If you’re not careful, you can miss out on the true ending of Persona 4: Golden. Clearing the dungeons by a deadline and replying to obvious social prompts is a breeze, but the final bit of the game can be tricky and easy to miss.
The game will often prompt you before big, game-changing decisions happen, so make sure to save your game when it does. We recommend saving on a separate save slot, too, just in case you want to go back to see different endings or if you need to backtrack after making a mistake.
Before the climax of the story, make sure to max out Marie’s social link by Dec. 31. We’re putting this before all the other stuff because this is something you’ll be able to work on throughout the course of the game.
[Ed. note: Minor spoilers for Persona 4 Golden are below. We understand that you are probably looking this guide up probably before you’re getting to these story points, so we’ve tried our best things organized in a way to avoid spoilers. Only look at the dates below if you’re ready to be spoiled for the events on that day.]
On Dec. 3 …
On Dec. 3, you’ll need to pick out the right dialogue while the gang is talking about what to do with Namatame. You’ll need to pick these options, in order:
- “Wait a second here …”
- “We’re missing something.”
- “Namatame’s true feelings.”
- “Something’s bothering me.”
- “We’re missing something …”
- “Calm the hell down!”
After doing this, the group will come to their senses a bit and the story will continue.
If you give in to your desires for revenge, you will get a bad ending of the game, so make sure to pick the dialogue options carefully. We’re unsure if there are more than one set of “right” answers to get the true ending, but these are the choices that we can confirm work.
On Dec. 5 …
The gang will gather for a meal, but will discuss the true culprit behind all the bad stuff happening in Inaba. When prompted, you’ll need to select the true killer: Tohru Adachi. The menu will list your friends and other social links, so select “someone else” until his name appears on the list.
A new dungeon will open up, requiring you to clear it.
On Feb. 13 …
The gang goes on a ski trip starting on Feb. 11. On Feb. 13, you’ll head to a new dungeon called the Hollow Forest. Make sure to complete the dungeon.
On March 20 …
On March 20, after visiting all your maxed out social links, do not go back home. After meeting up with a bunch of your buddies to say goodbye, the game will ask if you want to return home to prepare to go home. Select “no” and instead, head to the Junes food court.
After a cutscene plays, head to Samegawa Flood Plain to talk to Dojima and Nanako. After chatting, go to the Central Shopping District and into the Velvet Room to grab a key item from Igor.
After doing all this, finally head to the gas station that you first stopped at when you started the game and talk to the attendant there to trigger the true ending of the game.