Would it be appropriate to have multiple endings?
Minor Spoilers
Based off of what we have seen with the achievements and what we've seen from the staff talking about it, it's possible that there may be multiple endings for the end of episode 4.
A lot hints towards Clementine dying, but the achievements also point to other endings. Considering that in Batman: The Enemy Within, they went all out with the final episode choices, it makes sense that they may do the same here.
The issue with multiple endings however is that it means different characters may die for different people. This would create quite an emotional disconnect between players in discussion which may lessen the impact of people's endings overall. Not only this, but the outcome of choices that determine the endings may not be entirely obvious when the player initially has to make that vital choice and therefore it may not be fair on the player for one ending to kill Clem while the other kills AJ.
These are just some minor issues with multiple endings, and of course there may be multiple endings in other respects, such as the setting where each ending may take place, or the side characters that survive.
If there is only one ending, either Clementine is going to die or she's not. Everything that has been hinted so far leads toward the former.
Would you like episode 4 to have multiple endings or one ending for everyone?
Comments
More endings = More replayability (especially if the endings depend on your previous choices, instead of a binary choice right at the end)
Of course there should be multiple endings! After all, this is supposed to be a "Choose Your Own Adventure" game. Obviously I don't expect it to be like Detroit Become Human but I will be very dissapoined if this series ends off with a single linear ending.
Well since this season is 100% definitely the last one, I cannot think of no reason why They shouldn't include multiple endings...
There should be multiple endings but the player should have a lot of agency in determining which ending they get, or else everyone will change their endings to get the "best" one. I strongly believe that Clem shouldn't die and that AJ should only die if you want him to
To be honest I don't really care if there are multiple endings. I just care that the ending is satisfying. If all the multiple endings are equally satisfying, then we're good.
They can have a hundred different endings if they want since they don't have to worry about branching the endings into another season.
i think i d be dissapointed if there werent multiple endings.
I would hope there would be multiple branching endings, seeing how this is suppose to be the end of Clementine's story. It would be a nice change to add some uniqueness to the series as it ends.
As it stands I don't even understand why there is this emphasis for #myclementine. All the different choices and our own Clementine is a nice little sentiment, but there is no difference in terms of dialogue options, tone or inflection of what we say, or a general attitude in certain situations. There was a serious miss opportunity to have a single unique dialogue option, based on each of the four types of Clementines, for TFS, imho.
I hope so, this is Clementine last season, we had multiple ending in S2 and S3, we should get that in this season aswell.
Multiple Endings can better reflect our input than a single static one. Therefore, tehre should be multuple endings
Since it appears to be the last Telltale TWD game, I'd make the ending as drastically diverse as possible and have as many determinant factors, options and endings possible to finish out the game.
i reckon therell be an ending like logan where clem dies protecting them and they bury and honor her , another clem and aj survive with other survivors or maybe theyre alone again , maybe one where aj dies and like in detroit with kara , clem can give up and commit suicide or she'll continue , i hope theres epilogue afterwards where depending on your endings theyll be different
clem dies - follows a older aj with other survivors or if theyre all dead hes alone and walks through a horde like s2 alone ending which shows this scene as kind of an initiation.
both live - they are happily surviving together with the survivors or they are an alone duo again
aj dies - suicide - clems hat being blown away by the wind and a kid finds it and picks it up
aj dies - continue - a older more hardened clem leading the survivors or if there all dead she basically becomes a more savage molly where she fights and kills bandits and walkers
and when i say the survivors i mean whoever lives cause i can see everyone by the end of this either being determinant or dead
I think I agree with OP...
Season 1 didn't have multiple endings but it became one of the greatest games of the decade, BECAUSE there was a single, well-written ending that emotionally affected every player at the same time.
Multiple endings just don't have the same impact as a singular conclusion. And TFS is supposed to be an emotional send-off, how effective is this going to be if they have to write 3 or 4 multiple endings? Then it just gets muddled.
And people are just going to save-scum and choose the "best" ending anyway instead of committing to the original path and the original ending they got.
People forget it's not the choices that makes TWD a good series, it's the writing. Choices have never meant ANYTHING in these games. I would play Detroit Become Human if I just wanted a game that actually rewarded the game mechanics of choice.
Yes I hope they do. I for one don't want Clementine to die. If AJ does I'm ok with it as long as Clementine stays alive. I'll replay it I have to
The problem here is that Clementine is not Lee: We have more of less shaped Clem across several seasons seeing which will be the result of the process. Lee was Lee, regardless of how we played him, he was always to do everything to protect Clementine.
Is Clem the same about AJ? No its not. Because AJ is not Clementine. And AJ is also shaped by Clementine. So it cannot end in the same way for everyone, because not everyone has shapen Clem in the way, and everyone will not shape Aj in the same way.
To narrow it a down to a single conclusion for everybody will be committing the same mistakes of the ME3 ending all over again.
This is all true but the muddiness of multiple endings is still a concern for me.
Also shaping AJ or Clementine doesn't have to impact the ending, unless the ending demands it imo.
I'm very much for multiple endings but having read the OP and the comments, I can see where there is that negative there. Season One had an amazing ending and it really packed a punch. I loved it and hated it at the same time, but everyone was able to react to it because it didn't really change the outcome in the end. Still, I feel like, after playing three other seasons, it would feel wrong to have one ending for Clementine's story. People played differently and have different directions they want to go in. I think even if they had two very different endings with some minor changes that can impact the final outcome that would be fine, or even four different endings and that's it. But I think one ending would have a lot to live up to and would leave a majority of those playing disappointed.
I hate replaying Telltale games. As one who has replayed Season 2, 3 times in a week, I can say Telltale games NEED a Skip Scene to Choice prompt like in other choice-games. As well as Chapter Select. It got especially strenuous with Batman Tiffany.
Alas, I've resorted to just watching videos to find out every choice instead and I play Telltale games just twice.
I fully agree with all of your points. As OP said, if there were different ways to have certain characters die, then the characters and their stories would lose some of the emotional impact that they bring with them. We saw it happen already with ANF and it felt so unecessary - you lose some of the power of writing when you take on multiple endings. They feel less realistic and grounded. I do want a binary ending, but I want it to be gut-wrenching, emotionally satisfying, true to the heart and something that makes me at least teary. No-one would be dissapointed with their purchase if that were to happen.
There are only three unmissable trophies for each episode and that's after finishing an act. Every other trophy is gameplay or exploration based. I have too many conflicting thoughts over Ep 4's trophies to really know where they plan to go with this finale. Clem's death has to be one of them since that's basically the whole promotional value of TFS. But I'd like multiple endings, as long as each end is treated with care.
TFS should've been the only season with multiple endings. Season 2's multiple endings proved to be a mistake and ANF was the mistake. It doesn't have to be an overabundance of different endings. 2 or 3 impactful ones are good enough.
I want my Clem to have a satisfyingly happy ending, which is exactly what I've been working towards in the first 2 episodes. By all means, bring the emotion, but I'd like the end of my own personal journey with Clem to be rewarded with as much happiness as she's seen in these first 2 episodes. But that's just me.
The multiple season 2 endings were fine,but the new ANF writers decided to ruin them.
That's why I said what I said. It proved to be a mistake, with ANF being the mistake. It looked like the right choice, but in hindsight, if they had it in their mind to continue Clem's story, then those multiple endings should've never been done. They hardened the task for themselves when they announced the third season and as a result, failed to commit to it.
Yeah multiple endings...though the more I look at it the more the achievements we see do not point to Clem being the one that dies.
But regardless...replaying all the seasons knowing that Clem dies no matter what you do would sorta kill the fun...but replaying the seasons with a chance to save Clem and pals is good.
Of course this is the Mass Effect 3 issue all over again where the endings were all Shepard dies no matter how invested people were or how well they played...EA had to go back and add a new ending that while not perfect...was at least hopeful.
Shepard survives the Destroy ending if you have high enough EMS.
Also I don't think Shepard dying was the real concern with ME3's ending.
Believe me...being on the Bioware forums then...it was a large factor...also the only ending that made sense from the way Shepard worked was destroying...everything else went against the character...Shepard would never have chosen to change the biology of people who had no chance to consent on their own...and using the reapers as slaves was not an option. I still loved ME3...but the ending was piss poor...the new ending was..meh ok...and I really hated how they dropped the Dark Energy plot...
The I dont think that that multiple endings must necessarily be muddy.
For all its faults, the final choice in Season Two was polarizing to this day. And thier ending were really good IMO. But trying to rehash the Ending of Season 1 is jut not going to work, and I think this a problems: They need not to emulate Season 1, they are not going to achive it, Season 1 was Season 1.
I'm coming around to thinking it should be more like S2's ending now that you mentioned it, if they decide to go with multiple endings.
Like you said it was extremely polarizing (but polarizing doesn't automatically mean good). To this day, the stats on whether to shoot Kenny or not is exactly at 50%. It's the kind of debate that can literally go on forever.
If TT have endings similar to S2, but with less character vs character nonsense (Kenny vs Jane is easily the worst thing about the TWD community), then I can see it working it strongly in similar veins. I want the ending choices to be a situational issue, not "choose this person over the other".
Should be at least one ending where she lives and one where she dies imo
The good ending: Clem's subway sandwich is made right. Bad ending: She forgot to ask for extra pickles. This somehow get AJ eaten by a walker.
I have a baseless theory that the final choice will be to kill AJ or let him live. Maybes he’s a danger or killed someone, think Lizzie from the show or Ben from the comic. I can’t see a natural ending where Clem dies, but we need emotion to it.