Yesterday, Square Enix announced that War of the Visions Final Fantasy Brave Exvius is shutting down after five years of service this May. At first, it seemed like another standard case of the company killing its projects, but fans on Twitter have discovered a disturbing trend that ties Persona 5 to a number of failed mobile games.
Sure, War of the Visions is hardly one of the best Final Fantasy games out there, but it’s still sad to see yet another Square Enix mobile title perish – especially from falling to the ‘Persona 5 curse.’ If, like us, this is the first time you’ve heard of the phenomenon, then make sure you’re sitting down because this is some pretty shocking news. According to X user Aura6425, at least five mobile games entered End Of Service roughly one year after collaborating with Atlus’ JRPG.
Lo and behold, War of the Visions also collaborated with Persona 5 just under three years ago, so the free mobile game managed to hold on longer than most of Joker’s victims, potentially just because it’s a Final Fantasy title. Thanks to this revelation, I found out that my favorite rhythm game, Love Live, also fell at the hands of the Phantom Thieves, but it took a group effort from Persona 3, 4, and 5 to take the game down. It’s the small victories.
So what is it about Persona 5 collaborations that causes mobile games to crash and burn? Are the Phantom Thieves really cursed, or is this simply confirmation bias? Identity V and Bang Dream could be at risk thanks to their previous crossovers with the series. Alongside all of this loss in the mobile game sphere, we’re still waiting for a Persona 5 The Phantom X global release date.
If you’re an avid War of the Visions player, you’ve got until May 29, 2025, to enjoy the end of this Final Fantasy game. You can find the full details of its sunset period on the Square Enix website. Maybe it’s time to give Final Fantasy VII Ever Crisis a go instead, or you can wait for Final Fantasy XIV mobile to emerge from the shadows.