Summary
Endings in games are almost always, well, at the end. But what if we told you that sometimes they aren’t. Sometimes a game will squirrel away an ending or two in the earlier part of the game. A number of these endings require defeating a tremendously difficult boss, or overcoming some other challenge, while others are accessed by choosing the correct dialogue options.
The primary goal here is to collect those noteworthy endings that you can acquire before finishing the mainline content of the game. We’ve already got a list tackling endings that you can acquire at the very beginning of the game, so we’ll be avoiding those. Instead, all of these endings will come once you are well into the game, but before you have faced off against the final boss.
As we already said in the above paragraph, we will be avoiding the endings you can get at the very beginning of the game. I’m also going to avoid doubling up on the same series, as I think it is less fun when a list is filled with different entries from the same franchise.
Oh, and one more arbitrary caveat, we’re avoiding theChronoandNierseries. Both franchises feature games that have dozens of endings, and we feel like everyone already knows about them (though don’t get me wrong, I love both franchises).
9Koudelka
That Pendant’s Probably Not Important…
There is a unique breed of early ending that feels like it is partially an elaborate game over of sorts. My favorite example of this type of ending is found in Koudelka. As you confront Elaine, she will fire a massive beam of light at your party, at which point Koudelka will shield the party using her pendant.
Well, unless, that is, you toss the pendant away. At which point, your party will be consumed by the beam, have their flesh melt, and collapse on the floor in a pile of blood and bones.Cool!
This ending is actually harder to get than you may think, as if you don’t have the pendant when you enter into the final area, you will get it by killing regular enemies. You’ll likely need to willfully discard that pendant more than once in order to achieve this gruesome conclusion.
Another great fakeout ending is inMonkey Island 2. When Guybrush and Wally are strung up above the giant vat of acid, if you just wait, the candle will eventually burn through the rope, and both wannabe pirates will be lowered into the caustic chemicals screaming. Elaine doesn’t buy it, of course, so you’ll be forced to repeat the puzzle, but it is a great scene nonethless.
8Contra: Hardcorps
From its incredible, tight, run and gun gameplay, to its fantastic array of bosses,Contra: Hardcorpsismanythings, but narrative-heavy is not one of them. So, it may surprise you to hear that there is a secret ending hidden partway through the game.
At the end of the third level, just as you are about to approach the boss' room, there’s a giant wall you’re able to scale. Climb that wall, and you’ll encounter an odd man who will take you to fight a strange, alternate reality version of Simon Belmont (named Simon Belmondo). As a reward for beating this hidden boss, you will earn an ending where you are sent back in time and marry a monkey. Hardcorps is an odd game, eh?
7Revelations: Persona
A VeryCoolAlternate Ending
This is an odd one, as it isn’t just an alternate ending, but an entire alternate route. By pursuing the Snow Queen quest, you will skip the majority ofRevelations: Persona. However, in its place you will need to complete three dungeons. You will also have access to a party member you typically lose at the mid-way point of the game.
Like the other PS1 Persona titles, Revelations iscriminally underrated. There aren’t many games that do anythinghalfas cool as the Snow Queen Quest. However, be warned, while the Snow Queen Quest is much shorter than the primary campaign, it is also pretty tough. However, as a reward, you get acompletely differentending that has acompletely differentresolution, and sees you overcome acompletely differentprimary threat. How cool is that? It’s ice-cold!
If you are reading the above example, and angrily crossing your arms because this alternate path feels like it shouldn’t be on this list of hidden endings, I’ve come bearing an olive branch. Persona 4 features a number of pretty grim endings based around what you do with Namatame, with the darkest ending involving tossing him into the TV.
Persona 5 gives you the option to bring the game to a close early by giving Sae-san all the wrong answers in the interrogation room. This’ll earn you anotherprettydark ending. All these endings simply require you to play your cards right. Well, since they are all some permutation of bad ending, we guess we should say that you need to play your cardswrong.
6Prey
Nuts To This, I’m Out
Of all the hidden alternate endings, this is one of the more interesting examples. InPrey, 2017’sexcellent immersive sim, you can find the pass code to Alex’s escape pod and rid yourself of the space station and all the horror that lies within it.
But that’s not all there is to this ending. You’ll also hear Alex talk about how this result was surprising, and how you “aren’t the one”. It is all very mysterious, and hints at how things may be happening behind the scenes that, at the point of reaching the escape pod, you wouldn’t otherwise have had a whiff of.
This isn’t the only game that gives you the opportunity to run away. The firstClocktowergame famously allows the player to escape early, and in theWay of the Warriorgames you are free to walk away at any time.
5Tales Of Destiny
Defeat Leon, Avoid The Primary Conflict
The beginning ofTales of Destinysees Stahn, Rudi, and Mary bumbling around the world somewhat aimlessly. Their “goal” in the early goings is to head out to a aristrocrat’s mansion and make a bundle teaching his inept son how to sword fight. That is, of course, until destiny intervenes in the form of a moody swordsman named Leon, and you are roped into an epic adventure.
Or, you know, you could just beat Leon, and teach some snot-nosed brat how to swing a sword. And that is exactly what happens if you grind, grind, and grind some more. Leon iswaybeyond your grasp if you are playing the game as you should, but heisbeatable. It just takes an absurd amount of tedious leveling. Is this ending worth the grinding? Oh god no. All you get is a few lines of text saying your team went on to become legendary lens hunters. The end. Bruh. I just walked in circles for, like, ten hours.
4Furi
Furi? More Like Passiviti!
For those unaware, Furi is a game that fuses action and bullet hell-shooter gameplay styles. You fight your way through a series of multiphasic boss battles, bopping your head to the fantastic soundtrack. Midway through the game, you’ll encounter The Song. This is where things get interesting.
Unlike the other bosses, she’ll offer you a compromise. You can hang out with her in a paradise-like environment. Naturally, most players are going to refuse this offer and get back to the twitchy gameplay. But thisisa sincere offer. If you hang out in the garden instead of progressing forward, a cutscene will trigger after a few minutes. And just like that, level heads will prevail, and you’ll get to witness a substantially more peaceful conclusion.
3Sekiro
This Shura Is A Bleak Ending
Sekirois obviously a game known for its intense difficulty. However, oddly enough, despite this list being packed with endings that are achievable only through intensely difficult challenges, this alternate ending is aneasierpath to completion. Which isn’t to say that you will have an easy time on your way to this ending: it is still Sekiro.
The Shura Ending is most notable in that once you are on the Shura ending path, you will fight two unique bosses: Emma the Gentle Blade and an alternate form of Isshin Ashina. The shura ending itself isprettygrim, seeing Wolf become the Shura, going on to cause death and destruction, but you had to know that was coming once you stabbed Emma to death.
2Devil May Cry 5
Not Getting This Ending Is A Skill Issue
Devil May Cry 5marked a triumphant return for the franchise. It is a visual feast from front to back, and features some of the best gameplay found in a series known for its top-tier gameplay. It all starts with a bang-up brawl against the invincible Urizen in the prologue chapter. Well,nearlyinvincible.
you’re able to, if you are an absolute Devil May Cryfiend, beat Urizen. You’ll only have one go at it, as losing will trigger the game to continue as it normally would. And your reward is… a photo of the protagonist with a line of text that reads “And everyone lived happily ever after.” Come on, Capcom, we just moved a mountain here, give us alittlemore than that.
1Undertale
“Don’t You Have Anything Better To Do?”
Undertale’s early ending is another one that will require you to push through an extreme challenge. You will need to enter your name as “Frisk”. From there, you will enter Hard Mode (cue the guitar wail).
In Hard Mode, the enemies you encounter will be different, and their patterns are brutal. However, Hard Mode isn’t the entire game; it ends once you beat Toriel. In typical Undertale fashion, you will be rewarded with a healthy dollop of silliness, before Tammy shoes you away.
