Why are people unsatisfied with ending / episode 5?

[Luna Starshine]

I do not really understand it. Why are people not satisfied? I am not, but I have maybe a reason why people are:

When I played the game, I played all 5 episodes at once (started last friday, finished on sunday).

Most people started the game in February 2015 when it came out and waited for several month to each episode. Over a long span people have time to think a lot about the game, making their own theories and conclusion. That´s why in the end, the real end may disappoint people because it´s not like they "imagined in their head".

When you never heard of this game before and then play it in a short time of several days, it had a way different impact. I think the game is like a good meal - just eat and and enjoy it - if you think too much about what is in it, you might spoil it for yourself a bit.

[Capybara #PS5 Expedition 33]

It's one of the best endings ever done, right there with Metal Gear Solid 3 imo :). But I believe the unsatisfaction to some comes from all the theories when followed LiS since episode 1, as you said. The exact same thing happened with MGSV during the 3 years of waiting with them theories, which ended up as disappointment. Some expected dozens of endings for LiS and something totally different with MGSV (at least I did for MGSV).

[Luna Starshine]

Originally posted by Gatsu:

Some expected dozens of endings for LiS and something totally different with MGSV (at least me).

I bet Dontnod wanted several endings, but I read they had production money issues and "rushed" the last episode. :/

It´s sad money "damages" such masterpieces.

[Sunsetter]

You have a thousand topics about this man.
But in short, because DN set a high standard with the previous episodes and thoroughly dropped the ball on the last. Cliché, generic, predictable, boring.

[Luna Starshine]

Originally posted by Samael:

Cliché, generic, predictable, boring.

I what game or series can you decide between your best friend or a city?
Predictable the ending was since episode 1.... boring? I guess thats subjective....

[Capybara #PS5 Expedition 33]

Originally posted by Power Of Syndra:

Originally posted by Gatsu:

Some expected dozens of endings for LiS and something totally different with MGSV (at least me).

I bet Dontnod wanted several endings, but I read they had production money issues and "rushed" the last episode. :/

It´s sad money "damages" such masterpieces.

We'll never know :), but it's still a masterpiece to me definitely.

[pickyroman]

It's ok to be unsatisfied with it. People just don't want to accept that and they will try to find a way to be satisfied and easiest way it's complain about how they unsatisfied.

[Luna Starshine]

Of course it´s okay to be unsatisfied. :) I just think I found a good reason WHY people are. ;)
And why I am satisfied with it.

[Tirigon]

Another reason is that there are some pltoholes with the endings. There are various theories that would close them, but so far there is no 100% perfect one yet. And, well, the fact that the game is so insanely great obviously pushes expectations.

[Alyx]

I will restate what I said on this earlier,

Polarized was not well made. I experienced a great sense of 'disconnect' throughout it all. Half of the time I felt like I was watching a cinematic Epilogue (of an already finished story). The stuff with Mr. Perverson, it didn't grip me any more at all (whereas I has been extremely anxious about it beforehand). I felt I was just going thru the obligatory, predictable motions (yawn). And the dreamscene, cute and all, but it should *never* have taken the place of the real story (which was excruciatingly untold yet at that time). That really was my major gripe with it: it came in lieu of the story, usurping a major portion of the Episode, leaving pretty much all loose ends untied. The latter was most frustrating for me: we had been theory-crafting here, for like ages, and Dontnod just gave us the finger on that one.

And all these 'This Action Will Have Consequences' moments, they were lost in time like raindrops in the rain. Open the window and let the blujay out? Or keep it trapped inside the house? I mean, I don't think that particular scene should have been of great importance or anything, but when you pop up a message to say these things will have consequences, for frak's sake, let them actually matter!

[Teagon]

LiS ending with whole EP5 was one big boring cliché. Bay ending was atleast provided some conlusion to the story with pathetic cheap feels train. Bae ending was complete disaster - 3 minutes long, no new location, recycled song, no pricefield (hide your lesbians !!!) just drive-into-sunset with no conlusion whatsoever, like Dontnod didnt even try to say "this is bad ending" just - f_ck you...
And as somebody who chose this one, I am still very pissed off on this game, and since I have this game since 1/2015 I expected MORE

[MorningLightMountain]

Originally posted by Power Of Syndra:

Originally posted by Gatsu:

Some expected dozens of endings for LiS and something totally different with MGSV (at least me).

I bet Dontnod wanted several endings, but I read they had production money issues and "rushed" the last episode. :/

It´s sad money "damages" such masterpieces.

They've said the opposite of this several times and indicated that episode five is exactly what they always intended to deliver. There have been rumours regarding the budget idea but there has never ever been any actual conclusive proof of it.

[PlutonB]

I was late for the party and also played the game straight through late december and didn't think the ending, or episode 5 for that matter, lived up to the expectations that built up during the first 4. Guess I would have been even more disappointed though if I had been a part of the community all year, speculating on the story and in the end given such a cliche ending, all the plot possibilities wiped out and finding out that our choices during the course of the game didn't matter squat.

From the end of episode 4 and onwards I feel that the game takes a turn downward both storywise, in pace and in delivering the ending(s). Almost makes me wonder if they changed writers and producers for the last episode.

(Props to Alyx for the poetic Bladerunner reference, one of the best movies made, directors cut that is).

[-Denied-Existence-]

After picking this game up after all the chapters were released and finally finishing it I found the ending, while feeling narrow, was also the most logical choice and was setup very early (with Chloe getting the picture of the butterfly on the bucket). I will agree that chapter 5 didn't have the same feel as the previous 4 and was a bit railed, nothing really mattering since there's no chapters to follow that would make you feel like anything you did in it mattered.

Despite any pitfalls I have to say, it's been a very long time since a game made me care about any of the characters at all. By the end of this game I found myself feeling bad for even the characters I disliked. I hope they do another season... obviously a sequel would be nice but that would generally mean an all new game. A new season of chapters could mean a continuence of where we left off with our choices, it could even provide a little redemption for how chapter 5 played out. :)

[wtfcopter]

I thought the ending where you sacrifice Chloe was well done, but I felt the ending where you sacrifice the Bay instead was a bit rushed. There wasn't a feeling of closure like the other ending and I think it could have been better. I also didn't like the nightmare portion, it gave me a feeling of inconsistency and disconnect. Overall though, it was still a great game and I hope to see more work done by Dontnod in the future.

[thirdchance]

I like episode 5 and even the nightmare, but not the ending.
The feeling of not liking the ending didn't come right after finishing the game,
but startet growing some time later.

What could be more narrow and cliche, than leaving nothing but the decision who you have to sacrifice.
Blabla, if you mess arround with time, you have to pay the price.

You could try to think of the story as a fairy tale about growing up and learning to take responsibility, but the ending would still don't work out for me.

Max sitting on the floor of the toilet, while chloe gets killed and just doing nothing?
Or Max leaving the city with several dead citizens, not thinking about doing something?

For me this is just an ending made with a big sledgehammer and damaging the whole game.

I had planned to play it again after finishing, but it doesn't make sense anymore.

The possibility of an open ending, with Max trying to make something in a different way,
to let more people escape the tornado, or saving Chloe with maybe just one time reversing time, to see if the tornado is less dangerous or something, this would make more sense for me, without the need to change a lot of the last episode