Persona 4 Golden is a game that revels in the routine. It's a slice-of-life RPG in which you schedule your free time to do various activities, leveling up stats or upgrading social links in the process. In the rural town of Inaba, learning the agendas of the townsfolk is key to success. It's a game of clockwork people, stories, and events, each with their own respective time limits.

That's only the first half of Persona 4 Golden. Inaba is the home to a string of unusual serial murders, alongside rumors of a supernatural TV broadcast known only as The Midnight Channel. The game's cast of characters are each pulled into the world of the Midnight Channel itself through the TV, and it's up to them to awaken the power within themselves to solve the mystery.

In gameplay, Persona 4 Golden is one part day-to-day RPG and one part tactical turn-based dungeon crawler, all with a strict adherence to one activity a day. However, what really binds these elements together is the game's thematic consistency.
This game is listed as a "coming of age story" and I think that's especially apt in more ways than one. The time you spend with this game's incredibly well-written cast revels in the simple interactions of friendship. As time goes on, those little stories of time spent together grow. You spend some of your finite days leveling up your stats to become a more understanding, courageous, expressive person. You and your friends awaken the powers inside yourselves by facing your flaws and accepting who you are, maturing in the process. Every element of Persona 4 Golden's slice-of-life RPG and psychedelic dungeon crawler design works in service of a larger goal: portraying the struggles of growing up.

Nothing shows Persona 4 Golden's thematic consistency quite like its true ending. It shows that the people you've been spending upwards of 120 hours with have learned from you, changed for the better, and made new strides into the uncertain future. The bond painstakingly formed over a year in Inaba has become unbreakable, no matter how far away you are. Who knows, maybe you learned something from them too, and I'm not just talking about your in-game stats.

The cherry on top of this tightly-designed, thematically flush game is it's excellent presentation. Persona 4 Golden is a snazzy game. It's a colorful, daring, and charming from start to finish. The soundtrack is almost impossible not to dance to, even 120 hours in. Character designs are strong and memorable, giving each clockwork person in Inaba their own unique flair.
This is a game that I wish I could play for the first time again. But that's the thing about growing up; everyone wishes they could turn back the clock. I may have left Inaba just like I knew I eventually would, but the memories I have of enjoying this title will always be with me.

This game rocks, and I heartily recommend it.

Persona 4 Golden is a game that revels in the routine. It's a slice-of-life RPG in which you schedule your free time to do various activities, leveling up stats or upgrading social links in the process. In the rural town of Inaba, learning the agendas of the townsfolk is key to success. It's a game of clockwork people, stories, and events, each with their own respective time limits. That's only the first half of Persona 4 Golden. Inaba is the home to a string of unusual serial murders, alongside rumors of a supernatural TV broadcast known only as The Midnight Channel. The game's cast of characters are each pulled into the world of the Midnight Channel itself through the TV, and it's up to them to awaken the power within themselves to solve the mystery. In gameplay, Persona 4 Golden is one part day-to-day RPG and one part tactical turn-based dungeon crawler, all with a strict adherence to one activity a day. However, what really binds these elements together is the game's thematic consistency. This game is listed as a "coming of age story" and I think that's especially apt in more ways than one. The time you spend with this game's incredibly well-written cast revels in the simple interactions of friendship. As time goes on, those little stories of time spent together grow. You spend some of your finite days leveling up your stats to become a more understanding, courageous, expressive person. You and your friends awaken the powers inside yourselves by facing your flaws and accepting who you are, maturing in the process. Every element of Persona 4 Golden's slice-of-life RPG and psychedelic dungeon crawler design works in service of a larger goal: portraying the struggles of growing up. Nothing shows Persona 4 Golden's thematic consistency quite like its true ending. It shows that the people you've been spending upwards of 120 hours with have learned from you, changed for the better, and made new strides into the uncertain future. The bond painstakingly formed over a year in Inaba has become unbreakable, no matter how far away you are. Who knows, maybe you learned something from them too, and I'm not just talking about your in-game stats. The cherry on top of this tightly-designed, thematically flush game is it's excellent presentation. Persona 4 Golden is a snazzy game. It's a colorful, daring, and charming from start to finish. The soundtrack is almost impossible not to dance to, even 120 hours in. Character designs are strong and memorable, giving each clockwork person in Inaba their own unique flair. This is a game that I wish I could play for the first time again. But that's the thing about growing up; everyone wishes they could turn back the clock. I may have left Inaba just like I knew I eventually would, but the memories I have of enjoying this title will always be with me. This game rocks, and I heartily recommend it.