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
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[@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"

[@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"

[@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.

[@dimensionalproductionsbackup]

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

[@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"

[@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

[@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

[@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

[@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...

[@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?

[@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.

[@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

[@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.

[@Seeyou45]

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

[@CharlieAndLuke]

He my goat frfr

[@playsoup7105]

I read that as obama

[@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

[@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

[@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.

[@alex..alex..]

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

[@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

[@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..

[@KingofBeasts444]

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

[@idfkwhatyouwantfromme]

thanks vector

[@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

[@tonyadobe1904]

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

[@davidthecommenter]

Sonic & Knuckles: Broke
Shadow & Omega: Woke

[@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 😂

[@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.

[@overseerpjoe9477]

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

[@CR1MSONACE]

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

[@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"

[@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?

[@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

[@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?

[@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

[@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.

[@liamwhite3522]

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

[@Genasidal]

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

[@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

[@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.

[@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.

[@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

[@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.

[@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.

[@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"

[@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

[@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!(:

[@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

[@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?

[@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

[@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.

[@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

[@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.

[@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.

[@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

[@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

[@numberjacksoctonauts7138]

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

[@RazgrizXMG0079]

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

[@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.

[@melan8ed197]

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

[@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.

[@PhotonKingShark77]

Omega is down for what ever.

[@nintara3746]

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

[@walkerwilliams-rigsofrodst3316]

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

[@dankovskimark4540]

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

[@yurirosario1829]

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

[@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

[@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.

[@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.

[@ero-senninsama1734]

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

[@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

[@MichaelMegaX]

I feel like number 94 is probably the most canon storyline that fits with Shadow's character and the last story. Shadow reluctantly teams up with Black Doom from the start to figure out what he knows about his past. Upon reaching cyberspace (how the hell does everyone there become computer code) he is convinced by Rouge to be on the side of the heroes having just worked with her in Sonic Heroes. Shadow then needs to keep uncovering his past and teaming up with the Chaotix would be the best since they would be able to figure out a lot of information from the top secret disks and Eggman's database. After learning all he can from them, he is able to piece together his last part in his ARK flashback and would do anything to protect Maria. He journey's with Sonic to the Black Comet put a stop to the Black Creatures to fulfill Maria's promise. He defeats Black Doom, but maybe it's like he isn't completely defeated setting up the stage for the last story since he has to be at the Black Comet.

[@MichaelMegaX]

188 would also be very similar but with just the neutral start instead of choosing to go with Black Doom.

[@MinunRobotnik4]

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

[@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.

[@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

[@maxoublue1]

How ironic that you often overlook the Neutral Hero endings, because some of these endings names are some of my favorite. My guess is that I just like the idea of Shadow fully leaning into seeing himself as a machine, which would mostly lead to him going all in and getting some machine augments, turn into some sort of cyborg and/or decide to undergo a willing robotization.
Now for some of the endings I would like to comment on in particular:
Machine Kingdom at Dawn: I think the Dawn part is pretty obvious. It's supposed to represent that this is the start of Shadow and Omega's rule of the Eggman Empire, or that it's the first dawn or morning of said kingdom.
A World United by Darkess: One of my favorite path titles, I think the signification here is that, by betraying Sonic and co at the start, and then betraying Black Doom at the end to take over the world, Shadow made enemies with everyone, which caused them to try and unite together to at least take him down, even if some have different motives to do so.
A Dying Empire's Cry: That's actually a pretty good interpretation. The one I had was more in the sense that Shadow taking over the Eggman Empire would have actually made it more of a threat, and if Eggman kept ruling it as he does now, it would have eventually become nothing or have just gone away on it's own.

[@KnucklesWTD]

The idea of choosing your own path was kind of cool,they should bring back a more refined version of that for a game sometime. Even little changes.

[@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.

[@theotherjared9824]

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

[@GraceOfDiamonds]

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

[@TusksTheAxew]

I like this path explaination video. It's like the previous ones, but Omega is there as well.
But for real, this must've taken a lot of time, research, thinking and effort, and you did a very good job explaining the names. Very interesting and nice watch for a game that's surprisingly so loaded. Good work!

[@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.

[@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.

[@walalalospies]

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

[@KnucklesWTD]

After a while all of these blend together

[@bigwhw4580]

It's very interesting to me how some of these endings are worded as if they're springboards into stories we never got to experience. Some ripe fanfiction writing prompts in all this ngl

[@Tyulenin]

The true multiverse of madness

[@CharlieAndLuke]

Shadow Generations was my endgame

[@speedboom9392]

I’ve been looking for a video like this! Heck anything like this! I’ve been searching the internet for something that explains how each name ties to its route and literally couldn’t find anything that did so. So thank you so much for this video!

[@CharlieAndLuke]

I was genuinely very shocked that I couldn't find anything for this either! Glad you enjoyed it!(:

[@supr3m3panda]

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

[@pixelvahl]

Together with Maria + The Last Story is what I've seen many regard as the canon path.

[@ResidentTarantino]

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

[@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?

[@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

[@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.

[@osaka_daioh]

I am so SO HAPPY you made this video!! This is EXACTLY what I was hoping to find on UA-cam for so many years, someone doing a deep dive on every single ending path and giving an idea or explanation on what every path could mean and what cutscenes are related to it.
And you did it fun too! Giving a good idea of how each path goes without feeling too mind numbing and made it interesting with your own ideas on what each path is and explaining them.
I love it dood, this is what we needed. This is WHO SHADOW IS.

[@osaka_daioh]

Also the natural question, why didn't I make this video then if I wanted to see it? Honestly, it's OVERWHELMING. So many endings, hundreds, I couldn't even think of doing it. So you guys doing it, true respect. Thank you for doing this and spending all this time on it!