Are the Arena games bad? Because I do intend on playing the side games after I've finished Golden.

I suppose the reason why I like Marie is precisely because I haven't played the original, so for me, 'this' is the plot. And I guess her S.Link paints her in a good light, but it may also be more of a commentary on how nice your friends are as well. I don't know, I just never felt like I disliked Marie.

If anything, of all the major characters in the game, I'd say I've warmed to Rise the least. She's a nice character, but she can be very passive aggressive at times, especially towards Kanji.