There are three main endings possible in The Talos Principle 2, excluding one joke ending and a wide variety of unlockable epilogues. Although some of these epilogues are determined by the player’s choices throughout the game, which ending they see is almost entirely affected by one pivotal decision in the game’s final moments. None of them could be called a traditional good, bad, or true ending; each has consequences that might be interpreted as either positive or negative, depending both on player philosophy and character choices.
[Warning: This article contains spoilers for every possible ending of The Talos Principle 2.]
The Talos Principle 2 begins an indeterminate amount of time after the first game ends. Once the first game’s player character, Athena, achieved sentience, she established a city called New Jerusalem and began manufacturing more androids to populate it. Athena directed its first citizens to strive for a population of 1,000 androids, which they eventually reach – the player character of The Talos Principle 2, 1K, is that thousandth android. However, odd energy readings disrupt the ensuing celebration, and NJ’s leaders send 1K out to investigate. Surprise: it’s more puzzles, and they’re even harder than The Talos Principle’s.
“Not Just Another Puzzle Game”: The Talos Principle 2 Preview
Talos Principle II appears to be a strong follow-up to its predecessor, but there are still several aspects that require some refining before release.
The Talos Principle 2’s Leap Of Faith Ending
Side With Prometheus
As 1K continues to solve puzzles, he begins to uncover more and more of New Jerusalem’s history. He eventually learns that Athena had a child named Miranda with another android, Cornelius, and the three of them together undertook a research effort they called the Noema Project. Eventually, Athena discovered the theory of everything, a hypothetical term for a system of laws that explain and interlink every aspect of the physical universe.
With this newfound knowledge, Athena was able to manifest New Jerusalem into existence, all from the Machine at its core. But during that research, a lab accident took Miranda’s life, and Athena, in mourning, fused herself to the Machine’s controls, where she still remains stuck in a programming loop. The puzzles, along with the holographic visions that have guided 1K on his journey – Prometheus, Pandora, and the Sphinx – are manifestations of her inner turmoil.
In the end, 1K resolves to free Athena from the Machine, one way or another. In one possible conclusion, the “Leap of Faith” ending, 1K takes over for Athena, saying, “I want to know the truth.” Athena steps out of the machine, and 1K steps in to take the reins. All the puzzles begin to dissolve, as do the holograms. While Prometheus disappears, he congratulates 1K on his bold leadership. 1K sees visions of the entire universe as he learns the theory of everything. He wakes up in a desolate cave as Byron, in a voice-over, speaks about the human potential for discovery and exploration.
1K stands before an empty space and holds out his hand, creating a tree out of thin air. This is representative of the power of creation that 1K has been given, but what he intends to do with it next is left up to interpretation.
The Talos Principle 2’s “Momentum Deferred Ending”
Side With The Sphinx
If 1K chooses instead to say, “I had hoped we could use this technology safely, but we’re not ready. Shut it down,” the “Momentum Deferred” ending begins. 1K enters the Machine and begins turning it off temporarily, bit by bit. The lights inside all the puzzles go dark, but the structures that house them remain, presumably to be taken on by some future generation of androids at 1K’s discretion. In a voice-over monologue, Athena explains that her burden is one that no one should have to bear.
The Sphinx praises 1K for refusing to make a choice. Answers are dangerous, she says, because they provoke further questions. The androids of New Jerusalem may one day be ready for those answers, but that day is not today. 1K returns to town and watches as several rival politicians argue. Dejected, he walks into the woods, where he finds Athena (with Cornelius and Miranda if he chose to save them) sitting on a log that overlooks the city. Together, they begin to discuss plans to build a better world.
The Talos Principle 2’s “Certain Fathoms In The Earth” Ending
Side With Pandora
Finally, if 1K chooses, “I’ve changed my mind. The risk is too great. We must destroy the Machine,” he’ll unlock the “Certain Fathoms in the Earth” ending. In this one, Athena muses about the flawed nature of humanity while 1K shuts off the Machine for good. As in the “Leap of Faith” ending, the puzzles dissolve, but this time, Pandora praises 1K. She references Plato’s allegory of the cave, explaining that 1K has destroyed an illusory reality limited by its commitment to Athena’s will.
Back in New Jerusalem, mayoral candidate Hermanubis takes the fall for destroying the machine. 1K wanders out into the wilderness again, where he hears a strange bellowing. He glances into the brush as a deer emerges, then kneels before it. His deference to organic life, which didn’t exist in the old New Jerusalem, represents an embrace of unfamiliar ideas that will carry android society into the future.
The Talos Principle 2’s Chicken Ending
A Simple Joke
The Talos Principle 2 includes a joke ending that’s very simple to unlock. At the beginning of the game, when 1K is asked to investigate the mysterious energy surges outside New Jerusalem, he can actually decline. The credits immediately roll, and the player is rewarded with an achievement/trophy called simply, “Chicken.” Of course, they can then return to the title screen and accept the call this time to enjoy the rest of the game.
Other Epilogues In The Talos Principle 2
What Choices Affect The Ending?
Other choices throughout The Talos Principle 2 may affect which epilogues the player sees, as well as which character delivers a monologue over them. For one thing, 1K’s actions on social media determine who is elected mayor of New Jerusalem at the end of the game: the conservative Hermanubis, the progressive Byron, or the centrist Rand. Whether Miranda and Cornelius are present in the game’s final scenes depends on whether 1K solves the optional Golden Gate puzzles scattered throughout the world. If Miranda is saved, then she’ll ask Yaqut out on a date in another epilogue scene.
If he finds all the audio logs hidden in the game, 1K will leave flowers on the grave of Trevor, a researcher who worked alongside Alexandra Drennan to create the first Talos Principle game’s puzzles, after the credits. An unidentifiable person carrying a lantern may then appear near the Megastructure’s exit, and Byron may briefly be seen watching a meteor shower. Also, whichever characters 1K was closest to or sided with most frequently may deliver their own, variant monologues over any of these scenes.
There may yet be many more, undiscovered endings in The Talos Principle 2, but for the time being, just finding these four main ones and their many unique variants should be enough to keep players busy. It’s interesting, and very much in character, that none of these endings can be thought of as universally good, bad or neutral. Instead, they each represent a philosophical commitment on the player’s part. And no matter what else has happened throughout the game, each one makes a satisfying conclusion to The Talos Principle 2.
The Talos Principle II
- Platform(s):
- PlayStation 5, Microsoft Windows, Xbox Series X/S
- Released:
- 2023-11-02
- Developer(s):
- Croteam
- Publisher(s):
- Devolver Digital
- Genre(s):
- Action, Adventure, Puzzle
- ESRB:
- T
- Prequel:
- The Talos Principle
