In 1999, a strange phenomenon began occurring all over Port Island. Every night at midnight the moon grows and the area takes on a strange greenish-yellow hue. All technology ceases to work, water temporarily turns to blood and a strange tower can be seen where Gekkoukan High School normally stands. The majority of people never experience what is called the Dark Hour as they are safely enclosed in coffins and time seems to come to a complete stop for them. However, there are a number of people that do experience this hour. They are usually the ones who are have the Potential, who have already awakened to their Persona, or who are among the Shadow-Possessed. There are exceptions to this, such as when a person is about to become a potential victim of Apathy Syndrome.

During this hour, entities called Shadows roam the streets and anyone caught outside during this time without a means to protect themselves becomes vulnerable to their attacks. The Dark Hour also has a physiological effect on those caught outside during this time and most people will grow tired very quickly. Someone who is not used to the oppressive atmosphere of the Dark Hour will find that it takes time to adjust to it. Over time it becomes possible to last longer in the Dark Hour, however the physiological effects are never quite diminished. It is easier for a person to become sick if they do not rest after being in the Dark Hour.

All normal technology ceases to function during the Dark Hour. Cell phones, cameras, televisions, lights and other forms of technology are rendered useless. Only those with access to the right kind of technology, such as the NWO and SEES, would have the kind of things that work in the Dark Hour. The trains and other forms of transportation do not work in the Dark Hour, thus it is impossible to enter or to leave Port Island until after it is over.

Someone with the Potential who is experiencing the Dark Hour for the first time will generally not remember it as anything more than a stressful experience. Subsequent times awake during the hour will be remembered though.

After the Dark Hour ends, time resumes as normal at 12:01AM.

Tartarus

The home of the Shadows in Port Island is called Tartarus. During the Dark Hour, Gekkoukan High School transforms into the massive, looming tower. The number of floors in Tartarus is currently unknown. There are SEES patrols that regularly explore the tower, but going in it alone is not advised. The Shadows can easily overpower a single Persona-user. However, Shadow-Possessed are more likely to left alone by the Shadows unless the specific entity is a strong one. In this case, the person could still be overpowered pretty easily.

While the tower is a good place for training, the oppressive atmosphere of the Dark Hour outside can still be felt inside. When someone enters into the lobby, they would see a teleporter which allows them to transport to certain floors where other ones are placed. The only exception is that one cannot use the teleporter to go higher than a floor that has already been explored. So, if the highest floor explored is 40, one could not go to floor 50 in that manner. There are stairs that allow exploration of each additional floor but no one can reach the top, as there are gates that block the way until certain unknown requirements cause the gates to vanish.

There is a clock which sets in the lobby and always reads the same time. To the left of that there is a Velvet Room door as well as an entrance into the Abyss of Time.

Every time one enters into Tartarus, the layout of each floor beyond the lobby changes. It is impossible to map out the tower because of this. Exploring the tower for too long is unadvised and can draw the attention of a much darker force. The Reaper spares no one and being caught by it generally means immediate death.

An additional danger of Tartarus is getting trapped within the tower after the Dark Hour ends. If this happens, the person is stuck in a pocket dimension of sorts. While time moves on normally outside of it, to a person stuck within it may only feel like a few hours have passed when in reality it is a few days. Therefore, it is essential to leave Tartarus before it transforms back into Gekkoukan High School.

Spread of the Dark Hour

Recent events have led to the spread of the Dark Hour to Okina and the Yumezaki Ward in Sumaru. The reasons for this are currently unknown.

Differences

Most of the effects that can be seen and felt in the Dark Hour of Port Island are the same in the expanded versions of it. The water still turns to blood, the area is filled with a greenish-yellow hue and non-awakened people are transmogrified into coffins. However, there are a few differences.

Okina

In Okina’s Dark Hour nearby the fountains, there is a tower similar to Tartarus. Though not as massive in size it is still pretty unsettling as there is also a thick fog which appears to seep from within and around the tower. Inside, the appearance is different than Tartarus. However, there is the same teleporter, though it is currently inactive, and a set of stairs which allow exploration of higher floors.

Perhaps the most noticeable difference of the Okina Tower is that non-Evoker users will be unable to miss the sense of death radiating from within the place. It’s an extremely uncomfortable and terrible feeling. Oddly, Evoker-users don’t seem to be affected in the same manner. It is unknown why this happens.

Due to the fog that blankets the area, especially around the tower and within it, the only way someone can actually see clearly is to be equipped with their TV World glasses (Midnight Channel). Without them, it is nearly impossible to see.

Yumezaki Dark Hour

While the Port Island and Okina Dark Hours have a similar tower, the Yumezaki Dark Hour does not have this same feature. Kirijo technology does work in this instance of the Dark Hour, but cell phones will not get reception as there are no active towers.

This instance of the Dark Hour also differs from the others in that, even though there are fewer Shadows, there is an additional threat from the demons that don’t transmogrify and seem to roam freely here.

Technology in the Dark Hour

Even though Kirijo and SEBEC technology of certain kinds work in the Dark Hour, most forms of technology cease to function at all. This includes: phones, cameras, televisions, street lights, trains, cars, computers, etc.

It is important to note that you cannot reliably photograph a demon, shadow or a Persona; photographs may be subject to mild distortion, and their /effects/ can certainly be photographed (and documented as noticeably strange in many cases, such as doors blown up or claws in material), but nothing conclusive comes up. This applies within the Dark Hour and outside of it in the case of demons.

Atmosphere

The atmosphere within the Dark Hour is different than at any other time. Beyond the oppressive nature of it that can tire a person out easily, there are also other things that happen differently within it.

If there is a fire burning beforehand, it will mysteriously be extinguished during the Dark Hour. Chemical reactions don’t occur in the same manner. A match will not light, as an example. Damage caused during the Dark Hour will also typically revert back. The only exception to this is if the damage is caused by a Shadow. If this happens, then the area will still remain damaged. Items held by someone will also cause the damage to remain. So, if someone picks up a piece of glass from a broken window, the window will remain broken.

Transmogrification

A person who does not have the Potential, a Persona, or is not Shadow-Possessed will usually be transformed into a coffin during the Dark Hour. They are referred to as ‘the Transmogrified’. There are exceptions to this, such as right before a person becomes a victim of Apathy Syndrome. The coffins that encase a person are completely indestructible and immovable. Attempting to release the person within them or otherwise interact with them is simply not possible.

Animals and insects do not Transmogrify, but rather cease to exist all together until the Dark Hour ends.