Arsène

Arsène (, Arsene), formatted as Arsene prior to Persona 5 Royal, is the initial Persona of Joker in Persona 5. The source of Joker's supernatural abilities, he represents the rebellious side of Joker's soul. He appears in Smash as a fighter ability for.

Origin
Arsène is the personification of the rebellious side of Joker's soul, expressing righteous indignation for his mistreatment and desiring retribution against those responsible. Personas exist within all people, but without the right catalyst, a person usually goes their whole life unable to learn about their existence. After Joker's friend Ryuji Sakamoto is nearly killed, Arsène is able to make contact with Joker and form a contract with him. From there, he grants Joker his supernatural abilities to combat malevolent forces.

Arsène is based on the literary gentleman thief, from a series of novels written by. He was known for targeting criminals or those who were much worse than himself, making him an anti-hero of sorts within his own stories.

As a moveset element
Arsène plays a critical role in Joker's moveset, appearing when his Rebellion Gauge has been filled and upgrading Joker's special moves. Joker's normal attacks are enhanced with additional hits by Arsène, who is fully intangible to attacks while active. Joker also has longer rolls when he is summoned.

Arsène is fully voiced in Joker's reveal trailer, while during gameplay he remains silent. This is in-line with Persona 5, where Arsène will talk during a handful of pivotal moments in the story but is otherwise entirely silent, including during battles.

Spirits
Arsène is included in both of 's Fighter Spirits, which can be obtained by completing Classic Mode. They are also available periodically for purchase in the shop for 500 coins, only after Joker himself is downloaded. Unlocking Joker in World of Light allows the player to preview the first spirit below in the Spirit List under the name "???".

Trivia

 * The special cut-in effect when Joker summons Arsène differs depending on region; if the language is set to Japanese, it is accompanied by the onomatopoeia "" (to snap from anger). If the language is set to anything else, there are instead two exclamation marks. This reflects the English localization of Persona 5, which changed the cut-in effect the same way.
 * In Joker's reveal trailer, Ryuji notes that Arsène is one of his weaker Personas and that Joker could use a much stronger one, referencing how Arsène, as the starting Persona, is often fused early on in the game, with Arsène even having a line prior to his fusion.
 * Unlike fellow characters with a pivotal role in the entirety of a character’s moveset, such as Luma or, Arsène is not mentioned in Joker’s announcer call or title in any language.
 * However, unlike those two, Arsène is psychically connected to Joker rather than simply being a companion, does not appear unless the Rebellion Gauge is full, and is a singular entity rather than a species.
 * During a Home-Run Contest with Joker, the Rebellion Gauge will permanently be full and Arsène will always be present.
 * A glitch previously existed where, if Joker's last stock was taken by Whack, Arsène would remain. This was fixed in a later patch.