That was devastating

[Del Zhong He]

The marriage ending is probably one of the most brutal stuff I´ve ever seen in a game. I´m not very keen to this style of game so I thought it would solve the conflicts the same way the game proposed to. It would be a goofy but dark ending.

Except I did laugh. Because of how absolutely COOKED these two were by the end of the route. The game narrates it in the same absurd tone it does with everything else but I could not look past how gut wrenching this ending was.

Nobody learns anything. Julia drops the most absurd character twist in the game, and Andrew doesn´t have the heart to care for it (or nothing).

But what makes so terrible to me is the incest thing. The ending was perfect while adressing this. It´s the ending the people who rooted for them to be together, that looked past how ♥♥♥♥♥♥ up people are usually a danger to each other, not only to others. The end text really sealed it to me. It´s blunt. It doesn´t measure your words. It gives you what you played to get, but in it´s real form.

This was darker than expected, when I should have expected nothing less.

Let´s just hope that Andrew can give him and his sister some sort of closure. I don´t think they deserve a second chance, but I wouldn´t wish them the cold character arc closures they get in any of these endings.

Maybe they can fix something and put the terrible things they had to do for survival behind. I don´t care if they should die or if they were justified in wanting to live. I just want the siblings to find some purpose. I really hope chapter 4 can give us that.

[Sovereign Dark]

Why hope to change the creator's vision? Have you thought that maybe this game just isn't for you? Only suggesting; if you can't stand her heat, you might want to leave her kitchen..??

[Fimbulvetr]

I don't think its changing the creator's vision has much as "wasn't expecting this'

[Akameka]

well.... that's about what was bound to happen in this arc.

In Decay, they might still love each other, they show again and again that they can't trust eachother, so they can stabilize the relationship to a 'working' state, but not much more.

From my POV, the game is called 'the coffin of Andy and Leyley' for a reason.
Andy and LeyLey are bound to die, one way or another. And while Andrew did toss away Andy in this ending, Ashley is still stuck in her LeyLey state : She did not change at all.

IMO, the Burrial route will be more foccused about her and how she will choose to change or not. Because in that one, Andrew immediately get rid of Andy as soon as chapter 2, so it all revolves about how Ashley will react to that.

[Tim Timsen]

One ending will be "canon" when the game is finished, and I doubt it's this one.

[SolidPayne]

Well it can't be this route that's canon cause it doesn't lead into chapter 4. It's the route where Ashley doesn't shoot Andrew in chapter 2 that'll lead you into chapter 4. It wouldn't make any sense to put all that effort into a Part 2 that's not even canon

[SolidPayne]

Honestly this route just feels like edgy for the sake of edgy just to see how far can Nemlei take it. I think even she knows this doesn't make for compelling storytelling. Most dark stories that work there's some light in there. The ending of Se7en is sad but it leaves with the main character motivated to never give up when he was ready to retire before. Berserk is all about Guts trying his best to defy his destiny. That's off the top of my head but generally if your story is too cynical, why should we care?

[Fimbulvetr]

Originally posted by SolidPayne:

Honestly this route just feels like edgy for the sake of edgy just to see how far can Nemlei take it. I think even she knows this doesn't make for compelling storytelling. Most dark stories that work there's some light in there. The ending of Se7en is sad but it leaves with the main character motivated to never give up when he was ready to retire before. Berserk is all about Guts trying his best to defy his destiny. That's off the top of my head but generally if your story is too cynical, why should we care?

Assuming much in there pal. The author, she writes what she wants, I wouldn't put words of goals in her mouth.
Frankly, that route is everybit as plausible as a more neutral one. Look at the wife beatings by drunken dads around the worlds, with spouse who won't dare to move away from their spouse. Its dark, yes, but also true to life. Edgy doesn't come close to the point.
Plus, Berserk, really? Do you even realise the GuT x Caska is pretty much up that alley?

[SolidPayne]

Well it looks like Nemlei agrees with me as the least messed up route is the only one that leads to Chapter 4 (again I have to ask why would you put a part 2 to the one route if it wasn't canon? It has to be canon). I never said there was nothing wrong with Guts and Casca's relationship and I never said this kinda stuff never happens in real life. I'm saying when it's nothing BUT that stuff, it doesn't make for a very satisfying story overall

[SolidPayne]

I don't know why you're going off on this "plausibility" crap when what I said has nothing to do with rather or not it could happen

[SolidPayne]

To look at another video game that deals with the same subject matter The Witcher 3 with the Bloody Baron quest. All the paths have their pros and cons, neither person in the relationship is innocent but we also see that the Baron loves his daughter and would never hurt her. You could sacrifice children or save them but you could also see the Baron try and fix things with his wife but again all routes of their pros and cons. There are glimpses of light that make you want to try and make things better. That's more compelling to me than just shi*ty people being shi*ty all the time. It's why alot of people including myself are looking forward to Burial cause even though a happy ending is unlikely we wanna see them at least try and reach for it

[Superacestriker]

Originally posted by SolidPayne:

To look at another video game that deals with the same subject matter The Witcher 3 with the Bloody Baron quest. All the paths have their pros and cons, neither person in the relationship is innocent but we also see that the Baron loves his daughter and would never hurt her. You could sacrifice children or save them but you could also see the Baron try and fix things with his wife but again all routes of their pros and cons. There are glimpses of light that make you want to try and make things better. That's more compelling to me than just shi*ty people being shi*ty all the time. It's why alot of people including myself are looking forward to Burial cause even though a happy ending is unlikely we wanna see them at least try and reach for it

An interesting thing i found was in that ending it is stated that if they were willing to work through their issues they could work it out, however they are not gonna do that. Yet in the cliffhanger ending, lord unknown helps andrew realise some of his problems, meaning the happy ending might actually be in the decay route. Then again there is also a thing with the stars in the vision room that might also give a happy ending.

[Jaruh Caz]

Just see it this way, we arent getting the same endings in the route 3B, so, incest runaway life, MurderSuicide, SPLAT'ing, Becoming Leyley's plaything nor getting policed brutalized, all that out of the picture, with how much things escalate every chapter i wont doubt the endings of 3B will range from world ending related to Ashley "ascending" or maybe they make a deal to get "demonic" therapy and get their sh*t together.

[SolidPayne]

they already said in a devlog that Burial will be nothing like Decay. My guess is that it'll deal more with the cult and water company stuff cause they've been setting it up like it's this big mystery like "What's with these insurance people? why were they harvesting organs?" Andrew at the gas station even says something fishy's going on but they really don't follow up on it so I'd imagine in the Burial route since they're more at peace with themselves at that point, they can put more focus on that stuff and less on trying to kill each other

[Jaruh Caz]

Originally posted by SolidPayne:

they already said in a devlog that Burial will be nothing like Decay.

Mb i thought people called 3 part 2 3B and burial 4.

[Just a premium Noob [TCPub]]

Originally posted by SolidPayne:

Honestly this route just feels like edgy for the sake of edgy just to see how far can Nemlei take it. I think even she knows this doesn't make for compelling storytelling. Most dark stories that work there's some light in there.

I definitely agree that this route is an experiment in how far Coca Cola can push the terribleness of the sibling relationship, but I wouldn't call it edgy. Edgy implies the execution is bad.

You're right about stories like these needing some light to work, but doesn't it have some? I feel like the whole emotional appeal of this branch is making you wonder "What could have been?"

You see the siblings open up to each other, talking about the last time they were happy and showing some real emotional vulnerability.

You see Andrew leaving Ashley and considering the possibility of the siblings living satisfying lives apart from one another (Ashley with the Demon. Andrew with Friend B).

You see them kiss and wonder if they could pull off a romantic relationship.

Only to then see that hope yanked away by the chain on Andrew's foot, the stain of Andrew's vomit, and the sexual hangups Andrew has about his sister.

But god you keep hoping that they can get their ♥♥♥♥ together and somehow make it through this! That hope only truly dies when Andrew delivers the beating. The despair of the events that follow only really works because you had some hope previously.

If you never felt that hope, then it makes sense why you didn't enjoy it, but it is there.