Directive 8020 is built on cumulative consequence. Most choices look small in the moment but stack into the Episode 7 trust check and the final dialogue wheel. Below is every confirmed branch decision.
Master choice table
| Episode | Choice | Immediate effect | Long-term impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| EP 1 | Trust Akin / Question Akin | Banks Akin trust ±1 | Gates the Episode 7 mutiny dialogue tree |
| EP 1 | Stay with Thomas / Search alone | Banks Thomas trust ±1 | Gates Episode 4 power-surge cut-scene |
| EP 2 | Send Naomi / Send Riley up the ridge | Determines Ep 5 rescue target | Locks who takes the loadlifter death gate |
| EP 2 | Tell the crew about the variant / Hide it | Paranoia ±1 across the crew | Triggers Ep 4 betrayal scene if hidden |
| EP 3 | Scan order in lock-down | Reveals or hides the infiltrator | Wrong order causes a perma-trust hit |
| EP 3 | Shoot now / Wait for proof | Risk crew loss vs lethal QTE | First chance to lose a main character |
| EP 4 | Triage order Naomi/Riley/Akin | Bank or burn one trust point per character | Wrong order can cause an Ep 5 death cascade |
| EP 4 | Side with Akin / Side with crew | Locks Episode 7 mutiny vote | Gates Endings B and D |
| EP 5 | Wrench / Breaker bait | Stealth vs alarm | Breaker forces a lethal QTE |
| EP 5 | Stay hidden / Shout warning | Saves a side character or stays alive | Shouting triggers a forced cinematic death gate |
| EP 6 | Believe premonitions / Dismiss | Unlocks Bearings UI in Ep 8 | Required for Ending A and Foreseen trophy |
| EP 6 | Listen / Push back at Akin | Final Akin trust delta | Settles Ep 7 mutiny vote |
| EP 7 | Defend Akin / Vote against | Akin survival flag | Failure path to Endings B and E |
| EP 7 | Stay on Cassiopeia / Evacuate | Selects ending family | Stay = A/B/D · Evacuate = C/E |
| EP 7 | Trust Thomas / Doubt | Thomas survival flag | Doubt locks Thomas death in Ep 8 |
| EP 8 | Sacrifice / Escape / Reveal | Final ending selector | Sacrifice → B · Escape → C/D · Reveal → A |
How the system stacks
- Trust scores — every dialogue / relationship choice nudges a per-character score by ±1.
- Survival flags — Episode 7 cashes trust into binary alive/dead flags.
- Ending family — the Episode 7 evacuate choice splits the ending tree in half.
- Final letter — the Episode 8 dialogue wheel picks the specific ending within the chosen family.
Tips
- Save manually before every branch — Directive 8020 keeps a single auto-save.
- Defaulting to the "kind" option works for the save-everyone run; Endings B/D require harsher picks.
- Watch which character is on screen — the active POV gates which trust score the choice modifies.