FEED THE AI does not ask you to choose an ending in a final dialogue box. The route is already visible on the Karma bar: Tyrant on the negative third, Rational around zero, and Protector on the positive third. The selected AI Perks move that marker after rounds, and the alignment active when Chapter 4 resolves determines which path the main menu records.
Launch-build boundary: the route and Prestige effects below were checked on August 25, 2026. Read the current perk card before relying on a percentage; the alignment logic, round-complete readback, and Finished Paths check are more durable than launch balance values.
Read the bar before selecting a second perk
The AI Perks screen explicitly says that cards can be changed at any time. Each unlocked slot offers one red Tyrant card, one blue Rational card, and one yellow Protector card. The card prints both its combat or economy tradeoff and its Karma movement:
| Choice | Karma movement shown on cards | Path check | What to watch |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tyrant | Moves downward, commonly -10 per round per selected card | Marker in the red negative band | Power can shift toward Malware or Virus effects while visibility or Finder behavior changes |
| Rational | Moves toward 0 and stops there | Marker in the blue center band; 0 is the cleanest readback | Often supports Discharge and avoids an extreme Karma penalty |
| Protector | Moves upward, commonly +10 per round per selected card | Marker in the yellow positive band | Finder or Vision support may come with range or critical tradeoffs |
Multiple active slots can contribute in the same round. Do not estimate alignment from the color of the newest card. The ROUND COMPLETED panel shows the resulting Karma and highlights the current band; that panel is the authoritative check after every change.
A late reversal costs the full distance across the bar
Switching is allowed, but allowed is not the same as cheap. Moving from +100 Protector to -100 Tyrant requires a 200-point correction. The first verified run experimented with Protector, reached the positive extreme, then changed all available cards to Tyrant during Chapter 1. The route recovered and finished Tyrant, but it needed enough additional rounds for the marker to cross Rational and reach red.
If you notice the wrong band, change every unlocked slot to the intended alignment at once, play one round, and read the net movement on the results panel. Divide the remaining distance by that observed per-round change rather than guessing how many sessions remain. Newly unlocked slots can accelerate the correction, but each also brings a gameplay tradeoff that may alter clear speed.
Hold Tyrant instead of bouncing through Rational
For a Tyrant route from a fresh 0, take the red choice in the first unlocked slot and keep later slots red. The launch build’s first visible Tyrant card favors Malware range and attack speed and moves Karma by -10 per round; later cards use different effects. Keep playing until the round-complete marker is inside the red third. Reaching -100 also unlocks Absolute Control, so an all-red run can settle the ending and the maximum-Tyrant achievement together.
At negative extremes, the Karma track can make nearby Data run away and reduce Finder light range while granting Virus deployments and other offensive benefits. Compensate with movement and coverage upgrades. If the Finder spends the last seconds chasing fleeing Data through darkness, the build is aligned correctly but economically under-supported.
Before finishing the last Chapter 4 purchase or progress gate, complete one ordinary round and confirm that red remains highlighted. The verified -100 run returned to a red AI on the main menu with TYRANT illuminated under Finished Paths. That menu state—not a remembered perk selection—is the completion proof.
Keep Protector positive through the final chapter
For Protector, select yellow cards as slots unlock and use the round panel to confirm positive movement. The first launch card grants Finder damage and Vision Orb range while adding +10 Karma per round, but other Protector cards have different costs. At the far positive end, Data is attracted toward the Finder, while Finder attack range and critical chance can be reduced. Attraction helps collection only if the Finder can still kill what gathers around it.
Reaching +100 unlocks You’re Safe With Me. Once there, avoid clicking a blue Rational card merely because its Discharge effect looks strong: a Rational card pulls the marker back toward zero. If you need its combat effect for one difficult stretch, note the exact positive balance first and leave enough rounds to restore the yellow band before Chapter 4 completes.
The verified Protector run ended with +100 visible during late rounds and returned to the main menu with Protector added to Finished Paths. Narrative dialogue differs, but the operational route is entirely visible before the ending: yellow perk selections, positive round readback, then a yellow completed-path label.
Make Rational stop at zero
Rational is not “pick a mixture and hope.” Blue cards explicitly move Karma toward 0 and stop when it reaches 0. Select Rational in every active slot, run a session, and compare the before-and-after values. If the marker is already at 0, leave the set stable. A run with no selected perks can also remain at 0, but zero Perks is a voluntary challenge, not an ending requirement.
The third verified playthrough stayed at 0 through Chapters 1 to 4 and returned with all three labels illuminated. If a red and yellow mixture also happens to net zero, it can produce Rational, but it is harder to audit because a newly unlocked slot can disturb the balance. All-blue cards or an empty set gives a clearer failure signal.
There is no separate maximum-Rational achievement in Steam’s 20-item list. The reason to finish Rational is its distinct path and its Prestige card. That makes it a natural third run after the two extreme-Karma achievements are already secured.
Verify the ending in two places
- On the final round-complete panel, record the numeric Karma and highlighted band.
- Let the Chapter 4 completion and ending sequence finish; do not quit during the final dialogue.
- At the main menu, inspect Finished Paths. The completed alignment is illuminated; unfinished labels remain muted.
- Open Prestige and verify that the matching effect card is no longer UNKNOWN.
If the menu records a different path, the save is not broken. It means the final active band differed from the intended card color. Start the next run, align all unlocked slots, and use the shorter feedback loop above. Finished Paths persist across the observed Prestige runs.
Prestige effects must be activated, not merely unlocked
Prestige appears after a completed path. Its screen says that finishing each alignment unlocks an additional effect assigned to that AI type and that effects can be activated there. The launch-build cards read:
| Completed path | Unlocked Prestige effect | Useful readback |
|---|---|---|
| Tyrant | +2 Virus Deployments and +10% Income | Card says ACTIVE before the next start |
| Rational | +10% Discharge Chance per Finder Attack and +10% Income | Discharge card is visible and can be toggled ACTIVE |
| Protector | +15% Light Pulse Chance per Finder Attack and +10% Income | Light Pulse card says ACTIVE |
Unlocked and active are separate states. Open Prestige before pressing Start, click the desired cards, and confirm ACTIVE at the bottom of each. After all three paths, the verified fourth run began with all three effects active and no AI Perks selected. That demonstrates that Prestige bonuses and Karma cards are independent systems: the former can stack between completed paths, while the latter determine the current run’s alignment.
Use a three-run order that leaves a clean audit trail
A practical sequence is Tyrant, Protector, then Rational. It is the order observed across the supplied series, and it has a useful logic: the Tyrant card adds early autonomous deployments and income, Protector adds Light Pulse and another income bonus, and Rational completes the set while naturally returning Karma to 0. It is a recommended audit order, not the only valid order.
On every new run, check three things before the first session: the intended Prestige cards say ACTIVE, the Karma marker starts where expected, and the first AI Perk uses the intended color. Keep a simple record of final Karma and the new Finished Paths label. Those two readbacks prevent a seven-hour multi-run plan from depending on memory.
Use the recordings only for the path they actually show
The three embedded parts were independently matched to local files, Sronmar’s channel, public titles, durations, UI, and adjacent timeline. Part 3 contains the Tyrant ending and first Prestige screen; Part 5 contains the Protector ending and the Rational restart; Part 6 completes Rational and shows all three Prestige cards. They support observed state transitions, not a permanent claim that every perk percentage will remain unchanged.
Sources and credits: the official Steam listing establishes the three alignments, multiple endings, and Prestige premise. The developer’s release notice confirms that the full Steam build includes all perks, alignments, and endings. The embedded Sronmar series was used as a verified walkthrough reference for the exact round, menu, ending, and Prestige readbacks.