Neutral Route

The Neutral Route is one of the three primary routes in Undertale. In this route, the final boss is Photoshop Flowey, though after fighting him once (without performing a True Reset or a Genocide Route), Flowey only destroys Asgore's SOUL and his fight is skipped, as he knows the SOULs would revolt again.
On a True Pacifist Route, the protagonist must reach one of the Neutral Endings to unlock the quest line leading to the True Pacifist Ending.
== Method ==
This ending occurs when the requirements for either the True Pacifist Route or a Genocide Route have not been met, or if the protagonist on their first playthrough did not kill anyone as a prerequisite to the True Pacifist Route.
There are many versions of this ending, all consisting of Sans calling the protagonist's Cell Phone and leaving a message telling the protagonist of the Underground's fate. However, the content of the phone call is based upon the actions that the protagonist has made throughout the game. The track An Ending plays during the call, except in the Mettaton, Leaderless, Dog, Alphys, and Impossible variants.
== Neutral Route Epilogue ==
In all of the Neutral Route endings (except for after aborting the Genocide Route in Hotland), Alphys tells the protagonist that they must kill Asgore and take his SOUL, as a human SOUL alone cannot pass through the barrier. Consistent across all Neutral Route epilogues:
* Asgore is killed, either by the protagonist or Flowey (or he commits suicide if Flowey was killed in a previous Neutral run.) 
* Flowey is either defeated or does not bother to fight
* The six human SOULs are lost
* The monsters remain trapped behind the barrier and assume that the protagonist escapes the Underground.
After the brief, lackluster credits of the Neutral Route, Sans calls the protagonist's Cell Phone to leave a message. He can begin the call with a special comment if certain requirements are met. Sans will only ever make one comment; this table lists them in order of descending precedence. (For example, if the protagonist neither removed the Bandage nor used consumables, and did not kill Papyrus, Sans will give his comment about getting something to eat.)
Requirement(s)	Result
* Never used consumables.
* Never killed Papyrus.
* Never removed the Bandage.
* Is at LV 1.	Sans comments on the protagonist's ability to challenge themself, but tells them not to brag about it.
* Never used consumables.
* Never killed Papyrus.	Sans asks if they ever had something to eat.
* Wearing the Bandage.
* Never killed Papyrus.	Sans comments if the protagonist is still wearing the gross bandage they started out with.
* Never SAVE.
* Never killed Papyrus.	Sans suggests that the protagonist SAVE their game.
* Has a Snowman Piece.
* Never killed Papyrus.	Sans mentions that a certain snowman is really happy.
* Did not meet any of the special requirements listed above or has killed Papyrus.	Sans simply leaves a message for the protagonist.
* Aborted the Genocide Route in Hotland.	Sans immediately hands the phone over to Alphys.
The phone call then branches into their respective ending.
Note: The following names are unofficial.
== Toriel Ending Tree ==
: Requirements: Toriel is spared.
Toriel has returned to her throne to rule over the Underground and has instated a policy of non-hostility towards future humans that fall into their world. This ending then branches into one of three variants: the "Family Ending," the "Betrayed Undyne Ending," or the "Exiled Queen Ending."
=== Family Ending (Flawed Pacifist) ===
: Requirements: The protagonist has befriended Papyrus and Undyne and did not kill any monsters.
Despite the disappearance of the human SOULs and Asgore's tragic death, Toriel rouses the spirits of the Underground's inhabitants and tells them not to give in to despair. Sans likewise encourages the protagonist never to give up.
The call passes to Papyrus, who proudly proclaims his new position as "CAPTAIN OF THE ROYAL GUARD." This turns out to be a figurehead position, as the Royal Guard (whose primary responsibility was to keep watch for human SOULs) has in fact been disbanded. His only real duty is tending to the garden of the New Home castle.
The former Royal Guard captain Undyne then enters the call and explains that she has found new work as Alphys's lab assistant. She has also been appointed to be the gym teacher of Toriel's new school; she boasts that she can bench-press seven children. She then begins to mourn the loss of Asgore, but then goes on to reassure the protagonist that it was not their fault and that they were just doing what they had to. The next part of this ending varies depending on whether the protagonist has dated Alphys.
* If the protagonist has not dated Alphys: Alphys becomes even more reclusive. However, Undyne confidently states that she can help Alphys work through whatever is bothering her. Undyne also reminds the protagonist that she and the other monsters sacrificed a great deal to help the protagonist return to the Surface; for that reason, the protagonist should appreciate life on the Surface to the fullest and make that sacrifice worthwhile.
* If the protagonist has dated Alphys: Undyne ropes her into the call. Alphys first reassures the protagonist that Mettaton is doing okay, and then goes on to mention that she is searching for a new way to free the inhabitants of the Underground. She is working harder than ever, mostly because Toriel is a much stricter supervisor than Asgore ever was.
At this point, it occurs to Undyne/Alphys to ask Toriel to join the conversation; however, Toriel simply tells her that she is busy, not realizing that the protagonist is on the other end of the line. Papyrus and Sans joke that Toriel would probably tie up the line for hours if she only knew the protagonist was on the phone, and that they "HAVE THE MERCY TO SPARE [THEM] FROM HER." Undyne and Alphys (if she was dragged into the call), then suggest calling back anytime as she would love to talk.
The call ends with Sans mentioning that the phone is low on batteries, and everyone says goodbye.
=== Betrayed Undyne Ending ===
: Requirements: The protagonist spared Papyrus and Undyne while killing fewer than 10 monsters, but did not befriend Undyne or killed monsters after befriending her (Undyne can't be befriended if the protagonist has any EXP).
The first part of this call plays out like in the Family Ending. Toriel tries her best to tell the inhabitants of the Underground not to give up even though their situation is pretty grim. Sans also tells the protagonist that they should not give up either. Sans then hands the phone over to Papyrus, who takes over for the remainder of the call.
Papyrus states that since Toriel disbanded the Royal Guard, he has no idea what to do with his life, but he resolves to continue working hard, "EVEN IF IT'S ON NOTHING AT ALL!" However, despite Papyrus's reassurance that he is doing fine, he states that Undyne has it rough since she lost her job and her house, and he says that he and Sans are taking care of her at their house. Sans has hired her at his illegal hot dog stand in Hotland, except Undyne hates working there. The rest of the phone call branches into three different paths depending on what the protagonist has done.
* If the protagonist has not befriended Undyne, but spared Mettaton: Undyne simply blames the protagonist for Asgore's death. Papyrus mentions that she has a plan to cross the barrier and beat the protagonist up. Papyrus thinks her plan is impossible but also hopes that it is not since it would mean meeting with the protagonist again, even if it does mean fighting them. Papyrus then tells the protagonist to keep their fingers crossed and to keep in touch to make their plans easier.
* If the protagonist killed Mettaton: Undyne is devastated since not only is Asgore gone, but Alphys has disappeared as well, nowhere to be found by the other characters (it is implied that she commits suicide in the True Lab). Undyne laments that she was not able to protect her, and Papyrus comments that it is hard to get her to do anything. Papyrus suggests that she goes after the protagonist to get revenge, but Undyne says "Revenge won't bring anybody back." Papyrus is unaware of what happened to Asgore and Alphys, so he asks the protagonist to bring Undyne's friends back since she is not doing so well.
* If the protagonist has befriended Undyne, but killed monsters afterward: Undyne hates herself for becoming friends with the protagonist because they had murdered someone shortly after they had formed a friendship. She feels hurt, betrayed, and angry at herself, and does not understand why she let herself be friends with the protagonist. She says that she knew what humans were like, but failed to resist becoming friends; because of her mistake, more people got hurt. Papyrus then suggests the protagonist to "PROBABLY NEVER COME BACK HERE" since Undyne would destroy them and even the queen cannot stop her.
The call ends with Papyrus saying goodbye (forever, if in the third branch) to the protagonist.
=== Exiled Queen Ending ===
: Requirements: The protagonist has killed ten or more monsters, Papyrus, or Undyne.
Toriel's new policy was met with severe backlash since not only was Asgore killed, but the human SOULs disappeared as well along with the lives of Papyrus, Undyne, or countless other citizens. As a result, a rebellion was formed to overthrow the queen.
* If Undyne is alive: Undyne gets enraged about what happened to Asgore (and Alphys, if Mettaton was killed as well), so she spearheads the revolutions and banishes Toriel back into the Ruins, becoming empress of the Underground in the process. Sans comments that Undyne seems to be more vehement about destroying humanity than Asgore was.
* If Undyne is dead: Toriel just peacefully resigns and returns to the Ruins after hearing about the rebellion, causing the Underground to become an uneasy and hopeless anarchy.
Sans mentions that he decided to accompany Toriel when she returned to the Ruins and brought her books from the library in Snowdin so that she does not have to read the same ones.
* If Papyrus is alive: Papyrus also accompanies Toriel in the Ruins and even plays games with her. Both Papyrus and Sans have also convinced Toriel to leave the Ruins sometimes, as long as either of them stay behind and keep watch for humans. Papyrus says that he loves to stand in for the Queen and is practicing to become a great mom when they come (a possible reference to the Greenlight trailer where Papyrus asks "IS IT ME? AM I THE MOM?"). Sans ends the call hoping "things are better" wherever the protagonist is.
* If Papyrus is dead: Sans calls Toriel a good roommate and mentions how she sometimes talks about how she would like to see the protagonist again. Sans does not have the heart to tell Toriel that they killed Papyrus because she protected them. He then ends the call with "never come back here. you are not welcome."
== Undyne Ending ==
: Requirements: Toriel is dead but Undyne is alive.
Undyne becomes the ruler of the Underground and enforces a policy to destroy all humans who enter, and she has militarized the Underground in order to help her do so. She plans to find a new way to destroy the barrier, and once she does, she plans to wage war on humanity and personally hunt down and destroy the protagonist. Sans mentions not being able to reach Toriel and, if Papyrus is dead, implies that he is aware she has been killed and that the protagonist is responsible. He then warns the protagonist to watch themself as "things are lookin real bad for [them]."
However, if Papyrus is alive, Sans simply says that Toriel might not be feeling well, allowing Papyrus to interrupt the call and tell the protagonist that Undyne has appointed him to "THE MOST IMPORTANT ROYAL POSITION," which is a figurehead position where he stands around and looks cute, but he is proud of it. Despite the fact that Undyne would "PROBABLY KILL [THEM]", Papyrus encourages the protagonist to come and visit, stating that it would be worth the risk.
Regardless of Mettaton's status, it has no effect on the dialogue of this ending.
== Mettaton Ending ==
: Requirements: Toriel and Undyne are dead, but Mettaton is alive.
Mettaton becomes ruler of the Underground since Undyne disappeared, and establishes a dystopian society in which he brainwashes the entire Underground with his television show. Sans mentions that he became his agent and then hands over the phone to Mettaton.
Mettaton establishes a policy on humanity that any human that falls can join his fan club for free. He says that among the many statues and monuments he has built in his image, he has built a statue of Alphys as well. Mettaton goes on to say that he was "NOT THE GREATEST TO HER." He says that he was going to apologize to Alphys and ask her to help him rule, but could not find her, and emphasizes "TRUST ME. I LOOKED." Mettaton even implies that she has committed suicide, as he hopes that the protagonist's life after meeting him "HAS BEEN WORTH LIVING." Mettaton then asks the protagonist to think of him always and, if Papyrus is dead, ends the phone call there.
If Papyrus is alive, he then joins the call to mention that he has become Mettaton's second agent. He says that things have gotten a lot better since the protagonist came (excluding the fact that everything sucks for anyone who does not worship Mettaton; according to Papyrus, those people tend to "disappear"), but misses Undyne and asks the protagonist to say "hi" if they see her.
It's Showtime! plays when Sans hands the phone over to Mettaton, but stops when he talks about Alphys's obscure fate and when Papyrus joins the call if he was spared.
== Papyrus Ending ==
: Requirements: Toriel, Undyne, and Mettaton are dead, but Papyrus is alive.
By process of elimination, Papyrus becomes the ruler of the Underground, though Sans does most of the work. Sans tells Papyrus that Asgore, Alphys, Mettaton, and Undyne are on vacation. The Underground is improving: productivity is up, and Papyrus cooks everyone spaghetti. The human policy instituted is that they cannot be judged to be all good or all bad; either way, they get puzzles. Once Sans leaves, Papyrus expresses distress on his new responsibility as the ruler when people "WANT TO GIVE UP" and how he misses all his friends; he mentions how Undyne never picks up his calls and assumes that she must be really enjoying herself on vacation. However, Papyrus reassures the protagonist that he is determined to "MAKE EVERYONE GIVE UP GIVING UP", and hopes to get out of the Underground and hang out with the protagonist again.
== Dog Ending ==
: Requirements: Only Toriel, Papyrus, Undyne, and Mettaton are dead. All other monsters are alive, Glyde, Muffet, and So Sorry included.
A small, white dog becomes the president of the Underground amidst the chaos that ensued due to the disappearances of a number of important people and nobody else being harmed. The dog sleeps on the throne and does absolutely nothing. Sans comments that this seems to be the best life for everyone and thanks the protagonist for the results. "Dogsong" plays during the call just like in the Impossible Ending.
== Leaderless Ending ==
: Requirements: Toriel, Papyrus, Undyne, Mettaton, and at least one (but not every) non-boss monster has been killed.
The Underground is leaderless, and things have gotten pretty bad. The mood is somber, and people feel as if they are just going to die in the Underground, trapped in the dark. Sans says he is not the ruler because he is not cut out for something like that, and he likes to take it easy (which is a joke; he says this is what happens when people like him decide to take it easy). If 20 or more non-boss monsters were killed, Sans remarks on how the Underground is less crowded before telling the protagonist to "go to hell." If fewer than 20 non-boss monsters were killed, Sans simply says "see ya." instead.
A variant of this, where all encountered monsters were killed, is known as the No Mercy or Neutral No Mercy Route, which yields an identical ending.
mus_wind plays during this ending, an ambient track similar to that played when the game is restarted after a Genocide Route and after the battle with Photoshop Flowey (mus_f_wind2).
== Alphys Ending (Near Genocide) ==
: Requirements: The protagonist followed the Genocide Route requirements throughout Waterfall but aborted the route during the travel through Hotland.
The protagonist does not encounter Alphys during this route, as the ending requires killing Undyne the Undying, which preempts the protagonist's meeting with Alphys in Hotland. Sans does not address the protagonist when he calls them. After finding the protagonist's contact information, he instead immediately hands the phone over to Alphys, who has now become the new ruler of the Underground.
Alphys explains that after hearing Undyne's last words, her resolve was strengthened, and she proceeded to evacuate the remaining monsters in the Underground to a safe location (presumably the True Lab, as she mentions that if she evacuated everyone, they would have to learn the truth about her). The survivors lauded her as a hero and elected her as the new ruler. Despite her confidence in her governing abilities, she remains anxious around people. After mourning the losses of Undyne, Asgore, and Mettaton, she ends the call saying that she should have killed the protagonist when she had the chance.
No music plays during this ending.
== Impossible Ending (Dirty Hacker) ==
: Requirements: The protagonist has somehow met none of the above requirements or hacked the game.
As "Dogsong" plays in the background, Sans says that he has no idea what the protagonist has done to get this ending, and explains that the call is an error-handling message. He goes on to suggest contacting the developer so they can fix the game or add another ending. Breaking the 4th wall, Sans also suspects the protagonist hacking the game before hanging up.
== Flowey's Parting Words ==
After the phone call, if the protagonist had spared Flowey, he appears to talk to the protagonist. His dialogue depends on the protagonist's actions during the Neutral Route.
* If the protagonist had killed some monsters, Flowey wonders if killing is necessary and asks the protagonist if they can reach the ending again without killing, and he will not kill Asgore, and maybe the protagonist will have their "happy ending." Flowey remarks that he intends on watching before leaving.
** If the player reloads their SAVE and triggers any neutral ending a second time, Flowey assumes the protagonist wants to be friends with him. He proceeds to insult the protagonist, saying that he only cares about one person but ultimately does not truly care about them.
*** If the player reloads their game and triggers the neutral ending a third time, Flowey asks if the protagonist wants to start the Flowey Fan Club. He then tells the protagonist to talk to Papyrus about it, as he started one multiple times. Flowey goes on to say that Papyrus was one of the better characters to mess around with and that it took a long time to get bored of him.
*** If the player reloads their game and triggers the neutral ending a fourth time, Flowey again jokes about the Flowey Fan Club. He then warns the protagonist not to let Sans know anything about them, as he caused Flowey's fair share of resets.
*** If the player reloads their game and triggers the neutral ending a fifth time, Flowey notes that the protagonist is simply bored and just wants to see what he has to say. He then refuses to talk to the protagonist any further.
*** If the player reloads their game and triggers the neutral ending a sixth time and onwards, Flowey simply asks if the protagonist has anything better to do.
** If the player resets their game and reaches the neutral ending again without kills, Flowey notes that the ending is still the same and tells the protagonist that their choices do not seem to matter. He then tells the protagonist how to achieve a real happy ending: befriend Papyrus, Undyne, and Alphys.
*** If the player resets their game and reaches the neutral ending again with kills, Flowey agrees that killing is fine, but proceeds to scold the protagonist for only going halfway. (This dialogue is also possible if the pacifistic ending was the first; see below.)
** If the player resets their game, reaches Asgore without kills, then kills Asgore at the end of the fight, Flowey scolds the protagonist that they are trolling themself because all they had to do was befriend Papyrus, Undyne, and Alphys.
* If the protagonist killed no one, Flowey wonders why the protagonist let him go and why they are being so nice despite leaving the monsters still in despair. He then tells them a way to get a better ending by befriending Papyrus, Undyne, and/or Alphys.
** If the player resets their game and reaches the neutral ending again with kills, Flowey agrees that killing is fine, but proceeds to scold the protagonist for only going halfway. (This dialogue is also possible if the pacifistic ending was not the first; see above.)
* If the protagonist befriended all the key characters (regardless of the first neutral ending) without exploring the True Lab, Flowey tells the protagonist to see Alphys, as their date has just begun.
* If the protagonist aborts the Genocide Route, Flowey complains that they were so close to real victory, but the protagonist screwed it up. He begins to wonder if they wanted revenge against him but quickly insinuates that they wanted to show the monsters what happiness is like before tearing it away. He then says that he will be "waiting for you."
== Trivia ==
* As some characters have specified, a monster SOUL and a human SOUL is required to cross the barrier. However, the protagonist seemingly bypasses it after Asgore's SOUL is destroyed and Flowey absorbs the six human SOULs. It is unclear if Flowey's brief influence over SAVEs is the cause.
* On the Neutral and True Pacifist Routes, sparing Papyrus, Undyne, Mettaton EX, and Asriel Dreemurr causes the encounters in Snowdin, Waterfall, Hotland, and Ruins, respectively, to stop, whereas during the Genocide Route encounters only stop occurring after killing Mettaton NEO.
== External Links ==
* Neutral Ending Flowchart
de:Neutrale Route
es:Ruta Neutral
fi:Neutraali loppu
fr:‎Route Neutre
ja:‎Neutral Route
pl:Neutralna Ścieżka
pt-br:‎Rota Neutra
ru:Нейтральный путь
uk:Нейтральний Шлях
vi:Lối chơi Trung Lập
zh:中立路線