Canonic ending is figured out.

[Winchester]

I think I've figured out the canonic ending, or at least I've figured a part of it.

During the game, a player has a choice, to steal infiltrator's CPU or not to do it. However, without the CPU stolen, Connor would never send T101 in the past, what means that in canonic ending, CPU has to be reprogramed by Mack, because from the movie "Terminator 2", we know that the terminator has been sent.

This fact leads us to another part of the puzzle. In the movie, Sarah, John and Terminator cancelled a Judgement day, or at least postponed it. However, at the end of the game, if we sellect an option to send Jacob in the past, we see him helping his pastself to survive. But hey, the Judgement day has been cancelled (or postponed), what means, he couldn't have to be in the same timeline, he had to appear in a peacefull time, or in other war, that had started in 2003.

These facts are telling us that Jacob decided to stay at his timeline and enjoy his conquered future. Speaking about his friends, I think that at least Jenifer and Patrick survived. In his ending, if they die, at the end Jacob says, that he would have done everything to return time back and convince them to leave the shelter. Without Jenifer dead, Jacob had no use to go back in time.

What do you think about my theories?

[JStryker47]

I like to think that the Jacob who helped his past self didn't actually die, and that Connor's men found him and revived him. And after he came to, he was given a note from Connor, commending him for his work and telling him to go to a certain location to find a reward. Upon arriving there, he'd see Jennifer and Jacob arriving, having been given similar instructions.

[Winchester]

Originally posted by JStryker47:

I like to think that the Jacob who helped his past self didn't actually die, and that Connor's men found him and revived him. And after he came to, he was given a note from Connor, commending him for his work and telling him to go to a certain location to find a reward. Upon arriving there, he'd see Jennifer and Jacob arriving, having been given similar instructions.

I doubt that Jacob's futureself didn't die, we've seen him lying with open eyece, not moving. I think he is dead. However, his presentself couldn't have gone to the past again, because due to the events from "Terminator 2", he couldn't have arrived to the same timeline.

[Lukster Lee]

Its a little confusing to me. Kyle Reese, the T-1000, and T-101 always have to go back in time. So it would to seem to reason that Jacob too should have gone back in time, otherwise a volunteer that John Connor would have to send back in time would have to be exactly briefed on the whereabouts of Rivers at all times.

Also I think they have gotten in wrong making Rivers as a man, in the T2 cutscene with the older John Connor, there is a woman soldier standing guard right behind me closest to the minigunner. I think it would be would have been more accurate to make the MC a woman.

[Xavi-Da-Imp]

Originally posted by Zhive Belarus:

Originally posted by JStryker47:

I like to think that the Jacob who helped his past self didn't actually die, and that Connor's men found him and revived him. And after he came to, he was given a note from Connor, commending him for his work and telling him to go to a certain location to find a reward. Upon arriving there, he'd see Jennifer and Jacob arriving, having been given similar instructions.

I doubt that Jacob's futureself didn't die, we've seen him lying with open eyece, not moving. I think he is dead. However, his presentself couldn't have gone to the past again, because due to the events from "Terminator 2", he couldn't have arrived to the same timeline.

To be fair, it would be kinda cool, if the future Jacob does not die, present Jacob goes back in time to save himself and the future Jacob takes his place in the past with all his pals he tried to save by going back in time :)

Something like in ME2 suicide mission - you do everything right and future Jacob survives.

[Babalonkie]

You forget timelines...

Cannon, is the human resistance beating the machines... and the machines sending back terminators to change the outcome just before failure... but doing so they created different realities/outcomes/timelines... which changed the past in someway... then leading up to the future of that timeline... they send them back with different circumstances...

There is only one true timeline... and that is now Terminator Resistance as it's the only story that got the furthest in the original circumstances... even the original films are technically alternate realities... as the terminators came from THIS timeline... and then their actions altered the future slightly...

Welcome to the world of paradoxes. Trust me... it's not worth the brain power lol

[BathSaltShaman]

EDIT: I apologize for the novel but I have had way way WAYYYY too much time on my hands to think about this. Sorry if any of this is confusing.

First off it all depends on how one see the ending of "Judgement Day." In my eyes, I see the ending of T2 as intentionally open ended to leave the viewer with the choice to decide based on their personal views towards the concept of fate. Did they change anything? Or was this exactly how it was supposed to go down? Arguing that Dyson's role in Judgement Day, as mentioned by the T-800, was already complete, with his work being preserved elsewhere or copies existing in the hands of the people Dyson mentions that say "Don't ask" when it comes to the arm's origins. Meaning that the Dyson from T-800's timeline died at Cyberdyne aswell and the reason it doesn't mention anything about knowing that or the outcome of destroying Cyberdyne is because Dyson at that point was no longer relevant to SkyNet and the information of that incident/his demise/life after his initial inception of the chip weren't archived by SkyNet.

Terminator 3 exists, yes, but so do 3 other sequels with their own continuity and this game is set squarely in the OG universe so if one was to view T3 as another "what-if" there is where the fork in the road could exist.

MY TWO THEORIES DEPENDING ON T2 ENDING TIMELINE:


1. (If the game takes place in the timeline where Sarah and John alter the future):

Reese arrives from the Original timeline where humanity triumphed and SkyNet sent the single T-800 to kill Sarah which Reese followed and sired John, with the remnants of the destroyed T-800 being picked up by Cyberdyne. Without the intervention of John and "Uncle Bob" Sarahs stuck in Pescadaro until Judgement Day. God knows what happens between then and 2029.
However, history deviates because Skynet gets Rivers name somehow and sends the Future Infiltrator from the game back in time to kill him, along with delivering the completed designs for the Time Displacement Chamber and probably the T-1000 aswell so that SkyNet can get ahead of schedule (as mentioned by Mack in the final encounter with him). This sets in motion both the game and the opportunity for the war to be prevented or postponed. When Rivers either arrives in the 2028 of the T3 timeline or the one where Judgement Day never happened and spends the rest of his days enjoying human civilization as he never knew it. If he doesn't go back the substitute experiences the same.

2.(If the game takes place in the timeline where Cyberdyne and Dyson's destruction was always part of the plan and so is the third Terminator):

Details mentioned at the top of the post about the plausibility of T2 being part of the paradox. John's gasp if told you don't have the chip is because he experienced T2 and thus was left was his jewels in his hand because he doesnt have the T-800 he was counting on. However, as I see it, canonically Rivers would have the chip to deliver to Connor. The Rivers you play as and the future Rivers are actually the same that both had identical experiences as a result of the paradox. Future Rivers knew Jennifer, Ryan and the rest and drops in to guide you and them out of harms way throughout the game. The thing about that is, is that River's path runs into them in the first place BECAUSE HE WAS FLEEING THE FUTURE INFILTRATOR THAT DESTROYED PACIFIC DIVISION. Therefore, Future Rivers encountered the infiltrator just the same. Where the cords tangle here is Future Rivers memory of the core location being incorrect and why Skynet would still send the 3rd terminator back despite meeting the same fate it was warned of by it. Perhaps offscreen, the Future Rivers actually pursued the System Core to the same location its destroyed at at the end of the game, however, discovers it not being there and presumes the SkyNet from where he came switched it and this time it could actually be at the observatory this time. So because of that he doesn't write it off totally as trap and humors the idea because logically future SkyNet WOULD instruct its past self to change the location/screw with him. But because the Resistance is going to assault the observatory SkyNet still has to move it, the only safe habitual location being either Colorado or wherever the division sent to destroy it finds it. Laying a trap at the observatory all the same ("Damn it! I should have expected this!) SkyNet still sends the third Terminator back because it still believes history can be changed because it thinks its sending it back with different info this time, unaware its actually telling it the same things and its how the Infiltrator processes/acts on it all leads it to the same path.

Tl;dr information and communication issue's on both Future River's/Present River's SkyNet's/Future SkyNets ends results in paradox where they all think history is being fought for/changed but actually are towing the line because of outside factors all involved are oblivious to. History playing out exactly the way it always did with no actual variations.

Rivers cannot actually allow a substitute to take his place because said substitute wouldn't know everything Rivers does about events leading up and could jeopardize Rivers life, Tech-Com's chance at achieving victory and the future of mankind. Out of love for Jennifer and her brother, wanting to ensure them a future where they will never have to worry about SkyNet, Rivers volunteers to go back as hes supposed to. Hoping for a better outcome on his end but willingly and consciously sacrificing his life to protect them, and all of mankind.

I personally subscribe to the 2nd of the two because Rivers solemnly sacrificing himself to ensure the survival of humanity is as Terminator as it gets.

[ZEKE]

well, the whole terminator universe got so confusing after every release that at this point in life I just think that James Cameron never actually cared too much, if not at all, about timelines, he only wanted a killer cyborg movie

[meatballs_21]

You can’t prevent Judgement Day from happening, that’s the whole point - John Connor is a great military leader, but he is also armed with something Skynet can’t beat: foreknowledge that he wins. He has the GameFAQs guide or save scums or whatever you’d care to call it.

Does Skynet know this? Does Skynet figure it out? Maybe. Maybe it knows the story of the arm and chip from 1984 that Dyson reverse engineered and figures out the paradox. Or maybe it just realizes that (as we see in the game) the Resistance is winning. Baron tells you they almost won once already. This likely drove Skynet, which is paranoid and desperate to preserve its own existence, into a frenzy of wacky ideas, including beheading the Resistance before it even starts with the TDE. To hedge its bets, it sends two after John (does it somehow know the first fails but is essential to its own development?) and a third after Rivers in the hopes that one of the three will change the course of history?

[Babalonkie]

Originally posted by meatballs_21:

You can’t prevent Judgement Day from happening

Dont forget, Cyberdyne (The creators of SkyNet) based everything on the terminator arm and chip... caused by a "time machine in the future". Also don't forget, that the actions of T2 stopped judgement day. But all "possible" because of a time machine. "No fate but what we make".

But all is irrelevant and just theoretical sci-fi... as time displacement is physically impossible... and no... black holes do not allow warp or time travel lol (Sorry sci-fi fans). Time is history of physical existence, what happens... happens and cannot be undone or changed. Also... "time" is just a measurement, nothing can actually change time as by doing so is simple changing the mathematics of time at a certain location (Nowhere else)... it's like winding back a clock... all your doing is changing that specific mathematical calculation... time itself has not changed at all... time will continue as normal outside, time is persistent and nonadjustable... (EG a black hole. If you go into a black hole, time continues like normal as nothing changed... it also just means your molecules just get crushed into none existence lol).

Time travel is a sci-fi creation with zero scientific physics... it does allow for a good story telling though with the ability to change lore/past in that specific reality... but that reality is just a fictional Story. You can re-write a story... you cant rewrite historic existence.

[LT1956]

Exactly, I agree 100% The paradox alone shows is not possible. But its great theater. lol

[LT1956]

I agree, the Best ending is saving all the people you came with and then not going back. It makes no sense to have to go back unless you messed up and got them killed. It seemed the future you went back to fix the mistakes he made like losing Jennifer.

[BathSaltShaman]

Originally posted by LT1956:

I agree, the Best ending is saving all the people you came with and then not going back. It makes no sense to have to go back unless you messed up and got them killed. It seemed the future you went back to fix the mistakes he made like losing Jennifer.

True. I thought the time travel ending was intended as the "because everyone was killed big regretti" ending. It could still be, but the most "Terminator" ending I could see would be him saving everyone but, not willing to risk someone elses life or the timeline, still going back so he can complete the loop to ensure that history still leads to mankinds victory. He knows it will end in his death but he still goes through, consciously martyring himself to secure the future of mankind and a world where Patrick and Jennifer can live out their days free from SkyNet.

Connor does say to you at the end something like: "Are you willing to sacrifice your future in order to protect your past?"

[masterthespian]

I don’t understand. If I’m done timeline Jacob goes back but doesn’t die and then his future past self survives as well then doesn’t go back in time, then there are two Jacobs.

Or he does go back but the Jacob from the future doesn’t die and can live in that timeline.