Collect all eight Data Shards, deliver them to the Mainframe in Lower Levels > B3, then defeat the final boss again. The shards can still be collected after the normal ending, so you can finish the story first and return to the last pre-boss safe-room autosave with Continue.
Recommended order: finish the normal ending, then collect the shards
The 100% Guides trophy guide recommends completing the normal ending first. After the game returns to the main menu, choose Continue to load the last autosave, which is in the safe room before the final boss. The same guide and its secret-ending walkthrough say the Data Shards are not missable and remain available after the main story.
Once you have all eight, turn them in at the Mainframe in Lower Levels > B3, then fight the final boss again. The unlock route is reported by third-party walkthroughs; the official game pages reviewed do not specify the secret-ending trigger.
All eight Data Shard locations
These directions follow the 100% Guides walkthrough dated September 29, 2026, which includes route screenshots. Several shards require tools, keys or switches, so collect the needed items as you encounter them.
The Tool Desk
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- REVEAL THE UNSPEAKABLE: Face nightmares and cosmic abominations that will push your sanity to its limits. Journey through a futuristic reinterpretation of Lovecraft's mythos and uncover the legendary sunken city of R'lyeh. But beware: the deeper you descend, the more your mind succumbs to Cthulhu's relentless influence.
- CHALLENGE THE BOUNDARIES OF YOUR MIND: Dive into the darkness with Key, your AI companion. Follow leads, gather scattered clues, and sharpen your detective skills to solve immersive and complex puzzles. Uncover hidden truths and look beyond appearances to choose your path to resolving the case. Every mystery offers branching routes and secret passages waiting to be discovered.
- AN UNFORGETTABLE NARRATIVE EXPERIENCE: As an agent of Ancile, a secret division of Interpol specializing in occult affairs, you are thrust into a gripping story with complex characters, brought to life through cinematic storytelling. Immerse yourself in a first-person investigative horror adventure with a rich, branching narrative, where your choices and understanding will shape Noah’s fate in this nightmarish world.
- Lower Levels > F1: In the northern hall, burn down the wall to reveal the shard.
- Habitation Sector > F1: Use an Explosive Charge on the wall just left of the Containment Sector Fast Travel Shuttle to reach the Security Guard Keycard. Use it on the door at the right end of the Habitation Sector corridor. Go downstairs and left for the Security Chief Keycard, then use that keycard in the main hall and pass through the northern door.
- Ventilation Tunnels > F3: At the easternmost Factory East entrance to the Tunnels, use Explosive Charges to destroy the weak wall. Continue to F2, cross the upper catwalk and pull down the ladder to F3. Go right and upstairs; after the ambush, collect the Ventilation Maintenance Key and use it on the northern F3 door.
- Factory West > F4: In the Outer Sector, use an Explosive Charge to open the floor just outside the Maintenance safe room. Go down and left to find the Executive Level Access Keycard behind boxes. In Factory West, use it to access the lift on F2 and ride up. The shard is in the second room, which has a large table.
- Reactor > B1: This route starts in Waterworks B3 and requires the Grappling Hook. Press the switch in the room left of Waterworks B3, then the switch by the circular structure to drain some water. Activate the eastern B3 pump console. Leave through the door to its left, climb down, head north and use an Explosive Charge on the blocked wall. Take the upper-right B3 door and reach the switch that drains the Reactor Pool; the route passes an Energy Node door and an ambush. At Reactor B3, descend into the drained pool and go left at the bottom for the Underbelly Key in a locker. Use the key on the door down the short stairs outside the Reactor on the right side of F1 to reach the shard.
- Waterworks > B3: Take the Sewer Workshop Key from the left side of the B3 sewers, then use it to open the small room at the bottom of the sewers.
- Containment Sector > F3: On B1, use an Explosive Charge to open a wall. In the next room, pull down the ladder and take the Storage Room Key. Use it to open the F3 door containing the shard.
- Lower Levels > B4: From the B3 safe room, go down the stairs into the Tunnels. About halfway through, burn down the wall to uncover the shard.
Turn in the shards and trigger the ending
- Return to the Mainframe in Lower Levels > B3 with all eight Data Shards.
- Turn in the shards at the Mainframe.
- Defeat the final boss again to see the secret ending.
Why the shard hunt fits the game
End of Abyss is a sci-fi action-adventure from Section 9 Interactive. Its official PlayStation description emphasizes Scanner-based exploration, branching paths and hidden areas; Xbox Wire’s developer-authored launch article describes Cel as a combat technician exploring a broken underground facility. Those descriptions provide context for the search, but not the unlock steps above.
In Xbox Wire’s September 30, 2026 article, Section 9 co-founder Marcus Ottvall said: “What started as an action-based top-down shooter, developed into a slower, more dynamic and atmospheric experience as we became more interested in exploration and creating a stronger sense of tension.”
The PlayStation listing names PS5 and October 1, 2026 as the release date, while Xbox Wire reports an October 1 launch on Xbox Series X|S. Availability details here are limited to those cited platform sources.
Quick Recap
Best Value
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Rank #4
Rank #3
- FACE THE LEVIATHANS: Adds a new Border Board and Leviathan cards to replace the threat track, introducing sea monster battles that add tension and excitement to every game.
- NEW LORDS AND ALLIES: Recruit powerful Lords and Allies with abilities designed to help you fight Leviathans and secure victory.
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- EXPAND YOUR ABYSS EXPERIENCE: Requires the Abyss board game to play. Designed for 2-4 players, ages 14+, this expansion deepens strategy and gameplay.
Sources
- 100% Guides: End of Abyss Secret Ending Guide (All Data Shards), September 29, 2026.
- 100% Guides: End of Abyss Trophy Guide.
- Xbox Wire: End of Abyss: Explore and Fight Through the Abyss’ Horror, September 30, 2026.
- PlayStation: End of Abyss.
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