Those who have played Persona 4 Golden are well aware of its length. This game is a sizeable journey, even for JRPG standards, and if you’re up for the task, just know that during your year-long stay in Inaba, you’ll encounter plenty of plot points that will take you by surprise.
The game continues to throw shocking moments at you throughout, some of which are just goofy one-offs, others being major points in the game’s story, but each of them will surely catch the player off-guard. These are the moments of Persona 4 Golden that will keep you coming back for more.
This article contains major plot spoilers for Persona 4 Golden
5 Kanji’s Soft Side
When Kanji is initially introduced in the game, he is presented as a typical delinquent. He doesn’t go to school, gets into fights with people, and overall has a “tough guy” attitude. He leaves a pretty strong impression out of the gate, and while he never abandons this personality, it’s later revealed there’s more than meets the eye with him.
In Kanji’s own words he “likes cute things, dammit!” Some of his favorite hobbies include sewing, knitting, and cooking, all activities that would tarnish his tough-guy reputation. He also cares greatly for his mother, making him a momma’s boy on top of things. Much of this is revealed during your encounter with Shadow Kanji, flipping the script on Kanji’s character as a whole. Even though he tries his hardest to hide this side of him, his soft-tough-guy attitude has made him a fan-favorite character for many Persona fans.
4 Teddie’s Humanity
Each Persona game has a mascot character, and Persona 4 features the “beary” vocal character, Teddie. Those who are attentive to Teddie’s appearance will notice the zipper on his neck. While Teddie has bear-like resemblances and insists on being a bear, he is pretty much just a walking bear costume.
Early in the game, in a fit of rage, Yosuke rips off Teddie’s bear head and, to his discovery, there was nothing inside. Many players thought that was the end of it, but later in the game, he rips off his bear costume and reveals that he, somehow, willed his conscience into a human body. From this point onward Teddie retires as the team's navigator, and fights with the rest of the members. While he still behaves the same and hangs out in his bear costume most of the time, this moment is one that nobody could have foreseen.
3 Nanako’s Death
Nanako is a very neglected character in Persona 4. She lives with Dojima, but he is almost never around to accompany her on account of his job. While she is a very beloved character, her backstory and role in Persona 4 is quite depressing, and nowhere is this more apparent than when she is the next victim of the killer.
After appearing on TV, many members of the team grow worried that she will be kidnapped next, and, in an unfortunate series of events, she goes missing. Taro Namatame is revealed to be the kidnaper, believing that he has the power to save the midnight channel’s victims. Nanako is eventually rescued from the midnight channel, though she is in critical condition and is considered dead at a certain point. The player’s actions towards Namatame following this event dictate what actually happens to Nanako. Whether you kill Namatame, declare him guilty and spare him, or investigate the case further, Nanako either passes away, is revived in a coma, or comes back to life fully. While the best ending of the game does feature a good outcome for Nanako, the possibility of her dying in the first place is a major shock for those playing the game.
2 Finding The True Culprit
The bulk of Persona 4 revolves around a series of murders in the small town of Inaba. All throughout the game the investigation team is on the case, and while they get leads here and there, their overall progress remains rather slow. The local police department is also on the case with even less success, though there is a reason for that.
Upon detective prodigy Naoto Shirogane joining the team, the group discovers many new advancements in their search. Eventually, the group confronts Tohru Adachi, a local police officer who was working with Ryatoro Dojima, and shells out all the dirt they’ve dug up on him. When confronted, he runs away and escapes to the TV world, confirming he was the killer all along. This leads to a major personality shift in the character, a once clumsy officer becomes an unhinged, power-driven maniac, giving a plot twist in which the main antagonist was in front of you all along.
1 The Gas Station Attendant
While Persona 4’s main story ends when Adachi is defeated, there is still more to the game afterward. If the team decides to meet up one last time before Narukami goes back home, they’ll reminisce about their year, particularly their experiences with the midnight channel. The group is thankful that the killer has been found and dealt with, but the fog hasn’t gone away, and they grow afraid that someone may use the midnight channel for similar problems in the future.
Narukami thinks back to all his experiences in Inaba, and recalls the very first person he interacted with, the Gas Station attendant from the beginning of the game. Upon meeting with the attendant again, it is revealed that he was the one who gave Narukami, Adachi, and Namatame their powers, being responsible for all the events that transpired throughout the game. The attendant is a character that was completely out of most players’ minds at this point, and them being the one who was behind everything is a sweeping shock. When he is defeated, the fog goes away, as does the team’s ability to go into the TV world, and Teddie’s home is restored to its past form. This is the true ending of Persona 4, and one that is unexpected for all who play it.