I don’t know the specific options to achieve the True Ending because some choices are important while others are not. However, I’ll share all my decisions here to help others navigate Below. I’ve hidden the most critical parts of the guide to avoid spoiling too much, but what counts as a major spoiler may vary, so be cautious as you read.
Fallen Temple
You might have seen some graffiti warning not to trust Iris, but it’s actually a trick to mislead you from reaching the True Ending. Despite the complexity of the full context, it’s crucial to befriend Iris.
Choice 1:
Iris requests you to shed blood to open a door. While your decision may not have a significant impact, I chose to give her the benefit of the doubt.
As you progress, you’ll encounter two locked doors—one with hearts, which is part of the endgame, and the other possibly exclusive to challenge mode.
Diary Page:
In the double puzzle room, heading west leads to the first diary page. Returning becomes challenging as you advance in the dungeon, but a shortcut opens at the end of the game, so don’t worry if you missed it initially.
There’s no red room in this dungeon, so keep going, even though it seems like a point of no return.
Choice 2:
This choice seems inconsequential; Iris just inquires about how you’re doing. I opted for “good,” even though it might be a lie.
Arbor Forest
Choice 1:
You need to befriend a suspicious cloaked person. Even if they react poorly to your apology, apologize to them.
Choice 2:
When the spider asks if you’re trailing the Crimson Skulls who kidnapped Iris, your choice might not matter much. I chose to lie in my playthrough.
Diary Page:
While in the puzzle room with the news reporter Piety, solve the west puzzle and head to the northwest exit to find a diary page.
Choice 3:
After dealing with some annoying antics from Bell, he’ll challenge you to a fight. Any attack you make will reduce him to 1 HP. At this point, he’ll beg for mercy, giving you the choice to kill or spare him. Opt to spare him for the best outcome.
Red Room:
In the final puzzle room, there’s a concealed path in the trees on the west side of the map.
Jinx’s Quiz:
To locate Jinx, take the stairs in the final puzzle room. It’s uncertain if this is mandatory for the true ending.
Q1: What color is the mysterious fairy Iris?
A: Blue
Q2: What is the name of this forest?
A: Arbor Forest
Q3: Which clothing item does the thief Bell famously wear?
A: Top hat
Glacies Cliffs
Choice 1:
In the first unbeatable battle with Rose, after selecting the run command, you can choose to either shout at her or run away. Shouting seems pointless, so I picked the option to immediately flee.
Choice 2:
There’s an optional conversation where you can choose to burn the snowman. Opting for this is mean, so the better choice is to greet them politely.
Choice 3:
Another optional conversation allows you to either thank or insult Bell. Choosing to thank him is obviously the better option.
Jinx’s Quiz:
From the crossroads with Bell and the Snowman, head north, solve the puzzle, and head north again to find Jinx.
Q1: What color is the Crimson Skull’s leader’s eyes?
A: Red
Q2: What is the name of the temple you first woke up in?
A: Fallen Temple
Q3: How much HP does a mushroom item recover?
A: 10
Choice 4:
You can choose to listen in on the Crimson Skulls or ignore them. This choice might not matter and could exist to help players skip dialogue on a NG+ run. I chose to listen to it.
Diary Page:
After the cloaked figure temporarily joins in the cave, proceed south from the single-key door to find the diary page.
Red Room:
In the town area, go beneath the trees and head east.
Choice 5:
Before the second unwinnable fight against Rose, she asks if the inevitable death of your loved ones scares you. I answered yes, but I’m unsure if this choice matters.
Abyss of Truth
Skippable Boss?
It seems possible to skip the boss battle with the Secret Keeper by avoiding examination of any memory stones. However, reading at least one memory stone is necessary for the true ending, making combat with the Secret Keeper unavoidable.
Choice 1:
There’s another bit of dialogue you can skip, but I chose to listen in. It likely doesn’t affect anything.
Diary Page:
In a room with a minigame terminal and Bell, the door to the Beast is to the west, which you can’t open yet. To the north, you’ll find the diary page.
Choice 2:
There’s an optional conversation where the Secret Keeper asks if you would be willing to join Rose as the second-in-command of the Crimson Skulls. I declined with a “Hell naw!”
Red Room:
In the room where you meet the strange red spirit of the Abyss, look for a platform with a broken border. This indicates an invisible path leading to the red room.
Bell’s Safe:
Leaving the Abyss and heading east towards Glacies Town, you’ll find a note with Bell’s safe combination. Whether taking money from Bell’s safe affects the true ending is unclear, but the amount isn’t significant, so I chose not to take it.
Mt. Ignis
Choice 1:
Once again, you can choose to listen in to the conversation or skip it. Listening in provides more context for Bell’s actions.
Choice 2:
Bell betrays us and kidnaps Melody. You can choose to plead or threaten. I chose to plead.
Red Room:
In the statue puzzle room, there’s an invisible bridge leading to a secret eastern exit.
Choice 3:
When the Pieties arrive to hold off the large group of Crimson Skulls, you can agree to flee immediately or offer to help. I chose the latter, but I don’t think the choice matters.
Jinx’s Quiz:
After the boat ride, at a fork in the road, heading north up the stairs takes you to Jinx. It’s uncertain if this one is mandatory, but it contains an important hint to the story if you brute-forced the third question with insufficient knowledge.
Q1: What is the true name of the Cloaked Figure that roams Below?
A: Melody
Q2: What does a Poultice item do?
A: Heal Burn ailment.
Q3: What is the true name of the Crimson God?
A: Jesus
Diary Page:
After solving the final mandatory block puzzle, head east from where you picked up the key.
Buying a Key?
It’s unclear if this affects the ending, but I recommend buying the key from the trader in Ignis Town.
Choice 4:
At the chapel, Rose will ask you to join her in sacrificing Melody. Answer no, and you’ll have to fight Rose and the 3rd soul piece back to back. Killing Rose might be unavoidable for the true ending.
Piety HQ
Choice 1:
After Melody leaves the church building, Peter asks if Ash is a child of God. Your answer may not matter, but I chose yes. In hindsight, given the true nature of the Crimson God, this might be a cringe decision.
Diary Page:
This is on the path to finding Melody, making it challenging to miss.
Choice 2:
You can decide whether or not to forgive the news reporter for their negative headlines about Ash. I chose forgiveness, and this may slightly affect some endgame dialogue.
Choice 3:
Melody apologizes for speaking out against Peter. I picked “it’s fine,” but the choice might not matter since Ash agrees that the Pieties suck either way.
Choice 4:
When Melody asks about what happened between Ash and Peter, you can either brush it off or gloat. I don’t think the choice matters much, but I picked the first one.
Peter’s Secret:
If you have the rusty key, you can enter the basement of the Piety church to discover what Peter is up to. Whether this is required for the true ending is unclear.
Endgame
Red Room:
In the Soul Gate Tower, a room holds a book about Ash’s activities in Below, but there’s a secret path in the east wall. This is the final red room, but it’s recommended to save the Beast’s door for after creating the shortcut between the tower and the Fallen Temple.
Choice 1:
After Iris brings you back to the Fallen Temple, you’ll enter battle with her, and non-attack options are disabled. Once Iris is at 1 HP, you can choose to spare or kill her. Obviously, you should spare her.
Diary Page:
When you return to the Soul Gate Tower, use the south exit to find the final diary page.
Gray House:
In the Abyss of Truth, you likely saw a strange gray house with an empty diary. Place all 7 diary pages in it to reveal the rest of the house. There are no encounters, but there is a lot of lore. You can also pray in the basement, but Ash notes that doing so feels empty.
The Beast’s Lair:
Return to the second console/terminal in the Abyss of Truth and go to the west exit. If you found all 5 red doors, you can enter the big door and face the Beast. Make sure to resist their temptation. It’s unclear if it’s possible to do this event in the postgame with Melody, but it feels more chronologically correct to do this after regaining Ash’s fighting spirit but before the final story boss. Plus, the Beast has far less HP than the Crimson God and was clearly balanced for a solo fight.
The Final Choice:
Once you defeat the Crimson God, he’ll try to tempt you into joining him. Refuse unless you want to get either of the bad endings.
Your Reward:
If you’ve cleared all the checks for the true ending, you’ll get to read Grandpa’s final letter.
That's everything we are sharing today for this View From Below guide. This guide was originally created and written by bugfragged. In case we fail to update this guide, you can find the latest update by following this link.