We Explained ALL 326 Story Paths in Shadow the Hedgehog

[@CharlieAndLuke]

Thank you so much for 100k views on this!

[@LiMe251]

If it's not too much trouble, could you please add timestamps for each path to this comment or something, it's sorta difficult finding any specific paths you want to see the explanations for during rewatches.

[@LiMe251]

Since this doesn't seem like it's going to happen, I'll just create my own list of timestamps 2:08 Path 1: Punishment, Thy Name is Ruin 2:23 Path 2: Prologue to World Conquest 2:40 Path 3: The March to a Darker World 2:59 Path 4: The Ultimate Ego 3:17 Path 5: Purification via Ruination 3:49 Path 6: Apogee of Darkness 4:03 Path 7: True Soldier of Destruction 4:25 Path 8: Believe In Yourself 4:35 Path 9: An Android's Determination 4:56 Path 10: For Machine, By Machine... 5:09 Path 11: Revenge at Last 5:23 Path 12: Ego's Awakening 5:33 Path 13: Destruction and Scorn 5:45 Path 14: The Last Remaining Purpose 5:56 Path 15: The Nightmare's Insulation 6:10 Path 16: The Nightmare's Sublimation 6:24 Path 17: The Loner's Choice 6:35 Path 18: Subjugation in Black 6:48 Path 19: Replica's Depression 6:58 Path 20: Machine, Machine 7:32 Path 21: Disciple from the Darkness 7:48 Path 22: Beloved Clone 7:56 Path 23: Revenge Upon The Doctor 8:07 Path 24: The Ultimate Replica 8:19 Path 25: Sanction's Demise 8:33 Path 26: Along With My Home 8:54 Path 27: The Cleansing of Darkness 9:13 Path 28: Birth of a God 9:22 Path 29: The Last Soldier's Grim Fate 9:32 Path 30: Isolation and Solitude 9:41 Path 31: Archimedes and The Tortoise 10:52 Path 32: Where Is My Happiness? 11:01 Path 33: Seduced By Taste of Blood 11:18 Path 34: A Machine Made for War 11:27 Path 35: Original Definition 11:44 Path 36: Machine Paradise 11:57 Path 37: Last Will and Testament 12:11 Path 38: Enveloped in Solitude 12:24 Path 39: Parricidal Saviour 12:39 Path 40: Copy of a Saviour 12:49 Path 41: Excess of Intellect 13:01 Path 42: Crystallization of Intellect 13:10 Path 43: The Ultimate Confrontation 13:22 Path 44: Miracle of Love 13:35 Path 45: The World's Demise 13:45 Path 46: The Ultimate Power 13:55 Path 47: Dyed in Lovely Darkness... 14:08 Path 48: Vainglory or Abandonment? 14:20 Path 49: Messenger of Ruination 14:38 Path 50: Standing at the Summit 14:44 Path 51: 15:05 Path 52: 15:17 Path 53: 15:26 Path 54: 15:49 Path 55: 16:00 Path 56: 16:15 Path 57: 16:39 Path 58: 16:48 Path 59: 17:02 Path 60: 17:17 Path 61: 17:25 Path 62: 17:37 Path 63: 17:50 Path 64: 18:03 Path 65: 18:16 Path 66: 18:23 Path 67: 18:32 Path 68: 18:44 Path 69: 18:53 Path 70: 19:02 Path 71: 19:09 Path 72: 19:19 Path 73: 19:38 Path 74: 19:50 Path 75: 20:04 Path 76: 20:13 Path 77: 20:20 Path 78: 20:26 Path 79: 20:41 Path 80: 20:47 Path 81: 21:01 Path 82: 21:11 Path 83: 21:22 Path 84: 21:30 Path 85: 21:41 Path 86: 21:48 Path 87: 22:03 Path 88: 22:10 Path 89: 22:22 Path 90: 22:41 Path 91: 22:51 Path 92: 23:00 Path 93: 23:08 Path 94: 23:15 Path 95: 23:32 Path 96: 23:43 Path 97: 23:51 Path 98: 23:59 Path 99: 24:11 Path 100: 24:17 Path 101: 24:26 Path 102: 24:37 Path 103: 24:51 Path 104: 25:00 Path 105: 25:13 Path 106: 25:23 Path 107: 25:38 Path 108: 25:52 Path 109: 26:07 Path 110: 26:23 Path 111: 26:35 Path 112: 26:46 Path 113: 26:59 Path 114: 27:11 Path 115: 27:23 Path 116: 27:40 Path 117: 27:56 Path 118: 28:05 Path 119: 28:15 Path 120: 28:30 Path 121: 28:52 Path 122: 29:11 Path 123: 29:24 Path 124: 29:33 Path 125: 29:45 Path 126: 30:00 Path 127: 30:11 Path 128: 30:22 Path 129: 30:30 Path 130: 30:39 Path 131: 30:49 Path 132: 31:02 Path 133: 31:15 Path 134: 31:27 Path 135: 31:43 Path 136: 31:52 Path 137: 32:03 Path 138: 32:15 Path 139: 32:26 Path 140: 32:38 Path 141: 32:47 Path 142: 33:00 Path 143: 33:18 Path 144: 33:30 Path 145: 33:45 Path 146: 33:55 Path 147: 34:08 Path 148: 34:18 Path 149: 34:31 Path 150: 34:45 Path 151: 34:57 Path 152: 35:15 Path 153: 35:27 Path 154: 35:39 Path 155: 35:52 Path 156: 36:02 Path 157: 36:13 Path 158: 36:26 Path 159: 36:41 Path 160: 36:57 Path 161: 37:08 Path 162: 37:20 Path 163: 37:31 Path 164: 37:44 Path 165: 37:58 Path 166: 38:19 Path 167: 38:36 Path 168: 38:52 Path 169: 39:11 Path 170: 39:30 Path 171: 39:39 Path 172: 39:48 Path 173: 40:03 Path 174: 40:14 Path 175: 40:31 Path 176: 40:41 Path 177: 40:55 Path 178: 41:17 Path 179: 41:28 Path 180: 41:36 Path 181: 41:47 Path 182: 41:58 Path 183: 42:09 Path 184: 42:17 Path 185: 42:32 Path 186: 42:45 Path 187: 42:56 Path 188: 43:06 Path 189: 43:16 Path 190: 43:26 Path 191: 43:38 Path 192: 43:45 Path 193: 43:53 Path 194: 44:00 Path 195: 44:12 Path 196: 44:20 Path 197: 44:31 Path 198: 44:39 Path 199: 44:51 Path 200: 45:02 Path 201: 45:10 Path 202: 45:19 Path 203: 45:30 Path 204: 45:39 Path 205: 45:55 Path 206: 46:07 Path 207: 46:20 Path 208: 46:32 Path 209: 46:52 Path 210: 47:04 Path 211: 47:17 Path 212: 47:31 Path 213: 47:44 Path 214: 47:51 Path 215: 47:59 Path 216 48:06 Path 217: 48:13 Path 218: 48:22 Path 219: 48:34 Path 220: 48:47 Path 221: 48:58 Path 222: 49:12 Path 223: 49:37 Path 224: 49:44 Path 225: 49:51 Path 226: 50:02 Path 227: 50:23 Path 228: 50:33 Path 229: 50:42 Path 230: 50:50 Path 231: 51:09 Path 232: 51:21 Path 233: 51:30 Path 234: 51:39 Path 235: 51:58 Path 236: 52:09 Path 237: 52:18 Path 238: 52:32 Path 239: 52:42 Path 240: 52:59 Path 241: 53:18 Path 242: 53:28 Path 243: 53:49 Path 244: 53:58 Path 245: 54:18 Path 246: 54:25 Path 247: 54:35 Path 248: 54:45 Path 249: 55:00 Path 250: 55:08 Path 251: 55:28 Path 252: 55:37 Path 253: 55:48 Path 254: 56:11 Path 255: 56:24 Path 256: 56:32 Path 257: 56:47 Path 258: 56:58 Path 259: 57:08 Path 260: 57:18 Path 261: 57:41 Path 262: 57:48 Path 263: 58:10 Path 264: 58:21 Path 265: 58:31 Path 266: 58:44 Path 267: 58:54 Path 268: 59:02 Path 269: 59:16 Path 270: 59:22 Path 271: 59:34 Path 272: 59:48 Path 273: 1:00:03 Path 274: 1:00:15 Path 275: 1:00:27 Path 276: 1:00:40 Path 277: 1:00:52 Path 278: 1:01:01 Path 279: 1:01:21 Path 280: 1:01:28 Path 281: 1:01:37 Path 282: 1:01:44 Path 283: 1:02:01 Path 284: 1:02:20 Path 285: 1:02:33 Path 286: 1:02:53 Path 287: 1:03:08 Path 288: 1:03:14 Path 289: 1:03:29 Path 290: 1:03:37 Path 291: 1:03:46 Path 292: 1:04:01 Path 293: 1:04:19 Path 294: 1:04:28 Path 295: 1:04:37 Path 296: 1:04:46 Path 297: 1:05:08 Path 298: 1:05:23 Path 299: 1:05:39 Path 300: 1:05:52 Path 301: 1:06:12 Path 302: 1:06:24 Path 303: 1:06:38 Path 304: 1:06:45 Path 305: 1:07:07 Path 306: 1:07:22 Path 307: 1:07:37 Path 308: 1:07:53 Path 309: 1:08:04 Path 310: 1:08:12 Path 311: 1:08:22 Path 312: 1:08:33 Path 313: 1:08:42 Path 314: 1:08:50 Path 315: 1:09:08 Path 316: 1:09:17 Path 317: 1:09:26 Path 318: 1:09:37 Path 319: 1:09:46 Path 320: 1:09:57 Path 321: 1:10:08 Path 322: 1:10:18 Path 323: 1:10:29 Path 324: 1:10:43 Path 325: 1:10:58 Path 326:

[@jetkirby3981]

Speedrun getting every ending now

[@CharlieAndLuke]

@@LiMe251 Unfortunately we just didn't have the time to timestamp these out but good lord, massive props for doing so! Would you be okay with us putting these in the descriptions for others? With Proper credit ofc!

[@LiMe251]

@CharlieAndLuke Yeah, should I let you know when I finish them? I still need to add some Paths as well as the names for each of them.

[@KaiAfterKai]

I love the idea of Shadow genuinely being a good guy and doing heroic things, only to get completely derailed by his overwhelming hatred of Sonic. Like he's the nicest guy in the rokm until he sees Sonic, at which point he just fucking loses it.

[@CharlieAndLuke]

He's the professional hater that I could only ever aspire to be

[@___________0Z0X]

Shadow: Is that sonic? I HATE THAT GUY!

[@KyleEvra-15]

I headcanon this!

[@NeonBlueLight]

Shadow just starts throwing for content, just to still save the day after.

[@robertlupa8273]

to be fair Sonic in Shadow '05 is kind of insufferable so i don't really blame Shadow

[@CsubAzUrmedve]

Ending 327: Shadow was banned from every casino for alleged cheating, decides to cure his gambling addiction, and defeats Black Doom. Ending 328: Shadow was banned from every casino for alleged cheating, and Omega is there, leading to a robot uprising.

[@UnravelingofLathine]

Can’t wait for this DLC. 🥳

[@my-name-is-welcome]

also cant wait for the part two of the DLC where Omega is there 🎉

[@xoLoveTruelySucksxo]

Am I late for the robot uprising?

[@hestolemyballoons]

Every piece of Sonic media should have an alternate ending that's "Omega is there and he and [main character] start a robot uprising" tbh

[@guybrush20X6]

Now I'm picturing Cream and Omega starting an uprising where the robots won't work until the humans ask nicely. Cue Eggman trying to force himself to say "please" and choking on his own words.

[@hiddenflare6169]

Ah yes, perfect. "And then Tails and Cosmo lives Happily Ever After!!!" ALTERNATE ENDING! "And then Tails and Cosmo help Omega commit a robot uprising. And all the machines lives happily ever after!"

[@Genasidal]

Omega just magically has that pull with literally every character, where he can and in fact will in many realities convince them to start a robot uprising. How does he do that? None of us know, but now I really want to start a robot uprising....

[@brolytriplethreat]

It's funny because I don't think Omega actually cares about the uprising, he just wants to wreck stuff, especially stuff belonging to Eggman

[@FuryMcpurey]

​@@guybrush20X6 This actually sounds plausible

[@jdrt10]

Statistically speaking, the most likely outcome is "Omega is there, robot uprising"

[@JlBUNROCK]

And im all for it

[@Darkfawfulx]

Omega is the best.

[@SnaksiXD]

Shadow turning full dark and taking over the world with Black doom because he got involved with gambling is really funny.

[@CharlieAndLuke]

Its a slippery slope kids! a couple of bucks today, world domination tomorrow!

[@enderguyx2081]

“Well if it isn’t gambling, the ultimate evil!” -shadow fandub

[@DelusionalDunmer]

@@enderguyx2081 As he was told in his day

[@RipOffProductionsLLC]

Fun(?) Fact: if you use an Action Replay to give yourself infinite rings, that casino level will bug out and soft lock on the result screen because you already have over 500 rings... At least that's what happened on my GameCube copy while playing it using the Wii... no clue if those were important factors or not.

[@ChaosEntertainmentREAL]

Well Gambling is the ultimate evil in the world after all

[@Much_Ado]

i got ending 45 in my playthrough of this game, and my meme interpretation of it was that Shadow started to be evil, hesitated and thought "hold on, maybe i shouldn't", and then meets charmy bee and goes "oh, no, i was right the first time" and commits to full evil XD

[@dawnmapeso6560]

I like that charmy bee was the reason he decided to be evil 🤣

[@thetreyceratops]

I did that one in my current playthrough because I accidentally did the hero mission in Digital Circuit, and this is the best interpretation, idk why they decided to make Charmy so much worse than he was in Heroes

[@papyrussemi2848]

The only explanation is that Omega really wants to start a robot uprising but lacks the leadership skills.

[@luckluca8982]

He does always wants to be the superior machine, so he would likely kill any robot thaf gets close to him in power

[@LoreSeamstress]

Ah yes, the game where everyone gaslights shadow nonstop. A solid chunk of endings are entirely shaped by eggman's lies and its great.

[@CharlieAndLuke]

not one single fucker in this game pulls shadow to the side and just explains what happened to him, instead they all just gaslighting my boy into helping them do chores smh

[@firdanharbima6997]

​@@CharlieAndLuke tbf either that or become the street victim

[@MSCDonkeyKong]

@@CharlieAndLuke My issue with this game's story is that I don't know why Rouge doesn't do this...

[@nejiharuno]

@@MSCDonkeyKong Probably cause Rouge noticed what's going on and if Shadow crashes out, she doesn't want her hand in it. So if she dies, she knows at least she wasn't part of the problem.

[@i8chocolatecake995]

wait so what the heck even is shadow in this ending what is he a robot or a clone or the real dude :tm:???

[@brysene]

Kinda sad how there's so many different routes that end with an implied suicide, Shadow was really going through it.

[@kuunt6065]

hes being gaslit so hard the entire time by so many different people, and the only ones who aren't are either robots or people he doesn't like and finds annoying

[@Flight_of_Icarus]

He's a character that's been subject to a lot of pain. It's not surprising that that's a possibility, but it's really sad.

[@Green24152]

​@@kuunt6065Wait, what about Vector?

[@Colddirector]

What I’ve learned is that if somebody close to you is struggling with depression and self doubt, all you gotta do is sidle up to them and say “hey bro you wanna start a robot uprising with me?”

[@Manticorn]

Truly the emo patron saint

[@thetreyceratops]

I’m only 14 minutes in but I love how many of these pathways are "Amy convinces Shadow not to be an evil tyrant" or "Shadow and Omega start a robot uprising"

[@SuperLlama42]

What this taught me is that Omega is a total bro. He'll always be by your side whether you want him or not.

[@NeoNovastar]

We have no choice but to stan

[@Notsophism]

@@NeoNovastar You’re right; we really don’t have a choice-he just won’t leave!

[@Flight_of_Icarus]

"If nobody got me, I know Omega got me, can I get an AMEN?"

[@Radientzone345]

Bros before hoes

[@purpledragon1945]

i love you E-123 "Omega"

[@noradora5713]

The amount of these that end with “and then it’s implied that shadow kills himself” is wild. What did they mean by “don’t go there… yet”

[@CharlieAndLuke]

The yet is so weird, vectors like “oh if it turns out that is true then yeah maybe you should xoxo”

[@mimihusein0729]

​​@@CharlieAndLukeNot like Vector or Charmy make much sense or know what to say sometimes 😂

[@lozm4835]

I think it's supposed to be like, instead of just telling Shadow 'No', it's Vector trying to give Shadow hope. I mean, it clearly doesn't work, but.

[@evs1580]

I think he was just in an uncomfortable situation and misspoke

[@lpfan4491]

The wording seems a bit less silly in the original japanese.

[@Seeyou45]

So nice Omega willing to help his Uncle with his identity crisis.

[@CharlieAndLuke]

He my goat frfr

[@playsoup7105]

I read that as obama

[@MatthiasPendragon]

Shadow: Serves a dictator Becomes a dictator Becomes a robot dictator Declares himself the best Saves the world Retires into space Unalives himself Refuses to elaborate. (Also OMEGA IS THERE)

[@CharlieAndLuke]

What did shadow mean by this???

[@MrMetal-xe8lg]

​@@CharlieAndLuke does he know??????

[@darkhedgehog45678]

we're not on tiktok buddy it's ok we can say KILL and SUICIDE and MURDER, we're all grown ups here.

[@GamingTopTen]

Is "refuses to elaborate" the hero Black Comet route?

[@mikdan8813]

I am at awe at how many KYS ending there are

[@SineDiego]

I like to think that Miracle of Love is about how Cream's purity reminded him of Maria, and so that reminder of Maria's love is enough to make him a pure hero

[@CharlieAndLuke]

ooooo I like this a lot!

[@thrasher698]

​@CharlieAndLuke it's also established in SA2 that Amy reminds Shadow of Maria as well just to further reinforce this idea

[@Zeed_316]

"I've only known this rabbit child for a few hours. But if anything happens to her, I will kill everyone on this planet and then myself!" -Shadow probably.

[@lIlSanslIlI]

@@Zeed_316 this quote in the big 2024 is crazy

[@RipOffProductionsLLC]

​@@Zeed_316 that copy-pasta does kinda describe Shadow's motives for in SA2 about avenging Maria...

[@overseerpjoe9477]

So, what we learned here is that Omega is Shadow's realest bro.

[@CR1MSONACE]

Meanwhile Vector tells him not to end himself... Yet

[@azul1458]

"man I wish I had something to listen to while I do my part time job" The hour and ten minutes long video of 326 pathways in a 2005 game I love:

[@peanutfish94]

You too? XD

[@KingofBeasts444]

My favorite ending is where Vector tells Shadow not to kill himself..."yet".

[@idfkwhatyouwantfromme]

thanks vector

[@Haar_Dragon]

Stupefaction's End: "Shadow has no idea what he's doing, here." Boy just bumbles around like an incompetent fool. I kinda love this idea.

[@birdofterror6628]

33:30 is actually an ending me and my brother talked about once when we were looking at the endings. Since I was the Shadow Expert he told me the route (Neutral Neutral Dark Neutral Neutral Dark) and I had a hard time putting a finger on the motivations until it finally clicked. Going Neutral in the Doom is extremely strange and leads to normally- strange named or motivated endings, since it's so polarizing. The Doom usually leads to the end of the world or an extremely guilty hero, but here it's almost like Shadow doesn't even care about humanity or the world and decides that, after remembering what happened in The Doom, he was like "You guys suck so much I GENUINELY think the Black Arms would do a better job at keeping the peace than you guys." The funny thing is he didn't tell me the ending's name, and I'm like "This is an ending where Shadow thinks humanity sucks so bad that evil aliens can do better" and he said "It's called Disappointed in humanity" and it instantly became a permanent memory between the both of us.

[@spaghettimuncher7566]

That's awesome

[@byronsmothers8064]

The fact you can play shadow once a day, and have something to do for 10 months without copying a single ending is staggering.

[@CharlieAndLuke]

when you put it like that...

[@rainbow_vader]

Almost a year's worth of replayability, that's insane 💀

[@mimihusein0729]

It took me barely 2 years to get all the 326 sequences but it gets easier and faster with time(and special weapons like Shadow's Rifle and others). So I have to say it never gets actually old except if you hqve trouble with Mad Matrix dark mission...

[@Sonario648]

@@mimihusein0729 The Doom and Lost Impact:

[@nullandvoid7524]

I know right? Greatest game of all time

[@DissedRedEngie]

gotta love hearing Vector the f**king Crocodile telling me to not sewer slide, yet.

[@CharlieAndLuke]

hes a true king honestly

[@indigoecho9016]

"Don't go there! Y E T!"

[@noirua]

the answer is always sewer slide, mate

[@DissedRedEngie]

@@noirua hey, don't go there. Yet.

[@thefollower2933]

I still find the fact that SEGA went out of their way to name every single possible ending to be one of the craziest things I've ever seen in a Sonic game, or game in general to be honest. I like the way you explained them all btw.

[@henrymalloy1344]

they do what nintendon't

[@Bryson-s5g]

The fact they put nearly 330 endings in a 2005 spinoff but not work for a few more months on a mainline game people were hyped about a year later just blows my mind.

[@Bryson-s5g]

The game being sonic 06

[@ckenshin3841]

I feel like for ending 325 Pretense of a Mirror is less of Shadow revealing himself to be dark all along in a hero route but Shadow pretending to be evil for one moment in the true hero route just so he can fight Sonic and prove himself the better. It's also why Shadow and Sonic's banter at the end is more joking and friendly.

[@alfiebell6058]

That's how I had interprepreted the ending as well.

[@yoursonisold8743]

There is really no other reasonable explanation for why he would ever go full hero just to turn it around at the last second.

[@CharlieAndLuke]

that makes sense as well!! I dig this version!

[@yourcollegedebt8384]

Yeah, that's the exact vibe I got from the ending. "Why are you siding with Black Doom!?" "I'm not. I just want to fight you again." "Heh heh! Alright then, bring it on!"

[@jamesiitaylor7709]

Bro thinks he's majin vegeta 😂

[@ThatBugBehindYou]

I always thought as a kid the ending of Shadow being the guardian of the emeralds and the arc was a cool concept.

[@CharlieAndLuke]

lowkey my favorite ending actually, I think the idea of him setting up shop and just living there is raw

[@ale-xsantos1078]

Shadow becomes Knuckles

[@Flight_of_Icarus]

@@ale-xsantos1078 Shadow takes the &Knuckles pill

[@Nighterac]

Despite it being a "Dark" ending, it's actually very much in the style of a Hero ending

[@jdez02]

I love the fact that every single time Shadow betrays Sonic is either because he's completely evil or just out of spite none of the paths imply Sonic could be wrong in his actions or that Shadow could doubt him. He could be an angel the entire run and go full dark just to mess with Sonic

[@stranger9847]

I love how omega is so ride or die for shadow that all shadow has to do is say. "Let's take over the world," and he just joins him right away

[@CharlieAndLuke]

We all need an omega in our life

[@KittyKatty999]

No Visual Novel will *EVER* have as many "Routes/Storylines", as this childhood favourite game of mine. All it took was turning off the quality assurance XD

[@magolor6044]

Now I know why he’s all of him!

[@robotbootyhunter6878]

Unironically, yes.

[@CharlieAndLuke]

And you’ll never turn back

[@griffinkimball2454]

What can we say except All Hail Shadow?

[@blood-reaper]

I think it's a waste of time, so why not throw it all away

[@dukedumastv2250]

Guess it's time to head back to the ark and put myself into stasis, I guess you can say I'm...Trapped in this machine..

[@ProfessM]

As a fan of Omega I need to know if he was there.

[@nuetella9764]

As a kid my first ending was the true neutral cuz idk wtf i was doing and thought you go from start to finish , I assume omega would be on all final levels (to my surprise he wasnt)

[@greenapple9477]

I want a fanfic where Shadow gets trapped into a time loop remembering each loop and he breaks out of it once he willingly completes each (main) ending.

[@blank_space_bb]

woah that’s a good idea!! i’d definitely read something like this!!!!

[@TheMemeLiker]

thats probably the only way they'd be able to make a sequel tbh

[@dragonhearted7761]

Isnt that pretty much how you get the last story ending ie the canon ending?

[@greenapple9477]

@@dragonhearted7761 Well yeah, but it's not like one, that there is a canon time loop, and two, he remembers going through those loops. Being forced to remember each loops would be interesting.

[@hsjxbduxdiffeec2256]

Didn't this literally happen in snapcubes shadow the hedgehog video?

[@nibelsnarf4302]

In every ending where Shadow commits to unaliving himself Vector always seems to be present. I think the devs were trying to say something there.

[@GmNdWtchr96]

"DON'T GO THERE!!! ...yet."

[@Mochitachi70]

Computer room: not even once

[@KittyKatty999]

Vector is the kind of guy who instead of comforting you and giving you reasons to live, only says that you should wait a little bit longer before doing oyasumi

[@clumpofdirt1193]

​@@KittyKatty999 sad thing is that _was_ vector attempting to comfort shadow/ give him reasons to live. he just phrases his first sentence in the worst possible way so shadow isnt listening when vectors tryna say "you could still [assumedly something positive]". and like, i dont blame him. if someone told me not to kill myself *yet* im ignoring everything they say after that point

[@swisserty]

Dude I just screamed “find the computer room” I just did it right in the bar tenders ear and I got kicked out, I wish a true shadow fan was there.

[@thedarkgenious7967]

I just love how many of these just end with "Omega comes out of nowhere and Shadow joins him to start the Robot Uprising"

[@alex..alex..]

Shadow: *being evil* Omega: Hey Shadow lets go to RadioSha- Shadow: TIME FOR A ROBOT UPRISING

[@Colddirector]

Imagining the “men thinking about the Roman Empire” meme but it’s Shadow thinking about starting a robot uprising

[@LonelyWolfTXR]

I feel like the ending gimmick gets clowned on so much that nobody actually appreciates how well done it is. You're given the chance to explore EVERY possible outcome, no matter how minor. It's an amazing idea for a game that I've never really seen done elsewhere. Life Is Strange KINDA does that, but Shadow gets EVERY single possible outcome. And you see an impact on his and other people's lives way more.

[@Colddirector]

This is kind of an overused reference but it seems like a less refined version of what Undertale’s neutral endings had.

[@eagleye2893]

@@ColddirectorFar as i can tell, Undertale’s Neutral Endings only truly differ depending on which Bosses you killed or not.

[@Colddirector]

@@eagleye2893 Depends on what you mean by "truly", there are variations based on whether you didn't SAVE, kept your starting items equipped or carried the snowman piece to the end. Also some endings are based on how many normal monster kills you got

[@eagleye2893]

@ Yeah. And to Undertale’s Credit, its an RPG Game ahead of its time. Toby was a genius for making ot what it was. Its not really comparable to Shadow which mainly boils down to a variant of the Black Hand, Eggman, Ark, Sonic Endings and what justifies Shadow’s actions to get there. It doesn’t even have some 4th Wall Breaks like UT does.

[@Colddirector]

@@eagleye2893 Honestly it's a little tragic that Shadow fell flat on its face the way it did. I think there's the germ of a really cool story about a morally grey protagonist trying to discover themselves there. It's bogged down by the sloppy writing and all the edgelord nonsense. Also could've helped to make Black Doom less cartoonishly evil. Like, if they wanted to make a morally grey protagonist they should've committed to the bit and made the villain someone you could justify siding with outside of "for the evulz XD"

[@palletlover8519]

Shadow deciding that he doesn’t want to live while freaking VECTOR THE CROCODILE is there trying to convince him otherwise is unintentionally one of the funniest decisions ever made

[@tonyadobe1904]

Thanks for covering my favorite game, Shadow the Hedgehog and Omega

[@davidthecommenter]

Sonic & Knuckles: Broke Shadow & Omega: Woke

[@selder_7]

I do love that a route where you are neutral unless you can side with Team Chaotix is possible, he just wants to be a detective

[@Luigifan305]

Now the question is... which of these is the *canon* path, if any? Iizuka claims that it's True Hero (#326), but that doesn't actually line up with a lot of the other evidence. Last Story contains a scene where Shadow remembers direct quotes from The Doom, Space Gadget, *and* Cosmic Fall all in a row, and of course Eggman mentions during the Devil Doom fight that he lied about Shadow being an android, a claim he only ever directly makes in Iron Jungle. Furthermore, if Expert Mode is canon, then not only does that further reaffirm that the confrontation with Commander Tower in Cosmic Fall happened, but it also means that Shadow helped Amy save Cream and Cheese in Cryptic Castle. Obviously, it's not possible for all of these stages to be visited in a single linear playthrough, but maybe that just means that the path that Shadow canonically took was one that wasn't restricted by the game's exact progression structure. (Think of it like a Resident Evil 1 situation where both Barry and Rebecca canonically survive and reappear later in the series, despite it being impossible to save both at once in either playable campaign.) If we go by that logic, I've got an idea for how *most* of this game's stages could fit together: 1: Westopolis - Obviously Shadow's journey began here, but which path does he take first? Well, he actually starts with the Hero path for a reason I'll get to in a minute. 2: Lethal Highway - Have you ever noticed how Black Doom gets angry in the Neutral path where Shadow ignores him, yet seems nonchalant in the Hero path where Shadow helps directly oppose him? My logic here is that Black Doom isn't aware that Shadow is being defiant yet, and only after Shadow helps Sonic for a while longer does he get angry and warp Shadow away to... 3: Glyphic Canyon - According to the IDW comics, the battle in Sky Troops between the Black Arms and Egg Fleet is confirmed to have happened, so Glyphic Canyon definitely manages to get airborne regardless. The question is whether Shadow helps Black Doom speed up the process, helps Knuckles to slow it down, or does neither. Either way, I think the next stop is... 4: Prison Island - It makes sense for Shadow to recover all of his memories piece by piece along the way, plus Charmy needs those disks for the Chaotix to fulfill their mission in the end, so it seems like a no brainer that at some point Shadow would end up here and help him out. As for why I put it right here and now? Mainly so that the next couple stages could flow into each other better. Speaking of, the next stage is... 5: Circus Park - After getting frustrated about not having found an Emerald in a while since the 3rd in Lethal Highway, he spots Tails with one and proceeds to collect it, either as a reward for helping Tails or simply by snagging it. While in this Eggman base, perhaps he finds a teleport pad that sends him to... 6: Cryptic Castle - When he spots Eggman, he gets the idea to ask him for more info, but has to make a detour because deep down he's too pure to abandon innocent children like Cream and Cheese when they need help. Once they're safe, he heads back to the teleporter room he entered from and finds the Chaotix, leading to... 7: Mad Matrix - After helping Espio hack Eggman's database, the Doctor himself arrives and when asked about Shadow's past, he claims that Shadow doesn't have one, causing Shadow to become even more confused. While trying to figure out what everything means, Black Doom seizes the opportunity to try and sway Shadow in a moment of weakness by showing him a reason to hate humanity in... 8: The Doom - Despite what Black Doom hoped to achieve, the thing that Shadow focused most on was Maria's selfless desire to save as many people as possible, despite being in danger herself. Not realizing that his plan had already backfired, he brought Shadow with him to... 9: Sky Troops - Even if Shadow still doesn't have all the answers yet, he realizes that Black Doom tried to manipulate him and refuses to be a puppet. He helps Eggman combat the Black Arms, driving them back into a corner in... 10: Death Ruins - Upon meeting up with Rouge, an ally who's already helped him before, it just further solidifies his decision to oppose Black Doom as the correct one. After an ominous warning about the next day, Black Doom leaves behind Black Bull to fight Shadow. After the battle, Shadow attempts to give chase by teleporting through the forest, but in the process he stumbles upon... 11: Iron Jungle - Upon coming face to face with a small army of Shadow Androids, his mind begins to race at the implications, and he drops everything to chase Eggman for answers. Running into and helping Omega along the way, Shadow confronts Eggman who claims that Shadow is indeed an android that he created. Upon hearing this, Shadow is conflicted, unsure what to believe anymore, so while Omega continues onwards to wreck Lava Shelter by himself, Shadow warps back to where he last lost track of Black Doom, where Sonic arrives and offers him a ride up to the Ark. Along the way, Shadow realizes that they have another Emerald, but when he grabs it, the alarms trigger a another flashback of Maria... 12: Lost Impact - Naturally, when Maria asked Shadow for help with the Artificial Chaos, he agreed without hesitation, so that's what he remembered. Before the memory can finish however, he snaps back to reality when their ship approaches the Ark. Seeing it in person again triggers a different memory, this time of his supposed death from the end of SA2. Seeing what looks like himself dying naturally freaks him out, but there's not much time to dwell on it as they arrive at... 13: Space Gadget - They need to reach another Emerald before the Black Arms do, so Sonic suggests that they race for it, also in an attempt to jog Shadow's memory. It works, as upon grabbing the Emerald Shadow begins to remember more and more pieces of the puzzle. 14: Cosmic Fall - While trying to make sense of everything, Shadow is confronted by G.U.N. Commander Abraham Tower, who claims that Shadow is responsible for the tragedy aboard the Ark which claimed the lives of not only his parents, but Maria, who was like a sister to him. He attempts to shoot Shadow in revenge right then and there, but Shadow's too fast and dodges, stating that if what Abraham says is the truth, then he will accept his fate, but first he needs to be sure of it himself, which causes Abraham to consider that he might have been wrong about Shadow all this time. After making his way through more of the Ark, helping Vector find the computer room along the way, Shadow finally remembers Maria's final moments and vows to fulfill his promise to protect the world she loved so dearly. At this point, he and Sonic spot the Black Comet passing by, and Shadow just knows that that's where he'll finally get the full truth, so they make their way to... 15: Final Haunt - Together, Shadow and Sonic blast their way through the comet's defenses, but instead of meeting Black Doom at this point they first run into Eggman who tries to snatch the Emeralds using the Egg Dealer but winds up getting bodied, at which point Shadow obtains the final Emerald, prepared to keep his promise to Maria. 16: The Last Way - You should already know everything that happens here, but in short, Shadow remembers everything and saves the world, plus Eggman cuts the bs and confirms he's the original Shadow and not an android. 17: Expert Mode - Basically a big victory lap where everyone has something to say, including Cream thanking Shadow for saving her before, and Abraham apologizing for his actions aboard the Ark. This also serves as an explanation for why Shadow works with G.U.N. going forward. So yeah, I was able to fit about 2/3 of the stages, only excluding some of the hardest-leaning Dark ones that were difficult to explain or justify. Do note however that like Omega going to Lava Shelter alone, other characters were most likely still handling other events offscreen without Shadow, like Rouge in Digital Circuit, Knuckles in Central City and the Black Comet, and Tails in Air Fleet. Plus the stage "The Ark" can still account for how the Black Arms first arrived there, even without Shadow. In the end, the only stage that I can't fit *period* is G.U.N. Fortress, but considering that the planet would need to be blasted by the Eclipse Cannon for things to reach that point, I think it's totally fair to exclude that one lol.

[@icezantthatoneguy6042]

Small note "eggman" calls shadow his creation during heroes but that was metal. Shadow by the end of heroes seems indifferent about it though

[@jasonkvinlaug7043]

This is absolutely amazing somebody re edit the game to flow like this or get it re animated please?!

[@2010supersonic]

Or someone writes a FanFiction about it

[@lionheart4109]

I'd buy a reimagining of the game following your story path as canon, along with a simplified choice system and Shadow Generations' gameplay. Here I am, hoping that someone mods this into SXSG 😂

[@JoeEmber776]

I think either 87, 91, 181, 185, 275, or 279 to be the most canon. Shadow learns the most about his past while also helping the chaotix complete their mission and nobody suffers any major losses (eggman doesn't even die in the end,) thus a heroic neutral shadow is convinced by the chaotix to finish the fight in the end. Inconsistencies brought about by the lack of the android sub plot can be explained by the events of Heroes. shadow knowing the events of the doom can just be explained by his recollection on the ark (the doom did take place in the past after all.) the battle of sky troops can still take place, just shadow doesn't have anything to do with it except maybe by unintentionally distracting the gun forces long enough for the black arms to reactivate the pillars without shadow's massive source of chaos energy. I think narrowing it down to 6 endings is pretty good as the first two stages' events don't change much about the endings themselves. Though if I wanted to, I could narrow this down to just 91 & 275 but actually I think 91 just makes more thematic sense as meeting rouge and being reminded of maria leads him down a path to remember what he's fighting for. His initial hostility towards gun also makes his relationship to doom more neutral to the point where getting to the black comet for the last story makes some modicum of sense

[@Wildestleaf]

Number 406, McRobot Shadows goes to Mcdonald's to buy some fries, Omega is there, leading to the robot upraising.

[@Green24152]

So what happens in 405?

[@eldritch-rage]

​@@Green24152 the same but without omega

[@prometheusmodelow8322]

@@eldritch-rage McShadow

[@Colddirector]

Ending 407: Shadow stubs his toe but is mostly fine. Ending 408: Shadow stubs his toe but is mostly fine, then Omega appears and they start a robot uprising

[@liamwhite3522]

Damn, I can't believe that being in Vector's presence is so horrible Shadow offs himself every time

[@deathray252]

As someone who just got through a years long play through of a 326 run, good to hear someone else’s thoughts on these. My favorites are definitely “purification via ruination,” closely followed by the bafflingly labeled “machine boys”

[@CharlieAndLuke]

They ARE machine boys!!

[@deathray252]

@@CharlieAndLuke “Machine boys” also became the unofficial team name for my roommate and me as we played through them. Just finished them up in time for SxS gens! I didn’t check when playing it, but I take it that must been one of the “android uprising, this time with omega” endings.

[@CharlieAndLuke]

@@deathray252 Thats awesome! and yes it absolutely is one of those lmao

[@MarsofAritia]

why would you do this to yourself lol

[@deathray252]

@@MarsofAritia I think the game’s pretty fun and I’ve got a few screws loose! I found it fun to optimize the levels over time and string together several routes in an hour

[@dry90125]

Imagine being a huge fan of Vector but every route that ends with him involves shadow fucking killing himself.

[@Genasidal]

Damn, I didn't know Shadow was trapped in his own Silent Hill this entire time...

[@garpogods8323]

Game theory: Shadow is a compulsive liar and all the names and possible routes are for an autobiography hes working on. Hes having a rough time picking out which one sounds coolest.

[@awkwardGardener]

While I do genuinely, unironically really enjoy this game, the whole naming over 300 story paths thing is actually insane and I will absolutely never even attempt to 100% the library.

[@echogreyson1461]

It's the same as the previous one, but Omega is there.

[@CharlieAndLuke]

My Guy just LOVES to be there

[@ZeroTheHeartlessKing]

@@CharlieAndLuke u should upload this whole video but add omega in one of the corners, finish the joke lol

[@TARDISES]

@@CharlieAndLuke He calls dibs.

[@CharlieAndLuke]

@ don’t make me think about dark beginnings man ima start crying

[@nora-yc6fi]

I love that this game really went that extra mile to make and name 326 different paths It's just so cool, makes me think of a shadow multiverse where all these shadows exist separate could learn of other shadows, would some team up to conquer? would some stay out of it? Would some team up to save everything? What would the outcome of such a thing be, ruin? Or restoration?

[@jezd2223]

i adore the fact that there's so many omega endings, cause it implies that no matter the route shadow's taken up until now, omega'll just stick by his side if he asks for it

[@Phantomcrustacean]

I think all these routes (except “it’s the same ending, but omega”) have the potential of being really interesting stories if made into a manga, I want these are digging up, but still have a kernel of a interesting idea to be fleshed out into a gripping story. I feel the writers for Re:Zero and Madoka Magica i feel are the most appropriate for this kind of story

[@yoursonisold8743]

Except 99% of these routes are incoherent and make no narrative sense. This video is portraying them as way more structured than they are.

[@Phantomcrustacean]

@@yoursonisold8743 Exactly, if he’s able to make something out of them, then a professional writer (a good one) can make a story out of it

[@yoursonisold8743]

@@Phantomcrustacean Most of them have nothing to offer to be honest. I can definitely see someone make an interesting fanfic about the "complete" paths (true hero, true evil, true neutral) and just transplanting some levels of the inbetween into the story.

[@Phantomcrustacean]

@@yoursonisold8743 It just takes some imagination, yes, there are routes that you might as well just patch together with others, the “omega was here too” ones being most obvious. You can legitimately make something interesting out of these miscellaneous paths, it can be a playground of ideas

[@lpfan4491]

@@yoursonisold8743 No one is going to quite literally adapt 327 storylines that share plotpoints. But there are at least a good 30 to 40 that can very well work.

[@TheSwordsman100]

For 094 For Love's Sake I don't think it named that because of just Rouge, the path itself does also focus on Maria and restoring Shadow's memories. Shadow just went along Black Doom at first because of the reason he gave in the intro cutscene and when Doom gave nothing in return it was clear who to trust the next time around. Not my theory but interesting non the less is that route not only provides the context for all the cutscenes that play for every route, it also sets up the final story and since Takashi Iizuka said that the canon path that leads into it ends with a Pure Hero ending this might indeed be the path Shadow took.

[@Luigicat11]

Imagine if the absolute madlads of the Sonic fandom made "what if" timelines that continued from the end of each of these paths. There would be endless Sonic content to be had.

[@MsCreepyChan]

"Quickening" Is a reference to Highlander. In this story, Shadow learns he's one of hundreds of robots. He destroys all of the Shadow-Bots "THERE CAN BE ONLY ONE!!!!" and then ascends to his final form.

[@LucaxCorp]

49:42 Omega caring for Cream and Cheese will never not be wholesome.

[@greenapple9477]

Wholesome Omega is best Omega. You should see his dialogue in SXS Generations if you haven't already. The stuff he says is goofy, wholesome, and just generally amazing. I loved his writing. Hands down the best writing we've had for him.

[@Cartoonicus]

I clicked on this video. I read the tile. I saw the time duration. I heard the number 326. I sat through this entire video.

[@theotherjared9824]

The vast majority of these paths are shadow saying "actually, I change my mind" for no real reason.

[@mysticdigital5936]

Love the video. I have thought naming all the endings was super fun. Obviously they couldn't program in all filly unique lines and cutscenes, but I love how you break down the story threads of each ending and what it could mean for Shadow in the context of the Ending names. I'm shocked it hasn't been done before, so honestly this is amazing.

[@CharlieAndLuke]

Genuinely this exists because I tried to look it up and couldn't find it... I was like "Fine... I'll do it myself"

[@Elbon-the-Lolinator]

​@@CharlieAndLukeChad behavior

[@playerback7722]

Chad

[@reaps2197]

I love how the only character Shadow is around when he decides to kill himself us Vector, the character worst suited for that situation.

[@D4WN0FF1R3]

Because of this game I genuinely thought that Shadow post Adventure 2 was an android until this year when I learned that he was the original and survived Adventure 2 all along. I deadass thought he died my whole entire life and we'd been following the android replacement trying to be the best Shadow he could be. My mind was genuinely blown.

[@infernal_reaper]

They actually state that in this game, but in a very obscure voice line in the final boss fight that’s very easy to miss. If you stall long enough, eventually eggman tells shadow the truth that he’s the original shadow all along.

[@helio5943]

I love the way you describe each path. It makes it seem like every one is really well thought out and well written 😭

[@lisrinbastian2461]

except maybe the "omega is here now" paths

[@helio5943]

@@lisrinbastian2461 true

[@andrewmanchiraju8005]

@@lisrinbastian2461what are talking about? Omega is here now! His presence by default makes it well written

[@lisrinbastian2461]

@@andrewmanchiraju8005 true, you could get some mileage of telling the exact same story but omega is in the background screaming "fire! fire! fire! annihilation!" and ranting about "worthless consumer models"

[@trumpeterjen]

I can't imagine how much time this must have taken to put together. We appreciate your sacrifice. One common misconception, though - Shadow isn't an android. Eggman picked him up after his fall from Earth and then made an army of android clones from him. Eggman told him he was a clone to manipulate him. If you stick around in the final boss for a little while, Eggman admits this and tells Shadow he really is the original. Given his placement in Sonic Heroes - isolated from the others, guarded by the strongest E-series robot - it tracks. Our Shadow is the original.

[@CharlieAndLuke]

Thank you! And Oh yeah fully aware he’s not actually an android! I’m unfortunately a seasoned sonic veteran 🥲 For the sake of not making things confusing and having to caveat a ton of paths with “this isn’t true but shadow thinks it is here”, we just treat each path as it is from Shadows perspective! So for paths where he discovers he’s an android and accepts it, that’s considered “true” from his perspective since it impact his decisions! (:

[@trumpeterjen]

@@CharlieAndLuke I figured that might be the case; it was mostly for lesser-informed fans who hadn't heard that yet. It's nuts that Sega buried such an important line of dialog the way they did.

[@TheWizardMus]

Honestly I always thought Eggman lying was a bit of a cop out, and having Shadow genuinely be an android Clone would have been interesting, especially if the original Shadow showed up again down the line. Maybe it's just that Android Shadow was one of the only endings I got as a kid, but I've always been attached to that plot point.

[@sush4nz1...74]

Big disagree. If you pay attention to the team Dark opening cutscene Omega literally shoots at Shadow after x raying ONLY HIM NOT ROUGE and says "eliminate all eggmans robots" cuz he wants revenge on eggmans "robots" and near the end of team dark they are telling the audience he is an android, Omega in Shadow the hedgehog then literally goes looking for the real one saying a similar bit of dialouge that connects with the team dark ending. Also the dialouge from Devil doom doesn't match up well with eggmans dialouge from Heroes compared to the dialouge in one of the Shadow the hedgehog routes which would work way better, Also eggman wouldn't know anything from heroes because he was metal Sonic in that game. But we can't truly know for ceirtant since its been recently confirmed that it's a "Mystery". There are probably a million more things i can say, but these are the most important ones.

[@trumpeterjen]

@@sush4nz1...74 Omega was programmed by Eggman to take out Shadow, as confirmed in Sonic 06. That’s why Omega pegged him as a threat. Team Dark’s ending cutscene treats it as ambiguous. Shadow’s placement, separate from the clones, makes it clear, as does the fact that he doesn’t act like a mindless android the way the others do. Eggman lies to manipulate people if he thinks he can get emeralds out of it, e.g. Knuckles. He did so with Shadow at first, then told the truth once he knew it was too late for that. And saying one route or another in ShTH makes more sense doesn’t work because none of them are canon. Shadow isn’t an android. It doesn’t match the narrative, his placement, or his behavior.

[@GamingTopTen]

23:15 The idea that the temple makes Shadow evil is something I never thought about, I just thought of it becoming airborne and eventually Sky Troops. Very interesting video.

[@CharlieAndLuke]

ayeeee thank you!! Glad you liked it!(:

[@GraceOfDiamonds]

i am alarmed by how many endings are just “Shadow decides to off himself” ☹️

[@MxPokirby]

Would've liked to see a ranking at the end of which 10 overall paths "make the most sense" leading to each of the 10 endings. (Plus the true ending)

[@CharlieAndLuke]

This could have been cool ya! ima be real, we were living inside shadows head for the past month and I think by the end we were just too plugged in, I could see that damn stage grid everywhere I looked lmao

[@walkerwilliams-rigsofrodst3316]

You can see how hard they tried to make this insane idea work. It's commendable.

[@numberjacksoctonauts7138]

I loved how you explained the "Pair of Shooting Stars" one. Two personalities, very similar yet very different, clashing in their final encounter.

[@joel9104]

You've got to be a specific kind of mental to do this, I respect it

[@CharlieAndLuke]

I was born with an inflated grindset, it’s my curse to bear

[@dankovskimark4540]

Omega: Exists. Shadow: Time to go full Skynet!

[@MasterChiefCOOLMCC]

Shadow the Hedgehog & Omega

[@JaelGuzman-b4n]

Superstar Saga

[@r.henryjr.1533]

Featuring Dante from the Devil May Cry series

[@King-n00bi3]

& knuckles

[@Galvatron102]

NEW Funky Mode

[@liz_violet]

featuring raidou kuzunoha from SMT

[@sheriefwoodard8686]

The Voyage of Reminiscence is the 1000% canon path without a doubt. Eggman tricks Shadow, Shadow makes amends with Commander Abraham, Chaotix get the data for Gerald’s Black Comet message, Charmy even gets his idea to fix computers by hitting them from Shadow. Finally Shadow decides to stay on the arc like in the last story before facing Doom with the Emeralds

[@Nighterac]

I also came to this same conclusion. Everything just lines up well for the Last Story

[@nintara3746]

this video makes shadow the hedgehog sound like the coolest game to ever exist

[@infernal_reaper]

because it IS the coolest game to ever exist.

[@nintara3746]

@@infernal_reaper holy shit small world

[@ero-senninsama1734]

1:08:32 Bro is continuing with Sega's dream to take out this girl at every other turn

[@RazgrizXMG0079]

And then there's the Lythero runs where Shadow's only guiding compass is *MONEY*

[@ninjahedgehog5]

I think "controller of the capsule" is supposed to mean that Shadow takes ownership of his imprisonment. He's spent his life imprisoned by others and concludes that this is the result of him being so damn powerfull that everyone feels the need to keep him locked up. EDIT: Since this route's ending (and correct me if I'm mistaken) is one where Shadow decides to take the black army for himself, the path title may also imply that in this timeline, Shadow plans to flip the script and use the Black army to imprison everyone else like they did him. Finally making Shadow "controller of the capsule" "Light born from Darkness" does sound backwards in a path where shadow does good but pivots to dark halfway through, but think of it as Shadow's first instinct (once he gets a grasp of the situation) was to help everyone but at the end he couldn't deny his evil nature. Therefore, he was always dark but we got to see the light buried within "Setting out in the morning" Is one where He's convinced to work for Doom until he revisits the ARK in the past. There he decides to set things right only to learn he's a clone so his attempts at atonement mean nothing. Realizing this he seeks to surpass the Original Shadow and carry on anyway. The title might be symbolizing that Despite everything he will carry on. Unless there's a small chance that they meant "mourning" not morning which is what I thought what you said at first. "setting out in mourning" :P

[@CharlieAndLuke]

These all make a lot of sense! Appreciate the insight! We defo struggled with these 3 a lot!!

[@ninjahedgehog5]

​​@@CharlieAndLukethanks, I was actually writing and editing these as I experienced the video. The only other thing I can say is that for "time's watchman" you might be on the right track. It may not be all the time based missions but it's still the majority. If it was a path where he thinks he's an android than it could've been another title referring that he'll be protecting the Ark for all eternity, otherwise the only guess I can put out is that if it's a path where he visits the ARK in the past, than he's been a watchman for the ARK since his birth and ge continues to do so

[@melan8ed197]

Crazy work that a good fraction of these timelines result in Shadow kermiting unalive

[@righteouself9928]

The fact that they named 326 endings and that an overwhelming amount of them actually make sense somewhat is crazy to me. Ill always like "the miracle of love" the most because I read a DeviantArt comic once that was inspired by it. That was years ago and I cant find it anymore so I cant confirm whether it belongs on the "cringe stuff I liked as a teenager" pile or not lol Great analysis and interpetation

[@CharlieAndLuke]

Glad you enjoyed it! Also we all had a cringe stuff we liked as a teenager pile, embrace it

[@730Flare]

You have a link to that comic?

[@arthurpprado]

Interesting that most of the names make some sense and take into account what happens in each route, especially when it comes to what he remembers/is told

[@keeps-42]

I think I know why the evil paths are at the top In my opinion, they want to encourage you to start Shadow out as an inarguably bad guy, then work your way towards more good-natured paths in later runs.

[@Colddirector]

I feel like that would’ve worked better if they really committed to the bit and played with nuance. Like, Black Doom pretty much screams “blatantly untrustworthy” and Sonic/GUN are unambiguously the right people to side with. It could work better if Black Doom didn’t look/sound as evil as possible and genuinely seemed altruistic at first while GUN was kinda corrupt but ultimately better for the planet than Black Doom and Sonic comes off as an arrogant jerk sometimes.

[@walalalospies]

Me when i'm trying to be an evil and dark character but a bad bitch shows me kindness once

[@ResidentTarantino]

Omega wearing a graduation cap is going to stick with me for a long time because of this video

[@Flight_of_Icarus]

It's a little disturbing how many of these just end with Shadow getting depressed and believing he never should've been born. If only Omega was there. A robot uprising always takes me out of being depressed.

[@leblanc3536]

I’m so thankful this was made before the next gen. They’d probably have an achievement you could only get by unlocking all endings

[@Yhosy03]

This is the video I always wanted to watch about Shadow the hedgehog game, but never thought there will be a mad man willing to do it. Also props to the guy who had to write all of them, making sense of all the possible paths in this game and giving each one a name sure wasn't easy.

[@Flight_of_Icarus]

So I decided to watch this again, because something was bugging me. Time and time again we see these names all themed around the morning time, or dawn, or the sunrise. Some of them seem weird or hard to grasp, so I decided to count them, and I noticed that every single one of them was a neutral ending in the Lava Shelter. In fact there's 10 of them, some I only noticed after I saw the pattern. Determination's Daybreak Machine Sunshine Machine Kingdom at Dawn Surmounting the Nightmare Dawn of the Machines Time of Departure Setting Out in the Morning The Weapons' Dawn Shouting at the Morning Sun An Android's Dream The paths taken to get there seem to veer all over the place, and not all Lava Shelter endings are themed this way. Some of these were the "same thing but Omega was there" endings. Then, I remembered the song that plays with Shadow's neutral Endings- Waking Up. In it, it's all about Shadow learning what it's like and what it means to be free, or, more specifically, Shadow Android learning this, in an implied Duet with Omega. My bet, is that all of these endings are about Shadow "waking up" from this "dream" he was the real Shadow, and that with these endings, he's moving on into a new life, a new dawn, as it were. It's all about how he feels about realizing he's an Android. He's either taking it in stride, as if it were a normal occurrence, in "Time of Departure " or "Setting Out in the Morning" or maybe he's glad to be awake because his experience as the real Shadow was horrible "Surmounting the Nightmare." Contrary to that, maybe he doesn't want to accept he's an Android, but can't escape the mounting proof he is one "Shouting at the Morning Sun." Maybe his thinking he was the real Shadow was simply quaint and pleasant, and he doesn't mind so much that it's over "An Android's Dream." Maybe he's got something new waiting for him, a life or purpose already in the making "Machine Kingdom at Dawn" or "The Weapons' Dawn." Maybe he's having a blast being an android and is perfectly fine waking up "Machine Sunshine." It's just a revelation I had that made so many of these make so much more sense. Once I saw the metaphor and how they were using it, it all fell into place.

[@FallingPicturesProductions]

Holy shit that's genius!

[@Flight_of_Icarus]

Actually, looking at it more closely, "Time of Departure" is even more clever than I thought. In this route, he's neutral on the Doom, which kinda implies he doesn't feel one way or another about Maria and the events on the ark (as if those memories were fake, and he's just a machine), and then he goes straight into Air Fleet, and kills the Black Arms, realizing he's an Android in the process, which doesn't phase him because he didn't feel much about Maria when he was expecting to. The funny part here is that Shadow has a plane to catch in this route, so not only is it morning themed, it's aircraft themed, as he's got a "time of departure" which is not only realizing he's an android and "waking up" but also the same time he's supposed to be catching an airship (which winds up mattering more to Shadow than his android realization, hence why it's named Time of Departure). Then he goes straight into Lava Shelter and Kills Eggman by himself. I just get this mental image of Shadow grumpily sitting through what was supposed to be an emotional flashback of Maria, and tapping his watch, saying to Black Doom "Can we hurry this up? I've gotta be on an Air Fleet in 5 minutes." Then destroying the Black Arms for wasting his time.

[@itzmatthew9122]

“It’s my sleepover, I get to pick the movie!”

[@Elbon-the-Lolinator]

Miracle of Love. Love here could just be symbolic or abstract, love for humanity, love for life, etc. Could be that saving Cream lit back up the "good guy" fire Shadow always had.

[@tux9240]

1:03:36 i wonder if this is also reference to the fact that "shadow being a clone/android" is straight up a lie. and that lie is what kills the doctor.

[@i0am0superBlast]

There's an alternate timeline out there where I watch the video, but in the end Omega is there and we start a robot uprising together.

[@SonicKick]

Oh you're a Shadow the Hedgehog fan? Name every single story path in Shadow the Hedgehog 2005

[@SAENICSAENIC]

The one sega employee at 3am trying to name the 230th timeline that likely no one will complete or care about.

[@SAENICSAENIC]

50:41

[@yurirosario1829]

Now we need another one of this video, but Omega is there

[@PhotonKingShark77]

Omega is down for what ever.

[@Tyulenin]

The true multiverse of madness

[@CharlieAndLuke]

Shadow Generations was my endgame

[@supr3m3panda]

So, basically, the most likely outcome of any situation is Omega becoming SkyNet

[@MinunRobotnik4]

"The same but with Omega". You mean "The same, but better."

[@JlBUNROCK]

And hotter

[@brianford4914]

One thing I learned from this is that Shadow's android arc in the game is really kinda out of place. They obviously needed to add it because of Heroes but it really just comes out of nowhere and distracts from the story the game wants to tell. All the endings on the Neutral path where the Android arc is concluded basically make all the stages before the Shadow Android revelation unimportant.

[@JaredThe]

I absolutely love that they went through the effort of implementing these titles for every route, even if it’s fairly repetitive and would be really tedious to go through them all or even obtain them all, it’s still a sign of passion towards the idea they had behind the game’s main campaign and the amount of customization it allowed for in your routing.

[@KnucklesWTD]

After a while all of these blend together

[@Pikatwig16]

Personally speaking, if I had to label one route as being the most likely to be canon option for this game, it's gotta be the one where Shadow takes the Hero mission at Cryptic Castle and then remains on the side of good for long enough to get the True Hero ending. With the intentional parallels between Maria and Amy that are more firmly shown in Dark Beginnings, her being the one to get Shadow back on the right path just makes the most sense to me.