Rather than a straightforward choice of “good” and “evil,” the Shin Megami Tensei’s morality system has always been based around the concepts of “Order” and “Chaos.” These sides both offer positives and negatives, affecting the greater scope of humanity in very particular ways. As is often the case in these games, the choice will ultimately fall upon the shoulders of a single high school student. Here’s a guide on Shin Megami Tensei V’s endings. Be aware, there are spoilers coming up.
Unlike the previous Shin Megami Tensei games, Shin Megami Tensei V’s ending is not determined by the action and dialogue choices you make over the course of the game, but rather a single super-important decision made in the story’s climax. It’s a little less dramatic, but preferable from a quality-of-life perspective. However, your overall alignment will factor in in a minor capacity that I’ll explain later.
Shin Megami Tensei V Endings Guide
After you defeat Metatron at the Temple of Eternity, you’ll be hit with the all-important question: who should ascend to the Throne of the Empyrean and assume control over reality as we know it? There are four potential endings you can reach, each associated with one of the game’s factions, and the choice you make will set you on that path.
Order
By selecting “I will uphold God’s order,” you’ll team up with Dazai and Abdiel to claim the Throne in the name of God and the angels. Humanity will be guaranteed protection from demonkind, but in exchange must devote their complete and undying loyalty to Heaven.
If your actions throughout the game are Order-oriented, you’ll unlock the special Miracle Rank Violation, which lets you fuse demons above your level. You’ll also unlock two route-exclusive sidequests, Maria’s “Compassionate Queen” and Melchizedek’s “The Seraph’s Return.” If your actions are Chaos-oriented, you’ll have to pay large Macca fees to do these sidequests, since the questgivers don’t trust you. This route will also unlock Abdiel for fusion early, though you’ll also unlock her just by completing the game on any route.
Chaos
By selecting “I will recreate the world and save Tokyo,” you’ll team up with Koshimizu and Atsuta to restore autonomy to the world’s many deities. People will be able to worship and follow whomever they want, though this will invariably lead to conflict and war down the line.
If your actions throughout the game are Chaos-oriented, you’ll unlock the Miracle Inheritance Violation, which lets you overwrite a demon’s initial skills when setting up a fusion. The route-exclusive sidequests for this path are Maria’s “The Wrathful Queen” and Belial’s “The Red Dragon’s Invitation.” The same rule about alignment applies here; if you’re Order-aligned, then you’ll have to pay up to do the sidequests. Choosing this route will also unlock Hayataro, the lion-like demon partnered up with Atsuta earlier in the story, for fusion.
Neutral
By selecting “I will destroy the Throne,” you’ll prevent any demon or angel from assuming power alongside Nuwa and Yakumo. There will be no centralized force of demonic or angelic attack, but humanity will be left without divine guidance against the demons that remain.
There are no special unlocks for this route, and the only exclusive sidequest is Maria’s “The Noble Queen.” However, this is because you’re not getting the full picture.
True Neutral
If you want this ending, you’re gonna have to put some major legwork in. You might not even want to try unless you’re on a New Game Plus, but hey, don’t let me tell you how to live your life.
First, there are several questlines you’ll need to complete, encompassing eight sidequests altogether. These questlines and quests are:
- Amanozako
- “A Power Beyond Control”
- “The Destined Leader”
- Fionn Mac Cumhaill
- “The Falcon’s Head”
- “Fionn’s Resolve”
- Khonsu
- “The Egyptians’ Fate”
- “Winged Sun”
- “The Succession of Ra”
- Shiva
- “A Universe in Peril”
A few notes about these quests: firstly, the first quest in Khonsu’s line, “The Egyptians’ Fate,” will pit you against him in battle, after which you’ll need to decide whether to kill him or spare him. In order to make the next quests appear, you need to spare Khonsu. If you ax him, you’re officially out of luck.
Secondly, Shiva’s quest, “A Universe in Peril,” is actually the game’s superboss quest. Shiva is level 96 and is packing a full slate of top-tier skills. You literally aren’t even allowed to take a swing at him until you’re at least level 80. Just be aware that if you want to get the True Neutral ending, you better be prepared to take on what may be the hardest boss in the game.
Once you’ve successfully completed all of these questlines, proceed to the Temple of Eternity and defeat Metatron. When you get the choice, choose “I will destroy the Throne,” and proceed like normal. The point of divergence will come after you defeat Abdiel; Nuwa will pop up to offer you a fourth choice: creating a world for humanity alone. Take this choice, and you’ll use the power of the Empyrean to wipe all angels and demons from the face of reality, leaving humanity to live their lives free and clear from any external influence. Of course, whether or not humanity can live without anything to believe in remains to be seen.
You still won’t unlock anything special from taking this route, but hey, all the grinding you probably did to fight Shiva should more than make up for it, I’m sure.
