Here is me trying to collect some thoughts on the ending:
In common psychology, there is the idea that in order to become a functioning adult, you have to come to terms with the darker sides of your own personality. Growing up you can start to repress the things about yourself that you don't like - the dark parts that are in all of us and which become more prominent as we go from childhood to adulthood. In a sense, this is what is at play in, say, Persona 4. In that game, the characters need to go through an ordeal, where they face their own "dark self"- the one who is selfish, fearful, having selfdoubts, lust, jealousy and so on. Only by confronting this side of their own self are they able to harness their own "power" - in a sense they become a whole personality, and are able to use their ability actively, rather than being in a struggle with themselves.
I feel this is the journey Max ultimately has to go through. Throughout the story she is constantly preoccupied with doing the right thing, being empathetic, thinking of others, and using her powers for good. But she is also blind to the fact that there is also a hint of selfishness about her project - to make everything just right, the way she wants the world to be. She is not just saving Chloe for her sake, but also for her own. She takes to the idea of becoming a sort of superhero - someone who has a special power that can be used to save others - but she is blind to the fact that this also puts her in a role of being special, elevated above others.
In the end, trying to sort out all the time complications she has caused in the story, she is finally overwhelmed and put into a nightmare, where she is confronted with exactly those sides of herself that she hasn't been able to face. That a part of her might have had an attraction to Jefferson, is fearful and resentful towards Chloe and Warren and questions their motives. That she harbors fears and suspicions of others and how they view her. In the end she is confronted by "dark side Max", the person within her who is the exact opposite of the person she tries to be, the person she is repressing. And it is through this confrontation that she is finally able to see the truth that has been right in front of her the whole time: That it is her that is causing the storm to appear. The truth is that even though she has had surface-level doubts about her powers, she has ultimately kept using them and to a larger and larger degree. She is at first overcome with fear of herself by this realisation, but Chloe is able to convince her that she is still a good person. Thus having come to terms with herself, she (and the player) is able to face the final choice consciously - aware of the ramifications of both, for herself and others.
I don't think the final episode is perfect. But I do think it becomes a meaningful conclusion in the end.
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