It was inevitable. Ever since Persona 3 Reload hit store shelves, information suggesting that The Answer, the epilogue to Atlus' 2007 Persona 3, would be released, was too direct to be called a "suggestion."

First, there was a datamine suggesting that six DLC packages were planned for the game, followed by information that if you played the game on difficulty hard, you would get a special item with the description "The answer illuminates my path." It was passed along. It was subtle.

Now, at yesterday's Xbox Partner Preview, Atlus officially announced the availability of "The Answer" along with additional background music and costumes for Persona 3 Reload: Expansion Pass

But it's "The Answer" that matters. The original epilogue will tell the truth ("The Answer"?) about what exactly happened at the end of the main story. While not particularly well received originally, and there was not much of the social-sim stuff that made Persona Persona, it was an important element of P3's story, and its exclusion made P3R feel like a less defining remake.

It's great that this title is coming out this September; P3R will officially be the definitive telling of protagonist Makoto Yuki's story. But there is still one thing missing: the other protagonist of Persona 3, the female player character (FeMC) Kotone Shiomi. Shiomi was only playable as part of Persona 3 Portable (a game adaptation of the visual novel from that title for the PSP), but she is a fan favorite and has appeared in other Persona titles, such as the 3DS game Persona Q2.

Unfortunately, Shiomi is destined to stay where she is, and it seems increasingly likely that the release of P3P on modern platforms last year is all Atlus has to keep her alive. To some extent, this is understandable. Bringing Siomi to P3R would mean all new animations, UI, voice acting, and social links - a completely different version of an already huge game. In other words, it is beyond the scope of DLC.

However, I can't help but feel disappointed. I really liked playing as Shiomi, and some of her social links are straight up better than her male partners (some, oh, obviously worse, so I'm talking about Ken.) Now that P3R has been released on PC, modders can at least give her will have to be satisfied with the fact that she can now legitimately appreciate the