Guide: How to Unlock the True Ending and Epilogue in Persona 4 Golden
Unlocking all the story content in Persona 4 Golden can be a minefield. One wrong move and you’ll be missing out on both additional story and gameplay. Problem is that if you start looking this kind of stuff up then it probably won’t be long before you’ve ruined the surprises, and you might still be confused about what exactly you need to do (especially as a lot of guides only cover the unlocks for the PS2 version of Persona 4). So here it is, a spoiler free guide that will make sure you get the most out of Persona 4: Golden on your first playthrough.
Before we continue I’m going to outline the different things that can be unlocked, as it’s going to be a bit confusing if you don’t know that the ‘true ending’ and ‘epilogue’ are completely different things. Here are the four main things you’ll probably want to do and won’t want to miss:
Hollow Forrest: By maxing out Marie’s social link you’ll unlock an extra dungeon (which is super hard) as well as some additional story. This is well worth doing, and all this content is exclusive to the PS Vita version of the game.
True Ending: Right before the end of the game you need to talk to everyone who’s social links you have maxed out. At this point you’ll need to make a few strange choices (details below) which result in both a bit more gameplay and an extended ending.
Super Secret Boss: This is only available on a second playthrough, and requires you to max out Margaret’s social link. The boss this unlocks is by far the toughest challenge in the game and can be easily missed. To face it you’ll need to do an additional step whilst going down the path towards the true ending.
Epilogue: Another exclusive to Persona 4: Golden, the epilogue is additional story that takes place after the true ending. To unlock this (and you really should, it’s great) you need to complete both the Hollow Forrest and achieve the True Ending. You don’t however have to fight the super secret boss, which is handy as it means you can do this on your first playthrough.
So here’s what you need to do:
1) Max out the correct social links. That means Marie for the Hollow Forrest and Margaret for the secret boss. Marie’s social link can be unlocked on or after April 18th by talking to her in the Velvet Room. You can then spend time with her on Wednesday and Weekends, although you can’t get past rank 5 until July 24th or after. This has to be completed by the end of the year, but don’t worry if you think you’ll run out of time as she becomes available every day once you reach December. If you’re going after Margaret for the extra boss you will need to be on your second playthrough, so should already know what you need to do.
1.5) Or at least max out ONE social link. If you can’t be bothered with the Hollow Forrest but still want the true ending then make sure you max out at least one social link or you won’t be able to unlock it. This is pretty easy though and shouldn’t cause you much trouble.
2) Complete the Hollow Forrest. Most other guides seem to break this down into three or four steps, but there really is no need. As long as you max out Marie’s social link you have nothing to worry about; you won’t miss this extra dungeon. There are a few extra scenes in January and then in mid February Margaret will summon you…
3) DON’T get the regular ending. When you get near to the end of the game the easiest mistake you can make is to go home once you have spoken to everyone (which will get you the regular ending). This happens on the 20th of March, when you go into town and have to speak to everyone who’s social links you have maxed out. Once you have done this the game will ask you if you want to ‘return to your house and get ready for tomorrow’, and you need to say NO.
4) Search for the truth. Next go to Junes where you’ll be again told to return to your house. Select ‘NO’, ‘I’m not finished yet’ and then ‘Yes’. Finally chose ‘there’s something missing’ and watch the scene that follows. After that head to the riverbank and talk with the characters you meet there.
5) Go to the Velvet Room (twice). Next go to the Velvet Room to receive a special item from Igor. If you want to face the super secret second-playthrough-only boss then as soon as you leave turn around and go back into the Velvet room where Margaret will give you another item.
6) Speak to the woman. I won’t say who, it would ruin it, but at this point it should be obvious what to do next.
7) Super Secret Boss fight. Now is the point where you can fight the secret boss. The item Margaret has given you tells you where to go. Good luck for this one, you’ll need it.
8) Search for... Either after you’ve spoken to the man or after you’ve fought the super secret boss you will be ready for the final part of the game. Speak to Rise and chose ‘Search for…’. The rest is self explanatory.
9) Enjoy the extended ending. Seriously, it’s mind blowing how much amazing content has been hidden away at the end of Persona 4: Golden. If you’ve followed these steps so far then there’s nothing left to worry about, there’s nothing you can miss out on now so enjoy the rest of the game!
And that’s it. If you’d like you can check out my full review of the game here, there’s also an anime based on Persona 4 that I’d thoroughly recommend (full review here).
Finally, once you’ve mastered the game be sure to check out my own thoughts on the ending, although beware, if you’re not yet done with the story then this post has major spoilers!
45 responses to “Guide: How to Unlock the True Ending and Epilogue in Persona 4 Golden”
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- - March 17, 2015
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thanks alot
Omg ty so much other true ending guides r bs
Holy mother of holy shit this game is amazing. I accidentally got the “bad” ending at 59 hours of gameplay. I found this post and did the true ending and the epilogue and ended with just over 80 hours and my jaw on the ground. That’s an extra 20+ hours of gameplay! Atlus has truly created a masterpiece with this one. Saying that I’m excited for Persona 5 would be an understatement. Thanks for the tutorial!
Thanks for the comments :), glad I could help! Persona 5 is definitely top of my most wanted list right now, that game is going to be ace!
For the secret boss you forgot to to mention that you have to beat all the extra bosses before january too in order for Margaret to give you the item. Yeah I know I’m necroposting, but I’m too salty to care. Spent a whole 40 extra hours on this game not to get the secret boss cause of that extremely important detail.
Thanks pretty much the same story as Teddie, I really appreciate the spoiler free considerations.
WHO IS THE GUY WE NEED TO TALK TO??
You say it’s obvious but apparently I’m really dumb :c
You need to talk to the man who works at the gas station :)
ive just saved nanako and havent maxed s link of marie or margeret and its 9th of nov, do I still have time to get the epilouge?
yeah :) you don’t have to max out Margeret’s social link at all for the epilogue and Marie is available throughout December, just make sure you max out her social link by the end of the year! Hope this helps :)
Lol the reason this confused me is the fact that it’s a GIRL not a GUY like you say :p
I was so confused and thought there was a GUY I needed to talk to before Iza(Spoilername). Silly Discodracula, get genders right :p
You’re completely right, I’ll update the guide to fix this error, thanks for pointing it out. I can’t believe I played through the game twice and thought she was a boy both times haha.
THATS A DUDE i hate traps
Thankyou very much! So just do hollow forest at jan 2nd and dont get regular ending on march 20th and follow all the steps for epilouge?
Yeah that’s all correct :)
SPOILERS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Ok sorry for this long question, I am just about to kill Adachi and the main shadow thingy, so after I do that will I actually be able to play the game until march 20th and get new years and valentines etcetera. Or after the final battle and new years and hollow forest does it skip to march 20th and I get all that stuff in the epilogue? Please get back this is really bugging me.
After new years you get to keep playing till February 14th, at that point the game skips forward a month or so to March 20th :)
and then you follow the guide and unlock the epilogue? Thank you very much by the way :)
You’ve got it! No problem :)
Thanks for this!
I don’t like how Persona 4 hides so much vital content with basically arbitrary things. The game’s too long for this kind of stuff! I don’t think it does the game any favours when it does things like this to the player.
Thank you so much!
I just got one of the bad endings which ends the game rather abruptly and that’s when I began to fear to miss out on more content. Your spoiler free guide is just what I needed! Thanks again!
Umm… I need a little help… You see I defeated Namatame and chose not to get revenge and leave him to the police so it skips me to march 21 and I leave Inaba so it’s not (2nd choice or 3rd choice) no revenge/hold on then (2nd choice) leave it to the cops…? 1st choice for both is revenge. So do I just say both third choices?
You’ve got to chose “hold on then” and then I think the next option should be “there’s something missing” or words to at effect. From what I can tell you’re getting the bad ending which is where you don’t catch the real culprit.
I actually saw the choices on a different site. Please put this up for other’s like me who got stick here “wait a second here”, “We’re missing something”, ” Namatame’s true feelings”, ” something’s been bothering me”, “We’re missing something”, “Calm the hell down!” So I got the true ending. As Rise would say at certain times “Woohoo”! But it’s really thanks to you most of all man.
So, whats the difference between “persona 4 golden” and “persona 4”? is the true ending only available through persona 4 golden?
Persona 4 is the PlayStation 2 version of the game released in 2008. Persona 4 Golden is the updated version of the game for PS Vita. The true ending can be unlocked in both versions but the epilogue (which takes place after the true ending) is exclusive to Persona 4 Golden. Hope this helps :)
So, I just wanna get it fully understood, the only difference is that in golden there is an extra cut scene after the true ending and everything else is the same in both versions, i mean in terms of the story, the battle systems, the extra bosses, personas and so on?
The games are roughly the same, same story, battle system ect. but there’s a few changes and enhancements found in the Golden version. As well as the epilogue (which is several cutscenes, over an hours worth of new stuff) there’s an additional character integrated into the story, a new dungeon called the Hollow Forrest (see guide for how to unlock it) and some additional story events and minor gameplay enhancements.
Ok, that answers thanks
What i really wanted to know if it the guide works on the ps2 version too, because i Don’t have vita
Ahh okay :) hopefully the part of the guide that covers the true ending will still be useful to you, but the rest of the stuff you won’t have to worry about!
Is there a difference if you didn’t max Marie’s social link?
Yes, if you don’t max out Marie’s social link you won’t unlock the Hollow Forrest meaning you can still get the True Ending but not the Epilogue :)
you are perfect will you father my children?
thanks dude! Sure, why not :)
I’m o my second play through and will be using your guide to make sure i don’t miss the stuff i missed the first time around
Is this the same for ps vita?
Yes, this guide is written for the ps vita version of the game :). It’s slightly different for the ps2 game however
I followed suit with your guide but after receiving the orb from igor I cannot go back in to receive the item from Margaret… The game won’t let me.
I’ve followed everything. What did I miss…
Hey Chris, the item for Margaret is only needed for the extra boss fight; this can only be unlocked on a second playthrough and requires you to max out Margaret’s social link. If you’re only after the true ending/epilogue then you’re on the right track and can carry on with the guide. Hope this helps!
Muy instructivo, lo cierto es que me has ayudado a aclararme al
respecto. Mil gracias.
Hmm is anyone else experiencing problems with the images on this
blog loading? I’m trying to figure oout if its a problem on my end or iif it’s the blog.
Any feedback would be greatly appreciated.
I saw on a youtube video the someone went to the tv listing and under the big yellow section there was a little green section under it and I want to know how to get there I searched for dlc but Nothing came out so can u plz help me get there Plz
Well this is utterly frustrating. Guess I need to replay the entire game, just because I saved before the nanako hospital end business