodiac signs.

There is the Scorpio Temple that is home to the water element, the Aquarius Temple that is home to the wind element, Leo Temple where the fire element is found; and the Taurus Temple where the earth element is located. Xibalba is the final location that you can go through in the game once you have completed the four Zodiac temples.

Castle Sumaru

Given that Persona 2: Eternal Punishment is a sequel game, it features its own set of dungeons to explore. One of the final dungeons that you can visit is Castle Sumaru which is in the city. This castle is a hidden and buried place that is from the past of the city with a long history dating back to the Warring States period of Japan.

Tartarus

Persona 3 is unique in that the entire game has the same dungeon for the entire adventure. That place is known as Tartarus. Briefly seen in the first Persona, Tartarus is a massive tower that is featured in the Dark Hour.

The Dark Hour is the secret hour where most people do not even notice it. A select few can and the main characters of Persona 3 visit Tartarus nightly to defeat shadows there. It is procedurally generated with hundreds of floors and areas to visit.

Midnight Channel

The Midnight Channel or TV World is also known as the main area where players will find dungeons in Persona 4. It is a legendary place that is hidden behind TVs and features shadows there. There are several dungeons that you can visit there throughout the game’s story, with each one having its villain and theme.

The Hollow Forest

The Hollow Forest is a unique dungeon that is only available in Persona 4 Golden and under certain circumstances. It involves the new character Marie and has several floors to it. Like the other dungeons in that game, it is located within the TV World.

Palaces

When it comes to Persona 5, the main dungeons for this game take place in the Metaverse, where the Palaces are. Palaces are the catch-all term for the dungeons that you visit in that game. Some will look like literal castles, while others will have a completely different theme and vibe.

Palaces have a ruler that happens to be the villain for that particular arc of Persona 5. Palaces are notable for having puzzles, different regions, and plenty of rooms to explore. At the end of the Palace is the treasure that the Phantom Thieves, the main characters of Persona 5, are trying to steal.

Mementos

Mementos is another dungeon that is featured in Persona 5 but is unique in that it is mostly optional. Mementos take place in the shadow world of the Metaverse but are throughout the entire city of Tokyo, existing beneath it.

It is similar in many ways to Tartarus in that it has many different floors and areas to it, but most of them are optional. There, the player can go through each floor, finding Personas, getting treasure, and completing optional requests.

Jails

In the spin-off/sequel known as Persona 5 Strikers, the Palaces do not return. Instead, some Jails take their place. Very similar in style to the Palaces, they also exist in the Metaverse and feature a ruler over them. This person is typically a bad person with a Desire, instead of treasure, that the main characters must locate.

There are several different Jails that the team visits in this spin-off game and they are all based in a different city in Japan. This makes this title a unique cross-country experience. Here is the full list of the Persona 5 Strikers Jails/cities that you visit in the game .

Please keep in mind, though, that naming these locations will be spoilers for the places that you visit in this game so please keep that in mind. If you do mind, go ahead and skip to the next location. Here is the list:

• Shibuya Jail
• Sendai Jail
• Sapporo Jail
• Okinawa Jail
• Kyoto Jail
• Osaka Jail

Other Persona Locations

When not in a dungeon fighting, players will have the option in many of the Persona games to enjoy a (somewhat) normal high school life. Going to school, engaging in optional activities, and shopping at stores are all some of the other locations that you can visit in most games.

School

One of the common elements of a Persona game is the fact that the protagonist is always a high school student, except for in the case of Persona 2: Eternal Punishment. Since they are students, this means that they go to high school often.

This is a place where you can find requests, talk with classmates, progress through the story, sometimes buy items, and even have dungeons there at times.

Shops/Restaurants

There are many different shops and restaurants that you can visit across the Persona series. Shops are based on modern stores like bookstores, pharmacies, video rental places, and so on. But they act as the places where you stock up on combat supplies, too.

Restaurants are where you can eat to replenish your health and even raise your stats in the game.

Shibuya Underground Mall

Shibuya Underground Mall is a notable shopping center due to its plethora of stores where you can purchase gifts to give to Confidants to raise your rank with them. It is where the bulk of the gift purchases are found in the game but not quite all of them.

Akihabara

Akihabara is the nerd capital of Tokyo and such is the case in Persona 5. Later in the story, players can go here to buy gifts for Confidants. Only a few gifts are purchased here but many of them are crucial to a few party members and acquaintances.

Shinjuku

Shinjuku is next door to Shibuya and one of the busiest places in the world. With a central shopping street there, players can find stores and plenty of gifts here to win over the hearts and minds of your fellow Phantom Thieves and Confidants.

Jobs

There are certain stores and other locations that players are also able to work a part-time job at to earn money, starting with Persona 3 Portable and later games. These places include convenience stores, flower shops, bars, and more.

Movie Theater

There are even places like the movie theater and other locations where you can go to spend time with the main characters in the game. You can raise your stats and possibly your relationship with that person by watching movies and spending time together.

Home

There is a home that the protagonist in most of the games, especially three and up, lives in. It varies for each game, from actual houses to dorms to a cafe, but they serve as the place to sleep, rest, study, craft, and progress in the story. Players will spend a lot of time in their home base wherever it is, depending on the game.

FAQs

Conclusion

There are so many different Persona locations across the series that have been featured in all six of the mainline games. It may seem like a lot to keep up with, but playing the games will allow you to spend a lot of time with each location, especially in the later games that focused on a smaller selection of areas.

Whether you are a new fan of the series or an existing one, we recommend checking out some of our other guides in the Persona series, like our Persona key terms post. There, we go into greater detail about the various aspects of the series, such as what a Persona is, how Palaces work, and much more.

Related reads:

• Persona 5 Momentos Guide

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Cody Perez

Cody is a writer who discovered the Persona series about 10 years ago. As a huge Pokemon fan growing up, he was recommended to check it out on his PSP. He started with the very first game and when in sequential order before catching up with Persona 3 Portable and Persona 4 Golden cemented his love for the series. He was proud to be able to eventually spread his passion into the Shin Megami Tensei series and be there in time for the launch of Persona 5, which is one of his favorite games of all time.

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