Visual Novel / Endless Summer

Book 1 cover art. Left to right: Jake, Furball, Quinn, and Sean. ^note  Not pictured: The deceptiveness.

Endless Summer is a Visual Novel that is part of the Choices: Stories You Play collection. The series is split into 3 books; Book 1 aired from December 2016 to April 2017, Book 2 aired from June 2017 to October 2017, and Book 3 aired from December 2017 to April 2018.

Eleven lucky college students to have won an all-expense paid summer vacation to the Caribbean island of La Huerta. It's not long after landing that you realize something is horribly wrong... and the lovely resort hotel being abandoned is only the first sign.

Not to be confused with the freeware Russian VN from 2013, whose English title is Everlasting Summer. It also shouldn't be confused with the 1964 surf film The Endless Summer, or with the 1974 Greatest Hits Album Endless Summer by The Beach Boys.

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Endless Summer includes tropes of:

A-M

• Abusive Parents: Sean's father was abusive to him and his mother.
  • Aleister's father Rourke was also the same way to him.
  • Grace implies that her mother was emotionally abusive. Her Ember vision seems to confirm this.
• Action Survivor: At this point, most of the group has been involved in first-hand action through the forest, cave, against wild prehistoric creatures, and even to an active volcano.
  • Book 2 now includes having to fight against an elite black-ops paramilitary unit.
• Actually Pretty Funny: In Book 1 Chapter 4, Taylor spies on Raj sleeping on a massage chair. If Taylor chooses to prank Raj, he finds the prank funny (if he likes Taylor) as do Craig and Zahra.
• Adam and Eve Plot: In Book 1 Chapter 11, Craig worries that because of what may or may not have happened off the island, that they should start repopulating. The girls are obviously disgusted.
• A Day in the Limelight: While you can gain points with characters across chapters, certain chapters, especially with premium choices, are made specifically for gaining points with specific characters. For example, Chapter 7 gets you points with Craig and Zahra and Chapter 9 has a big chance to get points with Estela.
  • Book 2 has these in the catalyst idols that correspond to each of the party.
  • Same for Book 3 with the Embers Of Hope.
• A Good Name for a Rock Band: In Book 2 Chapter 4, when you're asked about the Twelve Catalysts, you have the option to say it sounds like a metal band. Craig finds it funny but Zahra groans, saying this isn't the time for jokes.
• And Now for Someone Completely Different: Chapter 9 allows Taylor to see through Raj in a premium choice.
  • In the final chapter, a premium option allows Taylor to recieve memories from the Endless of events from alternate timelines. Those events are shown from the Endless' point of view.
• Animal Motif: Each of the character files you get in the premium choices all have different animal/mythical creature stamps.
  • In order: Sean (eagle), Grace (swan), Raj (centaur), Estela (dragon), Jake (wolf), Diego (dog), Zahra (crow), Craig (bear), Michelle (peacock), Quinn (dolphin), Rourke (hydra), Aleister (snake). The only one without an animal/mythical creature stamp is Taylor, who has a double helix stamp, representing Andromeda. Andromeda is by that, the odd one out, as it is not an animal.
• Arc Number: 1908. In Book 1 Chapter 13, it's the wine bottle that activates a secret passage in the wine cellar and Rourke's cheat code to Most Wanted 2. In Book 2 Chapter 3, he issues Directive 1908 to have Iris turn to his side. Aleister's birthday also happens to be on the 19th of August.
• Artistic License – Biology:
  • In Book 1 Chapter 4, Aleister calls out Diego for calling a smilodon Jurassic when it's actually Pleistocene.
  • Craig thinks that eating a candy bar he dropped into a public hot tub is fine cause hot water is sterile.
• Artistic License – Space: In-Universe in Book 1 Chapter 10: If Taylor goes with Sean into the pod, they are surrounded by constellations. Ones that don't match where the island is and haven't looked like that for millions of years.
• Artistic License – Sports: In his Idol flashback, Craig is rejected for the NFL Draft. In reality, this can't happen, as the NFL draft isn't an application process; college players just "declare" for the draft, and they're in it.^note This doesn't mean the player has a guarantee of being drafted — there are always more players who declare for the draft than there are draft picks — but they get to decide to put themselves in the draft pool, and then it's just a matter of whether a team picks them or not. The only situation in which a candidate could be preemptively rejected in this way would be if they don't meet all the eligibility requirements for the draft, which doesn't seem to apply to Craig's situation (ironically, one thing that could have led to Craig becoming ineligible if he'd been suspended or kicked off the team for the laptop incident, but that never happened because Sean took the bullet for him) — and even if Craig were ineligible for the regular draft, he would still be able to make himself available through the supplemental draft and/or try to sign on with a team as an undrafted free agent, so it still wouldn't mean his dream is automatically over. Likely this is done for narrative convenience, as NFL player moves are public information, so the realistic equivalent (Craig either not making it onto a team (whether via the draft or UDFA) or else getting cut in training camp or similar) wouldn't be something Craig could keep a secret.
• Attack of the 50-Foot Whatever: In Book 1 Chapter 11, a sea monster comes out of the sea. Book 2 Chapter 6 reveals that it's the Sea Guardian, Cetus.
• Aw, Look! They Really Do Love Each Other: Even though a number of them are at odds with each other, they get in a group hug and admit they love each other before going through the time portal.
• Back from the Dead: Allowing Rourke to continue with Project Janus will result in Lila, Olivia Montoya, Lundgren, and Mike brought back to life.
  • Taylor choosing to merge with Vaanu will undo the destruction of the world and consequently bring back the planet's population, including the group's friends and family.
• Batman Gambit: If you don't have the cutlass from Book 1 or don't give it to Yvonne, Sean and Michelle have Craig break down a wall by having him see a rival college team, then charging it down.
• Battle Amongst the Flames: One of the alternate timelines in Book 3 Chapter 12 has Aleister and Rourke getting into a swordfight in the burned out ruins of Hartfeld.
• Betty and Veronica: The love interests are divided into this. The Bettys are Sean (heroic and kind) and Quinn (sweet and bubbly). The Veronicas are Jake (cynical and sarcastic) and Estela (aloof and abrasive).
• Beware the Nice Ones: The most notable examples include:
  • Grace's profile says she has a criminal record (even her photo is a police mugshot). A flashback reveals that she smashed her professor's car after he was condescending to her (or at least that's how she perceived it) when she got a B on a paper. Her threat level is 6.
  • Lila isn't as happy going as she looks. Zahra doesn't trust her at all, she hides something from Rourke's office in her pocket, and she is trying to find out how much IRIS knows about her. She will get defensive if Taylor points out how similar they look, or will completely change the subject the moment IRIS tells Taylor about her DNA scannings of the group.
• Big Damn Heroes: Estela returns in Book 1 Chapter 8 to help save the group from the giant crab.
• The Big Damn Kiss:
  • Taylor has two Premium options to make out with Quinn.
  • Another premium option lets Taylor and Sean kiss while they are inside the pod at the Observatory.
  • After they encounter the sea monster, Taylor falls into the water and can choose to kiss either Sean or Jake during the rescue.
  • If Taylor chooses to help Grace confess to Aleister, she will eventually give him an innocent kiss on the cheek before saying she likes him.
  • New Year's Eve in Book 2 Chapter 10 gives us plenty: Taylor with Sean/Jake/Quinn/Estela, Diego and Varyyn share their first kiss, Grace pounces on Aleister, and Zahra and Craig make out for the first time since they went their separate ways.
• Big Eater: Craig is this. Michelle said he once ate a rock, which he clarifies he did on a dare, winning ten bucks. Paying diamonds to get into the VIP club in Book 1 Chapter 7 has Zahra not only call Craig a human garbage disposal, but also reveal Craig once ate a candy bar he dropped in a public hot tub.
• Big, Screwed-Up Family: Book 1 Chapter 7 has Raj reveal that his family fights a lot. His uncle threw a candle at [Raj's] father and set half the house on fire. It was usually sorted out by his grandmother making big feasts to get them back together.
• Birds of a Feather: Both Aleister and Grace are very smart and have fun talking about scientific themes. If Taylor decides to help Grace confess to Aleister, they both will talk about how she understands his "Well Done, Son" Guy, since she has the same relationship with her mother.
• Bittersweet Ending: The Multiple Endings of Book 3 Chapter 12 give these in every outcome.
  • If Rourke wins, Taylor gets a real past and Diego is still bound to be Taylor's friend, but Rourke becomes Emperor of the Earth, a three-year service is instituted after college with Lundgren as General, Vaanu gets consummed by Project Janus, the friendships and Character Developments are Ret Goned, Quinn is still dying, Jake is still a fugitive, and Varyyn and the Vaanti are in concentration camps.
  • If Taylor and the gang stay on the island, they live out their lives in La Huerta, but the rest of the world, including everyone they ever knew (apart from each other), is permanently destroyed, and while their lives are safe and relatively comfortable, the limitations of the situation mean that most of their dreams are lost as well.
  • If Taylor chooses to merge with Vaanu again, everyone gets their lives back, Rourke is arrested, Varyyn and Diego still are together, and Furball lives with Michelle and Quinn, but Taylor is gone and the rest of them are permanently affected by the loss.
• Bling-Bling-BANG!: In Book 2 Chapter 5, the ball Yvonne has is really a bullet made of gold due to her time having more gold than iron.
• Booby Trap: Book 1 Chapter 13 has the group laying down traps for the Watchers. Raj's idea for paint involves pouring it on the stairs while Aleister's idea involves paint balloons to blind them. For a scuba tank, Michelle's idea is to use it as a missile while Grace's idea involves using it as an escape means.
• Breath Weapon: In Book 1 Chapter 5, the blue fox wards off the sabertooth by blowing ice at it. Also, the sea monster shoots lightning from its mouth.
• Broken Ace: Sean's profile reveals his father, Marcus, was a pro football star until injuries and debt crushed his career.
• Brutal Honesty: After seeing the Sabertooh while the others were partying, if Taylor chooses to defend himself and ruin the mood with his friends, it gives +1 sympathy point with Estela, while also losing -1 point with Raj.
• Central Theme: What is most important: the past, the present, or the future? Several choices allude to this theme, culminating in the Last-Second Ending Choice, in which you can choose to rewrite the past, live the rest of your days in the moment, or make your friends' futures happen.
• Character Customization: Book 2 allows you to change Taylor's hair, race, and gender before starting the story. Book 3 adds clothing.
• Chekhov's Gun:
  • The flare gun you get in Chapter 11 gets used like this in Chapter 12 if you fight the sea monster. After Sean throws the block of semtex at the monster, Jake shoots the block with the flare gun.
  • The traps installed in Chapter 14 come into play during the Watcher invasion.
  • In Chapter 16 the gun found in the Observatory turns out to be a Time Travel Portal, which is used to dispatch some Watchers and for the group to escape from the invasion.
  • The files found during the entire book not only are clues but the source to find Rourke's password.
  • When the group emerges from the time portal, they find a note written by someone trying to solve Rourke's password. A bonus scene reveals that it was Lila; she didn't go through the portal with the rest of them, but rather spent six months alone in the Celestial, during which time she attempted to solve the password.
• Chekhov's Skill: From Chapter 1 you know Sean is a college quarterback who's likely to go pro. If you decide to fight the sea monster in Chapter 12, he gets to put those skills to the test by throwing a block of semtex at the sea monster once Taylor gets the boat close enough.
• Chekhov's Volcano: Mt. Atropo is this to the island. In Book 1 Chapter 10, as the group tries to make contact with anyone on the mainland, they hear of a volcanic eruption throughout the world from La Huerta that's demolishing the world, yet nothing like that has happened on the island. In Book 2 Chapter 13, when the group manages to get back home, they come home to a volcanic wasteland where Hartfeld used to be.
• Classified Information: Book 1 reveals that Rourke keeps files on the group. Most of them are acquired through premium choices.
  • Chapter 6 has files on Sean, Grace, Raj, and Estela in Rourke's office if Taylor follows Sean. Estela's profile is the most classified.
  • Chapter 10 has files on Jake, Diego, and Zahra in the observatory.
  • Chapter 11 has files on Craig, Michelle, and Quinn in the marina.
  • Chapter 13 has files on Taylor and Aleister in the surveillance room. Unlike the above files, these two are acquired without paying diamonds.
  • While not shown, Lila is overheard asking IRIS for hers. IRIS tells that other than personality stuff it's classified Gamma and out of her reach.
• Conveniently Interrupted Document: Much of Estela's profile is blacked out.
• CPR: Clean, Pretty, Reliable:
  • Book 1 Chapter 5 has Quinn getting dragged down into the water by vines. Whether Jake or Taylor resuscitates her, she'll be back to normal.
  • Book 3 Chapter 4 has your Love Interest do this to Taylor after washing up on Neptune Cove.
• Cruel and Unusual Death:
  • Lila has a knack of killing her victims like this.
  • During the attack on the Celestial, she pushed a Watcher off the balcony of a 15th floor room.
  • She killed Olivia Montoya by giving her a Deadly Hug, followed by a gunshot in the head.
• Crying Wolf: The group has this reaction to Taylor after he sees a shadowy creature in Chapter 2.
• Damsel in Distress: Quinn has to be rescued two times during the run of Book 1: The first time Taylor shields her from the smilodon attack (she says she's not worthy and to never do that again), and the second time, mutant seaweed tried to drown her while they dived out of the cave and needs to be rescued and get CPR from Taylor (only by paying diamonds) or Jake.
• Death Is a Slap on the Wrist: Whenever Taylor dies, the game immediately restarts from an earlier point. Apparently it doesn't feel too great, but other than that there are no real penalties.
• Derelict Graveyard: Chapter 11 has the group find out the hard way all the ships at the marina are destroyed.
• Did Not Think This Through: In Book 2 Chapter 10, Craig and Raj get the idea to set off some signal flares as New Year's fireworks. While they're being pursued by a military squad. Estela lays out a quick Let Me Get This Straight... that causes them to realize the flaw in their plan.
  • In Book 1 Chapter 13, the player has to choose between Michelle's idea of using the oxygen tank as a missile and Grace's idea of leaving it by the pool to hide. Some time later, the player then has a separate choice of whether or not to close the tsunami shutters — which cuts off access to all outdoor areas, including the pool. Choosing to close the shutters after having chosen Grace's idea in the earlier scene becomes this, which is Lampshaded in-universe once the attack is in progress.
• Dirty Coward: In Chapter 4, if you hide behind Quinn during the smilodon attack, you not only get her hurt, but lose 2 relation points. Running for the door is also a bad move costing you points between Jake and Lila.
• The Dreaded: Estela's file in Chapter 6 has a warning not to approach her.
• Double-Meaning Title: The title initially just appears to be a reference to the summer vacation being extended by the plane crash, but it eventually turns out that there is also a character named "The Endless," a Big Good figure who is the aged-up future version of the MC
• Dreaming of Things to Come: The game starts with your character having dreams of events yet to happen in the story. Chapter 7 has Taylor have another vision of a walkway over lava.
• Dressing as the Enemy: In Book 2 Chapters 12 and 13, Taylor, Sean, Craig, and Zahra dress up in Arachnid suits to sneak into the MASADA Complex while pretending they captured the rest of the group.
• Dynamic Entry: Whether you sleep with any of the four love interests or alone, the Watcher chief bursts in through the window of your room.
• Establishing Character Moment: The first two scenes, while they're on the airplane and once they get off. Taylor has a strange dream, Diego is right by Taylor's side, Jake is sarcastic even as the plane goes through severe turbulence, Estela is silent and unfazed, Quinn is having trouble breathing, Sean tries to calm everyone down, Aleister worries he's going to die surrounded by morons, Zahra grumpily asks if it's too late to jump out the plane, Raj regrets the chipotle he ate, Lila insists on everyone putting their seat belt on, Grace remarks on how La Huerta is home to a number of plants and animals, Craig calls Grace a dork and Michele calls Taylor desperate (but will switch to being friendly if Taylor compliments her).
• Eternal Equinox: Averted. In Book 1 Chapter 9, the day/night cycle is out of whack on the mountain. For example, the team leaving at dawn only for it to get dark again three hours later. In the premium scene where Estela and Taylor go to fight the Giant Crab, the cycle changes again, but they later learn that the rest of the group didn't experience that extra cycle, suggesting that it's not only bizarrely timed but also is not consistent even across relatively short distances.
• "Eureka!" Moment: During Book 1 Chapter 9 when you control Raj, regardless of what romantic advice he gives Aleister about Grace, Raj pulls out a picture which Lila recognizes as being from the island's private marina as a way to get off the island.
• Expecting Someone Taller: When the group suspects Aleister to be the spy, Taylor has the option to believe it's not true, mostly because he doesn't look like one. After this is pointed out, the others follow suit with more deprecating humor. Aleister doesn't find it funny, obviously.
• Exposition Dump: Taylor can use the time loop in Book 2 Chapter 2 to get answers from Rourke (if the latter was freed from his pod) on everything the group has seen on the island from hidden passages, where everyone is, why they were brought to the island, and also what's up with the sea monster.
• Face–Heel Turn: Jake goes back to Arachnid in one of the alternate realities the Endless shows Taylor.
• Feminine Women Can Cook: Quinn helps Raj with cooking the feast. If the player chooses the premium option to help her, Taylor gets a chance to sample her exceptionally good cupcakes.
• Flash Back and Flash Forward: Book 2 introduces Catalyst statues that show a person's past but also an alternate future.
  • Chapter 1 has Michelle's found in Rourke's underground vault. In the past, it's revealed that she never cheated on Sean and it was all a lie from her sorority. In her alternate future, she blames herself for Aleister and Craig's possible deaths and sail into a storm with Cetus still out there.
  • Chapter 2 has Sean's found inside a tree. In the past, Sean takes the bullet from Craig's poor choice to accept a free laptop from a recruiter (against their coach's orders and putting his spot on the team at risk) because he knows the team couldn't afford to lose him so his punishment would be less severe. In his alternate future, he falls off a cliff to save the group from the sabertooth.
  • Chapter 3 has Diego's found in an ancient temple. There's no past scene for him. In his alternate future, he tries to free Varyyn from Rourke's complex, but IRIS kills both of them with automated gun turrets. It's also implied that Aleister is dead and she is trying to revive him. There's a loose echo of the scene in Book 3 Chapter 6, but the details are different.
  • Chapter 4 has Raj's found on a derelict ship on Sharktooth Isle. In the past, he has gotten off academic probation of having been suspected of cheating on a test, but is saddened by his inability to convince his friends that he's truly innocent because they don't believe he's capable of getting a good score legitimately. In his alternate future, he's turned into Rourke's personal chef, having cooked up the sabertooth for him. He finally draws the line when Rourke orders him to cook Furball, and they run from the Celestial. Furball gets away but Raj is shot by Rourke's harpoon gun.
  • Chapter 5 has Quinn's found in an abandoned manor on Sharktooth Isle. In the past, each of her parents is badgering her to do something against the other's wishes. In her future, she lapses into a coma as a result of her Rotterdam's Syndrome while celebrating with Taylor in the Vaanti village. This scene plays out at the end of Book 2 Chapter 6, but Taylor and the others are able to save Quinn from dying.
  • Chapter 6 has Taylor's found in Cetus's esca, the angler bit on his head after Seraxa cuts it off. In the past, Taylor is trying to get Diego to go out for some fun. In his/her alternate future, Taylor is burying the bodies of the other eleven Catalysts, wearing Jake's dog tags.
  • Chapter 7 has Grace's found in an alcove of Elyys'tel's tree when the group was in another dimension. In the past, she smashes a professor's car because he suggested that a B+ she recieved was not her best effort (which explains why she got arrested according to her profile), and it's also shown that Aleister's crush on her predated the trip. In her alternate future, she accidentally detonates a bomb in Mount Atropo by hitting it with a rock in a fit of frustration because she can't disarm it.
  • Chapter 8 has Zahra's found during a scavenger hunt. In the past, she and two of her hacker friends hack a corporation finding all sorts of files, and she and Craig broke up because they no longer fit in each other's worlds. In the alternate future, she has been Rourke's Chief of Security for five years until she reveals she's been working a long game, sabotaging all of Rourke's security with a single button. She tells Rourke she did it all for Craig before she and Rourke kill each other.
  • Chapter 9 has Craig's found in a wrecked airplane. In the past, as they're about to get on the plane to La Huerta, Craig gets an e-mail that tells him he's been rejected for the 2017 draft. In his alternate future, Craig stays behind to fight against the Arachnids, but gets punched out by Tetra and then choked to death by Fiddler.
  • Chapter 10 is Lila's; there's no idol for her, but a moment from her past is revealed when she touches Taylor. In the past, Lila reveals to Rourke that she is so loyal to him because she was inspired by the world he wants to make, which would save people like her who lost their family and had a rough childhood afterwards. He offers her an unnamed job, which would require her to possibly risk her life, but first asks her if she trusts him. She says she does. Unlike the others, she doesn't get a corresponding future scene.
  • Chapter 11 has Estela's found in a frozen lake. In the past, Estela overhears other students in the library making fun of her, and Aleister, sitting nearby, tells her not to trust other people. In her alternate future, she kills Lila and tries to kill Rourke, who kills her after distracting her with a drone.
  • Chapter 13 has Jake's found in the Theoretical Prismatics section of the MASADA facility. In the past, Jake is flying with Mike (who appears to be the original source of Jake's nicknaming habit) when they're attacked by Lundgren. They try to bail out, but Mike can't eject; Jake tries to help, but Mike activates Jake's ejection system, saving Jake at the cost of himself. In his alternate future, Zahra's kill switch (as shown in her idol vision) lets Jake out and he proceeds to go One-Man Army on the Arachnids white freeing Taylor from a MASADA pod, only to end up Taking the Bullet for Taylor.
  • Chapter 14 has Aleister's found in a biohazard waste can in the MASADA facility. In the past, Aleister tells his father, Rourke, that he received a prestigious scholarship, but Rourke refuses to acknowledge this as anything of significance. In the future, just after Aleister, now walking with a cane, learns that Rourke is dead, Taylor confronts him about his betrayal, and ends up shoving him out the window.
  • Book 3 introduces the Embers of Hope, through which each of the Catalysts (except Taylor) is shown a possible future that could come to pass if the destruction of the world can be reversed. The Embers are objects that are significant to the individual, and unlike the Idol futures, the Ember visions show positive outcomes (see What Could Have Been).
• "Freaky Friday" Flip: In Book 3 Chapter 12, you have the premium option of seeing a clip show of some of the 2,139 cycles that the Endless witnessed. One of them involves Michelle and Aleister switching bodies and Grace lampshading that it’s literally called the “Freaky Friday Device.”
• From Bad to Worse: Book 1 Chapter 5 has the group not only seeing the only plane they have go up in flames, but also get cornered by the smilodon.
• Gay Option: As with previous Choices games, you can decide if your character is paired with someone of the same gender.
• Get A Hold Of Yourself Man: In Book 1 Chapter 11, Sean gets a Heroic BSoD after discovering that their last resource to escape the island is gone, Taylor can choose to comfort him or yell at him to get up. If the second choice isn't chosen, Craig does this anyway.
• Giant Enemy Crab: Book 1 Chapters 8 and 9 has the group attacked by one of these. Book 2 Chapter 4 reveals that its name is the Shore Guardian.
• God Mode: Going into the wine cellar in a premium choice in Book 1 Chapter 13 allows Taylor to find a wine bottle that opens up a secret underground entrance. That same bottle's year is also the cheat code to god mode in Most Wanted 2.
• Ghost Town: When you get to La Huerta, everybody is gone to the point of dust being left on furniture, even when it was a bustling resort just days ago. Chapter 3 reveals that all the guests went to an emergency shelter.
• Grand Staircase Entrance: Estela, Sean, Jake, and Quinn come down the stairs in dresses and suits to celebrate the New Year's party.
• "Groundhog Day" Loop: Book 2 Chapter 2 has Taylor and the party caught in a 12 minute time loop only s/he and Iris are aware of, and they can't tell anyone without collapsing time in on itself.
• Guile Hero: The game actually encourages the player to say and act to gain sympathy points with the rest of the group, even if it's not the true feelings towards them. In some cases, Brutal Honesty will make Taylor lose points (like, for example, telling Michelle off in Book 1 Chapter 1 takes -4 points away, and straight up telling Lila in Book 1 Chapter 8 that the group doesn't trust her takes -5 points away), so in some cases lying actually helps you get by.
• Hairpin Lockpick: Book 1 Chapter 10 has Zahra needing to get into a computer panel, and the best tool to get at it is Michelle's bobby pin. Zahra can't get it, but Grace is able to.
• Hello, [Insert Name Here]:
  • The Main Character's default name is "Taylor", and it can be changed along with the gender.
  • Paying diamonds in Book 1 Chapter 6 allows you to name the blue fox, otherwise Aleister calls it Furball.
• Heroic BSoD: Sean gets one of these in Book 1 Chapter 11 when he sees all of the ships on the marina are destroyed.
• Heroic Sacrifice: When finding out that there were not enough parachutes for everyone, Sean's first reaction is to offer himself to stay behind (with Craig offering to be with him), before Taylor finds an alternative escape route. Then played straight when Diego gets captured by the Vaanti and lets go from Taylor so they won't catch both.
  • Mike does this in the final battle, lighting himself on fire in order to kill Lundgren.
• Hidden Depths: The profiles can reveal more of the characters backgrounds only if the player is willing to pay diamonds.
  • Apparently, Raj is a Business major who wastes most of his time getting high, but has a genius-level IQ and occasionally shows it.
  • Sean and Grace are "Well Done, Son!" guys. In Sean's case, it's because his father has put all the family's future on his shoulders, while Grace is trying to live up to her mother's expectations.
  • We discover in Book 1 Chapter 11 that Craig has deeper motivations to stay on the island other than having a good time. He doesn't seem to think he has much of a future once he's out of college, which is the driving force behind his desire to stay on the island.
    • His idol vision in Book 2 sheds more light on this, revealing that he discovered he was rejected for the NFL draft just before leaving for La Huerta. He had pretty much pinned all his hopes for the future on the idea of going to the NFL, and when that dream didn't come to pass, he was left feeling like he had no future anymore.
  • Michelle is the daughter of a single mother, an honor student, and in the pre-med program.
• Hideous Hangover Cure: Book 1 Chapter 3 has Raj making what he calls The Raj Hangover Special 9000. It contains a blend of eggs, potatoes, oysters and bananas, topped with pickle juice. Taylor can choose to suggest it qualifies as a "natural disaster".
• High-Heel–Face Turn
  • Lila finally turns on Rourke when he orders her to kill the contest winners in Book 2.
  • One of the alternate timelines shows Fiddler apparently working on the side of the main cast, saving Michelle from the lava on the catwalk in Taylor's place.
• Highly Visible Password: Book 1 Chapter 4 has an obvious hint for the password to the security station with astrological signs.
• Hitler's Time Travel Exemption Act: Craig is quite eager to defy it when he learns the rules of time are kinda screwy.
  Craig: "What if we go back to, like, World War II times, and we have to kill Hitler? I always wanted to kill Hitler!"
• I Always Wanted to Say That: After the fight with Mouse in Book 2 Chapter 15, Craig says he always wanted to say “Get... to... the... chopper!”

• It Can Think: In Book 1 Chapter 8, the crab starts blocking Jake's rocks, showing it's not stupid.
• It's Not You, It's My Enemies: If Taylor stargazes with Estela in Book 1 Chapter 2, she will abruptly get up and leave, saying that people around her tend to get hurt.
• I Need a Freaking Drink: Jake usually reaches for the nearest bottle of booze after stressful events. Chapter 6 has him looking for one after finding out the plane is blown up, and on chapter 11 after the events at the Observatory.
• Intimate Lotion Application: A premium scene allows Taylor the option to have Jake, Sean, or both at the same time to apply lotion on his/her back. Picking the solo options gets a standard Ship Tease, but picking both ends up causing them to bicker on which is the best way to apply the sun cream, and they end up having some awkward sexual tension themselves because their hands keep accidentally touching.

• Last-Second Ending Choice: Regardless of all your choices, all endings will be available, and you will be well-informed of the consequences before you make that final decision.
• Leaning on the Fourth Wall: At one point, Zahra is making coffee for herself, and you get a Tough Choice to ask her for some. If you fail, Taylor says it was Worth It, while Zahra asks if it really was. You likely thought that it was worth the chance to boost your relationship with her until the dialogue emphasized that you just lost three relationship points.
• Let Me Get This Straight...: Estela pulls one of these during the New Year party, to point out the flaw in Raj's plan to shoot off flares as fireworks.
• Love Confession: In Book 1 Chapter 14, Taylor can help Grace with a premium option to confess her feelings for Aleister, since it might be their last night alive on the island. Fortunately, both of them feel the same for each other.
• Luke, I Am Your Father: Rourke reveals that he is Estela's father.
• Macguffin:
  • Book 2 introduces the catalyst idols, aka Vaalta.
  • Book 3 introduces the embers of hope.
• Malevolent Masked Man: The Hostiles are a tribe of them, with the Chief wearing a lion mask.
  • Subverted, the Vaanti really aren’t evil, they were merely trying to get the Catalysts to help them. Considering Taylor at the time was the only one who could talk to Varryn at the time, it didn’t help things.
• Man of Wealth and Taste: Everett Rourke comes off as this.
• Mishmash Museum: La Huerta in general is this. The Celestial alone has prehistoric vegetation, a 20's ballroom, a nightclub with 90's hits, Rourke's personal VIP Lounge, his personal arcade room. Outside of the island there're bunkers, the volcano observatory has a hidden futuristic laboratory, the animals are supposed to be extinct (like a Smilidon or Giant King Crab), and the hostiles who are speculated to be the natives look like blue aliens.
• The Mole: Book 1 Chapter 6 allows you to guess that someone in the group is the one responsible for burning the plane, though it makes you take a hit in popularity.
  • Turns out it was, it was Lila.
• Mood Killer: Paying diamonds in Book 1 Chapter 7 allows you to help Quinn cook cupcakes with her. If your relationship is high enough, Taylor and Quinn have a makeout session that's about to get a bit raunchier when Raj walks in on them.
• Mr. Fanservice: There're several scenes with Jake and Sean shirtless. They can have a sex scene with Taylor in Chapter 14 as a premium choice.
• Ms. Fanservice: For premium options Quinn is shown wearing a small turquoise bikini. Later Estela gets in a black bikini during her sparring lessons with Taylor and Jake. Both Quinn or Estela can have a sex scene with Taylor in Chapter 14 as a premium choice.
• Multinational Team: Most of the cast is American: it's composed by two Asian-Americans (Craig is Taiwanese and Michelle is Vietnamese), two African-American (Sean and Grace), one southern guy (Jake), a Latino-American (Diego), one Irish-American (Quinn) and one Indian-American (Raj). Aleister is British, Estela is Colombian, and Zahra is Iranian. Taylor's race is chosen by the player and isn't quite real anyway.
• Multiple Endings: In Book 3, Chapter 12, the player gets three choices of how to proceed. Each choice results in a different ending:
  • Allowing Rourke to complete Project Janus, which restores the world but it's now altered according to Rourke's design. This also means the events of the story are RetConned out of existence, with only Taylor and Varyyn still remembering that they ever happened.
  • Reversing Project Janus, which allows the main characters to live out their lives safe on La Huerta, but the rest of the world remains destroyed.
  • Merging with Vaanu, which sets the rest of the world right and erases all the time anomalies, but Taylor ceases to exist in human form.
• Must Not Die a Virgin: In Chapter 14, Diego convinces Taylor (as a premium option) to make a move and have sex with either Quinn, Jake, Sean or Estela, since they are about to be under Watcher attack.
• My God, What Have I Done?: If the player chooses the option to let Rourke complete Project Janus, Taylor will have this reaction when s/he sees what reality looks like following Rourke's alterations.

N-Z

• New Year Has Come: Book 2 Chapter 10 is not only one of these, but a birthday episode as well.
• The Nicknamer: Jake. Taylor can give him one the first time you meet. Lampshaded in book 3, where Jake addresses several of his friends by their nicknames (presumably as a clever way to confuse Tetra, who's chasing them at that point), and Kele asking if those people are even there. However, everyone is so used to them, that they understand what they mean anyway. ^note  He said: 'Princess/Boy Scout, Ariel, Short Stuff and Big Guy, you take Papa Smurf and head left.', which translates to 'MC, Quinn, Grace and Craig, you take Varyyn and head left'.
  • Aleister = Malfoy/Pierre
  • Craig = Drax/Craigslist/Bob Costas/Gronk^note For Rob Gronkowski
  • Diego = Pop Culture Petey/Abercrombie-and-Twitch
  • Estela = Katniss/Sarah Connor/Imperator Furiosa/Wednesday Addams
  • Giant Crab = Seafood Special
  • Grace = Wikipedia/Short Stuff/Mulder/Brain Trust/Marie Curie
  • Hostile Chief/Varyyn = Legolas/Blue's Clues
  • Iris = Princess Leia/Blue Girl Group/Robomaid
  • Lila = Dimples/Minnie Mouse
  • Michelle = Maybelline
  • Quinn = Pippi Longstocking/Ariel
  • Raj = Julio Child
  • Sean = Captain America/Magellan
  • Taylor = Boy Scout/Princess ^note Varies depending on the gender
  • Smilodon/T'kal = Buckteeth/Tony the Tiger
  • Zahra = Skrillex
  • Jake = Taylor can choose to nickname him Aragorn, Jared Leto, Top Gun, or Hotness. Previously, he got the nickname Grandpa (as well as the nicknaming schick itself) from Mike.
  • Rourke = Lex Luthor/Phony Stark
  • Cetus = Nessie/Freakachu
  • Seraxa = Un-Jolly Green Giant/She-Hulk
  • Malatesta = Cap’n Crunch
  • Vaanu = Slimer
• No Fair Cheating: Try restarting Book 1 Chapter 10 and guess Iris' name before you actually discover the proper clue. Iris confirms your guess is correct, resulting in the others asking how you knew that. Taylor has no idea, and immediately suffers a splitting headache due to "the pain of doing something you couldn't, shouldn't have been able to", culminating in your head exploding. Aside from the usual "You have died" message, you are then told: "Do not attempt to cheat the laws of time".
  • Entering the password long before you're supposed to get it in Rourke's office teleports Taylor right into John Tull's trailer, and he's not pleased!
• No-Holds-Barred Beatdown: Book 2 Chapter 1 has Estela want to give one of these to Rourke (if you discovered him in his pod at the end of Book 1). Taylor can either stand in her way or allow her to do so.
• Noodle Incident:
  • Zahra is somehow on the FBI watchlist.
  • Raj mentions that he had a lot of family feuds and property damage incidents at college parties enough to have a lot of fests to fix them. He never goes into details. Even his profile mentions one of these in particular.
  • Jake mentions a time in Chapter 8 when he was hunted down. Chapter 10 also has Jake mention an incident that had him punch out his superior officer and then went AWOL. Romancing Jake in Chapter 14 has him talk about what happened. He and his friend found out their base commander was selling weapons to terrorists and they were sent out into an ambush. Jake comes back and he now finds that he's framed for the crime. If the player doesn't choose to romance Jake, these details will be revealed throughout Book 2.
• One Head Taller: While there aren't any height charts, Aleister is one head taller than Grace as revealed in Book 1 Chapter 8 when they hug each other goodbye.
• One True Love: Book 3 Chapter 2 introduces the Vaanti concept of “handfasting” where if a couple love each other very much, they bond their lives in a ceremony called Niala’rei. Before friends and family, they are symbolically joined for a year and a day. At the end of that time, if they've fallen out of love and no longer want to be together, they can go their separate ways with no obligations to each other, but if they're still in love and want to stay together, the marriage becomes official and their spirits are bound for eternity.
• Optional Party Member: Book 1 Chapter 8 allows you to recruit Jake for the trip to the observatory with diamonds.
• Panthera Awesome: The team is cornered by a smilodon, aka sabertooth tiger as chapter 3 comes to a close.
• People Jars: In Book 1 Chapter 16, Everett Rourke is found in one of these if you guess the password right in his computer. In Book 2 Chapter 13, it turns out that all of the Celestial's guests were stuffed in them, and they're called MASADA pods.
• Pietà Plagiarism: The shot of Varyyn holding his mother’s body.
• Piranha Problem: In Book 2 Chapter 4 as the group is ferried to Sharktooth Isle, they're introduced to the klaawyi who eat anything that comes in the water. The only reason their boat isn't touched is because it's coated in a sap poisonous to them (a defense the Vaanti came up with in response to the problem).
• Please Wake Up: In Quinn's catalyst idol vision, Quinn goes into a coma, making Taylor go into this when s/he realizes what's happened.
• Pre-Sacrifice Final Goodbye
  • Book 2 Chapter 15 offers a premium option for the group to send a message for their relatives in case they can't save the world or get out the island. If taken, Diego forgives his parents, Quinn tells hers to reconcile for her, Sean says goodbye to his mother, Craig encourages his little brother to be better than him, Raj thanks his grandmother for the recipes, Estela thanks her uncle for training her, Jake tells his sister Rebecca that he is proud of her and everything told about him is bull, Michelle and Taylor pass because they don't have anyone out there to reach and Zahra leaves an encouraging for her past self to get in the plane.
  • If the player decides to return to Vaanu to save the world, Taylor asks for Diego's cellphone to record a goodbye message to the other characters, although they don't get it until they're leaving the island.
• Psychic Link: Paying diamonds in Book 1 Chapter 12 allows Taylor to share a link between Varyyn. It allows Taylor to understand his words in English (or other preferred language). In Book 2 Chapter 3 while the group watches the village, it turns out he can sense Taylor's thoughts as well.
• Ragtag Bunch of Misfits: Everyone in the island is a different type of character: The Audience Surrogate (The Main Character/You), the Token Best Friend (Diego), the Lovable Jock (Sean), the Dumb Jock/Jerk Jock (Craig), the Deadpan Snarker Military Brat (Jake), the Nice Girl (Quinn), the Alpha Bitch (Michelle), The Big Fun (Raj), the Bespectacled Cutie (Grace), the Insufferable Genius Snob (Aleister), the Delinquent (Zahra), the Genki Girl (Lila) and the Mysterious Stranger (Estela). Chapter 6 implies in a stack of profiles that they were gathered to the island on purpose.
• Rapid Aging: In Book 2 Chapter 13, Taylor sees a video left behind by Olivia Montoya about why it would be a bad idea to harness the power of the Endless in this trope. For example, looking at a baby causes it to instantly age up to a teenager, and looking at a building makes it rot and crumble.
• Retcon: One ending completely undoes everything that happened in the book; it even resets your relationship with everyone.
• Reality Warper: In Book 2 Chapter 7, the group drinks a special liquid that only they as Catalysts can drink. It takes them outside the realm of space and time, allowing them to see the history of not only the Vaanti, but all of La Huerta right down to when it was formed in prehistory.
• Relationship Values: Making choices will either increase or decrease how people feel about you. It's also used at checkpoints to see if people will trust you with secrets.
  • Book 2 introduces Tough Choices that increase or decrease a person's relation sharply on pass or fail. The higher the friendship is, the easier it is to pass.
  • Book 2 now allows Taylor to date Sean, Jake, Quinn and/or Estela. Once done so, their icon changes to hearts.
• The Roaring '20s: Investigating the ballroom in Book 1 Chapter 2 has everything looking like it did in the 20s, even with the wine being from as far back as 1922.
  • Book 3 Chapter 7 has the group (except Jake and Mike) ending up in a wedding during 1921 as a result of Rourke using the Omega Mech on them. When they go into the ballroom, they realize it's the same wedding that the ballroom was set for in Book 1.
• Robosexual: Book 1 teases at a possible relationship between Raj and IRIS, though ultimately nothing ever comes of it.
• Rousing Speech: Raj makes a speech in Book 1 Chapter 7 to help unite the group together.
• Scar Survey: Rare Gender-Inverted example (if Taylor is male) in Book 2. If a love scene is purchased, Estela tells him about some scars she has. One is from horseback riding.
• Sequel Hook: Book 1 ends with Diego (and Grace and Raj if the player opts out of paying for it) being taken by the watchers and Taylor, Estela, Aleister, and IRIS possibly discovering Rourke's body.
  • Book 2 ends with Taylor, Yvonne, and Uqzhaal in the Threshold, where they encounter the Endless, revealed to be an elderly version of Taylor, or bracing themselves for Mount Atropo's eruption.
• Ship Tease: The novel gives a lot of them between the main character and the four possible romantic interest (Quinn, Jake, Sean or Estela)
  • For a few diamonds, you find out that Zahra and Craig used to date and there's still a Belligerent Sexual Tension between them.
  • Aleister gets flustered every time Grace talks to him about academic stuff and acts rude to cover it.
  • Diego and Varryn, they actually get married in book 3 chapter 10.
• Shout-Out:
  • Grace is the daughter of Blaire Hall from Rules of Engagement.
  • The Adventurer's Gear you can buy in Book 1 Chapter 11 has different looks depending on gender. The male version is based on Nathan Drake's outfit while the female version is based on Lara Croft's.
  • In Book 2, one of the outfits on sale for Taylor is a t-shirt with the Hartfeld University lettering.
  • Book 2 also comes with a tank top (for males)/t-shirt (for females) with the words Kenna & Dom & Val & Raydan.
  • The end of Book 3 Chapter 3 sees the return of Cetus. Varyyn has “got a bad feeling about this.”
• Slow Clap: Taari starts one at Varyyn’s coronation.
• The Smart Guy: Raj is this as well as Aleister and Grace. Taylor can be this when the right choices are made.
• Stable Time Loop:
  • The last chapter of Book 2 has two of them, although one is a diamond scene.
    • In the premium scene, Zahra doesn't call to say goodbye to her loved ones like the others do. Instead, she calls her prior self... to convince her to come on the trip in the first place.
    • In order to escape the collapsing MASADA complex, the gang has to take an Arachnid helicopter, which is flickering in and out of physical presence. This makes Jake realize that he was the one who placed the call to Lundgren that revealed his location, therefore ensuring the helicopter would be there in the first place.
  • In Book 3 Chapter 7, the group has to set into motion the events that ultimately lead to the creation of the Vaanti.
  • In Book 3 Chapter 10, the group (sans Aleister) take a group photo with a Polaroid, which immediately gets swept away in the wind. Rourke explains that he found the picture a long time ago and handpicked the "contest winners" based on it.
• Stunned Silence: Book 1 Chapter 11 has Raj and Aleister very much left speechless at Iris.
• Suck Out the Poison: If Taylor follows Estela in Chapter 9, s/he gets bitten by a snake, and Estela sucks the venom out.
• Suspiciously Similar Substitute: Varryn, unmasked, wouldn't look out of place on Pandora.
• Take a Third Option: Chapter 6 has Sean and Jake arguing. Siding with either group, regardless who you went with, takes points off. The only safe bet is to let the timer run and do nothing.
• Take My Hand!: Book 2 Chapter 15 has Estela, Jake, or Sean (Depending on Taylor's relationship status with them) just barely fail to grab hold of Taylor, who then falls out of the helicopter.
• Telepathy: Book 1 Chapter 12 allows you to mind meld with the Hostiles' chief. He calls Taylor "Anlashok," their word for mind talker.
• Temporal Paradox: Entering the password in Rourke's computer in Book 1 Chapter 6 ends up creating one of these with Taylor getting a psychic headache, warping through time, into John Tull's trailer, then speaking with the giant crab who can now speak and tells you not to violate the laws of time again.
• They Call Me MISTER Tibbs!: After Jake repeatedly refers to Estela by a number of nicknames he's given her, Estela orders him to call her by her name or to never speak to her again. After Estela finds her Ember of Hope, she teases Jake about the nicknames as a retraction of the previous statement.
• Through His Stomach: Raj's plan to reconcile the group is to make a big banquet for the group... and tons of booze. Taylor can agree that it's a really genius idea that actually works. (It ultimately works even if Taylor is initially skeptical.)
• Time Crash: The volcano’s eruption in the start of Book 3 has rifts in time opening up across different eras. As more of the Catalysts (who were separated at the end of Book 2) meet up, they find they’ve experienced time differently in the interim. From Taylor's point of view, it's only been a few hours since they were separated, but it's been three days for Jake and Estela, slightly more than that for Diego, Michelle, Raj, and Varyyn, weeks for Sean and Craig, a month for Quinn, and over a month for Zahra.
• Time Loop Trap: Happens in Book 2 Chapter 2, where Taylor realizes they're caught in a time loop and they're the only one not only knows it, but can't tell anyone else about it. They have to subtly get their party to break the object that's causing the time loop. If the player revived Rourke at the end of Book 1, they can also use each loop to ask Rourke questions about the situation.
• Time-Passage Beard: In Book 2, Diego and Raj (if the latter wasn't rescued in the last chapter of Book 1) are shown with beards after being held captive by the Vaanti for 204 days.
• Time Travel: In Book 1 Chapter 11, Grace's ideas about the anomalies so far have her considering that it's time travel. Not just with sabertooth tigers, giant crabs and ice breathing foxes, but also the volcano erupting and messages from the future.
  • When the love interest or Diego dies in Book 1 Chapter 15, Taylor angrily grabs the Watcher's necklace and ends up going back moments before the ambush, giving them the chance to prevent their love or best friend's death.
  • In Book 1 Chapter 16, it's discovered that the futuristic gun Jake kept was really a Time Travel Portal. They use it to get rid of some of the Watchers and to escape to 204 days into the future.
  • Book 2 Chapter 7 has the group drinking a special sap only they as Catalysts can drink safely. Not only do they see the Three Tribes War, but also can go all the way to when La Huerta was formed.
  • In Book 3 Chapter 7, the group except Jake and Mike were sent to a wedding in 1921, where they encountered the Vaanti's ancestors.
• Token Minority: The gang is made up of minorities with the exception of Jake, Quinn, Aleister, and Taylor if the player chooses to make Taylor white. As for the rest, Sean and Grace are black, Diego and Estela are Hispanic, Craig is Taiwanese, Michelle is Vietnamese, Zahra is Iranian, and Raj is Indian. There are also black, Ambiguously Brown, and Asian options for Taylor (although the latter two aren't available until Book 2).
• Tropical Island Adventure: The premise of the story, with twelve college students going on a vacation that turned into more than what they bargained for.
• Tsundere: Aleister comes off as this to Grace.
  • Pair the Smart Ones: They are also the most book smart of the group.
• The Unreveal: Played for laughs in Book 3 Chapter 3 if Taylor has Yvonne seduce Malatesta, wondering what she said to make him help the group. When asked, Yvonne says “I don’t kiss and tell.”
• Violation of Common Sense: In Book 2 Chapter 2, Taylor has to take the option to let Zahra fall in the water in order to get one of the necessary pieces to break the Time Loop Trap.
• Volcano Lair: Book 1 Chapter 9 ends with the team standing on a walkway over the volcano where the observatory is.
• We ARE Struggling Together: Book 1 Chapter 6 has the group starting to break down over either escaping the island or surviving. In Chapter 7, the tension between both sides is palpable in the dining room.
• Weather Dissonance: A premium scene with Estela or Jake in Book 2 Chapter 2 has them finding ice cold snow on a tropical island while it's currently well into 100+ degrees!
• Wedding Episode: Book 3 Chapter 10 is about Niala'rei, a Vaanti holiday in which many couples get married to one another. It not only includes Varyyn and Diego, but Taylor and their Love Interest.
• "Well Done, Son" Guy: Grace and Aleister have this as a common link. Grace because her mother expects her to be the best at everything, yet rarely has time to be with her. Aleister has this as well since no matter what he did, his father Everett Rourke was never around for him, always on some business deal or another.
• Wham Episode:
  • Book 1 Chapter 10 is this. Every attempt to communicate with the outside world has everyone reacting to the volcano like it's erupting hard enough to put the world into a nuclear winter.
  • Book 1 Chapter 16 is a big one. The Watchers kidnap Diego (and possibly Grace and/or Raj) just as Taylor shoots the portal gun, teleporting them 6 months ahead into the future. Also, if the player has collected all the dossiers and is able to figure out the password to Everett Rourke's computer, you find Rourke in a pod in suspended animation.
  • Collecting all the clues through the first act of Book 2 reveal that the Endless, the being Uqzhaal worships, is the person in the red spacesuit. In the present, Rourke finds that one of the guests in the cryopods is Rex Lundgren, Jake's former commander who framed him for treason, and has him revived so he can offer him a job. Lundgren is hesitent until Rourke tells him he can give him Jake.
  • Book 2 Chapter 8 has Taylor, Aleister, and Zahra meet Iris again and she drops a bombshell: She is the AI of Aleister's late mother.
  • Book 2 Chapter 10 reveals that Lila shot and killed Estela's mother for attempting to expose Rourke.
  • Book 2 Chapter 13 shows the Catalysts returning home through the Lernaean Gate, only to find Hartfeld destroyed by a volcanic eruption.
  • Book 2 Chapter 14 has another one. The world was destroyed by the volcano erupting on the same day that the group first came to the island, setting the world back to the Hadean Eon when the world was just a volcanic wasteland. After the group gets back, Rourke gets Aleister to turn on the group, with Lila set to execute them.
  • Book 2 Chapter 15 is a whole pile of Wham:
    • Lila dies either by her wounds in freeing the group or with Estela finishing her off with a headshot.
    • Jake finds out that Mouse is his friend Mike, who was thought to have died when their plane exploded. A bonus scene later shows Mike waking up, gravely injured to see Lundgren at his bedside. Lundgren forces him into a brainwashing device.
    • Jake realizes that he was the one who sent his location to the Arachnids. In order to maintain the timeline and ensure their escape, he has to do it again.
    • The group is separated as they escape from MASADA. Diego, Varyyn, Michelle, and Raj escape on the gondola before Mike knocks it down. Zahra is pulled from the chopper by Lundgren. Quinn vanishes while trying to protect the chopper from missles with her newfound powers. Then Taylor falls out as the helicopter starts spinning out of control.
    • Taylor is revived by Yvonne and brought to Mt. Atropo. If they've found all the idols and can guess the correct password, Taylor meets the Endless, who tells them that all the idol visions are alternate futures that happened at some point in the past. What's more, the Endless is a much older Taylor, and had created a religion for the Vaanti because it was the only way to keep them from killing the Catalysts.
  • Book 3 Chapter 9 reveals that Aleister is not just Rourke's son, he's Rourke's clone.
  • Book 3 Chapter 11 drops the biggest ones so far. Mike sacrifices himself to take Lundgren with him, Rourke reveals that Estela is his daughter, and Taylor discovers that Vaanu created them with its energy.
• Wham Line: Book 1 Chapter 13 gives us this.
  Aleister: I am Everett Rourke! (...) The man who brought you here is my father.
  • Iris gives one of these in Book 2 Chapter 8 about her identity.
  Iris: Yes, Aleister, I am... But I'm still your mother.
• Wham Shot: Book 3 Episode 4 ends with the group being met by the Endless.
• What Could Have Been: In-universe. Book 3 introduces Embers of Hope, showing what could have happened to the Catalysts if the world hadn't been destroyed, each one given by a glowing mysterious figure. If the player chooses the ending to have Taylor merge with Vaanu, the "Where Are They Now?" Epilogue suggests that these might have come true, as the characters strongly resemble the way they looked in those alternate futures.
  • Chapter 1 is Estela’s family picture, given to her after she starts to despair that they're never going to succeed. In her vision, she buys her uncle Nicolas (who is suggested to be something of a surrogate parent to her) a laptop so he can compose his memoirs faster, then tells him her intention to start a family. After expressing his happiness, he assures her he'll figure the computer out and then asks her where to put the paper in.
  • Chapter 2 is Raj’s grandmother's cookbook, given to him when he feels guilty over not being able to maintain his role of cheering everyone up. In his vision, Raj is the host of his show, “Bhandakar Fills Bellies”, shooting an episode in Barcelona with Craig as a special guest. He gets a phone call from Chris Winters asking him to personally cater an after-party in Milan, with Craig (and the film crew) along for the ride.
  • Chapter 3 is Sean’s father’s watch, given to him when he starts feeling useless. In his vision, he's a professional American football player speaking with his mother about his insecurity of his father's legacy before a game. She gives him a pep talk telling him he's better than his father.
  • Chapter 4 is a ring Craig's parents planned to give him upon graduation, given to him when he falls apart after finding evidence suggesting Zahra is dead. In his vision, he tests a new football-related game with Sean as a character. While he's testing the game with Sean, the latter tells him he has come a long way after graduation.
  • Chapter 5 is Diego's action figures, given to him when he panics after Varyyn disappears. In his vision, he works as a professor and has written a bestselling book about media. After a class, he receives a phone call from his estranged father, who tells him he is proud of Diego.
  • Chapter 6 is Grace's framed butterfly collection, given to her to help her find the strength to keep going after being held captive by Rourke. In her vision, she works as a painter and is giving Michelle a tour of the art gallery. When her mother appears before them and belittles Grace's painting that depicts mathematical calculations, she stands up to her mother with Michelle's encouragement.
  • Chapter 7 is Jake's pilot helmet, given to him when he is overwhelmed by the situation with Mike. In his vision, he and Mike testify against Lundgren during a trial, which ends with Lundgren being declared guilty and sentenced to 180 years in prison.^note This is the only one that can't come true even in the ending where the future is restored, because both Mike and Lundgren die in the final battle.
  • Chapter 8 is Quinn's camera, given to her as she struggles with the effects of the Island's Heart. In her vision, she speaks at an annual fundraiser hosted by her father, who runs a massively successful organization helping people with chronic illnesses, and her parents have reconciled their differences.
  • Chapter 9 is Aleister's magazine, given to him as he's reeling from yet another bombshell his father has dropped on him. In his vision, he and Grace are Happily Married with an infant son named Reginald, whom they love dearly. While Grace is away at work, Aleister sings a lullaby to Reginald, and vows to be a better father than Rourke was to him.
  • Chapter 10 is Michelle's stethoscope, given to her when she begins to feel like she's lost her chance at happiness. In her vision, she works as a surgeon treating Sean's mother, who praises her for not letting her past bring her down and tells her that she always believed Michelle was loyal to Sean. Afterwards, Sean arrives and gives Michelle flowers as an apology for not believing her back in Hartfeld.
  • Chapter 11 is Zahra's old Kali tablet, given to her when she becomes frustrated over her inability to hack a system. In her vision, she plays in a punk rock band and is celebrating her anniversary with Craig.
  • Chapter 12 doesn't have an item, but a vision from the Endless allows Taylor to see a series of moments from the 2,139 loops that the Endless has lived. They vary from tragic to romantic to silly.
• What Would X Do?: The bonus scene of Act 3 has Diego decide on his escape plan because it's "probably what Taylor would do."
• "Where Are They Now?" Epilogue: Two of the three endings come with these^note the final scene for the Endless' ending is a little different, likely because the characters' futures are already a Foregone Conclusion.
  • If the player chooses to let Rourke win, Taylor begins their freshman year at Hartfeld, now with a new set of memories to reflect that Taylor now has a past, gets to see the ways in which this has affected the world, and makes a personal vow to take down Rourke.
  • If the player chooses the option to merge with Vaanu, a montage of scenes plays out showing the rest of the group's lives in the following years, ending with a scene of all of them gathering together on the island for the five-year anniversary of the trip.
• Wild Card: Book 1 Chapter 12 has the Watchers know Sean and Jake as Aquila and Lupus, but Taylor is a total blank to them. Book 1 Chapter 13 shows that even Rourke International has no idea who Taylor is. It turns out that the reason for this is that Taylor only came into existence on the flight to La Huerta, and therefore didn't exist when Rourke was trying to gather intelligence on the group.
• Working with the Ex:
  • Going into the VIP club with Craig and Zahra reveal they were once a couple.
  • By Chapter 8, Sean seems bothered when Michelle offers to join the expedition to the Observatory. A previous premium choice reveals that they used to date until she cheated on him, or at least that's what Sean was led to believe.
• A Year and a Day: The Vaanti tradition of handfasting is that a couple will spend a year and a day in each other's presence, and if they still love each other after that time, they will be together forever.
• Yank the Dog's Chain: Right when the group thought they still had a chance to escape the island, they find out that someone blew up all the boats at the dock. This is enough to send Sean into a Heroic BSoD.
• You Can't Go Home Again:
  • Spending the night with Jake in Book 1 Chapter 14 (provided you're at least friends with him) reveals that he'll be arrested if he sets foot in America because he was framed for treason.
  • If Taylor decides to stop Project Janus and stay on La Huerta with their friends, the outside world remains destroyed, leaving them no choice but to stay on the island forever.
• You Keep Using That Word: Book 1 Chapter 8 has Grace call out Jake for using sentient the wrong way.
• Your Head Asplode: Book 1 Chapter 12 has the sea monster dealt with by having Sean toss Semtex at its head and then Jake blows it up with a flare gun. Subverted when they learn that in spite of all that, the monster somehow survived.
  • Also happens to Taylor in a Non-Standard Game Over in Book 1 Chapter 10 if you correctly guess Iris' name without actually discovering the clue you need.

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