Neutral Route

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For the ending in which Clover stays pacifist for most of the game (following the trajectory of the Pacifist Route), but ultimately chooses to kill Ceroba, see Pacifist Route § Flawed Pacifist Ending.

Neutral Route
Mechanic type	Ending

The Neutral Route is one of the three primary routes in Undertale Yellow, alongside Pacifist and Genocide. In this route, the final boss is Meta Flowey.

Method

Like in Undertale, this ending occurs when the requirements for neither the Pacifist Route or a Genocide Route have been met.

However, unlike Undertale, this route is not regarded as the default route (given its exclusive interactions). Reaching this route's ending is not a prerequisite for obtaining any of the Pacifist Endings and there is only one version of it, consisting of Flowey instructing Clover to "make different decisions next time", and ultimately resetting the player's SAVE.

Differences

Dark Ruins

Dalv's text changes in the Neutral Route depending on how many enemies Clover has killed. And unlike in Pacifist, he will choose not to pack up and move to Snowdin but rather stay in the Dark Ruins and connect more with the residents there.

If Dalv is killed, entering his room will allow Clover to play his Organ Demo. This is only available on the Neutral route, as it is silent on the Genocide route.

Snowdin

If Martlet is defeated by depleting her HP, she will retreat, which leaves Clover travelling on the raft alone.

Dunes

El Bailador is not aware that Clover is fighting him, unless they decide to kill him. Also, even if Clover killed enemies before they meet Mo, he won't notice that the player killed the monsters so Mo does not reveal that he has committed tax evasion.

Ceroba will not follow Clover into Steamworks as she realizes their soul isn't pure, leaving Flowey as their companion instead.

If Starlo was spared, backtracking to the Saloon in the Wild East unlocks a neutral-exclusive scene. The Feisty Five, along with Ceroba and Dina, are celebrating the posse's reunion, with Moray performing a song for them on the stage. When talking to Starlo, he mentions that Moray is performing a set, but that they've been on that particular song for awhile. This is likely poking fun at how the song will keep playing until the player exits the Saloon.

If Clover kills Starlo during his fight, Ceroba will question where he has gone as she is unaware that they have killed him and will go to his family in hopes of finding an answer. If they enter Starlo's house up ahead, a neutral-exclusive scene will play where Starlo's family will mention that they can't find Starlo anywhere even in his room and speculate as to where he could have gotten. Ceroba then encourages a bigger search to go on as they haven't exhausted their options yet and she will leave the house without saying anything to Clover, and she is never seen in game from that point again.

If the player backtracks to the Wild East, Mooch will be infront of the Feisty Four's house and wonder where Starlo is.

Steamworks

Most of the first section of the Steamworks is unchanged from Pacifist minus many cutscenes that would have had Ceroba, the scenes with Axis are also a bit different as they are shorter with only Clover. Once they fall in detainment, Flowey catches them and they have to use the vent to escape; the player doesn't build a robot like in Pacifist. Everything is the same as Pacifist until Clover reaches the Axis chase where he will only hunt them down and when Clover finish the first part of it, they are not required to go in a locker like in Pacifist. At the end of chase cutscene, Flowey will save Clover by shooting a bullet at Axis before he blasts Clover, and it destroys his arms like in Pacifist.

For the second section of the Steamworks, instead of taking the left door on the fork, Flowey breaks down the upper door, unlocking a different route. The player is required to make a Steamworks ID to get past this point, which is exclusive to the Neutral Route and if they go back to the vending machine, they will have vastly different nicer dialogue as a result of Clover having a Steamworks ID.

Though the kitchen/lab area is also accessible on a Genocide Route, the player can only obtain the Cake item within it on the Neutral Route. Also unlike Genocide, using the Hydrochloric Acid on the locked door will initiate a cutscene with Axis, who has his own vial of acid. After struggling to open it, he drops and breaks the vial which burns a hole directly beneath him. This causes him to fall through the floor.

If the player chooses to spare Axis, instead of the player-created machine filling Axis with emotions, Clover compliments him until he repairs himself and leaves. Axis can later be found recharging next to the opened cabinet near the start of the Steamworks as an NPC.

Hotland

Flowey interrupts Clover's walk to the rooftop, informing them this isn't the way to the castle, asking them to turn back and continue the plan. When Clover ignores him, he says the letter from the Steamworks is likely a trap and asks if they're so dumb as to fall for that, saying that bird never got them anywhere, but eventually gives in and lets them.

• Instead of having called Clover to the roof to stop Ceroba or Clover themself, Martlet wanted to talk to them. The dialogue here depends on if Clover aborted a genocide run or not, and how much LOVE/EXP Clover have on a neutral route.
• If the Genocide Route was never attempted, and depending on Clover's LOVE/EXP, Martlet remarks that New Home is on the other side of the CORE, but then talks about the fact that she was told that all humans are the enemy. She comments that maybe those people were right, and she had a plan to stop Clover if need be, which she throws away. Her general dialogue will differ with her being more skeptical and worried for Clover the higher their LOVE is and more sympathetic and kinder the lower their LOVE is. She tells Clover she knows they're good deep down, but that they could never get past ASGORE as he wouldn't hesitate to take their soul.
• If the Genocide Route has been aborted, Martlet cuts straight to her being told humans are the enemy with a less cheery voice, as she realizes they were right. Yet, she senses better in them. She still shows her plan to stop Clover and throws it away. She offers for them to shoot her now if they're going to do it anyway, saving they'll never get past ASGORE, though Clover does not fire a bullet.

Either way, she offers for Clover to live with her in a "happy, violence-free childhood", believing they can change for the better and end the conflict, which Clover either agrees to, or stays silent about, with dialogue choices that change based on Clover's LOVE. Both options lead to Martlet preparing to take Clover to Snowdin before being impaled by a vine sent by Flowey. She assumes it was Clover and questions their act or that she should have known (depending on how many EXP/LOVE Clover has) before dying prompting Flowey to face Clover.

• If the Genocide Route was aborted, Flowey taunts them that he got to her first, before asking if they were trying to turn this around after what they did and says there was no redemption for their actions, but thanks them for turning it around anyway so he could betray them.
• If it wasn't attempted, Flowey gets annoyed, knowing something like this would happen, that he tried to have a friendly persona but it felt good to finally snap and kill Martlet when she didn't see it coming and thought that Clover betrayed her.

He then takes Clover's soul, though Clover still holds on. He talks to them reminding them about their simple plan to go to ASGORE, and that they've always been predictable, revealing that this run is in the hundreds as any other run, Clover either stayed with Toriel, or died outside the Ruins. So to steer them off that path, Flowey tampered with the switches to bring them to the Dark Ruins. He then grows surprised Clover is still here, thinking they would have given up after his boring story, but then fights them. If the player already did Neutral once, Flowey will skip the monologue and it will transition straight to the fight.
After the fight, Flowey calls them annoying for not giving up and lying down, though he admits it was fun for a moment. Flowey decides to reset the timeline back to when Clover first fell down, though he may try this again if they end up in the same scenario, and advises them to make different choices, as "this outcome sucks" and this isn't what he's truly looking for.

Trivia

• If Ceroba is with Clover during the Steamworks, a Neutral Route can still be entered by killing any enemy robot (despite these not rewarding any EXP), Axis, or Guardener. After the battle with Axis, Ceroba leaves Clover due to their soul being impure (with varying dialogue if Axis was killed or not). This changes some details of the regular Neutral Route progression afterwards.
  • Mail Whale delivers Martlet's meeting letter right before the elevator to Hotland, rather than delivering it at the final Steamworks UGPS station.
  • Neither Starlo's urgent letter (Pacifist) nor his update letter (Neutral) are sent.
  • Ceroba's Neutral Route letter is not sent.
  • Even though Starlo was spared, the Feisty Five's reunion scene in the Wild East does not occur.

• The Neutral Route is the only route in the game where New Home is never entered.