The bad ending — Ending E, 'Silence' — is the easiest ending to reach intentionally and the hardest to reach by accident. To unlock it you need every protagonist dead by the end of Episode 8 and the variant alive. The cleanest path is to chapter-select Episode 7 from a save with full crew alive, then deliberately fail every check.
Step-by-step bad-ending route
- Episode 1–4 — sabotage trust. Question Akin, lie to Thomas, dismiss Naomi, send Riley alone.
- Episode 5 — fail the loadlifter chain. Whoever you sent up the ridge in Ep 2 dies.
- Episode 6 — dismiss the premonitions. Choose 'Dismiss' during the Curator monologue.
- Episode 7 — vote against Akin, fail every defence wave. Three characters die here.
- Episode 8 — pick 'Sacrifice', then deliberately fail the final QTE chain. Brianna dies, variant queen escapes.
What you see in Ending E
- Cassiopeia adrift, lights flickering, no survivors.
- The variant escapes via long-range pod.
- Curator delivers a regret-tinged closing monologue addressed to the player.
- Trophy: Forgive Me (Bronze).
Fastest chapter-select method
From a clean save-everyone clear, chapter-select Episode 7, vote against Akin, deliberately miss every defence-wave QTE, then in Episode 8 pick Sacrifice and stop pressing inputs during the boss chain. Total runtime: under 30 minutes.
FAQ
What is the bad ending in Directive 8020?
Ending E — 'Silence' — is the worst ending. All five protagonists die, the variant escapes and Cassiopeia drifts silent. It unlocks the 'Forgive Me' trophy.
How do you get the bad ending?
Fail every relationship check, refuse to scan premonitions, lose at least two characters before Episode 7 and tank the Episode 8 final QTE chain. Easier to chapter-select Episode 7 from a low-trust save.
Is Ending D also a bad ending?
Ending D ('Last Light') is a 'bittersweet' ending with one survivor — a Pyrrhic outcome. Ending E is the only ending with zero survivors and is generally considered the worst.