Persona 4 animated series licensed for US release

Earlier this year, Japanese animation company Aniplex announced that an anime series based on the PlayStation 2 role-playing game Persona 4 was in production, and it was scheduled to air on October 6 in Japan. English-speaking fans can now celebrate, with Sentai Filmworks confirming this week that it will be licensing the anime for release in the US market.

Sentai plans to make the 25-episode series available on DVD and Blu-ray in 2012. The show will also be digitally distributed "soon through many outlets," but no specific release window was given.

Just like the game it is based upon, the anime follows main character Yu Narukami as he joins up with eight other teenagers to solve the mysterious murders and kidnappings in the town of Inaba. The show will be directed by Seiji Kishi (director of Angel Beats!) and the soundtrack will be composed by Shoji Meguro (composer for the recent Persona and Shin Megami Tensei series).

The Persona 4 brand isn't just getting an anime adaptation; there is also an upcoming 2D fighting game set two years after the original's story and developed by Arc System Works of Guilty Gear and BlazBlue fame. A PlayStation Vita port of Persona 4 will also be released next spring in Japan. The title will have more in-game voice work, as well as new animated cutscenes and wireless support features.