Lettered Path System
Character routes and lettered Paths are separate but interacting systems. The conditions for Path A–G and Path P are covered below; earlier Route-specific bad endings are not listed.
For the broader distinction between the two systems, see Route and Path Overview.
The sections below reveal major route outcomes, but not the password answers.
Before the normal Path A–D split, missing an earlier vault requirement can lead to BAD END: BENSON on D8. This is a separate failure, not one of the lettered Paths.
Base split: Path A–D
The first major split is the D8 choice between Reveal Oz and Support Benson. This choice affects whether Oswin dies early, while the D10 password check determines whether the run stays on the shared Path A/B story or moves to the Path C/D story.
Outside the Sal Route, the normal mapping is:
| D8 choice | Meaning | D10 check | Base Path |
|---|---|---|---|
| Support Benson | Keep Oswin hidden | Passed | Path A |
| Reveal Oz | Reveal Oswin to the group | Passed | Path B |
| Support Benson | Keep Oswin hidden | Failed | Path C |
| Reveal Oz | Reveal Oswin to the group | Failed | Path D |
The D8 choice does not immediately change the displayed Path; the game applies that choice later.
Sal Route exception
On the Sal Route, giving up on the D10 password keeps the story on Path A/B, following the earlier Oswin outcome.
Completing it correctly still matters for Gallery completion: the successful Sal Route branch displays Sal’s Vault CG and a related image filed under another character’s Gallery category. Other Sal Gallery content is unlocked through normal Route progression and does not depend on this check.
Later splits: Path E–G
After D10, the ordinary Path C/D story continues to the D14 rescue. The Path reached at the end depends on whether Sal reaches the mill alive and whether the player chooses Save Benson. or Save Sal.
A run that begins on the Path C side can therefore finish as Path C, Path D, or Path E. A run that begins on the Path D side can finish as Path D or Path E, but it cannot return to Path C because Oswin’s earlier death cannot be reversed.
When Sal reaches the D14 mill sequence alive, the main outcomes are:
| Starting side | D14 choice | Final result |
|---|---|---|
| Path C side | Save Benson. | Path C |
| Path C side | Save Sal. | Story continues as Path D |
| Path D side | Save Sal. | Remains on Path D |
| Path D side | Save Benson. | Path E |
On the Path C side, saving Sal causes Benson to die. Oswin then takes his own life, so the story moves from Path C to Path D. Other outcomes in which everyone dies lead to Path E.
Path E covers several D14 outcomes in which everyone dies. It is not tied to one menu choice; the result also depends on who is still alive when the rescue begins.
Path A and Path B instead continue to the D17 password check.
| Current Path | D17 check passed | D17 check failed outside the Tyson Route |
|---|---|---|
| Path A | Remains on Path A | Leads to the D19 disaster; Path F begins on D20 |
| Path B | Remains on Path B | Leads to the D19 disaster; Path G begins on D20 |
The password is entered on D17, but the consequences of failure occur on D19. On D20, the story continues as Path F if Oswin is alive or Path G if he is dead.
Early bad ending within Path F/G
After a failed D17 check, the disaster occurs on D19 and the story enters Path F or Path G on D20. D21 then presents the choices Stay. and Leave.
Choosing Leave. causes Dave to leave the group and leads to BAD END: DOMINIC. Unlike the normal Path F and Path G endings, it does not offer Resonate?
Tyson Route exception
On the Tyson Route, the story stays on its existing A/B Path after a failed D17 password check.
On D18, the Tyson Route reveals the source of the high-frequency sound that would otherwise trigger the D19 disaster. Tyson then sleeps in Dave’s room instead.
No additional affection threshold, romance status, character-survival requirement, or extra choice is needed.
How the Sal and Tyson Route exceptions differ
| Sal Route at D10 | Tyson Route at D17 | |
|---|---|---|
| When the exception takes effect | Immediately after Give up, through a Sal-specific failure branch; D11 confirms that Dave avoids the disaster | Not during the D17 failure scene; its effect becomes clear at the end of D19 |
| Password treated as solved | No | No |
| Failure scene | Sal receives a route-specific Vault scene | Uses the same D17 failure scene as the other routes |
| Disaster prevented | The D11 disaster and the ordinary Path C/D branch | The D19 disaster and the later Path F/G diversion |
| Path display | The save slot may temporarily show Path C even while the shared Path A/B story is running |
The existing Path A or Path B display remains consistent |
| Success-only content | The successful warning scene and related Gallery content can still be missed | The successful warning and related password-specific dialogue can still be missed |
| Story no longer available afterward | The true Path C/D/E storyline and endings | The Path F/G storyline and endings |
| Other Path diversion still possible | Sal Route can still enter Path F/G after a later D17 failure | Tyson Route can still enter Path C/D after an earlier D10 failure |
Path P
Once all twelve medals have been recorded, completing Path A leads into Path P.
To enter Path P:
- remain on Path A through its main ending;
- reach the final medal check after
PATH A: END; - have all twelve medals recorded by the game.
With fewer than twelve medals, the game ends after the normal Path A conclusion. With all twelve medals, the story continues into the final Path P sequence.
The requirements and recommended collection order are covered in the Twelve-Medal Collection Guide.
Path summary
| Path | How to reach it |
|---|---|
| Path A | Keep Oswin from dying early; remain on the D10 safe side; avoid the F/G split through either D17 success or the Tyson Route safeguard |
| Path B | Allow Oswin to die early; remain on the D10 safe side; avoid the F/G split through either D17 success or the Tyson Route safeguard |
| Path C | Keep Oswin from dying early; fail the D10 check outside the Sal Route |
| Path D | Reach the D10 failure side outside the Sal Route with Oswin dead; a Path C run can also become Path D on D14 |
| Path E | Reach one of the D14 outcomes in which everyone dies from the ordinary C/D side |
| Path F | Begin from the Path A direction, fail the D17 check outside the Tyson Route, and reach the D19 disaster with Oswin alive |
| Path G | Begin from the Path B direction, fail the D17 check outside the Tyson Route, and reach the D19 disaster with Oswin dead |
| Path P | Complete the main Path A sequence and reach the final medal check with all twelve medals |