So... I never got to the credits... This thread explains a lot. Apparently I am not supposed to take the true ending route on my first run. That explains a lot. Edit: Nevermind. Trying to find modded ending. Edit(2): Tsk. Not beating the game beforehand makes the secret ending lose its self-congruency.
I didn't know about the "true/good" ending until after I played the game [naturally] without "scum saving" (I didn't realise that was a thing). So I just went along with my choices as normal and got the standard ending. After playing the game a few more times, trying to find a better ending I did some searching around and found the way to the better ending.