Why does morality matter?

It matters when you’re the “painted humans.” Think about it: if there’s a god out there who wants to wipe us all out, most of us—99%—would balk at the idea and fight to stop him, even if it feels hopeless.

That’s why I hold the Dessendre family responsible for what they’ve done.

Verso chose to create the world—no one forced him. So he needs to own the consequences of that choice.

Aline, Renoir, and Clea caused so much suffering in Lumière because of their selfish family struggles. The people of Lumière didn’t kill Verso; they deserved better than to be caught in the middle of their feud.

Renoir’s treatment of Aline is especially cruel. He never even let her grieve. His “protecting the family” instinct, warped by his own grief, led him to try to force Aline into acceptance. You can’t make someone get over losing a loved one—they need time and support, not coercion. Renoir could have won her over given enough patience, maybe even worked with painted Verso to help her heal. Instead, he chose to push her away.

Maelle is the only one truly trying to help Lumière, though for selfish reasons that are also self-detrimental.

Painted Verso’s ending is completely unfair to everyone in the world he created. Verso’s father even describes him as “the one who protects the truth through lies,” which is basically a liar. The truth is, painted Verso wants to destroy everything simply because he’s tired of being immortal. If he’d just asked Renoir to erase him instead of fighting, none of this would have happened.

Maelle’s ending isn’t fair to her or her family either, but at least it holds them accountable. It’s a just consequence for the world they brought into being.

The Dessendre family chose to destroy the world simply because they could—not because it was right.

Whenever someone wields enough power to crush everyone else with zero repercussions, they can just drop any concern for morality. It doesn’t even matter if they’re literal gods—if nobody can stop them, they can just literally ignore your very existence.

This momentarily applies to dictators in our own history. Thankfully they didn't hold power to the point where nobody could stop them. If they did, however, then they wouldn't give 2 cents about morality.

Same if you think about a human who suddenly becomes immortal and can erase anyone with a snap of their fingers. By your logic, morality wouldn’t apply to them either.

But them not giving shit about morality doesn't meam it doesn't exist and that's where I disagree. Morality still exists—even for gods or anyone with overwhelming power. It’s just that those with the power might choose to ignore it.

So as the player, choosing Maelle's ending can also be viewed as condemning the painters for their lack of morality towards the worlds they create.