Lies Of P: Should You Kill Sophia Or Give Her Peace? (2024)

In Lies of P, players must decide Sophia's ultimate fate. Sophia is a bit of a mystery. She's roughly equivalent to the Blue Fairy, who originally appeared in The Adventures of Pinocchio as Pinocchio's greatest ally and advisor. In Lies of P, she helps him level up with Ergo, revives him when he dies, and is generally a force for good. Throughout most of the plot, she doesn't seem to have ulterior motives of her own, besides a genuine desire to help Pinocchio and see him through his journey. However, as players approach the final moments of the game, they realize that Sophia is out for more.

[Warning: This article contains spoilers for some of the possible endings to LIes of P.]

Pinocchio and the player both come to rely on Sophia by the time they reach the Isle of Alchemists, the game's final dungeon. But there, Pinocchio encounters a mutated Sophia, alone in a secluded room beneath a framed blue butterfly. She reveals that this is her true self; the Sophia Pinocchio has met elsewhere in the game is actually a projection of her disembodied soul. She's an experimental subject for the cruel Alchemists, and their work has left her badly injured. She wants out. She asks Pinocchio to give her peace in death, and in that moment of truth, players can decide whether to kill her or let her live.

What Happens If You Give Sophia Peace In Lies Of P?

If Pinocchio agrees to Sophia's demands, she will die nonviolently, and entirely offscreen. The ensuing cutscene simply shows Sophia offering Pinocchio her Ergo, which he incorporates into himself with a blue glow. A pop-up appears, reading "You feel warmth." Players should already be familiar with this phrase, which appears whenever they gain Humanity. The Humanity gauge is primarily modulated through Lies of P's many truth or lie dialogue choices, but more active story decisions such as this one may also push the needle in either direction. To go along with his newfound Humanity, Pinocchio also appears to be more expressive after killing Sophia; he delivers voice lines more often.

Killing Sophia doesn't remove any of the benefits she has provided to Pinocchio throughout the game. Pinocchio can still level up at Stargazers, and will still respawn there when he dies. The lore reasoning behind all this is that Sophia is still technically present - her soul has been transferred into Pinocchio via Ergo, so she's still conscious, and actively helpful. As a matter of fact, she provides a couple of last-minute gifts: the Entreat emote, and "Shadow Flower," one of 16 collectible Records in Lies of P.

What happens next depends entirely on a series of choices that players have made throughout the game. After defeating Simon Manus, they'll have a confrontation with Gepetto, Pinocchio's creator. If they choose to give Gepetto Pinocchio's heart, they'll be treated to the "Real Boy" ending, in which Gepetto converts all the survivors of the Krat uprising into puppets before he and Pinocchio leave as father and son. However, P can refuse to give his heart Gepetto to see "Free from the Puppet String." Gepetto will summon the Nameless Puppet to attack Pinocchio, but ultimately sacrifice himself to save his creation.

To see the true ending, "Rise of P," a few conditions must be satisfied. First, players must have enough humanity, which is indicated when P's "heart is pounding," which will turn P's hair gray before the final confrontation. Lying and listening to records will increase humanity throughout the playthrough. Finally, they must have given Sophia peace and defeated Simon Manus before refusing to give Geppetto his heart.

On doing this, Pinocchio can return to Hotel Krat and examine his portrait to obtain one of the best weapons in Lies of P: the Golden Lie. With this in their inventory, players can see a unique epilogue, the "Rise of P" ending, in which Pinocchio uses Sophia's Ergo to revive her as a puppet, if they refuse Gepetto in the end. However, it appears that Pinocchio dies in the process.

What Happens If You Let Sophia Live In Lies Of P?

If Pinocchio decides to let Sophia live, she'll be a bit disappointed. Presumably, she remains in place on the Isle of Alchemists, but it's impossible to tell exactly what happens to her. If the player decides to return to her room later, she's completely and inexplicably gone. There are no answers given in the finale. It's somewhat ambiguous whether she lives or dies, but either way, the outcome is not good for Sophia.

Sophia continues to help Pinocchio as normal if left alive, leveling him up and reviving him. Pinocchio still gets the Entreat emote, but doesn't get a Record out of this decision. Outside her chamber on the Isle, she doesn't even seem to acknowledge the difficult choice Pinocchio made. It's nothing more than a missed opportunity. Sparing Sophia also locks in either the "Real Boy" ending if Pinocchio gives Gepetto his heart, or the "Free from the Puppet String" ending if he doesn't.

You Should Give Sophia Peace In Lies Of P

It's not an easy decision, but Pinocchio giving Sophia peace leads to the best series of outcomes in Lies of P. First, respecting her wishes means that Sophia ceases to be useful to the Alchemists, and is no longer forced to aid her and Pinocchio's enemy. It's not pleasant, but killing her means she can go out on her own terms, and escape from a life in captivity. Plus, on a run where Pinocchio has satisfied all the conditions necessary for the "Rise of P" epilogue, Sophia can live on in a happy ending.

And from a practical standpoint, giving Sophia peace just nets Pinocchio greater rewards. The Entreat emote is nice, but unnecessary. The "Shadow Flower" Record is a vital component in unlocking the true ending. Therefore, even if Pinocchio decides to spare Sophia on an initial playthrough, he'll have to kill her at least once in NG+ to revive her. By contrast, sparing Sophia gets Pinocchio nowhere, with no unique rewards or endings unlocked. That's not a huge deal on a first playthrough, since players won't be able to see the true ending until NG+ anyway. But the second or third time around, it's best to do what Sophia wants.

The choice around Sophia's fate is a difficult one, where the least obvious option leads to the best result. But that's par for the course in the morally fraught city of Krat, where puppets reign and Humanity is determined by lying. While the final decision in Sophia's situation is ultimately up to the player, it's best to respect her wishes and give her peace to see the best possible ending in Lies of P.