"Welcome to the Velvet Room. This place exists between dream and reality, mind and matter."
The Velvet Room (ベルベット・ルーム, Berubetto Rūmu)? is a room located between consciousness and subconsciousness which is commonly featured in the Persona series.
Appearances
- Megami Ibunroku Persona
- Persona 2: Innocent Sin
- Persona 2: Eternal Punishment
- Persona 3 / FES / Portable
- Persona 4 / Golden
- Persona 4 Arena
- Persona 4 Arena Ultimax
- Persona 4: Dancing All Night
- Persona 5
- Persona Q: Shadow of the Labyrinth
- Persona Q2: New Cinema Labyrinth
Profile
The Velvet Room often manifests itself differently in the game, but it is always covered in blue velvet and hosted by Igor. The purpose of the Velvet Room is always to manage Personas and use them in Fusion. The room is invisible to all except those with high spiritual sensitivity. In Persona 3, Igor states that only those who have formed a contract can be guests.
The method of summoning Personas in the Velvet Room significantly changes throughout the series. In Persona, Igor uses his telephone to call the realm of unconsciousness, listens to a sad story from the other end which makes him cry, and the flood of emotion creates a rift that combines the two demons into the Persona. In Persona 2, the Tarot Cards give power the phone, which, combined with Belladonna's singing and Nameless' music, summons the Persona directly. For Persona 3 and Persona 4, Igor performs an arcane ritual that fuses a certain number of Persona cards together to create a new one, which summons a Persona within the protagonist's soul. In Persona 5, Igor does not perform any fusions himself; instead, Caroline and Justine place the chosen Personas into guillotines, decapitating them and releasing energy that forms into the new Persona. During a Fusion Accident, the guillotines become stuck, resulting in the twins beheading the Personas with a chainsaw.
Megami Ibunroku Persona
The Velvet Room is housed in the Sun Mall, Joy Street, the Black Market, and can be found in dungeons throughout the game. It appears as a room with blue velvet carpet and curtains covering the walls. Servants of Philemon, Igor, Nameless and Belladonna, are found playing piano and singing opera respectively.
Persona 2
In both Innocent Sin and Eternal Punishment, the Velvet Room is run by Igor, who is a servant of Philemon. Other servants of Philemon who resided in the room, including Nameless and Belladonna return from Persona along with the addition of the Demon Painter. The Velvet Room appears as a room draped in blue velvet with a piano and a microphone which resides on a stage in the center of the room, and it is accessible through every large mall in Sumaru City, of which there is one in virtually every major district.
Aside from Persona summoning and management, the Velvet Room is used for story purposes when people like Ulala Serizawa are taken there during the events of Eternal Punishment to recover from the infection of the Joker curse. In the EX Dungeon mode, the Velvet Room also functions as the base for switching party members. In the PSP remake of Eternal Punishment, each chapter of the additional scenario can be accessed from there by talking to Igor after the player has progressed the main plot at certain point.
Persona 3
The Velvet Room appears as an elevator that is endlessly ascending and can only be accessed by the protagonist. The room's appearance as an elevator can be considered as a reference to SEES' ascension in Tartarus throughout the game. The room is still run by Igor; however, he makes no reference to being a servant of Philemon. The protagonist gains access to the Velvet Room after signing a contract with a child. Igor mentions that a long time has passed since he had a visitor. The other denizens are now gone, however, Igor has a new assistant named Elizabeth. Elizabeth would later mention that those who set foot in the Velvet Room are bound to be on a quest in search for themselves. When the protagonist creates 'The Universe' the Velvet Room will stop ascending and the door to the elevator will fly open. The Velvet Room entrances can be found in Paulownia Mall below Karaoke Bar Mandragora at Tatsumi Port Island while the other can be found in Tartarus' first floor.
Portable
The Velvet Room has the same role as in Persona 3, and can only be accessed by either protagonist. The only difference this time is that the player can choose Igor's assistant, Theodore or Elizabeth, if the player is using the female protagonist.
The Answer
The Velvet Room plays a larger role in Persona 3 FES. In the playable epilogue, The Answer, Aigis is given access to the Velvet Room and its services after being visited by a blue butterfly. It is in the Velvet Room where she learns about the protagonist's unique ability. From time to time Elizabeth would try to cheer up Aigis from her grief regarding the protagonist's death.
Persona Mobile Online
In this mobile version of Persona (stylized mostly after Persona 3), the Velvet Room is where players use their Arcana Points to access new and stronger Persona of their respective Arcana.
Persona 4
The Velvet Room appears as the interior of a limousine. Igor is still present and he has a new assistant named Margaret. It seems that the "limousine" is cruising along an unknown path through a dense fog, mirroring the situation over at the protagonist's own world.
Other than the protagonist, once, a Shadow managed to make an appearance in the Velvet Room. This prompted Igor to suggest that any creation with a powerful ego will be able to appear there; soon after this realization, the limousine moved again, this time on a definite path, with Igor remarking they were finally leaving the fog. The Velvet Room entrances can be found in Inaba's South Central Shopping District between Daidara Metalworks and Yomenaido Bookstore while the other can be found in the Midnight Channel's "Entrance Hall."
Golden
The Velvet Room's purpose and appearance is much the same as the original Persona 4, except it adds a new character Marie, who manages skill cards and allows the player to give cards to her to store and later repurchase. In addition, this is the location where the Aeon Social Link is able to be formed with Marie, and the location that she can be found to engage in her social link.
Persona 4 Arena
The Velvet Room appears as the Character Select screen. Margaret stands beside Igor, who lays out his Tarot cards for the player, each Arcana corresponding to one of the 13 playable characters. In the game's Story Mode, the Room takes its usual form of a limousine interior or an elevator (in Aigis' Story Mode), while the character select version is a large dining hall where Igor sits on a sofa. In Aigis' story mode, the room appears as an elevator once more.
In the console versions, the Velvet Room is also the Network Mode menu. It is the same as the character select screen, with the exception of Margaret giving you your options of Ranked Match, Player Match, etc. as though you were in the request or Persona fusion menu. You may also change aspects of your profile, such as your custom title.
The Velvet Room is also an important location in Elizabeth, Aigis, and Yu Narukami's story modes. Elizabeth and Margaret still watch over their former guests, and will intervene whenever they are about to make dangerous mistakes.
Arena Ultimax
It appears once more in the Character Select screen. In the game's story mode, the Room is seen its two different forms depending on the story mode. In the Persona 4 story mode, it takes the usual limousine interior while in the Persona 3 story mode, it is seen as an elevator.
In the prologue of the Persona 4 story mode, Igor and Margaret are seen talking to an unknown guest, later revealed to be Sho Minazuki, who refuses the contract and walks out the Velvet Room. However, Igor states that Sho is destined to form a contract with them to refine his power, and will eventually return when that time comes. Margaret notes that Elizabeth is likely to become a visitor of the Velvet Room in the true ending.
Persona 4: Dancing All Night
The Velvet Room changed into a dance stage instead of a limousine.
- Soundtrack:“Electronica In Velvet Room”, "Break Out of..."
- Dancer: Margaret, and Marie
Persona Q: Shadow of the Labyrinth
In P3's story Igor has currently left the room for that day, leaving it unstable. Theodore has been tasked to help his sister with aiding guests as a result. The raging storm outside of the room, along with its lack of a master is mentioned to have an unpredictable result, with SEES being brought into the room as room itself sends them all to the alternate Yasogami High.
In P4's story it is revealed that the Fortune Telling Booth Margaret opened during the Yasogami High School Festival is a simplified version of the Velvet Room. Margaret notices that time is unstable and that, somehow, the Investigation Team's presence affected the place. The once small room is transformed into a vast space with huge velvet blue stairs and rotating gears, along with two mysterious locked doors with four keyholes.
The protagonists of both routes are mentioned to have told their friends about the Velvet Room and its purpose of giving them new personas. Persona users with support abilities usually support the party from this room, allowing the Attendants to overhear conversations.
The Velvet Room being in the form of a platform with stairs and rotating gears is mirroring and foreshadowing the Clock Tower within the alternate Yasogami High, showing how important the Clock Tower is to Rei since it symbolizes as the key figure of the school to her and how it became the final labyrinth for the Investigation Team and SEES, along with Zen, where the Clockwork God is waiting with Rei, imprisoned by him.
Persona 5
The Velvet Room appears as a prison, with the protagonist shown in a prisoner outfit, complete with handcuffs, and locked in a cell. Igor is shown with two new assistants, Caroline and Justine, who act as prison guards while Igor himself sits at the warden's desk. The room's appearance mirrors how the protagonist and the other Phantom Thieves of Hearts feel imprisoned by the rules and expectations of society and turn to criminal acts to fulfill their desires for freedom.
At the end of the game, it is revealed that the Igor that has been assisting the protagonist is actually Yaldabaoth, who had imprisoned the real Igor and split his assistant, Lavenza, into the amnesiac Caroline and Justine. The Velvet Room is revealed to have been fused with Mementos as a result. Having a maxed Confidant rank with Caroline and Justine established will reward the protagonist with the Jail Key final day gift item from Lavenza. According to her, that key is normally the same one that is given to the protagonist on the first day in the Velvet Room.
The Velvet Room entrances in Tokyo are guarded by Caroline and can be found in Shibuya, Shinjuku and Akihabara. The entrances in Palaces are guarded by Justine and can be found at the entrance of each Palace.
In the Qliphoth World, the Velvet Room's jail cell is open and the protagonist is no longer in his prisoner outfit when he appears there, but he is still unable to exit the cell completely. Lavenza stands next to the cell and when a Persona fusion is ordered, she will perform the executions required to fuse the Personas.
Denizens of the Velvet Room
- Igor: Igor appears the most out of all Velvet Room residents, only not appearing in Persona Q. Igor claims to be a servant of Philemon, and he typically handles fusion.
- Nameless: the piano player who appears in Persona and Persona 2, he covers his eyes while playing the piano.
- Belladonna: Belladonna is a soprano singer who accompanies Nameless's music. She covers her ears while singing.
- Demon Painter: The demon painter only appears in Persona 2. He can convert free tarot cards into cards of another arcana. He is modeled after Kazuma Kaneko.
- Elizabeth: Elizabeth is Igor's assistant in Persona 3. She handles the Persona Compendium and offers the protagonist optional quests.
- Theodore: Theodore is Igor's male assistant and the younger brother of Elizabeth, appearing in Persona 3 Portable. He handles the same duties as Elizabeth and will only appear when playing as the female protagonist.
- Margaret: Margaret appears as Igor's assistant in Persona 4, and is Elizabeth's older sister, having taken over her role. She also handles the Persona compendium. Her requests are only Persona with specific abilities, but she also handles the Fusion Forecast in return.
- Marie: Marie is addressed as an apprentice in Persona 4 Golden. She is tasked with transactions related to Skill Cards.
- Caroline and Justine: Two young twins appear as Igor's two assistants in Persona 5. They perform the executions required to fuse Persona, create items, and strengthen Persona. Justine handles the Persona compendium. They also represent the Strength Confidant, in which the protagonist is required to bring them Persona with certain abilities, in return for new features within the Velvet Room.
- Lavenza: The combined and true form of Caroline and Justine. She continues to offer the same features that Caroline and Justine did.
- Morgana: An anthropomorphic cat created by Igor in order to aid the Persona 5 protagonist following his imprisonment by Yaldabaoth.
Music
"The music I create is meant to open the door to the soul for Persona Users like yourselves. To create it, I must confront what is in my heart. That is why 90,000 and 155 nights have passed since I closed my own eyes."
The Velvet Room has a distinct music theme titled "Poem of Everyone's Soul" (全ての人の魂の詩, Subete no hito no tamashii no uta)?, also known in English as "Aria of the Soul." The same melody is rearranged not only for the Velvet Room in the series, but also for the ending theme of Megami Ibunroku Persona and second to final battle theme of Persona 3, etc.
The background music of Velvet Room in Persona 2: Innocent Sin includes other classical pieces along the re-arranged "Aria of the Soul." These are Debussy's "Clair de lune" and Satie's "Gymnopédie No.1." Persona 2: Eternal Punishment includes Beethoven's "Piano Sonata No. 8" (known as "Pathétique") first half of first movement and J.S. Bach's "Two Part Invention No.13" (also used in Gouma-Den of Devil Summoner and Soul Hackers) in addition but removed "Clair de Lune." All of these pieces are selected each time the player enters the Velvet Room in a fixed order.
It is found on the Persona 3 Original Soundtrack, the Persona 4 Original Soundtrack, the Persona 5 Original Soundtrack and the Shin Megami Tensei: Persona 3 Original Soundtrack, as well as a version of the aria found on Burn My Dread -Reincarnation: Persona 3-. The melody was also remixed as The Battle for Everyone's Souls, which serves as the penultimate final battle theme of Persona 3 and as Elizabeth's theme in Persona 4 Arena. In addition, there are currently two other versions that have been included in the respective game OSTs of Persona 3 and Persona 4 called Blues in Velvet Room and Electronica in Velvet Room, which were also featured in Persona 4 Arena as background themes for the character select screen. A short version of the track called "Aria of the Soul (Signing Off)" is also played in the Game Over of the game. There is also The Bond of Everyone's Souls from Persona 4 The Animation as well as Dance Hymn of the Soul (Disco in Velvet Room) in Persona 4: Dancing All Night.
"My duty is♪ To calm the hearts of visitors♪ For this, I must hear my heart's music♪ Though my ears♪ Block out the world's sounds♪ Your words reach me quite clearly♪"
Music |
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"Velvet Room" (Megami Ibunroku Persona)
"Poem for Everyone's Souls" (Persona PSP remake)
"Poem of Everybody's Souls" (Ending theme of Megami Ibunroku Persona)
"Velvet Room" (Persona 2)
Satie's "Gymnopedie" (Persona 2)
"Velvet Room -Nanashi Arrange-" (precisely Bach's "Two Part Invention No.13." Persona 2: Eternal Punishment PSP remake)
"The Battle for Everyone's Souls" (second to final battle theme of Persona 3)
"The Poem for Everyone's Souls" (Burn My Dread -Reincarnation: Persona 3-)
"Blues In Velvet Room" (A Certain Day of Summer, Persona 3)
"Electronica In The Velvet Room" (Persona 4 OST bonus track)
"The Bond Of Everyone's Souls" (Persona 4 The Animation)
"Electronica in the Velvet Room" (Persona 4 Arena)
"Margaret's theme" (Persona 4 Arena Ultimax)
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Gallery
Denizens of the Velvet Room |
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Various incarnations of the Velvet Room |
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The Velvet Room in Megami Ibunroku Persona
The Velvet Room in Persona
The Velvet Room in Persona 2
The "elevator" in Persona 3
Concept sketch of Velvet Room in Persona 3 The Movie
Concept artwork of Velvet Room of Persona 3 The Movie
The Velvet Room in Persona 3 The Movie
The limousine as it appears in Persona 4
The limousine as it appears Persona 4 Arena
The elevator as it appears in Persona 4 Arena
The Velvet Room in Persona Mobile Online
The limousine as it appears in Persona 4 Visualive the Evolution
Velvet Room title screen for Persona 5
The prison as it appears in Persona 5
The protagonist imprisoned in Persona 5
Concept art of the prison in Persona 5
Concept art of the prison cell in Persona 5
Concept art of the prison cell in Persona 5
The Velvet Room seen in Persona 5 The Animation
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Persona 4 Golden |
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Persona 4: Dancing All Night |
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Velvet Stage
Yu wearing the Velvet Room's outfit
Yosuke wearing the Velvet Room's outfit
Chie wearing the Velvet Room's outfit
Yukiko wearing the Velvet Room's outfit
Kanji wearing the Velvet Room's outfit
Rise wearing the Velvet Room's outfit
Naoto wearing the Velvet Room's outfit
Teddie wearing Igor outfit.
Unused Velvet Room outfit ripped from Persona 4: Dancing All Night
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Persona 3: Dancing Moon Night |
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Persona 5: Dancing Star Night |
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The protagonist wearing the Velvet Room's outfit
Morgana wearing Igor outfit
Ryuji wearing the Velvet Room's outfit
Ann wearing the Velvet Room's outfit
Yusuke wearing the Velvet Room's outfit
Makoto wearing the Velvet Room's outfit
Futaba wearing the Velvet Room's outfit
Haru wearing the Velvet Room's outfit
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Trivia
- The name is most likely derived from the Edgar Allan Poe story "The Masque of the Red Death." It features a series of 7 rooms representing the different stages of life, and the one just before death is known as the "Velvet Room." In this room, the main character of the story, Prince Prospero, also meets his death, and in the Persona games it appears in the game over screen along with a message.
- The Velvet Room's license plate number in Persona 4 is CH-8700. This is most likely a reference to Küsnacht, Zurich(.ch is the country code for Switzerland, 8700 is the Küsnacht postal code), the location of the C. G. Jung Institute that Jung himself founded and administered until his death.
- In the manga adaption of the first game, the room's name is misspelled as "Belbet Room."
- According to Margaret, all those who enter the Velvet Room, including the residents, are those who are chosen by fate to undergo a "Journey" to find themselves. Elizabeth leaving the Velvet Room to free the protagonist of Persona 3 from being the Great Seal and supposedly abandoning this journey confused her, and is the motive behind her requests towards Yu Narukami.
- Persona 5 marks the first time where the Velvet Room is used for the goals of a primary antagonistic fraction, as the conductor of the Conspiracy and the events of the game, Yaldabaoth impersonated as Igor and took it over, controlling its denizens and merging it with his Palace Mementos.
- The Velvet Room as it appears in Megami Ibunroku Persona has the exact same floor and curtains of the Red Room from the TV show Twin Peaks, except blue.
- Velvet is a type of woven tufted fabric in which the cut threads are evenly distributed, with a short dense pile, giving it a distinctive feel. By extension, the word velvety means "smooth like velvet." Velvet can be made from either synthetic or natural fibers.
Characters | |
Playable | Rise Kujikawa - Yu Narukami - Kanami Mashita - Yosuke Hanamura - Chie Satonaka - Kanji Tatsumi - Teddie - Yukiko Amagi - Naoto Shirogane - Nanako Dojima - Margaret - Marie - Tohru Adachi - Hatsune Miku |
Non-playable | Protagonist - Ryotaro Dojima - Minoru Inoue - Sumomo Ujima - Tomoe Sayama - Tamami Uesugi - Nozomi Nakahara - Kyoka Ochimizu - Dance Instructor - Yuko Osada - Mikuratana-no-Kami - President Tanaka |
Locations | |
Other | Velvet Room - Yomotsu Hirasaka - Takura Productions - Inaba - Midnight Channel |
Midnight Stage | Kujikawa Rise (Stage) - Circus Tent - Sultry Lounge - Doll House - Romantic Castle - Mechanical Castle - Event Space - Mikuratana-no-Kami's Realm |
Music | |
Albums | Persona 4: Dancing All Night Original Soundtrack |
Songs | Dance! - Calystegia |
Archive | |
Terminology | Persona - Persona User - Shadow - Kanamin Kitchen - LMB Festival - Shadow Self - Investigation Team - Apathy Syndrome |
Lists | Trophies |