Summary
- Persona 6 needs a character who starts as an opponent but later becomes an ally, just like Sae Niijima in Persona 5.
- Sae Niijima's character arc in Persona 5, from antagonistic prosecutor to Phantom Thieves co-conspirator, was an excellent payoff for its themes and framing device.
- Persona 6 could feature a similar character transformation earlier on to give a redeemed antagonist more time to shine as an ally.
Persona 6 should be able to find a place in its story for a character in the vein of Persona 5 Royal's Sae Niijima. Even if Persona 6 doesn't cover the same themes as the last game, Sae represents a character type that could work as a phenomenal tool in the story. The Persona games are the biggest subseries in the long-running Shin Megami Tensei franchise, so the next game has a major legacy to live up to. Persona 6 needs a great story to accomplish this goal, and Sae Nijima could act as inspiration for the writers.
In addition to the overarching themes of the Persona series, each game has its own theme to follow. Over the course of the game, the themes are made abundantly clear through the events that take place. Some are subtle, while others are unmistakable. In particular, the past few games' themes included:
- Persona 3's theme was death, highlighted by several losses and sacrifices throughout the story, both past and present
- Persona 4's theme was the truth, highlighted by Shadows representing the repressed doubts and emotions of various characters
- Persona 5's theme is freedom and justice, as shown by the game's antagonists all being corrupt authority figures
Sae Niijima is a Character Type That Persona 6 Should Revisit
Sae Niijima is one of the automatic Confidants of Persona 5, associated with the Judgment arcana. In addition to being the older sister of party member Makoto, Sae spends most of the game as a prosecutor investigating the Phantom Thieves, putting her in an antagonistic role. Her interrogation of Joker makes up the framing device for much of the game, with Joker detailing the party's adventures to her. Luckily, Sae is swayed by the time of the story's big twist, and becomes a steadfast ally of the protagonists through the game's final hours, using her position and knowledge to aid them.
While Sae has a Palace like the other antagonists, she does not have her heart stolen by the thieves. This is because, unlike the others, she was not truly evil and could be redeemed.
Sae's role is one of the most vital parts of the story of Persona 5, and she represents a relative rarity for the series. While Sae was never evil, she was an antagonist in the plot, and her turn was both genuine and impactful. The closest thing to a similar instance in the series may be Chidori changing sides for Junpei in Persona 3. Although that scene was powerful, especially for Junpei's character development, Chidori went into a coma afterwards and doesn't factor into the rest of the story. Sae's continued role in the story helped further her development after she changed sides, improving the effect.
How Another Character Could Fill Sae Niijima's Shoes
The character arc that Sae had could be used to inspire a Persona 6 character. Like Sae, they could start as someone who is opposed to the party, but ends up being swayed to their side during the story. This kind of character could have the chance to be even more effective if their turn happens relatively early in the story. They could be the party's first opponent, or perhaps have a change of heart at the story's midpoint. This kind of enemy-to-friend character arc has been underused in Persona games, and Persona 6 could pull it off even better than Persona 5 did with Sae.
Sae's importance in Persona 5 could make her an inspiration for a part of Persona 6's eventual story. Her turn helped to make Persona 5's twist a memorable moment in the game, and future games can explore similar ground. Sae's evolution throughout the game took her from being a devoted opponent to loyal ally, and her character archetype can be revisited to great effect. Persona 6 has the potential to get a lot of mileage out of a character in the same vein as Persona 5's Sae Niijima.
Persona 5 Royal
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OpenCritic Reviews
- Top Critic Avg: 94 /100 Critics Rec: 98%
WHERE TO PLAY
- Platform(s)
- Nintendo Switch, PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S
- Genre(s)
- JRPG
- How Long To Beat
- 100 Hours
- Metascore
- 95
- PS Plus Availability
- N/A
