Reviving the Ultimate Battle: Unveiling the Game-changing Twist for Persona 6's Final Bosses
Revitalizing the Persona franchise, Persona 6 has the opportunity to revolutionize its climactic final boss fights, breathing new life into the series by making the ultimate showdowns more meaningful and intertwined with its beloved cast of characters
Highlights
Persona 6 should aim to make its twist final boss feel more personal to the game's cast, rather than relying on the trope of gods as the antagonists.
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It has become expected by Persona fans that there will be a surprising twist villain in the series, which can sometimes make the final boss seem odd in terms of tone.
In past Persona games, there was a lack of a strong link between the party and the true final boss, resulting in battles feeling impersonal. To improve this, Persona 6 should introduce a villain that players and characters can establish a connection with and feel sympathy towards before the twist occurs.
The Persona series deviates from typical JRPG tropes in various ways with its modern-day setting and generally more realistic themes. However, one aspect where the series often reverts to those tropes is with its unexpected final bosses, who are typically unveiled as gods that players must ultimately conquer. Given the frequency at which the series adheres to this formula, it's highly probable that Persona 6 will follow suit. Nonetheless, there is an opportunity to elevate this trope to a higher level of intrigue compared to previous installments if Persona 6 manages to establish a stronger connection between the bosses and the game's cast, rendering them more intimate and personal.
Although these late revelations regarding the true masterminds behind the game's events can elicit surprise during a player's initial playthrough, seasoned Persona enthusiasts will likely come to anticipate the inclusion of a twist villain like this in Persona 6. Considering that the series usually emphasizes grounded narratives featuring human antagonists, the introduction of a god as the final boss can feel somewhat discordant in terms of tone. However, should Persona 6 continue this trend with its ultimate antagonist, it can enhance the villain's memorability by establishing a more profound bond between the characters and the villain early on, before the twist revelation occurs.
Persona 6 Should Make its Final Boss More Relevant to its Cast
Most Persona games subtly hint at the connection between the ultimate antagonist and the group of heroes. Players often miss these hints unless they already know the twist beforehand. For instance, in Persona 3, the enigmatic Pharos cryptically communicates with the protagonist before revealing himself as Nyx's appraiser, the final boss. Persona 4 takes this subtlety even further, as the true final boss, Izanami, appears to players as an ordinary gas station attendant until her true identity is revealed in the game's true ending.
Although these twists culminate in thrilling battles, they often lack a personal touch for the entire party. Usually, only the protagonist interacts with these characters before the final confrontation. However, the true final boss in Persona 5 Royal, Takuto Maruki, exemplifies how to make the antagonist more personally connected to the entire party. As the school counselor at Shujin Academy, Maruki becomes acquainted with the Phantom Thieves as a collective, which significantly enhances his impact as the twist villain.
Yaldabaoth, the final boss in vanilla Persona 5, assumes the guise of Igor from the Velvet Room until the climax of the game. However, only the protagonist is hinted at his villainous nature, while the rest of the party remains unaware until the final act. The brilliance of Maruki as the ultimate boss lies in the fact that he starts as an ally to the Phantom Thieves, with his true abilities and misguided beliefs being exposed later on. For Persona 6, it would be beneficial to follow this approach, wherein players can become acquainted with and even empathize with a character before the shocking revelation that they are the primary antagonist.
These unexpected, god-like final bosses often pose a challenge as they can detract from an otherwise personal and grounded storyline. Persona 4's ending, in particular, suffers from this issue, as it centers around solving a series of murders in a small town that loses its distinctive nature when it is unveiled that a deity has orchestrated everything. To achieve a more integrated narrative, Persona 6 should focus on developing a character that both players and in-game characters can truly get to know, before eventually unveiling them as the true enemy.
Persona 6 is in development.
