With the recent "confirmations" of a PS3 bound Persona 5 as well as P3P being on the horizon, and likely the catalyst to me finally getting a PSP, I felt it reasonable to play through the original game.  While we all know that the game is dark, what I had forgot was just how hopeless the ultimate conclusion to that game was.  (Friendly note: Spoilers abound)

JRPG bosses tend to fit into two categories.  They are either an entity that usurped the world in one way or another, or they are the powers that be that once guided the world but are no longer moving in the interest of humanity.  (Of course there are numerous exceptions, but let's just pretend for the sake of the validity of this post.)  They are actively influencing humanity, actively working towards domination of the world in one form or another.  It is this point that separates them from Persona 3 as the game offers a relationship that is the exact opposite.  Nyx is a being of death that is attracted by man's negative thoughts, and whose awakening and decent to Earth results in The Fall, where mankind falls into a near comatose state, resulting in the eventual death of everything.   It is thus not influencing humanity, but rather being influenced by it. 
 

With the usual fan fare, the protagonists choose to fight against Nyx, and the Fall is prevented.  While this initially seems like a victory, what is interesting is that while Nyx's decent is ultimately prevented, the process also displayed the great futility in resisting the thoughts the entirety of man.  The main character utilized, as according to Igor, "The Power of the Universe", a power that could perform miracles, in order to halt the threat.  Further, that power came at the cost of his own life, as it was his soul that was used as the catalyst to form the wall.  But ultimately, all he could conjure was the Great Seal, a wall preventing the negative thoughts of man from reaching Nyx.  Nyx was not defeated, merely idling after having lost it's connection to man.  Neither was humanity cured of the source of its problems: despair.   

 
While the overwhelming strength of the negativity of man has been an often used theme in other games before, this is the only one that I've experienced where it was a force one could not combat. Watching the main character slowly slip away resting on Aigis's lap gave me a great feeling of helplessness.  The game's favorite phrase was memento mori, know that you are mortal.  But our grief and anguish, they are eternal.

With the recent "confirmations" of a PS3 bound Persona 5 as well as P3P being on the horizon, and likely the catalyst to me finally getting a PSP, I felt it reasonable to play through the original game.  While we all know that the game is dark, what I had forgot was just how hopeless the ultimate conclusion to that game was.  (Friendly note: Spoilers abound)

JRPG bosses tend to fit into two categories.  They are either an entity that usurped the world in one way or another, or they are the powers that be that once guided the world but are no longer moving in the interest of humanity.  (Of course there are numerous exceptions, but let's just pretend for the sake of the validity of this post.)  They are actively influencing humanity, actively working towards domination of the world in one form or another.  It is this point that separates them from Persona 3 as the game offers a relationship that is the exact opposite.  Nyx is a being of death that is attracted by man's negative thoughts, and whose awakening and decent to Earth results in The Fall, where mankind falls into a near comatose state, resulting in the eventual death of everything.   It is thus not influencing humanity, but rather being influenced by it. 
 

With the usual fan fare, the protagonists choose to fight against Nyx, and the Fall is prevented.  While this initially seems like a victory, what is interesting is that while Nyx's decent is ultimately prevented, the process also displayed the great futility in resisting the thoughts the entirety of man.  The main character utilized, as according to Igor, "The Power of the Universe", a power that could perform miracles, in order to halt the threat.  Further, that power came at the cost of his own life, as it was his soul that was used as the catalyst to form the wall.  But ultimately, all he could conjure was the Great Seal, a wall preventing the negative thoughts of man from reaching Nyx.  Nyx was not defeated, merely idling after having lost it's connection to man.  Neither was humanity cured of the source of its problems: despair.   

 
While the overwhelming strength of the negativity of man has been an often used theme in other games before, this is the only one that I've experienced where it was a force one could not combat. Watching the main character slowly slip away resting on Aigis's lap gave me a great feeling of helplessness.  The game's favorite phrase was memento mori, know that you are mortal.  But our grief and anguish, they are eternal.

Wow...
 
this is written very well.. and.. it makes me sad all over again! *sob*
Supposedly the rumor is about Persona 5 is that the new protagonist is trying to find a way to save Minato (p3) Like Elizabeth is doing. As told by Margaret who says Elizabeth is gone. So I'm kinda hoping that will happen to make me less sad.

" @Catolf:   I feel like that would be a poor choice of a plot...  I thought The Answer covered Minato's sacrifice and the futility in trying to "save" him rather well.  For that particular plot to work, we'd probably be seeing a return of Philemon and Nyarlathotep, which I wouldn't be fully against.    That'd also help confirm the some of the theories surrounding the continuity between the worlds of Persona and Innocent Sin and the later world of Persona 3 and 4.  I might make a post about that bit at a later time since it is quite interesting. "

" @Catolf:  He's a god borrowed from H.P. Lovecraft's Cthulhu mythos, and is basically the antithesis of Philemon. My understanding of his role is that he believes that giving humanity the power of Personae would lead to its self-destruction, and has made a wager with Philemon to that end. I'm a little hazy since I last read up on N's role in the Persona universe though.. "

" @owl_of_minerva said:

" @Catolf:  He's a god borrowed from H.P. Lovecraft's Cthulhu mythos, and is basically the antithesis of Philemon. My understanding of his role is that he believes that giving humanity the power of Personae would lead to its self-destruction, and has made a wager with Philemon to that end. I'm a little hazy since I last read up on N's role in the Persona universe though.. "

You more or less have it right.  The key different between Philemon however is that he will always "cheat" and actively meddle with human affairs, pushing humanity to greater destruction.  Philemon on the other hand almost never intervenes, aside from the initial granting of power. "