Hope and despair might be a zero-sum game, but there's plenty of the former in Sayaka Quest.
- Sayaka survives, an achievement on its own considering the circumstances.
- Managing to befriend Kyouko, win over Homura's trust to some degree, and generally spreading hope in a grim, depressing setting.
- In the fight against the Tokyo group, each of whom is a magical girl with a ridiculous body count and/or terrifyingly broken powers, she manages to fight
Sora essentially single-handedly and wins decisively. - Tomo, one of the newest Puella Magi's friends doesn't believe Sayaka or even her friend when they tell her Sayaka had horrific injuries just minutes ago, and that she was putting her life and that of her other friend in danger by being around a Witch's barrier. She asks Sayaka to somehow prove she has a healing factor. Sayaka's response..
- "Do you think I'm playing some kind of fucking game? Do you want me to fucking stab myself? Are you an idiot? You don't even know what the hell you're dealing with, do you? Because hey, maybe I screwed up my first impression. I am not just some kind of stupid, flirty, air-headed lesbian. Yes, I have a girlfriend. Yes, I love her very much, but that is not everything that I am. I have seen things. I have seen a witch made from the parts of fallen people. I have fought a witch that was goading innocents into committing mass-suicide. I know this because one of my best friends was almost made into one of its victims. This isn't a game."
- Not one but two successful Rousing Speeches in rapid succession: first Sayaka stopped Tomo from succumbing to despair on the spot, then managed to reassure Kyousuke about the results of her wish despite her own doubts. The chat was in an uproar over the initial dice rolls.
- Emiko is a veteran magical girl, something mechanically backed up by her +20 to all rolls (even Kyouko is only at +30). Sayaka not only defeated her solo and countered her attempts to attack once they were outside, but did it with such apparent ease that Emiko briefly panicked.
- A subtle one, but Akane has a new grief seed. She took down a Mitakihara witch solo, and with apparently little or no visible injury. To put this into context, all but one Witch fight with Sayaka and Kyouko has ended with at least some limb loss or horrifying wound- the magical girl who started as the Load is now arguably a better Witch fighter than the other two veterans.
- Considering the fact, that witch difficulty is to be rolled via dice and weaker witches don't need to be fought in real time, she might've met weak one...
- Even so, considering her performance in combat in the past as a result of her mental state, it is definitely a great and glorious improvement on her end.
- The fact that Sayaka and the others managed to make it to Walpurgisnacht without being permanently offed. Even with the dice being evil.
- They did it. They beat Walpurgisnacht.
