How to Get the True Ending in Saros

⚠️ Warning: This article contains major story spoilers for Saros. Read on only if you have already seen the credits or do not mind having the story revealed.

TL;DR

• You must finish the main story and see the first ending before the true ending becomes available.
• After the credits, follow the new quest marker back to the Passage and begin the epilogue sequence.
• Step 1: Fast travel to Shattered Descent and find Kayla inside the Echelon III domed building.
• Step 2: Travel to Blighted Marsh and find the large red tree — a cutscene with Kiira plays here.
• Step 3: Head to the Cathedral biome and find Nitya’s Lab — watch the holocache recording.
• Step 4: Return to the Passage, speak with Kayla, then enter the Banyan Tree and complete any remaining segments.
• Step 5: Return to Yellow Shore, defeat the King again — and this time, do NOT attack him after the fight. Walk through the portal instead.
• Completing this earns the Gold “Let Go” trophy, which is required for the Platinum.

Does Saros Have a True Ending?

Yes. Saros has two distinct endings — the main ending and the true ending. Much like Housemarque’s previous game Returnal, the credits are not the finish line. The first time you defeat the final boss and watch the story play out, that is the main ending. A second, more complete conclusion is hidden behind a post-game sequence that only unlocks once you have seen the first one.

The true ending — sometimes called the secret ending or good ending — recontextualises a lot of what happened throughout the game. It is also tied directly to the Gold “Let Go” trophy, which is required for the Platinum. If you are going for full completion, this is not optional.

The good news is that you do not need to play through the full game a second time. Everything in the epilogue can be reached via fast travel, and the process is mostly guided by quest markers once you know where to start.

Step 1 — Finish the Main Story First

There is no skipping this part. The true ending only becomes available after you have completed the main game and watched the first ending play out. This means clearing all eight biomes, defeating every boss including the Consort and the King in Yellow Shore, and letting the credits roll.

When the credits end, Arjun wakes up in the Passage just as he has after every run throughout the game. This time, Primary is behaving strangely and new objectives appear. A new audio log from Kayla sits in the central chamber. Follow the new quest marker — the epilogue sequence has begun.

Step 2 — Find Kayla in Shattered Descent

Your first objective directs you to find a signal origin in Shattered Descent, the third biome. Open Primary and use the World Dial to fast travel there directly. You do not need to fight through the whole biome.

Head to the large domed structure at the start of the area — the Echelon III base. Go inside and walk toward the red door at the back of the dome. As you approach, Kayla opens it from the other side. A cutscene plays. She is initially hostile, drawing a gun on Arjun since she believed she was the only survivor left. After the tension settles, she tells Arjun that a voice on the radio — implied to be Nitya — said Arjun should find the red tree in Blighted Marsh.

Once the cutscene ends, there is a teleporter inside the dome you can use to jump back to the Passage quickly.

Step 3 — Find the Red Tree in Blighted Marsh

Fast travel to Blighted Marsh — the fourth biome — from the World Dial at Primary. Run through the biome following the objective marker. You will pass the ruins that contain the Nightmare Strand portal. Just past that point, look for a large tree with deep crimson leaves. You have likely run past it during earlier cycles without being able to interact with it.

Approach the red tree and a cutscene triggers. Kiira’s voice emerges and she speaks with Arjun directly. She reveals that she and Nitya fell in love during their time on Carcosa. She tells Arjun he needs to go to Nitya’s lab in the Cathedral to understand Nitya’s truth.

After the cutscene, return to the Passage via the fast travel menu and proceed to the next step.

Step 4 — Reach Nitya’s Lab in the Cathedral

Fast travel to the Cathedral — the seventh biome — and push through it toward the end. Both branching paths off the central chamber need to be cleared. You also need to melee both oversized tuning forks in the chamber. This drops the bell in the center of the room, which is the same mechanic you completed during your first visit.

Nitya’s Lab becomes accessible just before the final boss arena. Enter it and watch the holocache recording inside. The text logs here fill in important details about Nitya’s story — including that she had originally planned not to join Echelon I, but changed her mind because of Arjun’s controlling behavior. The recording is uncomfortable viewing, but it is the emotional core of what the true ending is building toward.

Note: Your Second Chance ability is deactivated for this return trip. Play conservatively through the Cathedral and do not assume you have a safety net if something goes wrong.

Step 5 — Return to the Passage and Speak with Kayla

After watching the holocache recording, head back to the Passage. Kayla is there again, now with glowing blue lights in her eyes. She and Arjun acknowledge that Soltari will keep sending people to Carcosa. Kayla tells Arjun she has decided to stay on the planet to try and warn future arrivals.

After the conversation ends, your objective updates to the Banyan Tree.

Step 6 — Complete the Banyan Tree Segments

The Banyan Tree is located above the main chamber in the Passage. It works similarly to the House segments from Returnal — narrative flashback sequences that reveal pieces of Arjun’s past on Earth. Interact with the Banyan Tree to enter.

There are three Banyan Tree segments in total. Two of them can be completed during the main story, and the third becomes available here. If you completed both story segments already, you only need to do the final one now. If you skipped them during the main game, you will need to work through all three in order before you can proceed.

The Banyan Tree segments reveal the truth about Sebastian Torres — a former Enforcer and friend of Arjun’s. The game strongly implies Arjun murdered Sebastian to prevent him from telling Nitya about Arjun’s betrayal. Whether the Sebastian that Arjun has spoken to throughout Carcosa is real, a product of the Yellow, or a manifestation of Arjun’s deteriorating mind is left deliberately ambiguous.

After the final Banyan Tree sequence, a portal activates. A police investigation text log implicating Arjun in Sebastian’s death sits in the path ahead. Arjun speaks with Sebastian one last time. Police lights flash in the background. When the sequence concludes, you are returned to the Passage and your final objective appears.

Step 7 — Return to Yellow Shore and Refuse the Crown

This is the most critical step — and the one where you can accidentally lock yourself out of the true ending if you are not careful.

Fast travel back to Yellow Shore via Primary. Fight through the biome as normal until you reach the King. The boss fight plays out the same way it did the first time. Defeat the King and drain his health bar completely.

Here is where things change. After the fight, the King collapses to his knees. A large vertical portal opens behind him. There is no melee prompt this time. The game is giving you the choice — attack the boss as you did in the first ending, or walk away.

Do not attack the King. Do not press R1. Do not interact with the fallen boss at all. Simply walk past him and head through the portal that opened behind him.

If you attack the King here, you trigger the main ending again and will need to replay the full Yellow Shore run and boss fight from the beginning to try again. There is no checkpoint system to save you. Just walk through the portal.

What Happens in the True Ending?

Walking through the portal takes you to a beach. Arjun washes ashore and begins to undergo the King transformation once more — tentacles rise from the eclipse above him and his hands begin to change. Before the transformation completes, Arjun tears his sun medallion from his neck and throws it into the water. The transformation breaks.

Nitya is seated cross-legged behind him on the shore. She tells him he should not have come — that Carcosa was her dream, not his. Arjun admits he could not bear losing her. Nitya is quiet in response. She reminds him that his actions cannot be undone. She then quietly walks away.

The scene is deliberately understated. The yellow glow of the shore is gone, replaced by a genuine sunrise. It is not a happy ending in the traditional sense. Arjun does not get Nitya back. He does not escape consequence. But he breaks the cycle — which is more than the main ending offers him.

The final shot of flashing police lights in the Banyan Tree sequence suggests Arjun returns to Earth to face legal consequences for what happened to Sebastian. Whether the events on Carcosa were literal or a psychological spiral is left open for interpretation. Housemarque built ambiguity into every layer of the story on purpose.

Does the True Ending Unlock the Let Go Trophy?

Yes. Walking through the portal instead of attacking the King unlocks the Gold “Let Go” trophy. This trophy is required for the Saros Platinum — you cannot get the Platinum without it. If you are working toward full completion, the true ending is a mandatory step in that process.

For a full breakdown of every trophy in the game and how to work toward Platinum, see our complete Saros Trophy Guide.

Important Things to Know Before You Start

• You must see the main ending first. There is no way to access the true ending on your first playthrough. Beat the King, take the crown, watch the credits — then start the epilogue.
• Use fast travel for everything. Every location in the epilogue is reachable via the World Dial at Primary. You do not need to fight through full biomes to reach Kayla, the red tree, or Nitya’s lab.
• Second Chance is deactivated in Cathedral. Play carefully during that section. Do not be reckless assuming you have a backup life.
• Do the Banyan Tree segments during the main game if you can. Completing two of the three segments before the epilogue means you only have one left to do in the post-game, saving time.
• Do not attack the King the second time. This is the one moment where a mistake costs you a full boss fight run. When the King drops, walk past him and through the portal. Full stop.

How Long Does the True Ending Take to Unlock?

The full epilogue sequence is relatively short once you know where to go. Fast travelling to each location cuts out most of the travel time. The most time-consuming step is clearing the Cathedral biome again to reach Nitya’s lab, since the biome layout does not change but still needs to be navigated.

From the moment you wake up in the Passage after the credits to the moment you walk through the final portal, most players complete it in under two hours — often less if the Banyan Tree segments were already done during the main story.

For a broader look at how long the full game takes from start to finish including the true ending, check out our guide on how long Saros takes to beat.

Other Things Worth Doing in Post-Game

While you are working through the epilogue, it is also a good time to clean up anything you missed during the main run. Nightmare Strands reset every cycle and are available in all seven biomes — if you still need to complete some for the Gold trophy, our guide on Nightmare Strands explained in Saros covers everything you need.

If you are also still exploring the Desecrated Fortress or missed some of its unique rewards on your first pass, our guide on where to use Honorarium Sigils in the Desecrated Fortress is worth reading before your next run through Biome 5.

And if you want to know what happens when you face a different early boss in an unexpected way, check out what happens if you beat the Consort in Saros.

Note

The true ending in Saros is worth the effort. It does not offer a clean resolution — the story is too honest for that — but it gives Arjun something the main ending denies him: a moment of genuine accountability. He does not get Nitya back. He does not escape what he did to Sebastian. But he breaks the cycle on his own terms, which is as close to peace as this story gets.

Follow the steps above, do not attack the King the second time, and walk through the portal. Everything else in the epilogue is guided by quest markers. The game will take you where you need to go.

If you have not picked up Saros yet, it is available now as a PS5 exclusive — you can find it on the PlayStation Store here.