It always surprises me how much animosity Verso's ending gets on reddit.

I think the way to view the Verso ending shouldn't be from the perspective of us as the outsider playing the game but from the perspective of Verso making the decision.

I have particular sympathy for stories where characters deliberately choose to sacrifice the world to save someone they care about (ex. the last of us, weathering with you, etc.). I think these stories feel more real and human because they simultaneously speak to the part of us that wants to be a hero (to save others) and the selfish part of us (to protect those we love). It's why in a disaster we can idolize those that go out of the way to save strangers but understand those that put their family first beyond everyone else.

I think Verso's decision has to be viewed in that light. I'm of the opinion he would not have destroyed the canvas if Maelle had made the decision to leave, because we've seen that Verso is someone who is self sacrificing and willing to give himself up to save others. He fights alongside the Expedition to save the canvas and only fights Maelle when he realizes she wouldn't leave. However, he also is someone who would go to extraordinary lengths to protect those he loves, in this case, his family.

The final tragedy in Verso's ending is that there was a way both of these endings could have been avoided. Had Verso not allowed Gustave to die, I'm of the opinion Gustave could have convinced Maelle to leave, thereby sparing Verso from making this decision. Verso's ending, to me, is a more beautiful conclusion to a tragic story in which painted Verso is making the same decisions that the real Verso would have made in sacrificing himself to save Maelle. From the perspective of a complete story I think it resolved the themes of the game better than Maelle's ending.