Persona 4 will change one of its most iconic characters for its remake

Persona 4 is an excellent game that, for many people, is the best game in its franchise. With a cast of charismatic, endearing characters, with dungeons brimming with personality and taking place in a town with character, it overflows with charm and stands out notably from the rest of the series. Which doesn’t mean it doesn’t have some problematic aspects. Like, for example, the insensitivity of some of its characters. Yasuke in particular.

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An insensitive teenager (that is, a teenager)

On this subject, Kazuhisa Wada, General Producer of the Persona Team, has spoken about the changes they’ve made to the character. “He is a bit insensitive in terms of how he sometimes treats people outside his circle,” he said. “So we wanted to soften him and make him fit in a bit more with the world we live in now,” stressing that they are aware that he hasn’t always been perceived as being as sensitive as he should be.

In any case, these comments perhaps sound somewhat disconnected from current sensibilities on their own. Yasuke’s comments about homosexuality and about women on various occasions in the game aren’t only problematic in 2026, they already were in 2008, when the original game was released. Although that was part of the character development: he’s a good-hearted teenager, but with misguided views, who learns over time. Something that characterizes many teenagers today and throughout all of human history.

While it’s true that Yasuke is and was a bit insensitive, that doesn’t change the fact that he always has been and that it was part of the character. Although it’s true that he may have been a bit more insensitive than intended. And now, in the remake, Persona 4 Revival, announced for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S and PC, we’ll get to see a slightly more sensitive Yasuke, on February 18, 2027.