Near the end of Resident Evil Requiem, Grace faces a critical decision at the ARK facility terminal that determines which ending you get. You’ll be given two options: Destroy Elpis or Release Elpis. Here’s everything you need to know to make the right choice.
Which Option Should You Choose?¶
Should you free or destroy Elpis? Freeing it seems to be the best option. Spoilers below. Image via Gamer Guides / Capcom.
If you’re concerned with the good and cannon ending, then releasing Elpis is the right choice. This gives you the canon good ending, the final boss fight, post-credits scene, and proper story closure.
Don’t worry too much about making the wrong choice though. If you pick Destroy Elpis first, the game will immediately offer to reload your save so you can try the other option. You can see both endings back-to-back without replaying the entire level. There’s also an opportunity to save the game after calling the elevator with the Lickers and Zombie, so if you miss that, you should be bale to reload and do the Grace run and cutscenes again.
What Happens if You Destroy Elpis (Bad Ending)¶
Choosing to destroy Elpis triggers the bad ending. The ARK facility begins self-destructing, and Leon sacrifices himself to save Grace.
Zeno catches Leon and shoots him in the head before the platform explodes. Grace escapes via helicopter, but that’s it, the game just ends.
There’s no final boss fight, no post-credits scene, and no proper resolution. You also won’t unlock the “Hope and Requiem” trophy. The game basically treats this as a dead-end and immediately asks if you want to reload and make a different choice.
What Happens if You Release Elpis (Good Ending)¶
You will soon get a nice little visit from some old freinds from the series. Image via Gamer Guides / Capcom.
Releasing Elpis is the canon choice and reveals the major twist: Elpis isn’t a bioweapon at all. It’s an antiviral cure created by Oswell Spencer as an act of redemption. The name “Elpis” means “Hope” in Greek, which is your hint that it’s not the doomsday weapon everyone thinks it is.
There’s a few teasers that this is the right option thanks to the video files and Alyssa journals Grace sees during the videos. Spencer invited Grace’s mother for an interview, and then on his near death bed mentions about hope and Grace being the future. It’s why Umbrella agents are so hell-bent on retrieving Grace at all costs, as Grace mother knows the truth to protect her, and Grace is a clone on key Umbrella research, hence Elpis working, along with the references in Greek too.
When you release the vials, Zeno injects himself with Elpis and loses his superhuman powers. Grace then uses it to cure Leon’s T-Virus infection, which has been killing him throughout the game.
Dr. Victor Gideon then arrives, kills the now powerless Zeno, and mutates into a Nemesis-type bioweapon. This triggers the actual final boss fight where Leon must take down the mutated Gideon. The fight has two phases and you’ll burn through a lot of ammo and healing items, so make sure you’re stocked up.
After defeating Gideon, both Grace and Leon survive and escape the facility. You’ll get a proper ending cutscene and a post-credits scene that sets up future story threads.
Rewards for Each Ending¶
Completing either ending unlocks:
- Insanity Mode (highest difficulty)
- Bonus weapons and cheats in the Bonuses menu
- Costume unlocks including the Jacket toggle for Grace and Leon
- Concept art and character models
However, only the Release Elpis ending unlocks Grace’s Report, an important lore document that summarizes key Resident Evil timeline events. You’ll also need it for the all files completion trophy, and bonus content point rewards.
That’s everything you need to know about the Destroy or Release Elpis choice in Resident Evil Requiem. When in doubt, always choose Release.
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