Directive 8020 Endings Guide: All Destinies, Choices & Variations

The alarm fades to static and a single scan reads “two paths.” I froze, fingers hovering over choices that would decide who lived. You are standing at that same slow-motion fork.

I’ve played through Directive 8020 enough times to trace every fracture in its story. I’ll walk you through each ending, the Turning Points that bend them, and the specific pulls that push characters toward life or death. Read this like a field manual for moral triage—short cues, clear consequences, and the one move that flips the final scene.

When people argue about games on subreddits, the debate always burns down to outcomes. All Directive 8020 endings and how to get them

Young sitting next to a smiling Mitchell with Stafford standing in back of S.E.V. — Screenshot by Moyens I/O

There are three headline outcomes and a handful of variations underneath them:

Escape (four main branches): The crew leaves Tau Ceti f in the S.E.V., landing either at the abandoned Cassiopeia in orbit or the Booster Ring.
Abandoned (two main branches): One crewmember is left behind and an imposter stows away, heading off with any survivors.
Horror (one branch): Nobody makes it out alive.

How many endings are there in Directive 8020?

Short answer: three core endings with multiple permutations based on who lives and who holds certain Destinies. The Turning Points menu records several branching consequences, so the same headline ending can still feel different depending on who survived and which traits were high.

In comment sections people fight over “best” and “moral” endings. Escape: Good and best endings

The birthday cake for Young in remembrance of her father, Bill — Screenshot by Moyens I/O

How do you get the best ending in Directive 8020?

If you want the best conclusion, you must steer Brianna Young toward The Hero Destiny. That requires her Loyal trait to be above fifty percent at the Turning Point in “Why You Started.” I kept her Loyal by backing her in key moments; you should do the same. Choices that move the needle:

Plead in “The Crown Falls” (episode six).
Sympathize in “Making the Call” (episode six).
Think of the others in “Holdout” (episode seven).
Declare the cloning program wrong in “Why You Started” (episode eight).

When Young is Hero, she gives Cycle 13 critical information eight years after making a wish. That single decision determines whether the survivors aim for the vacant Cassiopeia in orbit or the Booster Ring. Choices are a branching river that forces you to pick a bank.

There’s a final layer after the credits: the original Laura Eisele’s Destiny. You can set Eisele’s tilt as early as episode two. If she’s the Scientist (high Rational trait), the program keeps running; if she’s the Humanitarian (Sympathetic trait), she shuts it down. The post-credits scene flips on that single detail.

Practical tip: use the in-game Turning Points menu and rewatch key scenes on Steam, PlayStation Store, or Xbox store if you need to check which choices raised specific traits. The game is available on Steam for $29.99 (€28) and across current consoles.

close up of eisele's face — Screenshot by Moyens I/O

In the real world, people sometimes leave someone behind to save a group. Abandoned: Bad ending

Cycle 13 walking through Tau Ceti f with Cassiopeia in background — Screenshot by Moyens I/O

This ending plays out when the S.E.V. leaves Tau Ceti f with an imposter disguised as a crew member. Common paths to this result:

In “Revelation,” go left when the scanner shows two possible routes to Anders — you’ll pull what appears to be a rescue, but that Anders can be an imposter.
Let a mimic replace Cernan or Eisele after stealth missions in episode eight by getting the real one killed; later, let them back onboard at “Knock Knock.”
Leave Williams behind during “Second Chances” when he insists on staying — the crashed Cassiopeia can explode and kill him.

Variations depend on who survives the escape. If only the Growth impersonates a crewmember aboard the S.E.V., the ship may drift without a pilot and the subsequent rescue beacon is the only hint left for any following cycles. Moyens I/O’s screenshots capture several of these beats if you want to compare outcomes visually.

The S.E.V. flying out from Tau Ceti f — Screenshot by Moyens I/O

In true horror-movie fashion, an empty theater leaves you with the scream. Horror: Worst ending

The Growth all over the Cassiopeia where humanoid corpses emerge from the mass — Screenshot by Moyens I/O

Can everyone survive Directive 8020?

Yes — but only if you actively make survival-focused choices and protect key characters through episodes six to eight. If you want the Horror ending instead, aim to kill everyone. Here’s the fastest playbook for wiping Cycle 13:

Manipulate Anders’ scenes early so Williams dies in “Mr. Williams” (keep an eye on “Little Faith” and act cold or refuse help in “Suspicions”).
Deactivate Fire Control in “Power Games” to put Mitchell at deadly risk, or abandon him at the door in “Knock Knock.”
Fail critical QTEs and let stealth missions in episode eight go wrong — the overgrown Cassiopeia filled with Growth copies will overwhelm the crew.

If you’re chasing completionism, use the Death Scenes checklist and compare notes with IGN or GameSpot walkthroughs. I used community threads on Reddit and Moyens I/O image galleries to verify which choices matched which Turning Points.

The game’s endings are about small social moves and a handful of decisive clicks. The final credits can reflect mercy or cruelty; the ending is a haunted mirror that keeps flipping depending on who you chose to defend and who you let fall.

Which destiny will you leave Cassiopeia with — the one that records heroism, abandonment, or extinction?