Learning to Let Go: My theory on why multiple endings are canon, the identity of Siridian, and why I ascended or forgave everyone in the game. ENDGAME SPOILERS!!!!!

[MPS]

***MAJOR SPOILERS AHEAD***

If you've beaten the game, then you likely obtained one of the 5 different endings. You might think that that was it, and move on. I almost did myself. But then I watched what happens if you fail your oath, and it made me realize how the story was far more expansive than I had thought.

So, if you beat the game, and fulfill your oath, you either ascend or resurrect Antaea. It quickly becomes clear that resurrection was a very dark choice, as it required you to murder countless people and Antaea must continue killing to survive for the rest of her "life". It is quite horrific. and it is the consequence of Red not being able to let go. It is the ultimate form of him hanging on when he shouldn't, and it perverts both of them irrevocably.

Ascension is the sadder but better ending. Antaea is ascended. She moves on. Red moves on. He's hurt for many years, but he and New Eden progress to being healed. And this is the ultimate message of the game: the importance of healing. Of moving on. Of learning to let go of the pain of the past and how harmful it is to you and the people around you when you cannot.

But what if Red *tried* to let go but he just...couldn't? That seems very in-line with how he acts in the game for many parts of it, with how hurt and sad he truly is. With how much he's in pain. And *THAT* is why I think the "bad" endings are actually canon.

Because if you haven't seen them, then when Red takes up an oath but fails to fulfill it, Seeker shows up to try and help. But the Nightmare ages her and she turns into... Siridian. Then it casts Red back in time, back to the beach where Seeker first found him. And he wakes up, unaware of what has happened.

That seems like a bad ending but... it also seems like it's what happened. The Nightmare is aware of Red when he first encounters it. It mocks him about how his love will fail Antaea....because it already has. He's already been down this road. It is moving through time, like the old woman who is haunting herself. It has already seen him fail to fulfill his oath because he couldn't bring himself to either kill the people necessary for resurection or learn to let go. Either way he failed. And the Nightmare created Siridian when Seeker arrived to help and it cast them both through time. Siridian found herself, and taught herself. Aul Saul is her father, Saul Pennington, still pursuing Seeker, which is what makes her so sad when she faces him as "Old Moss Head". She says it's "Good to see you again" when she first meets Red. She uses the name Siridian as a wink and a hint to him about who she is.

And this all is meant to tell us, the player, that Red has been here before. He's done this before. He's walked this path before. If you ascend everyone, if you forgive everyone, if you fulfill the ascension oath, then Red has learned to let go. He's helped others to learn to let go. He's helped others to see past their hate and anger and sadness just as he has his. This is what saves Deborah. This is what undoes the Nightmare. And this is what saves Antaea. But it makes sense that the first time, he wasn't able to. The first time, he tried to let Antaea go but couldn't. He failed. He wanted to let her go but couldn't and the Nightmare created Siridian, cast Red back in time, and everything began again. Who even knows how many times. But by learning to embrace forgiveness, and learning to let go of his sadness, and learning to let go of what he loves (a message CONSTNATLY hammered home in the game) Red can get the actual truly good ending. He can truly fulfill his promise. Seeker can now live free of the loop the Nightmare had placed her in and there is hope of her and her father finding forgiveness. Antaea has hope. Red has hope. '

You have to learn to let go. You have to learn to live. Life for the living. It's the only way to break the cycle of pain.

[Weston]

I wish they would have included the bad endings in all of the playthroughs. I beat the game doing an ascension run while forgiving everyone. It was a great ending. But it would have been so much more powerful to know Red has been going through a time loop.

I already guessed that Saridian was an older version of Seeker, but it would have been nice to get confirmation during my play-through. I think they missed an opportunity to make the endings more impactful by incorporating the time loop into the story.

My suggestion would have been to force players into a broken oath ending. It would take choice away, but after the ending, you get sent back to the beach to play again. This is where New Game + would start. You have all of your gear and skills, but now you can achieve either of the two true endings (revival or ascension). This would have been a canon way to work in New Game + and replayability, like Starfield or Alan Wake 2, while expanding on the story and making it more emotional.

Thanks for your write-up. It makes me appreciate the game even more. I just wish I would have been made to witness it.

[RZ]

My first playthrough was ascending also and I'm almost finished with the one to Rez Antea. I've heard there are 5 different possible endings, so it'll be interesting to find out how to unlock them ( and possibly find some more lore/side-quests ).

Best game I've played in a long time.. loving it =)

[MPS]

Originally posted by Weston:

I wish they would have included the bad endings in all of the playthroughs.

Thanks for your write-up. It makes me appreciate the game even more. I just wish I would have been made to witness it.

Yeah I'm torn on it myself.. I'm not one who likes doing NG+ just because I'm a dad who works at a hospital so my free time is limited, but I do kind of wish we the player had seen this play out.

However it's also kind of cool that we're like Red. He doesn't realize this has happened before, so of you do a "good" playthrough then neither will you. You're as in the dark as he is.

But it does make the journey feel more powerful to realize you've finally moved past your pain, because then you're seeing things from the Nightmare's perspective and why she's so shocked that you've finally come to fulfill your oath, that your love child become stronger.

[Weston]

Originally posted by MPS:

However it's also kind of cool that we're like Red. He doesn't realize this has happened before, so of you do a "good" playthrough then neither will you. You're as in the dark as he is.

I completely agree. I went back and got the time loop ending and the resurrection endings because I'm loving my time with this game.

I'm curious about your interpretation of the time loop. If Siridian met and trained Seeker while Siridian was old, it would have had to of been between the time Red was thrown out of the window and when he wakes up on the beach. Seeker says he was out for days or even weeks when she finds him. The way Seeker talks about Siridian being a mentor makes it seem like they've known each other for years. Its my only real complaint with the time loop.

[Kuro X Kage]

What a wonderful write up OP. This was a very grim and mature story. I went full necromancer and blamed every single person. There were only 2 cases were it was quite difficult to lay blame. I never went back on our oath of life to the dead.

We were both changed heavily, and I prefer it as my favorite ending compared to ascension. Such a great game, hope there is more in the universe they created.

Thanks for sharing your thoughts.

[giovamas]

very very good OP. my thanks for sharing. molto bravo. ciao :-)

[Foulcher]

Very good writing and yes it is in a way the « best » ending (for the player) and it is required to catch the whole game message.

Anyway the ascend ending was still beautiful and the game was phenomenal. Too bad it will be forgotten.

[Senyaak]

Nice post! I cant w8 to see the next dontnod game, the vampyr and banishers are masterpieces!