Persona 4 Golden

Destructoid (10 out of 10)

It isn't perfect, since nothing is, but came as close as you could get in a given genre. The new leader to beat.

Polygon (10 out of 10)

Persona 4 Golden is more than a retread of past glory. It takes the core story and formula of the original Persona 4, but it builds on it in myriad brilliant ways — from the much more welcoming combat mechanics to a story whose few plot holes have been filled. It's the tightest, best-written, and most must-play game Atlus has ever created. Persona 4 started as a strong, singular RPG; with Persona 4 Golden, it is a masterpiece.

Push Square (10 out of 10)

Persona 4 Golden really is the complete package. It has an amazing story, charming characters, intense combat, and huge amounts of gameplay. Indeed, you'll be hard pressed to find an RPG as polished and well designed as this one – and whether you're new to the genre or an expert in the field, this is the very definition of a must play.

Gameblog.fr ( )

Alors qu'il pensait passer une année paisible en l'absence de ses parents, un ado est fraîchement transféré dans une bourgade japonaise. Mais meurtres, esprits, arcanes et RPG ne sont jamais bien loin quand Atlus décide de faire un nouveau Persona. C'est sans aucun doute l'aventure la plus passionnante et la plus baroque à la fois, foisonnante d'idées qui, assurément, ne pouvaient sortir que de l'esprit de passionnés, bien décidés à nous faire revivre une année scolaire totalement awesome.

Electronic Gaming Monthly (EGM) (10 out of 10)

In nearly everything that Atlus has tried to accomplish in breathing new life into their much-beloved PS2 RPG Persona 4, they’ve accomplished masterfully on the Vita in Persona 4 Golden—and if there’s ever to be a Japanese RPG that can convince you of what the genre can be in its finest hours, it’ll be this one.

Cheat Code Central (5 out of 5)

I know I’ve been gushing throughout this review, but I really have almost no criticism for Persona 4: Golden. It is an attractive, aural treat with a world and characters that ooze personality, a combat system that manages to be challenging in a rewarding manner, and a compelling storyline that ties everything together. Every time I put it down, I almost immediately wanted to pick it up again and play some more. Most telling, perhaps, is that I would spend the dungeons looking forward to furthering my social links and my time in Inaba craving the game’s combat. It’s very different from the JRPGs that have preceded it (and those that have come since), but it’s optimally what I think of when I consider a JRPG. I’m only sorry that I waited this long to play it.

DarkZero (10 out of 10)

I said in my original review that Persona 4 is a title that should be played by every single man, woman and child who has any interest in the story or has even the tiniest interest in the RPG genre. That’s even more relevant now, so if you haven’t played Persona 4 and you own a Vita – hell go buy a Vita and play it. It’s worth it as it is the best game on the system – Persona 4: Golden is a must play, even for fans who have already previously completed the game. They should play it again, because the return trip to Inaba is a near perfect enhancement full of new things to discover and improvments on an already amazing game. It’s never been as easy for me to award a game the highest score as it has with Persona 4: Golden – this is a gaming classic.

RPG Site (10 out of 10)

Persona 4 Golden is a monumental achievement in both game design and gameplay. How all the mechanics and systems come together and work in tandem to create such a meaningful experience is a feat in and of itself. To make this experience last for dozens of hours without trying your patience is another. The endless achievements and accolades that could be given to Golden shows the genre’s potential to achieve excellence but most importantly: it’s a damn good game and you should get it.

The Digital Fix (10 out of 10)

There’s a moment where you will fully appreciate the quality and hold of P4G and it comes right after you finish the game for the first time. You’ll enjoy the ending you’ve earned but then there will be recognition of a huge Persona shaped hole in your life.

ZTGameDomain (10 out of 10)

Needless to say, Persona 4 Golden is a must buy for Vita owners. Large amounts of gameplay are wrapped in the shroud of an incredibly deep story. It touches on death, murder, other dimensions, moral ambiguity, suicide, celebrities, media exploits and even corporate greed via major department stores; this game has it all. I feel that Persona 4 Golden is a very fitting title; this game truly is golden.

RPGFan (98 out of 100)

The one and only thing I can fault P4G for is not being a brand new game. On the upside, the wait for Persona 5 just got a hell of a lot more "bear"-able. Atlus has taken a four-year-old game and reinvigorated it in every conceivable area. The original game was already gold; if anything, this new version should have been called "platinum." Everything about it tickles my fancy, and I hope it sees the commercial success it unquestionably deserves. Endearing, addictive, and emotional, Persona 4 Golden is one of the best games I have ever played in my life.

Gaming Nexus (9.8 out of 10)

Persona 4 Golden has easily justified the purchase of the Vita. It may be a rerelease of a game from 2008, but with the amount of additional content thrown in, it feels like a fresh new game.

Spazio Games (9.5 out of 10)

Persona 4 The Golden è un titolo di livello altissimo, di quelli che segnano solitamente lo standard di genere. Atlus è riuscita nel per nulla facile compito di aggiornare il suo capolavoro uscito su PlayStation 2 ai canoni moderni, con una riedizione che di conversione ha ben poco data la quantità di materiale inedito presente. L'anima jrpg del titolo è fortissima e il taglio narrativo dato dagli sviluppatori, basato sulla quotidianità della vita di un teenager è tanto avvincente quanto efficace in termini di gameplay. La trama inoltre è un piccola chicca, capace di rapire e incuriosire i giocatori fino all'epilogo, peculiarità non così comune nelle odierne produzioni. Insomma, se avete PS Vita dovete per forza avere anche Persona 4 The Golden, persino se già avete spolpato il titolo originale del 2008.

PlayStation Lifestyle (9.5 out of 10)

My game collection is feeling neglected since I started working on this Persona 4 Golden review; and it doesn’t look that is going to change anytime soon. With so much content in such a tiny package, P4G will keep me occupied for months trying to nail down every possible ending and effectively complete the game to a 100%. With that in mind, it’s time for me to dive back into the Midnight Hour. Do yourself a favor and go out to pick up Persona 4 Golden right now, you won’t regret it.

PlayStation Universe (9.5 out of 10)

This marvelous port of a JRPG classic feels more like a director's cut; the definitive version of a thrilling journey equal parts charming and challenging

GamingTrend (94 out of 100)

Atlus has done such a good job with this version of Persona 4 that it truly deserves the “Golden” moniker. While I enjoyed the original PS2 version, the Vita version has so much added to it that it enhances the experience. It’s amazing how good the game looks on a portable. It is also easy to get over 100 hours throughout the game without being bored. I was thinking about this game even while I wasn’t Persona 4 Golden isn’t for everyone, but for those who do take the plunge, either for the first time or the first time on the Vita, it is well worth taking.

Digital Chumps (94 out of 100)

I can’t think of a better moniker than Golden to celebrate the whimsical eighty hour holiday of a videogame that is Persona 4. Golden is technically the fifth iteration of a formula established with Persona 3 but it feels just as appealing and engaging now as it did four years ago. No one else (literally) is making games like this and if you’ve somehow avoided a modern day Persona title you owe it to yourself to give Golden a shot. It’s sweet icing on a delicious cake.

IGN (9.3 out of 10)

The PlayStation Vita is lucky to have Persona 4 Golden. While the game doesn’t do much of note besides bringing the 2008 title to the HD era, it doesn’t need to. The story hooks you, dungeon crawling makes for a great time, and exploring your relationships while building a better army is the kind of tinkering you can get lose hours to. Persona 4 Golden is perfectly at home on the handheld and should dominate your free time.

NZGamer (9.2 out of 10)

It looks good, has a great story (which is delivered by way of an outstanding cast of characters), and the dungeon-based gameplay (complete with its compelling Pokemon-like, rock-paper-scissors battle-pet combat system) is great fun. If you’ve been thinking about dipping your toes into the JRPG scene, you absolutely must put this at the top of your list. There’s loads of bonus content in there, too, including music videos, trailers, new characters, and new story elements, so if you’ve played the PS2 version, don’t let that put you off heading back to Inaba for another visit.

Jeuxvideo.com (18 out of 20)

Beau, long et extraordinairement immersif, Persona 4 : The Golden est probablement l'un des meilleurs spin-off de Shin Megami Tensei auxquels nous ayons eu l'occasion de jouer jusqu'ici. A moins d'être allergique au genre ou de ne rien comprendre à la langue de Shakespeare, on n'hésitera pas une seconde à se le procurer sur Vita.

HonestGamers (Staff reviews only) (9 out of 10)

Persona 4 Golden is one of the Vita’s best games, even if it is a port of a PS2 game. If you have a Vita and you like RPGs, you probably don’t need me to tell you that this is the game you’ve been waiting for. This port improves on an already great original game, with new content that’s (more or less) seamlessly woven into the existing game. The new content may or may not be enough to justify a purchase from returning fans, depending on the individual, but those people have already decided whether or not they want to play Persona 4 again. For new players, this is a game that’s not to be missed.

Gamereactor (Sweden) (9 out of 10)

Egentligen är jag inte rätt person för att recensera ett stort rollspel, men när jag spelade Persona 4: The Golden försvann många av de problem jag vanligtvis har med genren. Jag vet inte riktigt vad mer jag ska behöva säga för att övertyga dig om att det här är ett spel som helt enkelt inte får missas av någon Vita-ägare. Vare sig de återbesöker Inaba eller reser dit för första gången. Ett av de senare årens bästa rollspel har precis blivit ännu bättre. Det är ett mordmysterium som jag mer än gärna bär med mig i fickan, och en skolgång som jag mer än gärna återupplever många gånger om.

GamezGeneration (9 out of 10)

Persona 4 hat mich schlicht und ergreifend gepackt, wie schon lange kein JRPG mehr. Die Mischung aus Alltagssimulation und Dungeoncrawler, wie elegant jedes Element in ein weiteres übergeht und sich so nichts bloß optional oder gar sinnlos anfühlt – es ist fantastisch! Die liebevollen Charaktere, die man trifft, mit denen man mitleidet, Freundschaften schließt und Kämpfe bestreitet, während man stets an der Lösung des großen Mysteriums arbeitet, um endlich die Antwort auf alle Fragen zu erhalten – es zieht ungemein in den Bann. Für mich ist Persona 4 Golden bereits ein Kandidat zum Hit des Jahres und jeder geneigte Vita-Besitzer schlägt hier ohne mit der Wimper zu zucken zu – es lohnt sich!

gameplay (Denmark) (9 out of 10)

Velfungerende og strømlinet strategispil, der kræver en del af sit publikum, men som giver det hele igen i form af lun humor og masse af nervepirrende øjeblikke.

Metro.co.uk (9 out of 10)

This is not a perfect game, and it never has been, but Persona 4 has always been our favourite Japanese role-player and this is the definitive version of it.

Everyeye.it (9 out of 10)

A distanza di quattro anni Persona 4 torna in un’edizione assolutamente ben confezionata, che rende giustizia al gioco originale e ben si adatta all’hardware di Playstation Vita. La possibilità di poter giocare in mobilità ad un titolo così profondo e dagli altri valori produttivi è subito risultata gradita ai fan, al punto tale che la console di Sony ha ottenuto un boost di vendite di tutto rispetto in Giappone nel periodo dell’uscita. Lo stesso è accaduto sul mercato statunitense, storicamente ghiotto dei titoli proposti da Atlus, mentre in Europa i fan sono in minor numero, anche se altrettanto appassionati. L’uscita europea, quindi, è molto attesa soprattutto da quei giocatori che da tempo attendevano un JRPG di grande livello e che, probabilmente, in queste settimane sono immersi nel mondo fatato di Ni No Kuni.

Game Revolution (4.5 out of 5)

Persona 4: Golden proves as endearing, powerful, and emotionally charged as it did in 2008, but with a host of new features and newcomer crutches, the experience can't be beat. Despite a few small hiccups, including the odd one-hit kill from an unassuming shadow, Golden manages to yank at your heart and delight in even servings. There's no better game for your Vita this holiday season.

GameSpot (9 out of 10)

When it comes down to it, however, any complaints that can be lobbied at Persona 4 Golden feel insignificant when weighed against the quality of the rest of the game. Persona 4 remains one of the most engaging, thoughtful, and enjoyable RPGs of recent years, having already earned its status as a genre classic upon its original release. Persona 4 Golden's well-thought-out and well-implemented augmentations serve to make an already fantastic game even better, resulting in a superlative game experience that belongs in any Vita game library.

GamesRadar ( )

Persona 4 Golden sports a phenomenal amount of content packed into a single card. One of the PlayStation 2's greatest role-playing games of all time graces the Vita with slick, vivid aesthetic improvements, loads of additional areas to explore, and tons of reasons to come back even if you've beaten the game into the ground. If you're looking for your brand-new RPG addiction, pick up a copy of Persona 4 Golden and prepare to lose hundreds of hours of your life to the Midnight Channel. Whether veteran or spirited beginner, you won't be disappointed.

Games TM (9 out of 10)

Is it enough, though, for Persona veterans to double-dip? Broadly speaking, this is the same game we've played before on PS2, but the addition of fresh personae and social links, and the sheer range of activities available at any one time did much to dissipate our expected fatigue. It all adds up to the definitive version of one of the finest JRPGs ever made: Vita's portability makes it easier than ever to get caught up in this expertly woven web of secrets, lies and adolescent angst.

IGN Italia (9 out of 10)

Inutile girarci attorno, Persona 4 Golden è quanto di meglio si possa trovare oggi, come allora, in ambito di giochi di ruolo giapponesi. Presenta una storia matura, tematiche profonde, dialoghi in inglese raffinati (la versione nostrana non presenta un adattamento del testo in italiano), personaggi credibili e carismatici, una meccanica di gioco coinvolgente e un sistema di combattimento classico ma efficace. Pecca nel ritmo, a volte compassato, e nell’esplorazione, con labirinti ripetitivi e poveri di elementi, ma si fa perdonare qualsivoglia difetto grazie a un’attenzione maniacale ai dettagli, basti osservare con quale consapevolezza ciascun personaggio è abbinato alla rispettiva carta dei tarocchi, e a una struttura di gioco di ampio respiro, nella quale ogni particolare è bilanciato con gli altri e l’insieme. A tratti ci si cala a tal punto nel tessuto narrativo da prolungare l’esperienza vissuta ben oltre il tempo dedicato al gioco.

4Players.de (88 out of 100)

Natürlich ist es nur die Umsetzung eines PS2-Spiels – aber was für eine! Persona 4: Golden klebt keine überflüssigen Monster oder Kleidungsstücke an das Original, sondern erweitert es sowohl um spielerische als auch erzählerische Puzzlestücke. Lediglich der Hilferuf per Onlineanbindung erfüllt keinen spürbaren Sinn. Schön wäre auch gewesen, wenn die furchtbar langweiligen Kulissen der Fernsehwelt frische Anreize zum Entdecken gewonnen hätten. So bleiben sie leider die mit Abstand größte Schwäche des Schulkrimis. Die fordernden taktischen Gefechte sowie die enge Verknüpfung des Alltagslebens mit dem Fantasykampf machen Persona 4 allerdings noch heute zu einem der besten japanischen Rollenspiele. Ein hervorragendes Artdesign, der motivierende Aufbau starker Personas und die spannende Geschichte tragen ebenfalls dazu bei. Es ist ebenso traurig wie bemerkenswert, dass der PS2-Klassiker vielleicht das Beste ist, was Vita-Besitzer in diesem Jahr erleben dürfen!

Game Informer Magazine (8.5 out of 10)

Persona 4 Golden’s greatest strength is that everything fits together seamlessly, from the connected battle and social aspects to the fresh changes. Newcomers are sure to find plenty to love, while series veterans can revisit fond memories and experience new content. This game still remains one of the best RPGs to date; don’t miss out on your second chance to experience it.

Digitally Downloaded ( )

And that brings me right back to the Burtoneque nature of Persona 4. It’s a modern-day fairy tale. It makes a very serious and downright philosophical point, but in such an engaging and entertaining way that you might not even realise you’re being lectured. And, while I strongly contest any notion that this is one of the greatest JRPGs of all time, it’s certainly the best Persona game, belongs squarely in the top tier of the genre, and is worth buying a Vita for.

Game Critics (8 out of 10)

As much as I found myself groaning through the parts I knew I would dislike—namely, the grinding and overwhelming sense of repetition that emanates from combat and time management—I grew to respect Persona 4: Golden. I can't say I completely enjoyed my time with the game, but I'm not the kind of person who would be interested in buying it. Those who are will find an admirably polished JRPG and a welcome addition to their burgeoning Vita library.

Gameplay (Benelux) N/A

Als jonge snaak verhuis je naar Inaba en moet je je broek slijten op de banken van de Yasogami school. Wanneer de school wordt opgeschrikt door een gruwelijke moord, gaan de hersencellen van de leerlingen op volle toeren draaien en beginnen ze een zoektocht naar de mogelijke dader. Je bouwt je RPG-personage uit, onderhoudt relaties met tal van medeleerlingen (vooral de toevoeging van Marie kon ons bekoren) en duikt de dungeons in waar je turnbased gevechten moet leveren tegen Shadows, waarbij je Persona — spirituele medekrijgers die wat aan Pokémon doen denken — kunt oproepen. Het doel is om middels duivelse televisietoestellen parallelle dimensies te betreden om zo de dader(s) achter de moord te vatten. Een beetje Twin Peaks hier, een beetje Cronenberg daar, en vooral veel JRPG spelplezier dat je voor meer dan 50 uur aan het scherm zal kluisteren. Deze game mag in geen enkele Vita-collectie ontbreken en is dan ook een absolute aanrader!