Fastest Way to Get All 10 Endings in Shadow the Hedgehog (2005)
The minimum number of normal Story Mode clears is ten—one for each ending. Every normal run contains six stages, so you cannot shorten the unlock by finding a five-stage route. The cleanest plan is to reach each of the five final stages twice and take its Dark ending once and Hero ending once.
Ten-run route plan
The five route families below are easy to remember because they land on the five Stage 6 destinations from left to right. Run each family twice, then change only the final Stage 6 mission to collect its paired endings.
| Runs | Route signature | Stage sequence | Final stage | Ending choice |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1–2 | D → D → D → D → D | Westopolis → Digital Circuit → Cryptic Castle → Central City → The ARK | GUN Fortress | Dark, then Hero |
| 3–4 | D → D → N → N → N | Westopolis → Digital Circuit → Cryptic Castle → The Doom → Air Fleet | Black Comet | Dark, then Hero |
| 5–6 | N → N → N → N → N | Westopolis → Glyphic Canyon → Prison Island → Sky Troops → Iron Jungle | Lava Shelter | Dark, then Hero |
| 7–8 | N → N → H → N → N | Westopolis → Glyphic Canyon → Prison Island → Mad Matrix → Space Gadget | Cosmic Fall | Dark, then Hero |
| 9–10 | H → H → H → H → H | Westopolis → Lethal Highway → Circus Park → Death Ruins → Lost Impact | Final Haunt | Dark, then Hero |
All 10 endings checklist
The checkboxes are optional browser-only convenience. The entire route guide above is rendered in normal HTML for crawlers and works with JavaScript disabled.
How do you unlock Last Story?
Clear all ten normal endings. Once every ending has been completed, Last Story becomes available and leads into The Last Way and the true final confrontation. Filling all 326 Library routes is a separate completion goal and is not required merely to unlock Last Story.
Can this be faster than ten story clears?
No normal route awards two endings at once. The five final stages each have a Dark and Hero ending, so the minimum unlock structure is ten completed story runs. What can improve is the real time spent on those runs: faster mission execution, safer routes, and speedrun techniques can reduce the clock without reducing the number of endings required.
For leaderboard-level optimization, compare current stage and ending records on Speedrun.com. Shadorux's plan is aimed at players who want a clean, understandable unlock route rather than a record attempt.
Sources & route verification
- StrategyWiki — Shadow the Hedgehog for the documented Story Mode stage graph.
- Speedrun.com — Shadow the Hedgehog for current real-time competitive categories and stage records.
- SEGA Sonic Channel — Shadow the Hedgehog for the official game entry and story premise.