Interest
Staff Ask Persona 5 Pilgrims to Mind Their Manners
posted on by Lynzee Loveridge
The official website for the Persona 5 video game and anime series issued a statement about poor behavior taking place at the series' pilgrimage site. The game takes place within Tokyo with certain locations drawn from the Sangen-Jaya area of the Setagaya ward. Within the game itself, the area is called Yongenjaya, but this is just a simple take of changing the original area's "san" (#3) to "yon" (#4).
There are several real, local cafes that appear in the game, as well as a laundromat, bars, a batting center, movie theater, supermarkets, and more. Kotaku's Brian Ashcraft has a pretty thorough article of the locations fans have found.
The post by Persona 5 staff doesn't directly name a particular spot, but it does discuss some of the behavior. The pilgrimage sites have drawn a large number of people to the point where it is inconveniencing locals. Persona 5 staff are asking visitors to refrain from accessing facilities for purposes other than what it was designed for (i.e., don't hang out in the aforementioned laundromat if you aren't going to wash your clothes), do not take pictures where it is not allowed, throw away trash properly, and do not damage property.
The requests ends by asking visitors to be aware of their own actions and abide by social etiquette. The post was written in both Japanese and English.
Areas throughout Japan are designated as pilgrimage sites for anime, manga and video games. Popular locations rake in tourism funds. The success has led to anime productions specifically created for just that purpose. However, a few bad apples can ruin the bushel. Persona 5 staff aren't the first to have to issue statements reminding visitors to be respectful of locals. The city of Numazu, the setting of Love Live! Sunshine!! has had a number of problems with vandalism and photography by tourists.
