Part of the reason why Persona 4 became so popular was 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 attributed 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. Players love Persona 4 and love interacting with its many romantic options. Regardless of a player's type, they'll find something to like about each and every potential partner in the game.
Updated February 2, 2023, by Ritwik Mitra: Persona 4 Golden is considered by many to be one of the best games in the series, even more so than its sequel. This is mainly due to the game's strong writing, with the story being fantastic and the various characters in the game all being pretty compelling in their own right. All of this combines to form a strong and exciting experience where players uncover a deadly murder mystery while living out their lives as students. Thanks to the life sim elements of Persona 4, players will get to interact with several characters and form amazing bonds in the form of Social Links. Some of these bonds will be more memorable than others, with certain Social Links spawning romances that the main character can engage with. While some romantic interests will undoubtedly be more interesting than others, all of the characters in Persona 4 are worth sticking with since they add some spice to the regular events of the game.
8 Ayane Matsunaga
- Arcana: Sun
Ayane Matsunaga can be encountered at school if the player decided to join the Band Club, which seems like a typical romantic meet-up. The thing that weirds players 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. This is the biggest reason why so many people find it uncomfortable to even think of Ayane as a romantic interest, let alone actively pursue this relationship.
Ayane’s Social Link will become available starting on April 25th, the day the player can choose a club to join. Should players pick the band Club, Ayane can be found on Yasogami High’s Practice Building’s 1st Floor on Mondays, Tuesdays, or Thursdays. She might look extremely suspect, but players who actually decide to give her the time of day will uncover a pretty engaging story of their own. However, most people argue that the quality of the writing for other characters makes Ayane look pretty weak in comparison, which is a shame.
7 Ai Ebihara
- Arcana: Moon
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 that players 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. Ai Ebihara's romance is one of the most unique ones in the game, with players initially starting out a fake relationship to make their crush jealous. However, if players choose the correct responses, then they can start a genuine relationship with Ai further down the line. Of course, a string of wrong responses can also lead to this Social Link being broken permanently, which is the last thing players might want if they want to get powerful Personas of the Moon Arcana.
6 Yumi Ozawa
- Arcana: Sun
Yumi Ozawa is an interesting romantic option who can be encountered if players decide to join the Drama Club. Many players 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 players 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. Her story is pretty riveting and quite tragic, and players would love to give her a shoulder to cry on during some of the more emotional moments during the Social Link. It's just a shame that her romance isn't as fleshed out as some of the others in the game.
5 Marie
- Arcana: Aeon
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 players absolutely adored her design, love of poetry, and how she fits into Yu's story. Without giving anything away, the way this relationship ends up is intense. This is all to say, most people did not see this one coming. Because of that, it's hard not to recommend players going all the way as it was 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 falls on rainy days. Players who want to access the bulk of the new content in Persona 4 Golden need to max out her Social Link as much as possible in the limited time window they have.
4 Naoto Shirogane
- Arcana: Fortune
Naoto Shirogane is a fascinating character to romance, even if some people might find this opportunity to come a bit too late. Players 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 many people think Yu and Naoto shouldn't be together, with many believing that she is meant to be with Kanji Tatsumi.
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 earliest 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 to Wednesday. On weekends and days off, Naoto typically hangs around the Samegawa Flood Plain’s park. It doesn't help that some of the player's responses need to be perfect to unlock Naoto as a romantic option since she will show no amorous interest otherwise.
3 Rise Kujikawa
- Arcana: Lovers
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 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, most people thought that she also comes across as too strong. Players love Rise to death, but to some, there is something less appealing about a girl that is easy to please.
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 on the 1st Floor of the Classroom Building on weekdays, though she hangs around the Shopping District on holidays and weekends. It's highly recommended to build up her Social Link as quickly as possible since the passive bonuses she brings both in and out of battle can help make dungeon crawling easier and more manageable. Rise's maxed-out Social Link can allow players to get through entire dungeons in one sitting, which is no mean feat.
2 Yukiko Amagi
- Arcana: Priestess
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.
Yukiko’s Social Link automatically unlocks on May 17th, during Kanji’s kidnapping. From there, players can interact with her 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. She can get a bit weird and creepy at times, but players who get past this unique personality quirk will enjoy one of the more fleshed-out romances in the game.
1 Chie Satonaka
- Arcana: Chariot
What drives Chie Satonaka home for many players 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 in a while. 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 when compared to Yukiko and players 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 in varying locations. She’ll either be on the rooftop of Yasogami High or somewhere in Central Shopping Street. She's a surprisingly endearing romantic partner, and it helps that Persona 4 Golden switched out her voice actor to make her sound more appealing and likable. Of course, the original voice actor also did a great job, but the majority of people agree that Chie's new voice is miles better.
Persona 4 Golden is available on PC, Switch, PS4, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.