Can you choose not to kill The Beat?

[The Faceless Man]

The very last phase is pitiful. I spent a good chunk of the fight just countering attacks, looking for a way to end it without murdering this helpless girl. Doesn't feel right.

[Midnight Sky ✨🌙✨]

What are you on about with all this talk about mercy? You killed The Song in cold blood when she offered you a peaceful life.

Anyway, there's no way to avoid killing her and progress.

[The Faceless Man]

Killing The Song was non-optional. She refused to let me proceed of my own choosing. If The Song looked unable to fight near the end, I'd ask this same question for their fight as well.

Defeating an opponent doesn't always mean killing them. If they're unable to fight, then they'd be unable to stop you anyway.

Also, the way the two fight are way different. The Song was aggressive, The Beat mostly just ran away. Killing a seductive ho who turns into a possessive psycho is not the same as killing a kid who can't put up a fight.

[Cymorg]

Unfortunately the tagline for the game isn't 'The Jailer is the key, let them go and you'll be free'.
That and killing The Beat is meant to help push the player into choosing not to destroy the planet. A little bit of guilt helps some people to avoid choosing genocide.

[SoloWield]

I think in this game you are meant to be the villain which is why they don't offer the option of showing mercy to the opponents.

[Midnight Sky ✨🌙✨]

Originally posted by Lonerwurld:

Killing The Song was non-optional. She refused to let me proceed of my own choosing. If The Song looked unable to fight near the end, I'd ask this same question for their fight as well.

If you hang out in the area just before the fight with The Song, you get an extra ending where The Stranger chooses to stay with her.

Originally posted by Lonerwurld:

Defeating an opponent doesn't always mean killing them. If they're unable to fight, then they'd be unable to stop you anyway.

You mean like The Song in the cutscene after her fight where she just sits there waiting for you to finish her off?

Originally posted by Lonerwurld:

Also, the way the two fight are way different. The Song was aggressive, The Beat mostly just ran away. Killing a seductive ho who turns into a possessive psycho is not the same as killing a kid who can't put up a fight.

The Song isn't a psycho. She, along with everyone else there, was tasked with stopping you from leaving. She gave you a peaceful option and was turned down. Her hand was forced.

As for why The Beat ran away, it wasn't for fear of her life, it was to lure you into the range of the weapon designed specifically to kill you. She was as hostile to you as The Song, arguably more so as fighting you was Song's plan B, the only difference was that one knew she was out of her league and attacked you indirectly.

[omni]

Why on earth would the Beat let you through? You have to kill her. None of the Jailers aside from 6 will let you through without killing them because they have a very good reason not to.

[The Faceless Man]

Originally posted by Mr. Gency:

She gave you a peaceful option and was turned down. Her hand was forced.

Originally posted by Lonerwurld:

a seductive ho who turns into a possessive psycho

That's basically the same thing. I mean, really, before even knowing why the stranger was a prisoner, and having already had to kill several other jailers - who, mind you, fight like bastards with these extreme bullet hell abilities - why would he not keep going, even if only a little bit farther? This might as well just be another bastard fighting another kind of battle (manipulation). There was no kindness, since she wouldn't take no for an answer. Someone as selfish as that would be miserable to spend the rest of one's life with.

Originally posted by Wrex:

I think in this game you are meant to be the villain which is why they don't offer the option of showing mercy to the opponents.

That's kinda what I thought too. Dawned on me midway through the game that the stranger is in a "prison" at the top floor, and probably for a very good reason. Because I was so caught up in getting out of this prison, I didn't think how terrible it was until I saw the credits rolling. Was kinda a ♥♥♥♥♥♥ feeling, but then you gotta consider all the factors. The Star said a lot was at stake, so maybe this assimilation has to happen to make way for the stranger's people. (the clones don't really make that whole idea look very pleasant tho...)

[Hydra]

I mean if you choose to stay with the Song by waiting in her area for 5 mins or however long it was then you technically do spare the Beat. Although based on the other endings that may not work out so well for everyone in the long term.

[The Faceless Man]

honestly, i genuinely didn't want to kill The Song either. she seemed alright, up until she went psycho. they weren't putting up a fight, wasn't interested in what they were selling, naturally the conclusion is to avoid confrontation and carry on.

same thing with The Beat. she's got no fight left. why kill her? why end a life so helpless it can't defend itself? These two points are the strongest reasons I think:

Originally posted by Cymorg:

Unfortunately the tagline for the game isn't 'The Jailer is the key, let them go and you'll be free'.
That and killing The Beat is meant to help push the player into choosing not to destroy the planet. A little bit of guilt helps some people to avoid choosing genocide.

Originally posted by Wrex:

I think in this game you are meant to be the villain which is why they don't offer the option of showing mercy to the opponents.

[Midnight Sky ✨🌙✨]

Originally posted by Lonerwurld:

Originally posted by Mr. Gency:

She gave you a peaceful option and was turned down. Her hand was forced.

Originally posted by Lonerwurld:

a seductive ho who turns into a possessive psycho

That's basically the same thing. I mean, really, before even knowing why the stranger was a prisoner, and having already had to kill several other jailers - who, mind you, fight like bastards with these extreme bullet hell abilities - why would he not keep going, even if only a little bit farther? This might as well just be another bastard fighting another kind of battle (manipulation). There was no kindness, since she wouldn't take no for an answer. Someone as selfish as that would be miserable to spend the rest of one's life with.

Letting you go would've resulted in everything she knew and loved literally being destroyed, no ♥♥♥♥ she'd want to protect that. She couldn't afford to take no for an answer.

As a said before, her hand was forced.

And don't ignore the rest of my post.

[The Faceless Man]

Originally posted by Mr. Gency:

Letting you go would've resulted in everything she knew and loved literally being destroyed, no ♥♥♥♥ she'd want to protect that. She couldn't afford to take no for an answer.

As a said before, her hand was forced.

And don't ignore the rest of my post.

I didn't ignore the rest of your post, just the irrelevant portions. You seem to be ignoring the entirety of my posts.

The methods she used is consistent with the stereotypical psycho girlfriend who lies and manipulates to control. Whether her "hand was forced" or not, she disguised the means to keep you prisoner to be an olive branch.

Your hitting the troll border here by ignoring that (over and over) and constantly arguing her motivations were acceptable, and sure you can be right about that, I never disputed it. But her methods are what I'm talking about. As a prisoner, the motivations of your jailers are not relevant, because the pre-existing bias is that they want to keep you in jail.

What prisoner in the world trying to escape would think: "Oh, I get it now... She's got to stop me because I'm a bad person." -- cmon... really??? That's just not believable. If I'm already trying to escape, why the heck would I care???

You can keep going on and on and on and on about how her motivations are pure, but I just don't care. NO prisoner would. Maybe if you're a romantic-obsessed soap-opera-watching fangirl who obsesses over other peoples' motivations more than their actions, sure. But this is a male prisoner who has been tortured and would very much like to get out of prison. Maybe some exhausted players chose to accept her offer, but that's the other lower brain working, not the rational one.

As for killing The Song in the ending cutscene, she didn't look helpless. She gave in and accepted her death honorably (while guilt-tripping the stranger). That's way different after such a long battle. The Beat was still trying and was too naive to understand they couldn't win. Big difference.

If you've got more nonsense to talk about her motivations, I don't care, I will probably ignore it. Give some justification to her methods for a change, maybe then I'll listen.

[Midnight Sky ✨🌙✨]

I guess I was approaching this at the wrong angle.

If you can agree that The Song was justified in her actions, then I can agree that her behavior is comparable to a crazy girlfriend.

[Tilen]

Originally posted by Hydra:

I mean if you choose to stay with the Song by waiting in her area for 5 mins or however long it was then you technically do spare the Beat. Although based on the other endings that may not work out so well for everyone in the long term.

Omg so this *is* a thing?! I guess I didn't wait long enough. Haha, so glad that you actually *can* choose to stay. Awesome!

[Manta]

I feel we miss the point that the prison is designed so you can't open the gate without the guardian dying. Like it or not, if you want to go back to your mothership and stop them sending another Rider down, you have to kill the Beat. No-one said you had to like it.

(No, I have no idea how the voice unlocked his own door first, given he implicitly says he couldn't escape without you killing everyone).

[Eze]

Originally posted by Lonerwurld:

Killing The Song was non-optional. She refused to let me proceed of my own choosing. If The Song looked unable to fight near the end, I'd ask this same question for their fight as well.

Defeating an opponent doesn't always mean killing them. If they're unable to fight, then they'd be unable to stop you anyway.

Also, the way the two fight are way different. The Song was aggressive, The Beat mostly just ran away. Killing a seductive ho who turns into a possessive psycho is not the same as killing a kid who can't put up a fight.

if you stay like 5 minutes in the entry on Song Stage, it's a peaceful game over.