In “Slay the Princess,”players encounter two deities trapped within the Construct, facing an unending cycle of conflict. The pivotal question remains: Will you eliminate Her, forge an escape together, or succumb to the dreariness of eternal oblivion?
This narrative-driven game features multiple branching pathways, leading to a variety of outcomes based on your choices. Players have the opportunity to unlock different endings, which may occur either prematurely or during the endgame when attempting to deliver all five vessels to the Shifting Mound.
Since the introduction of the Pristine Cut update, a new conclusion has been added, increasing the tally of primary endings to a total of seven.
Set against a backdrop of psychological horror, this game transcends mere jump scares, delving deep into themes of existential dread and cyclical violence.
Warning: This game is ideally experienced without prior knowledge. Major spoilers for the ending of Slay the Princess ahead!
1. The “Good”Ending
Achieve the Ultimate Redemption
Obtaining the “Good”ending requires you to adhere strictly to the Narrator’s commands: slay the Princess and accept the offer of eternal “paradise,” which ultimately equates to a void of nothingness.
This conclusion is achieved when you resolve to slay the princess without any doubt in Chapter 1’s first loop and depart the basement assured of her demise.
Upon receiving your reward of eternal emptiness, you embrace this fate, resulting in a game that concludes prematurely.
While this is the most straightforward and least compelling ending, the developers are aware of its simplicity, providing a hastily drawn ending card for “saving the world.”Essentially, this serves as a joke ending, anticipating that some players may seek to expedite their experience.
2. Just As You Were Once Nothing
Fade Into Oblivion
In stark contrast, the “worst”ending yields a fate of both you and the Princess trapped in a state of incompleteness, ultimately fading into nonexistence.
This ending materializes if you refuse to enter the cabin in Chapters 2 and 3, depriving the Shifting Mound of a vessel prior to the Long Quiet.
After achieving Chapter 2, you must consistently reject any interaction with the cabin. If you deliver a vessel, you will block yourself from this ending, necessitating a restart.
The achievements linked to this outcome are named after the five stages of grief, as the Shifting Mound starts to comprehend her inability to prevent both of you from descending into oblivion.
3. There Are No Endings
Ascend as Deities
As we approach the climactic conclusion, following a reflective discussion with the Echo, you stand before the Shifting Mound for the final encounter.
The Shifting Mound yearns for liberation from the Construct. By accepting her hand, you collapse the construct, granting both of you the freedom to navigate the vastness of the universe as newly minted deities.
This ending unfolds if you play through the game naturally and accept her proposition to escape together, endlessly transitioning between universes.
While seemingly peaceful, this ending effectively dooms countless worlds to extinction. Unless you fully embrace the Princess’s worldview, this ending may not represent a positive outcome for your character.
4. A New And Unending Dawn
Eliminate Her Once and For All
If you reject the Shifting Mound’s offer, you will engage in a climactic “boss fight,”where the entity invokes the five vessels you’ve provided as she attempts to persuade you towards her side, dismissing your perspective entirely.
The Voice of the Hero reappears to guide you back to the cabin, allowing you to confront the Princess as you first met her.
Within the cabin lies your weapon, the Pristine Blade. After slaying the Princess, she confesses her eternal love for you before disappearing forever.
Awakening to your divine potential, you dismantle the Construct alone. However, you won’t be entirely solitary, as all the Voices from previous cycles return to witness this new beginning.
Alternatively, the ending dubbed “A New And Unending Dawn, and Everybody Hates You”can be realized if you express cruelty towards your Voices, predicting their deaths after delivering a vessel in the Long Quiet. Their resentment results in a promise to make your godly existence as unpleasant as possible.
While slaying the Princess fulfills your mission, the Narrator’s statement holds true—you truly saved this reality. With your ascension, you now have the capability to mold this world as desired.
However, the ill will directed towards you could lead to an eventual madness as the angry voices persistently echo in your mind for eternity, making companionship with the Voice of the Smitten or Contrarian a burden.
5. You’re On A Path In The Woods…
Start Anew From the Beginning
Entering the cabin with your weapon in hand, you prepare to eliminate the Princess for the final time. Yet, she requests a conversation, prompting you to sit with her.
During this exchange, she reveals that you possess the ability to reset everything, extending the reprieve of the world for at least one more cycle. You face the choice to forget your past or to slay her.
By opting to forget everything, the Princess will seize the blade from you and execute you, initiating the cycle anew. Darkness envelops you as you perish, commencing again on a path in the woods…
Choosing this outcome spares the world from obliteration, yet both you and the Princess remain ensnared in a never-ending cycle of violence, beginning each loop afresh. This narrative embodies the poignant tale of two lovers eternally denied the chance to experience their romance fully.
6. Your New World
Challenge Her Authority
In your confrontation with the Shifting Mound, you assert that every interaction thus far has culminated in negativity or violence.
Provoked, she retaliates, but you possess the strength to overpower her. Ultimately, you triumph, eliminating her and dismantling the Construct single-handedly.
This outcome is a novel addition from the Pristine Cut update. It materializes if you bring vessels to the Shifting Mound through violent actions, whether by killing the vessel or distorting them (such as with the Deconstructed Damsel).
By consistently choosing the red option when the Shifting Mound presents her arguments, you unlock this conclusion.
Defeating the Shifting Mound grants you the ability to forge a new world as its solitary god. However, the bittersweet nature of this ending lies in the fact that you are all alone, devoid of the company of your Voices from the Construct, including the Hero. It’s a melancholic victory for a solitary deity destined to remain unknown for your sacrifices.
7. And? What Happens Next?
Depart With Her
Instead of arming yourself with the blade, you descend to the basement empty-handed. Without a tool to slay Her, the only resolution is to leave with Her. Taking her hand, the Voice of the Hero chooses to remain in the Construct, hoping to find the other voices.
Both you and the Princess confidently exit the basement, albeit with her fraught with anxiety, uncertain about the uncharted future before you. Together, you open the door and step out into the realm of mortals.
Alternatively, the option to leave with the Stranger arises if they are the first vessel brought to the Shifting Mound. Accompanying you are the Voices of both the Hero and the Contrarian, ensuring that they have each other while you and the Princess embark on an authentic life outside the confines of the Construct.
This is likely the ultimate conclusion of the game. You and the Princess not only fully embrace your romance but also uncover the truth and choose to abandon your divine statuses to live in a world that could have witnessed destruction.
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