Persona 4: Every Possible Romance, Ranked

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By Renan Fontes
Updated Aug 31, 2023
Persona 4 allows players to sit back and enjoy the series’ slice of life aspects. Here are
the romances you can pursue, ranked.

One of the things that keeps players returning to the Personaseries is the classic, slice-of-
life feel we’ve come to know and love, and Persona 4 Golden delivers on this in spades.
You play as Yu Narukami, a teenager with access to the Midnight Channel during his year
away from his hometown, and dating comes naturally.

RELATED: Persona 4 Golden: Achievement/Trophy Guide

The dating sim aspect of Persona titles offers you the chance to date one (or more – we
won’t tell) of the available singles in Inaba. Meet these ladies at Yasogami High, make
some friends, and choose your favorite of the Persona 4 romance options.

Updated on August 31, 2023 by Gabrielle Castania: With Persona 4 Golden porting to
modern consoles earlier in 2023 and taking the world by storm once again, we wanted to
come back to our ranking of the best romance options in Persona 4 to expand it a bit. In
addition to new links throughout, we've expanded our list to be sure we're also including
Persona 4 Golden's best romance options as well.

8 Yumi Ozawa

1/9
 Arcana Sun(conditional)

Romance Unlocks At Rank 10

One of the aspects that seems to have stayed behind in older Persona titles was being
forced to choose between one character or another to represent an Arcana, locking
yourself out of getting to know the other character until subsequent playthroughs. The
culture clubs you can join at Yasogami High fall into this theme, with Yumi being your
social link in the Drama Club.

Her social link is a rather tragic one, watching her cope with her family life and some
rather complicated feelings. We want to help Yumi, of course, but it kind of feels like she
has enough going on without us. Add to that that her romance option doesn’t unlock until
the final scene of her social link, and it, on the whole, leaves a bit to be desired.

7 Ayane Matsunaga

2/9
 Arcana Sun(conditional)

Romance Unlocks At Rank 8

The other choice for your Sun Arcana in P4G, Ayane Matsunaga will play the role instead
of Yumi if you opt to join the Music Club instead of Drama. She’s a very bashful
underclassman who flourishes through her relationship with Yu, regardless of its nature.

What keeps Ayane this low on our list is that her entire social link feels completely
platonic right up until the conversation to decide the nature of it. At least with the other
girls, there’s some sign of interest before they’re your girlfriend, but not Ayane. It also
doesn’t help that she looks almost as young as our adoptive sister…

6 Naoto Shirogane

3/9
Naoto Shirogane using a laptop in the Persona 4 Golden anime

Arcana Fortune

Romance Unlocks At Rank 8

Naoto feels an interesting choice for your protagonist to end up with, considering how
canonical her romantic ties to Kanji are throughout the game. While it’s never explicitly
stated that they end up together, we still feel a little weird stealing who feels like our
friend’s girl.

RELATED: Most Shocking Moments In Persona 4 Golden

In addition to that, Naoto’s romance doesn’t trigger until her Rank Eight scene, which is
pretty late in a social link that we barely have time to start working on before the end-
game begins. Naoto’s a great detective and a solid friend, but maybe that’s where she’s
best for Yu.

5 Chie Satonaka

4/9
 Arcana Chariot

Romance Unlocks At Rank 9

The spunky little spitfire that keeps the Investigation Team going in their toughest
moments with her pep and humor, Chie is widely regarded online as the game’s “best
girl,” and we’d have to agree – she’s a cutie!

But, Chie is another social link where it feels like her bond with Yu isn’t a central focus.
Naturally, she’s here to hang out and tags along diligently with the group into new
investigations, but Chie’s social link, even when it leans more romantic, still feels a bit too
much like a friendship.

4 Yukiko Amagi

5/9
 Arcana Priestess

Romance Unlocks At Rank 9

The stunning heiress of the legendary Amagi Inn, a central attraction in Inaba, Yukiko is
one of the first friends Yu makes when he begins attending Yasogami High. The game’s
first dungeon is expressly centered around rescuing her from feeling like she’s stuck
waiting for a “hot stud.”

And it’s definitely sweet to free her from such a feeling! When you take her on as a boss
fight, you snap her from the spell and help her choose the path for her future on her own
terms. And if Yu just happens to be a “hot stud” later on, then who are we to stop fate?

3 Ai Ebihara

6/9
 Arcana Moon

Romance Unlocks At Rank 8 (false romance flag at rank 6)

We know - this pick might be a little contested, because Ai can be a bit difficult
sometimes, shall we say. From the start of her social link, she’s not exactly the easiest
character to digest, routinely approaching you with snark and, sometimes, what feels like
outright disdain.

RELATED: Persona 4 Golden: How To Unlock All Endings

But Ai’s romance is one of the more unique in Persona 4 Golden, and the Persona series
overall. At Rank Six, you’ll have the option to pretend to date Ai, and doing so actually
locks you out of actually dating her a few ranks later. She wants someone who likes her
for her – so hold off until you can date her for real.

2 Marie

7/9
Marie looking panicked reading a poem in the Persona 4 Golden anime

Arcana Aeon

Romance Unlocks At Rank 9

Persona is renowned for adding a bonus character into the remastered releases of the
Persona games, and Marie was our fresh face in Golden. Her social link is tethered
explicitly to the remake’s bonus dungeon, making the Aeon social link something of a
must for returning players.

And while Marie can be a bit acidic when you first meet her, getting to know her unlocks a
world of inner turmoil and purpose no human could understand. You can still unlock the
bonus content if you prefer a platonic relationship, but it’s hard to look past how intriguing
Marie is when you get to know her.

1 Rise Kujikawa (Lovers Arcana)

8/9
 Arcana Lovers

Romance Unlocks At Rank 7

Rise, the J-Pop idol looking for a quiet life outside the spotlight when she returns to Inaba,
almost feels like the default romance option for Yu in P4G, with her consistent flirting sure
to grate the nerves of any of the other ladies you may have chosen.

But it’s hard not to give her the top spot when she’s so damn cute. Persona 4 Golden
didn’t hold back when it came to the motives of its dungeon rulers, with Rise’s arc focused
on her figuring out how to be a teenager again instead of just a sex symbol. She can call
us “senpai” as long as she wants.

NEXT: Most Heartbreaking Moments In Persona 4 Golden

9/9