*End States would be much more apt. Think Dragon Age which has a significant amount of different states but 4 distinct endings, in terms of how the game BBEG is slain. But add to that stuff like what race and class you played, which companions you recruited, their relationship to you, which factions you did what with and a slew of side quests which gets referenced in later titles depending on your actions. Meaning the state you ended the game in is distinctly calculable and has impact.

Just check out this tool for recreating a state if you’re moving from console to PC (requires login):

https://dragonagekeep.com/en_US/

Just click around a bit and you soon realize that the number of possible permutations is rather staggering. So 17000 doesn’t sound unfeasible or extreme.