(00:00) - - The eery quietness of Persona 4 Golden
(03:10) - - The Heisei mergers
(06:15) - - Persona 4 Golden is biased towards tradition
(06:55) - - Yukiko gives in
(08:55) - - Kanji's dyes his hair
(10:56) - - Rise goes back to showbiz
(12:35) - - These aren't real people
(13:03) - - Conservatism
(14:28) - - Tradition for tradition's sake
To watch the member-exclusive video, you can go to my Patreon or Ko-Fi!
https://www.patreon.com/c/flowstatecrit
https://ko-fi.com/matthorton
Thanks to @FazPersona (https://studio.youtube.com/channel/UCEevYX4rCcfF0ZrxmnnONXA), @shinobuSMT (https://studio.youtube.com/channel/UC3tsvQ9Tfps5qzvXUmRw5DQ), and @SphericAlpha (https://studio.youtube.com/channel/UC6_FIEhH19dAy_z9aOCAbng) for game footage
Watch @LadyVirgilia (https://studio.youtube.com/channel/UCL_lKByYEtPLfT8LfOcyUAQ)'s video on the Heisei mergers and Inaba: https://youtu.be/gd2YrXqkchM
Watch @BiggeTwig (https://studio.youtube.com/channel/UCKueDc8duCDGRWUMAG9PDOA)'s "The Development of Persona 4": https://youtu.be/gd2YrXqkchM
Thank you to my $5+ members:
GJ
Jenn Cheung
Mike Turley
Chase Allhart
Zeno
MajesticOstrich
Kim
Silellak
Research Sources:
Katsura Hashino blogs from the old Atlus website
https://web.archive.org/web/20130831132713/http://www.atlusnet.jp/topic/detail/607
https://web.archive.org/web/20140205015317/http://www.atlusnet.jp/topic/detail/650
Podcast interview with Persona 4 dev team
https://web.archive.org/web/20100908090614/https://game.biglobe.ne.jp/colweb/shoku/2010/100902/100902.html
SiliconEra translation and summary of the podcast interview
https://www.siliconera.com/behind-the-design-of-persona-4/
“The Development of Municipal Mergers in Japan” by Kiyotaka Yokomichi
https://clair.or.jp/j/forum/honyaku/hikaku/pdf/up-to-date_en1.pdf
Interview on 1UP.com with Yu Namba and Nich Maragos
https://web.archive.org/web/20130228183558/http://www.1up.com/news/anime-expo-atlus-talks-persona
Interview on 1UP.com with Katsura Hashino
https://megatengaku.wordpress.com/readings/interviews/1up-persona-4-afterthoughts/
Shmuplations translation of Persona Club P4 book
https://shmuplations.com/persona4/
Highlights from the Persona Club P4 book by Tumblr user, adachimoe
https://adachimoe.tumblr.com/post/731417840378347520/random-stuff-from-the-persona-club-p4-book
Toru’s blog on their visit to Fuefuki
https://p4toru.jugem.jp
Toru’s blog visiting the same street as the P4G team did on their tour of towns to base their design of Inaba on
https://p4toru.jugem.jp/?eid=17
Fuefuki on Wikipedia
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fuefuki
27 Feb 2026
The woman who made Blippo+ weird
0:00 - My boring question
0:38 - What is Blippo+?
1:17 - Why does JJ love 80s TV?
5:26 - Her analog video work
8:19 - JJ's genius made Blippo+ great
11:59 - JJ's reverence for her collaborators
14:23 - Giving "weirdos" the Holly wood treatment
15:07 - Following her dreams paid off
17:51 - My hope for Blippo+
Before I talked to JJ Stratford, I had a really boring question. Is Blippo+ a video game or a cable service? But she was far more interesting than that question.
Full interview with JJ available on Patreon & Ko-Fi:
https://www.patreon.com/flowstatecrit
https://ko-fi.com/matthorton
Blippo+ is available on Playdate, Steam (PC & Mac), and Nintendo Switch
18 Feb 2026
2025 was a weird year for games...
It was a weird year for video games, but here's my favorite moments among the mess.
(00:00) - - It was a weird year...
(01:01) - - and Roger
(01:48) - - Extra: Persona 4 Golden
(03:00) - - Dispatch
(05:15) - - The Séance of Blake Manor
(06:11) - - Unfair Flips
(07:20) - - Clair Obscur: Expedition 33
(08:54) - - Extra: Octopath Traveler 2
(09:56) - - Fretless
(11:13) - - Fighting Games
(13:36) - - Q-Up
(14:45) - - Known Mysteries
(16:47) - - Citizen Sleeper 2
(19:19) - - The Hundred Line: Last Defense Academy
Support my work at ko-fi.com/matthorton
dotzip's and Roger episode - https://share.transistor.fm/s/570f6f40 (https://www.youtube.com/redirect?event=video_description&redir_token=QUFFLUhqbkxHSFJMMG5vQkM5VmU2MEFhWVFrQy1LclRWUXxBQ3Jtc0ttQU9CVEFPaDNLTS1vWEFvLXNYdWtNeEdSY3RDRTRDTFVYYUFPNm9WbTJsLTd5MWRuWjdSd3BjRHpUTkV4bzQ3eTJERG5xekYyOWJoYy1IRHB6aWFLWkpwRUJOeVRlMDBTXzJsc2pjSGxQODVVS2NUcw&q=https%3A%2F%2Fshare.transistor.fm%2Fs%2F570f6f40&v=kkvQQwN5fyo)
Brendon on YouTube - @itswavelengths (https://www.youtube.com/@itswavelengths)
Stephen on YouTube - @MemoryCardManuscript (https://www.youtube.com/@MemoryCardManuscript)
Reach and audience
Public platform figures. Ratings count people who left a rating, not total listeners.
YouTube views
604,797
Score snapshot 15 Sept 2025
Apple Podcasts (US)
5.0 / 5
1 ratings
Podcast Authority Score: 28 / 100
A composite of feed quality, social presence, YouTube performance and engagement. Read the methodology.
Quality
21
Social presence
0
YouTube
86
Engagement
0
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