Do not use an old chapter autosave as the foundation for an ending run. The April 27 update replaced that system with manual saves at Sacred Firebowls, added a Load Game menu, and unlocks story-segment and chapter selection after a completed ending. Build a small chain of Firebowl saves first; the finale is much easier to branch once the earlier relationship work is protected.
Full-story spoilers follow. This page separates three major outcomes from the many short departures collected in the ending gallery. It does not use the unsupported fan-site model of fixed 30/50/80/100 bond tiers. The game exposes progress through the Field Notes, Spirit entries, blessings, runes, and final choices rather than an officially published four-tier formula.
Keep four saves, not one finale backup
- First clear: preserve a blind or mostly natural playthrough before its final summit decision.
- Before Kannu Tunnel: keep a file from before the last Blessings, murals, tablets, and Field Notes checks.
- Before the summit sequence: save after the final Firebowl audit but before carrying Ren into the ending.
- Short-ending sandbox: use a separate slot for retreats, refusals, and deliberate failures. Reload it immediately after the gallery records the result.
The developer update also carries photo achievements and Notebook records into a second playthrough. That makes cleanup faster, but it does not prove that every single-playthrough gate can be assembled by chapter hopping. Treat the Peak route as one continuous run until its ending records successfully.
The official names are Prism and Peak
Steam’s current achievement page gives two authoritative labels:
- Home — reach the Prism Ending.
- Farewell Itself — reach the Peak Ending.
Two independent 100% Steam guides describe three major gallery outcomes. Their localized labels are commonly translated as Ending A, Ending B, and the Astrological or perfect Ending C. These labels do not map cleanly to every English menu string, so use the in-game ending gallery and Steam achievement names as the final check.
Prism Ending: complete the journey without forcing the full-note gate
A normal completion records the standard major outcome and is the reliable route to Home. Keep moving toward the summit, carry Ren when the path asks for it, and finish the last photographic sequence. You do not need to manufacture a low relationship or skip every optional photograph to see this route.
The alternate final-photo outcome
The community guides record a second major result around the last multi-shot sequence: allow the sequence to reach its final frame, then decline that last photograph. Make the summit save before testing this choice. After the credits, check the gallery rather than assuming the route registered from the cutscene alone.
A separate hidden achievement also reacts to the shutter decision at Nevergone Peak. Because translated community descriptions join these two moments inconsistently, do not overwrite the pre-summit file after only one branch. Record the gallery tile and Steam pop separately, reload, and choose the opposite shutter action.
Peak Ending: remove every known missing requirement
The strongest cross-guide agreement is that the Peak route needs a complete Spirit-reading run, not merely a friendly final answer. Before leaving the last Firebowl, verify all of the following:
- All eleven Spirit identities and their available Field Notes statements are resolved.
- Every Spirit’s Blessing from Homeland has been seen in Kannu Tunnel.
- The fire alphabet is complete, including the final tablet beside the Nevergone Peak Firebowl.
- All available star or constellation note pieces have been attached.
- The late murals have appeared and been researched. Murals 29 and 30 do not appear on the rear-left rock face until the first 28 are present.
- Important photographs requested by Spirit flames have been offered, and the Notes have been read from beginning to end after the last update.
One guide reports an 80 percent relationship floor and all constellations plus decoded tablets; another gives all eleven Blessings and the complete fire script as the core Ending C requirement. Neither is an official formula. The safe route is therefore to finish the full Spirit and Notebook state rather than stop at a claimed minimum. If Farewell Itself does not unlock, compare the live Notes against those state checks before replaying the final cutscene.
Finish the eleven Spirit profiles before chasing a percentage
The Field Notes ask Eugene to connect each Spirit with someone from his life. The projections below are the useful end-state checks. Names and wording may differ by localization, but the relationships are consistent across the two detailed Steam guides.
| Spirit | Projection to record | High-value route behavior |
|---|---|---|
| Sambar deer | Grandpa | Record the camera, runes, inner development, and Embershine-petal clues; photograph the deer. |
| Ox / water buffalo | Father | Offer to help it see itself and acknowledge the route it opens. |
| Local dog | First love | Sit with the dog, recognize its long wait, and finish its station memories. |
| Goat | Photography mentor | Complete the travel, smile, and desire-to-meet-the-Seer statements. |
| Mountain boar | Childhood best friend | Connect home with friends, take the group portrait, and finish the reconciliation notes. |
| Bear | Former boss | Record the wish that the Seer live well and learn to say goodbye. |
| Pangolin | Close friend | Use the third name option when supported by the Notes; choose gratitude rather than blame. |
| Weasel | Former coworker | Use the third name option, then complete the regret and apology thread. |
| Unicorn | Ex-wife | Frame the Spirit with the projected film, ask the Seer not to run, and take the embrace branch. |
| Salmon | Mother | Restore both window portraits, wish the Seer strength, and say that she was truly seen. |
| Butterfly | Daughter | Complete the purple-light, Ren-name, wings, and daughter entries before the final tunnel. |
Do not chase only the large identity answer. Smaller observations, a Spirit portrait, requested flame photographs, and dialogue choices all fill the same profile. Open each page at the final Firebowl and resolve visible blanks before trusting the overall completion figure.
Short endings belong on the sandbox file
The gallery contains 23 short departures in addition to the three major outcomes. They usually appear when Eugene abandons the climb, accepts a Spirit’s invitation to remain, leaves Ren behind, or deliberately fails a dangerous interaction. The following triggers are the most consistently described across the detailed guides:
| Checkpoint | Branch to test | Reload rule |
|---|---|---|
| First Abyss / first meeting | Refuse the upward route; on the next branch, walk down the mountain without approaching Ren. | Reload before walking close enough to start her automatic scene. |
| After the deer portrait | Turn away from the intended route and keep climbing back. | Return after the gallery tile records. |
| Arrival at the factory | Immediately retreat toward the mountain instead of entering. | Reload before collecting factory dependencies. |
| Void conversations | Select the invitation to remain twice. Different Spirits offer this in several chapters. | Keep each chapter’s Void save until its lettered ending is registered. |
| Abandoned railway | At the rail end, choose to climb down. | Reload before the boar’s gift and memory route. |
| Nameless City | After reaching the city, backtrack all the way to its entrance. | Use the city Firebowl save. |
| Seer Theater | Enter the projected screen and immediately turn back. | Reload before continuing the Unicorn path. |
| Butterfly path / red water | Walk directly into the water rather than following the safe return. | Reload before the Spirit rescue dialogue. |
| Temple route | Keep descending away from the summit; later, turn back after reaching the tunnel. | Use separate saves for the descent and tunnel retreat. |
| Cabin exterior | Return toward the tunnel, or choose to climb alone when Ren should accompany Eugene. | Reload before the television sequence. |
| Darkroom | Use the wrong processing order twice. | Reload and use Develop, Stop, Fix, then Rinse for the main route. |
| Nightwaters Void | Accept the salmon’s invitation to remain twice. | Reload before presenting the two face photographs. |
| Divine Fire Path | Refuse to ride the bicycle when the Shade arrives. | Reload so the deliberate failure does not contaminate a no-rescue run. |
Some community tables reuse or mistranslate letter labels around the temple and cabin, even when the trigger itself is clear. This is why the article identifies checkpoints and actions instead of pretending every fan-translated letter is stable. The in-game gallery is the deciding record.
If the expected ending does not register
- The cutscene played but Steam did not pop: check the gallery first, then replay from the pre-summit manual save. Early guides recorded inconsistent post-launch achievement behavior.
- Peak still routes to Prism: verify all eleven Blessings, the final fire character, the late two murals, constellation pages, and every unresolved Spirit identity.
- A short ending will not trigger: back away before the scene’s automatic approach boundary, or select the remain/refusal answer a second time.
- Chapter Select loses the route state you expected: use it for discovery, then reproduce all single-run requirements on a continuous save.
- An old guide says manual saves do not exist: update the client. That statement predates the April 27 save overhaul.
The official Steam listing and SIGONO announcement feed establish the game identity, the Prism/Peak achievement names, and the current save/second-playthrough tools. Ending actions were reconciled between two detailed 100% Steam guides, with the supplied warning-banner English guide used only as an additional cross-check. Fixed bond thresholds from fan wiki pages, trainer claims, and the incorrect four-ending-tier model were not used.