Persona 4 was a particular achievement by Atlus when it was first revealed in 2008, giving PlayStation 2 gamers one other mighty title to digest late within the console’s life. It was beloved by critics and, when it was later ported as Persona 4 Golden with further content material to PlayStation Vita in 2012 and Microsoft Home windows in 2020, it was extra alternative for gamers to see what it’s all about. However now, Persona 4 Golden has been made extra accessible than ever, for PlayStation 4, Nintendo Change, Xbox One, and Sequence X|S for the primary time.
What Type of Recreation is Persona 4 Golden?
Persona 4 Golden is primarily a Japanese Roleplaying Recreation (JRPG) with slice-of-life parts and a distinguished social system. Your day by day life have to be rigorously managed, with normally 2 important actions accessible both after faculty or within the daytime, and the night. You’ll be able to develop your social expertise as a tangible set of 5 stats, develop Social Hyperlinks with your folks and acquaintances within the recreation, and journey by means of intense dungeons as you unravel a disturbing thriller.
The day by day duties embody a number of strategies to develop your social expertise together with getting solutions appropriate in school to develop Information or Expression, and dealing jobs to develop Diligence, Understanding, or Braveness. These stats, when leveled up, unlock deeper social interactions with key characters, which provide you with higher rewards. On high of all of this, there’s a fancy turn-based battle system the place you fuse and acquire Personas, manifestations of personalities within the recreation that act as allies in fight. The upper your Social Hyperlinks are with the sport’s forged, the higher Personas you may create, creating direct rewards in your social funding.
Persona 4 Golden is a deeply structured narrative on high of being a slice-of-life RPG. There’s a collection of deadlines as you unravel a plot involving mysterious murders, so you will need to handle every day along with your deadlines in thoughts. There are a number of endings of the sport, a few of that are abrupt and unhealthy, reflecting how nicely you deal with your choices. However when you’re cautious, you’ll obtain probably the most satisfying conclusions, and see the sport by means of to its finish with even further tales to expertise.
Rule 1! Be Myself. Rule 2! Get Folks to Perceive Me
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Persona 4 Golden’s plot revolves across the college students amidst a terrifying collection of murders plaguing the city of Inaba, primarily based on the Japanese metropolis Fuefuki. It’s a small city the place everyone seemingly is aware of one another, whether or not from working at native outlets or collectively on the Junes division retailer. Whereas the thriller makes life difficult for the police, such because the protagonist’s uncle, the sport’s story additionally revolves round the way you bond with others who’re seemingly virtually victims of those crimes.
A few of your folks will want rescuing in numerous dungeons created by their minds, which you navigate by means of the mysterious TV World. Others want rescuing from themselves or their insecurities or self-destructive tendencies, and you’ll obtain this by strengthening your bond with them. Whereas the sport is about fixing crimes and saving your city, buddies, and family members, it’s additionally about being there for the individuals in your life.
My Mates Are My Energy!
![Persona 4 Golden Review: A Gold Standard JRPG Now on Modern Consoles Persona-4-Golden-Friends](https://attackofthefanboy.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/Persona-4-Golden-Friends.jpg?w=1280)
One of many central parts not solely to the story however to the gameplay is the various array of supporting characters with whom you may bond in Persona 4 Golden. There are tangible advantages to many of those interactions, making battles simpler and extra satisfying when sure relevant buddies are in your get together, however they’re additionally a number of the most genuinely attention-grabbing interactions within the recreation. The ability of acceptance of self and others is poignant and a persistent frequent component when talking to those characters.
A number of the most potent situations of this usually are not even associated to get together members, however to key characters like Nanako and Ryotaro Dojima. This father and daughter are a resilient pair, enduring hardship and loss, and make it identified to you because the participant that’s of their life actively improves it. I felt myself tear up when characters just like the Dojimas absolutely embraced me, equivalent to studying their story, and even one thing easy as a gifted mug. In any other case, throwaway scenes are so impactful I’m stunned in methods I didn’t see in Persona 5 Royal’s Confidants.
However extra on the supporting forged, it seems like a number of the most dynamic and enjoyable characters, whereas additionally being rounded and absolutely aware of the story’s weight. Characters like Yukiko Amagi turn out to be extra comfy with you as a member of your good friend circle and burst into uncontrollable laughter at moments that really feel genuinely humorous. Characters bond with one another, not simply the protagonist, equivalent to Yosuke and Teddie, or Naoto and Kanji.
It feels natural such as you’re seeing a group construct itself up, to allow them to tackle this nefarious risk collectively, and when the story takes a extreme flip, these characters’ most attention-grabbing qualities are on full show, with their emotional thresholds really being examined. Once they uncover despicable enemies together with egotistical predators and uncanny, godly forces, they nonetheless discover a strategy to an upbeat tone as they get well, a friendship filled with happiness, laughter, love, and acceptance.
The Visuals
![Persona 4 Golden Review: A Gold Standard JRPG Now on Modern Consoles Persona-4-Golden-All-Out-Attack](https://attackofthefanboy.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/Persona-4-Golden-All-Out-Attack.jpg?w=1280)
Persona has gathered a incredible popularity for being visually hanging with its most up-to-date entries, and in Persona 4 Golden, that is no completely different. Like how blue is used for Persona 3 and crimson is used for Persona 5, yellow is on show on this case, a radiant and glad shade that helps break down even the bleakest segments. This reminds the participant that even after probably the most sorrowful moments, with some really horrific tragedy and trauma for the primary forged, they nonetheless attempt to seek out pleasure.
Together with the selection of shade, the sport has a number of neat design selections. Whereas the sprites and textures usually look dated, largely because of the recreation’s PS2 origins, the dungeon design, significantly with Void Quest onward, feels distinctive and intelligent. One other method the sport fights in opposition to growing old poorly from a visible standpoint is its use of anime visuals in the whole lot together with the UI and sure cutscenes, permitting a 15-year-old recreation to remain trying recent with the standard of life enhancements introduced by Golden. The seen scanlines really feel such as you’re exploring the world inside a TV, and the framerate on the Xbox Sequence X model I used to be given is a crisp 60fps.
The Audio
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Lending to the upbeat high quality of the sport, the music in Persona 4 Golden is memorable as ever. You’ll really feel it whereas talking with buddies at Junes, and even the constructive power as you go about your day by day life after faculty. At first, the dungeon music felt a little bit of a letdown, however dungeon music within the late phases of the sport has some absolute bangers.
On high of the music, the sport has a powerful quantity of recorded voiceover work in its dialogue. The sport desires you to acknowledge it, too, as you’ll uncover 250 distinctive navigation traces from the sport’s resident pop idol, Rise Kujikawa. Having these voice traces helps promote gamers on the emotional weight of sure moments, bringing these characters to life, and promoting Teddie as a lovable goofball versus anyone much more odd or creepy.
The Points
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This can be a powerful subject simply because there are only a few points I had with the sport. Nonetheless, the sport has moments the place sure characters exhibit informal homophobia, equivalent to Yosuke towards Kanji’s obvious closeted gay/bisexual emotions, which could not land for some. Whereas this seems like two characters simply rising to simply accept one another and themselves over time, it may be tough to understand, and understandably so.
One other subject is the sport’s remedy of sexuality usually in its narrative, with an uncomfortable quantity of deal with sexualizing youngsters, significantly Rise. The character is a candy, if overly flirtatious supporting character, however she is uncomfortably oversexualized at occasions, with a possible clarification being the genuinely creepy and predatory world of Japanese pop idols and their administration.
Moreover, a supporting character and key good friend Naoto Shirogane has an attention-grabbing journey by means of the sport. However with an more and more inclusive local weather, particularly in western audiences however more and more extra in Japan, Naoto’s id is a contentious but fascinating subject. Whereas the sport explains their story and motivations for a way they outwardly current, this may additionally simply slot in at the moment’s local weather because the story of an iconic nonbinary character. General extra of a subject of debate and dialogue somewhat than an outright subject, talking to how a lot I really like the sport regardless of this.
Lastly, gamers returning to the collection after being launched to the extra mainstream Persona 5 may discover the sport harder. The curve is forgiving, nonetheless, and gamers will quickly discover themselves hovering, with the late recreation being particularly straightforward. The primary dungeons may also be considerably boring in comparison with Persona 5’s palaces, however their battles conversely really feel usually much more rewarding because of mechanics like Shuffle Time.
The Verdict
![Persona 4 Golden Review: A Gold Standard JRPG Now on Modern Consoles Persona-4-Golden-Review-Verdict](https://attackofthefanboy.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/Persona-4-Golden-Review-Verdict.jpg?w=1280)
Persona 4 Golden is a vital expertise not just for JRPG followers however individuals who recognize a robust narrative with an endearing supporting forged of characters, together with a good battle system that feels as fashionable as its iconic sequel. The poignancy of your interactions with the characters will resonate on a deep stage with you, and can greater than possible heat or break your coronary heart on a couple of event. It’s thrilling that fashionable gamers get to get pleasure from this, and when you’re a Recreation Cross subscriber, this can be a must-play.
However you’ll even have the chance to uncover deep rewards, see compelling tales, and when you’ve made sufficient buddies, you’ll style a number of the most disgusting chocolate made with all of the love on the earth. It’d lack the plain type of Persona 5, nevertheless it packs each little bit of the substance and replay worth gamers crave in a Persona recreation.
Persona 4 Golden releases worldwide for PlayStation 4, Nintendo Change, Xbox One, and Xbox Sequence X|S on January 19, 2023, in addition to already being launched on PlayStation Vita and PC.
This recreation was reviewed utilizing a duplicate of the sport offered by the sport’s writer,public relations firm, developer or different for the categorical function of a evaluate.