by RootSec
Part of the reason why Persona 4 became so popular was is its integration of RPG elements mixed with a social game. Players assume the role of Yu who is a student by day and an otherworldly warrior at night. It sounds weird, but it came together terrifically well. Of course this can all be thanked to its predecessor, Persona 3, which first adapted these elements into the series.
There is also the fact that the PS Vita was in desperate need of software and the re-release, Persona 4: Golden, came out at just the right time. The series keeps getting more popular too. Joker from Persona 5 is in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate for crying out loud! Anyway the point is we love Persona 4 and wanted to rank its romance options. This goes for both the best and worst categories. Of the eight possible options, let’s see who gets picked at number one.
Updated on April 11th, 2021 by Adriano Valente: Persona 4’s romances are one of the game’s most well known aspects, and the series’ dating sim mechanics from Persona 3 onwards has served as a means of adding a considerable amount of depth and replayability to the series. Some of the social links might come off as comparatively better than others, but one thing all players can agree upon is that the game includes something for everyone. Every player will find at least one heroine they can identify and sympathize with, and the first step in doing so is knowing how, where and when to activate and proceed with a given social link.
8 Worst: Ayane Matsunaga
Ayane Matsunaga can be encountered at school if the player decided to join band club. Seems like a typical romantic meet up, right? The thing that weirds us out about Ayane is her design. While she is close in age to Yu, she looks like she could be his sister. That is to say her face looks a lot younger like a six year old. We know Japan is into some weird stuff, but Yu, don’t go for her man. Please don’t get into the sister complex for this relationship. That is the advice we would give him if asked.
Ayane’s social link will become available starting on April 25th, the day the player can choose a club to join. Should you pick the band Club, Ayane can be found in Yasogami High’s Practice Building’s 1st floor on Mondays, Tuesdays, or Thursdays.
7 Best: Marie
Like Madonna, Marie mysteriously only has one name as she comes from the other world. She is the big new addition to the vita port, Persona 4: Golden. She may not be a party member, but we absolutely adored her design, love of poetry, and how she fits into Yu’s story. We don’t want to give away anything, but the way this relationship ends up is intense. This is all to say we did not see this one coming. Because of that it’s hard not to recommend players going all the way as it were with Marie.
Marie plays a prevalent part throughout Persona 4 Golden’s campaign, and her social link has to be completed in order to reach the game’s true end. In order to kick things off, the player must take Marie outside of the Velvet Room after April 18th. From then on, Marie will be available on Wednesdays, Saturdays, Sundays and even during holidays. However, she will not come out of the Velvet Room if any of those fall on rainy days.
6 Worst: Ai Ebihara
Ayane may have that weird childlike face, but at least her personality was good. Ai Ebihara was extremely hard to get to know due to her negative outlook. She comes across as mean and selfish, but getting to know her will reveal how timid she is. Her willingness to open up to Yu despite her setbacks is touching, but at the same time this journey, again, was a bit of a hike and one we aren’t exactly sure Yu, or any guy, would really want to stick around for.
Ai’s social link is only accessible through the progression of the Strength social link. Once players reach rank 4, Ai will become available though players will need level 3 Courage to talk to her. From then on, the player can skip class with Ai at her request to progress things or approach her near the Classroom Building’s lockers on the first floor.
5 Best: Rise Kujikawa
Rise Kujikawa is without a doubt the cutest girl in the game. That is kind of the point as she is a pop star and all around idol. Everyone wants her, but she doesn’t want anyone else but Yu. While it’s great to get to know that she wants a more quiet life and how her fame has affected her personality, we found that she also comes across too strong. She really, and we mean really, wants it. We love Rise to death, we truly do, but there is something less appealing about a girl that easy to please. Where was the challenge?
Rise joins the party close to the halfway point, and her social link becomes available not too long after that. Once the Investigation Team rescues her from her dungeon, Rise’s social link can be started from July 23rd onwards. Rise can be found in the 1st floor of the Classroom Building on weekdays, though she hangs around the Shopping District on holidays and weekends.
4 Worst: Yumi Ozawa
Yumi Ozawa is the last non-playable character on this list. She can be encountered if players decide to take drama. More so than band, we love the idea of Yu joining this club given his situation. That is to say it makes sense for him to want to learn how to get into acting in order to fool those around him about his true powers and what he and his friends are doing at night. Yumi and Yu’s relationship is pretty normal for a high school couple and we enjoyed how they played off each other, but like the others, she has no real direct role in Yu’s life, which is why she is on the worst side of the table.
Like Ayane, Yumi’s social link becomes available on April 25th, when the player must choose between either Band or Drama club. She can be found in the same location (1st floor of the Practice Building) on the exact same days as Ayane.
3 Best: Yukiko Amagi
Yukiko Amagi is straight up awesome. She is the book smart, devoted daughter on the outside, who is dying to let her true colors out. Meeting Yu and the rest of the party allows her to do this.
Diving deeper into her relationship players can find out how exactly she struggles with this dynamic in real life. The best way to describe this love angle is sweet. It is kind of the most realistic one out of all the girls. That is except for our topic pick, which we will get to in a bit.
Yukiko’s social link automatically unlocks on May 17th, during Kanji’s kidnapping. From there, players can interact with her on nearly every day of the week. While at school, Yukiko is typically in front of the bulletin board on the first floor of Yasogami High. On weekends and holidays, Yukiko can be found outside the Yomenaido Bookstore.
2 Worst: Naoto Shirogane
Before we get to the best girl, we have to nominate Naoto Shirogane for the worst romance option. Don’t get us wrong. We love the idea of a female detective, but because she is introduced so late in the game, it is pretty hard to get to know her. Besides that factor there is a bigger reason why we thing Yu and Naoto shouldn’t be together. That is because she is meant for Kanji Tatsumi! Is Kanji gay? The game never says, but because Naoto looks boyish, we can at least assume he has a thing for more masculine females. They are so great together!
Naoto’s social link is only accessible fairly late in the game, and has some requirements that need to be handled before things can start. The earlist players can access her social link is on October 21st, after talking to the man in the black suit in the Central Shopping District. Players will need level 5 knowledge and courage in order to progress with her social link, and she can be found on the first floor of Yasogami High from Monday-Wednesday. On weekends and days off, Naoto typically hangs around the Samegawa Flood Plain’s park.
1 Best: Chie Satonaka
Chie Satonaka is our pick for best girl. Is she the cutest? No. Is she the sweetest? Definitely not. What drives here home for us is her loud personality. She loves kung-fu movies, steak, and being with the boys along with getting in some good girl time every once and awhile. Yukiko may be the best example of a romantic relationship in the game, but Chie is just too cool not to root for. Also because she is sort of a tomboy, she is a bit more of a challenge to win over compared to Yukiko and we always love a good challenge.
Chie’s social link is first available from April 18th onwards. She can be found on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays but where you can find her varies. She’ll either be on the rooftop of Yasogami High or somewhere in the Central Shopping Street.
