As the Sole Survivor journey ends in Fallout 4, they may find themselves staring out at a Commonwealth vastly improved by their presence. The main endings for the game will differ slightly depending on which faction was sided with, with a peaceful life ahead for most. However, there is a clever way to get a truly evil and chaotic ending, and hilariously, it never involves siding with the Institute, the main ‘bad guys’ of the game.

While most will side with one faction and stick with them until the end during any playthrough, looking at how they interact can yield interesting results. In a thread discussing the worst ending possible for Fallout 4, there is an inspired and devious way to make life as bad as possible for everyone. Best of all, this option uses in-game faction quests and completes the main objective of Fallout 4, with no tricks or mods required for maximum chaos.

Fallout 4’s Official Endings Aren’t Especially Evil

The Endings Offer A Simple Choice Between Factions

One of the main draws of playing RPGs is the roleplaying aspect of putting oneself in the shoes of another and reacting to the world as that character. Fallout 4 allows for this to a certain extent, with the Sole Survivor having a pre-established background that can be built on and adapted throughout the game. However, given the nature of the main plot, Fallout 4 doesn’t really have a truly evil ending, as most will opt to wipe out the sinister Institute or side with them to help create a better future for mankind.

The main ‘official’ endings are simple choices between Fallout 4’s primary factions and their ideologies. The Brotherhood of Steel ending sees the Institute destroyed but for different reasons than the Minutemen’s ending, while the Railroad has its agenda. Even siding with the Institute, a group frequently painted as the villains of the Commonwealth, can’t be called an evil ending as the scientists there honestly believe they have people’s best interests in mind.

The Institute believes they are the best chance for humans, despite being responsible for the presence of Super Mutants in Fallout 4 and kidnapping countless people over the centuries.

While it might be tempting to simply employ a purely violent approach, many cruel, weird, and chaotic consequences are built into Fallout 4 and its quests. Completely evil playthroughs are possible, but they often require creative approaches to quests or prior knowledge of outcomes. Careful planning can see the Sole Survivor leaving the Commonwealth in a significantly worse state than they found it, and it can be an oddly cathartic playthrough.

The Commonwealth Is Primed For More Chaos

How To Get The Worst Ending For Everyone

In their comment, ave369 breaks down their idea of the worst ending for Fallout 4, and the logic is sound. To achieve this, the Sole Survivor will need to join the Brotherhood of Steel and follow their questline through to “Tactical Thinking.” Here, they will be sent to the Old North Church, where they will help wipe out the Roadroad.

That’s one faction down. Immediately after this quest, the Minutemen should be the faction used to continue the main questline and eventually destroy the Institute, taking out another faction and major player in the Commonwealth.

It’s here that things get fun and naughty. After the Institute’s defeat, the Brotherhood should be betrayed, allowing the Minutemen quest “With Our Powers Combined” to be started. This will allow the Sole Survivor to use the Minutemen artillery to destroy the Prydwen and force a confrontation with the remaining Brotherhood forces. After this, the raider gangs in Nuka-World can be sided with to betray the Minutemen, handing the Commonwealth over to raiders to terrorize and enslave.

The Brotherhood can be betrayed by becoming enemies with them. This can be achieved by attacking Brotherhood forces, with Elder Maxson being an excellent target to loot his battlecoat.

The Minutemen can destroy the Brotherhood at any time after the Institute has been destroyed, even if the Brotherhood were sided with in the final battle. However, if Liberty Prime has been completed as part of the Brotherhood’s questline, the robot will not be destroyed and will instead eternally patrol Boston Airport. So, switching back to the Minutemen before the completion of “Spoils of War” is best for those wanting to avoid an unkillable giant robot in the Commonwealth.

Fallout 4 Actions Matter More Than Endings

There Are Plenty Of Evil Options In Side Quests

However, while gaining a particular ending in Fallout 4 is excellent for getting achievements or certain outcomes for factions, ultimately, they are not actually the end of the game. All the Fallout 4 DLCs can be played after the main quest and approached from the angle of chaos just as much as the main game. The Sole Survivor can continue in Fallout 4 long after the end of the main questline, with it possible to reach level 65,535. This makes individual actions throughout the game far more important than any one ending.

The main quest of Fallout 4 is only one small aspect of the whole game, and that’s not including all the quests and side quests included in the DLCs. When approaching a playthrough with the goal of chaos, there are plenty of evil things to do in Fallout 4, from selling children to siding with cannibals. The opportunities to roleplay someone despicable or manipulative are wonderfully plentiful and are a great, entertaining way to explore some different and unexpected areas of the game.

Using the same technique suggested here, it is also possible to wipe out every faction in the Far Harbor DLC using the faction quests to leave the Island in shambles.

Despite being released almost a decade ago, Fallout 4 is as popular as the Sole Survivor’s adventures carry on with old and new players alike. Undoubtedly, what keeps people returning to Fallout 4 is the number of choices on offer throughout the game. No two playthroughs are ever identical, with so many different outcomes for even small unmarked side quests. The open-ended gameplay, exploration, excellent quests, well-written characters, and the freedom to approach any situation in multiple ways create an RPG with nuance where even siding with the villains isn’t always the most evil option.