THE ASYLUM 2
Levelset by IvanTRFan published on 26th April 2022
Walkthrough by Ejecta written on 23rd March 2024
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Prólogo: ¿Hogar Dulce Hogar? / Prologue: Home Sweet Home?
Capítulo 1: Regreso al manicomio / Chapter 1: Return to the madhouse
Capítulo 2: Conductos / Chapter 2: Vents
Capítulo 3: En la oscuridad / Chapter 3: In the dark
This walkthrough was written using the only version of the levelset available on trle.net at the time of writing. If the levelset is updated in the future then some or all of this walkthrough may become obsolete; in this circumstance, I will update the outdated parts as soon as possible.
One FMV is included in the download which is set to play at the end of the prologue. If you have issues with the display of FMVs during custom levels then be sure to check the ‘No FMVs’ option during setup; the FMV included does not provide any important information pertaining to the story or otherwise and I have written a description of the video within the walkthrough regardless.
Some sequences in this levelset can be difficult to explain adequately with the written word. At these times I will also link with a respective timestamp to the video walkthrough by Saki Croft which can be found on Youtube here, in case it would be of better aid to the player.
With the exception of the title and the FMV, all of the text in this levelset is written in Spanish. I will provide serviceable translations into English along the way and refer to those translations in lieu of the original text for the remainder of the walkthrough.
As the builder states in the description, all files relating to the diary were either lost alongside the rest of the original project or were not created in the first place. References to the diary when it would have been updated still appear in the game as ‘Nueva anotación’ in the bottom-left corner of the screen, but these messages can be disregarded.
Manual saving has been disabled; instead, the player must save at GOLDEN STARS located at various points within the levelset. I will note the location of these STARS wherever they appear. These STARS have an unlimited number of uses and the loading of saves remains unchanged from normal. There are also CHECKPOINTS made at certain key moments which will be indicated by a ‘Punto de control’ message at the bottom-centre of the screen. Unfortunately these CHECKPOINTS are not true savegames and cannot be reloaded manually, only at the point of death; they also do not always persist across subsequent game sessions, and when they do they are usually glitchy. Therefore, it will still be necessary to use the STARS in order to keep one’s progress within the levelset.
I have created a .zip file of savegames that can be downloaded from an external site. I will mention within the walkthrough the positions within the levelset that these savegames lead to, but I have included a text file within the .zip that has this information as well. The .zip file with the savegames can be downloaded here: Asylum2_Saves.zip
*CHANGELOG*
1.0.0 (2024-Mar-23)
The first version of the walkthrough is completed.
Secrets: 0 Pickups: 4, including Key to Lara’s Diary Kills: 0
The level begins in a rather sombre rendition of Lara’s bedroom; aside from the DIARIO DE LARA CERRADO (Lara’s Diary - Closed), there is nothing in the inventory. From the starting position, turn left to find two doors and a button to the left of the bed. Press this button to open the door to the right where the LLAVE DEL DIARIO DE LARA (Key to Lara’s Diary) (1) can be found on the floor within the alcove.
DIALOGUE: LARA: La llave de un diario… ¿Y por qué llevó un diario en la mochila? / LARA: The key to a diary… but why am I carrying a diary in my backpack?
Open the inventory and COMBINAR (combine) the key with the diary to receive the DIARIO DE LARA (Lara’s Diary). For reasons stated in the preface this diary will sadly remain blank for the rest of the levelset, but the action of unlocking it will simultaneously open the door to the left which leads to Lara’s bathroom.
Enter the bathroom and go forwards past a small pool and towel-covered table to find a mirror and blue dresser. Brace yourself for a brief jumpscare and pick up the botiquín grande (large medipack) (2) laid beside the dresser — the entity I have christened THE HOOKMAN is shown creeping behind Lara from within a vision of the titular asylum, but will disappear almost immediately afterwards.
Take a breather from that shock then dust yourself off, for we must now brave the rest of the mansion… return to the bedroom and walk past the bed through the open portal to the left, whereupon the door to the bedroom will close behind you.
You are now on the left-hand landing above the foyer of Croft Manor. Do NOT descend the stairs heading towards the ground floor just yet; instead, go up the opposing stairs and follow the other landing around to its end in order to pick up another large medipack (3) besides a vase. Now you may return and proceed down the stairs towards the bottom, but STOP before stepping on the rug spread out across the floor. A CHECKPOINT has been made here in anticipation of the levelset’s first Quick Time Event, so consider reading ahead to prepare yourself for the upcoming sequence. When you’re ready, move forwards onto the rug and a cutscene will play.
CUTSCENE: A snowstorm howls through the grounds outside the window. THE HOOKMAN appears before Lara in front of the mansion door, preëmpting her escape. He rises in the air and summons a deadly purple mist that begins to pursue Lara as she turns and prepares to run away…
[VIDEO REFERENCE #1: 1:29]
As the cutscene draws to a close, press and hold the forward key and do not let go — hesitating during this sequence for whatever reason will almost guarantee your demise, because although you can survive being hit by the mist (especially if you use a medipack) it will go on ahead of you and stop at certain points within the hallways where you absolutely cannot survive running through it. It is also worth noting that both sprinting and jumping are disabled and the latter will remain so until you enter the upcoming room with the deadly water, making it even more crucial to keep moving here. Stay on the right (i.e. Lara’s right) of this small hallway and at the end, keep turning right and rush onwards to open two doors in quick succession.
The sequence of jumps ahead can be quite devilish: you are required to nimbly hop across square slabs installed in a pool filled with unexpectedly lethal water, with the mist still in hot pursuit. For almost all of the slabs you cannot stop moving for even a moment or the mist will suffocate you; it will be necessary to make curving movements both within the air and on the slabs in order to land on each successive slab with sufficient space left to run and jump to the next without falling off the edge. Even with foreknowledge of the sequence, this will most likely require a few tries.
A square with a thick outline located on the tile just before the water can be used as a reference point for the start of the sequence; upon opening the second door, press jump as you approach the closest line of this square and land with a slight curve to the left upon the edge of the first square slab in the pool. On this first slab, keep the momentum going and make a running jump with a steeper left curve onto the edge of the second slab. As you land, steer towards the right and make another running jump towards the third slab.
Although the video demonstrates a slightly different tactic here, I had more success when I landed on the edge of the third slab that is closest to the second slab as opposed to the edge facing the other side of the pool. Whichever edge you choose, do not hesitate, turn to the left towards the fourth slab and make a standing jump towards its left side; as you land, immediately steer right and make a running jump to land on the other side of the pool.
Move forwards and open two more doors in quick succession to enter another large room. Avoid the mist enveloping the left side and keep moving forward; you should do running jumps here to put some distance between yourself and the mist but mind the furniture in the middle of the room. As you reach the wall at the end, turn slightly to the left and press the button on the wall immediately to the left of the door, then enter the room without tarrying. Another CHECKPOINT will mercifully be made here and the mist will vanish. Yellow lights flicker intermittently in this new room; approach the centre and pick up the box of bengala (Flares) (4). Glass can be heard shattering in the background as the screen cuts to black…
FMV: Blue and light-green particles explode and disperse from the bottom-left corner to form the title of the level, doused in a blue flame in the centre of the screen. The theme tune to ‘American Horror Story’ plays in the background. A ‘2’ emerges from the title and floats towards the viewer; the entire screen is covered in a potent blue for some moments before the colour dissipates. The phrase ‘The Objects’ then appears in a red font with some kind of wavy effect that phases the letters in and out of view.
Level end!
Secrets: 0 Pickups: 6 Kills: 0
We start with Lara falling from a great height, lighting a flare and screaming the whole way, before landing in some sort of partially flooded garage area. Abandoned cars are parked along the walls and heavily decayed corpses abound in the water — presumably (now former) inmates of the asylum. Looking ahead of your landing point, you can see a chequered stairway and flooring leading to a pair of grey doors. Before approaching these stairs, turn around to find a blue garage door along one wall. To the right of this garage door a box of flares (1) can be found submerged in the corner; pick these up, then return to the starting position and proceed up the stairs.
You can see a button in the corner on the left wall. Press it but do not go through the doors yet or you will miss two pickups and a small cutscene; instead, go to the wall directly opposite the button and pick up a large medipack (2) in the corner. For some reason pressing the button caused another med to spawn in the water around where you landed, so return to the flooded area and pick up a second large medipack (3) by the taxi car, then turn around and return up the stairs. A cutscene plays as you take the first step.
CUTSCENE: The camera is in first-person view and is shown bobbing up and down as it climbs the disembodied chequered stairs. I think this is supposed to be reminiscent of the loading cutscenes of a similar style that appear in the ‘Resident Evil’ series.
Go forward to enter the abandoned asylum and the doors will close behind you. You are now in some kind of common area; beige chairs surround the grey columns erected in the centre of the room, and more bodies are scattered in a desultory fashion across the floor. Four corridors lined with doors and buttons branch off to your left and right, and straight ahead is an elevator shaft which requires a keycode to enter. Your objective is to find the numbers for that code in order to ascend to the next floor.
Firstly, head for the upper left corridor when facing the elevator in order to find GOLDEN STAR #1. Lara will look at it as you approach, and the following text will appear on the screen as you move closer:
DIALOGUE: ESTRELLA DORADA / GOLDEN STAR
Usa las estrellas doradas para guardar partida. / Use the golden stars to save the game.
Podrás guardar siempre que quieras simplemente pulsando el interruptor. / You can save whenever you want by simply pulling the switch.
Para cargar partida pulsa F6 o selecciona Cargar Partida en el menú principal. / To load the game press F6 or select Load Game from the main menu.
Pulsa ESCAPE para continuar. / Press ESCAPE to continue.
[savegame.0 leads here]
Save the game by pulling the GOLDEN STAR switch as the instructions dictate, then push the button by its left to open the adjacent door. Enter and pick up some flares (4) in the corner, then return to the hallway and press the button to the right of the STAR on the far end of the wall to open the right-hand door; gingerly step over the cadaver slumped rather inconsiderately right in front of the doorway, then enter the room. Upon lighting a flare you can see the writing TE VEO / I SEE YOU on the upper walls — presumably written in blood — as well as the digit 6 on the floor (the blood dripping from the number indicates how you should read it). Make a note of this digit then return to the central area as the other doors do not lead to anywhere.
Next you should proceed to the bottom left corridor when facing the elevator shaft. With your back to the nearby metal column, press the upper left switch within the corridor and enter the open door to find a room that is empty save for a miraculously spotless bed, and the next digit 3 can be seen on the ceiling on the left-hand side when a flare has been lit. Leave this room and the other door on this side should open as you approach; prepare yourself for a brief yet tense sequence in the following room, then enter and pick up the large medipack (5) in the middle of the floor.
Suddenly THE HOOKMAN appears in the room and begins to chase Lara! The door was slammed shut, so the only option is to run around the room in circles while avoiding THE HOOKMAN as best as you can. If he does touch or hit you the damage is minor but I sincerely doubt Lara would appreciate it if you didn’t even bother trying to keep her out of harm’s way, so don’t stop running. Eventually a second and then a third clone of THE HOOKMAN will join the chase, but keep moving and eventually they will all disappear and the door will open once more.
There is nothing left to do here, so return to the central area and proceed towards the bottom-right corridor when facing the elevator shaft. When approaching this corridor the only functional door is the one at the upper-right, so press the button next to it and enter the room to find some medical furniture, a mirror, more grisly graffiti spattering the walls and a crawlspace in the corner. Crouch and follow the path of this crawlspace, manœuvring around the corpse along the way; at the third turning another corpse will suddenly appear reaching out for Lara before collapsing, and the screen will rumble slightly.
Carry on to reach the end of the crawlspace and emerge into the room hidden on the other side of the mirror; a reversed 3 has been painted onto this mirror, and when observed from a certain angle using a lit flare it appears to merge with the 3 painted in the other room to form an 8, the next digit required for the keycode.
Return through the crawlspace into the other room then return to the central area. There is only one corridor left to explore, at the upper-right when facing the elevator shaft; all except for the bottom-left door in this corridor can be safely disregarded. Press the switch next to this door, light another flare and enter the room to find another large medipack (6) in the corner next to a 9 painted on the wall. If you’ve followed the walkthrough exactly then you should have found the numbers in the order 6389; the actual keycode is the reverse, 9836. Return to STAR #1 and save your progress if you’d like, then approach the elevator shaft.
[savegame.1 leads here]
Press ACTION to access the keypad to the left, then use the directional keys and ACTION to select each of the four digits in the correct sequence. It seems that the interface for the keypad will be partially cut off for players using higher resolutions; it is still possible to successfully type the code in this state however, and you can see what you’ve tapped in so far near the bottom of the interface. Once you’ve typed 9836, select the * to enter the code and the door to the elevator will open.
Enter the elevator and press the button to start rising to the next floor… but shortly afterwards, you’ll notice to your dismay that the corpse lying in the elevator is suddenly not so dead after all!!! You will now have to once more run around in circles to avoid the zombie’s blows; in this claustrophobic space it seems that the most effective tactic is to wait in one corner for him to approach, then swiftly move out of the way of his swinging and run to the other corner, repeating this process for as long as necessary.
Eventually the elevator will stop at the next floor but we’re not out of the woods yet: the following corridors are all lined with zombies eager for a piece of Lara’s flesh! Thankfully they are rather slow but this is no excuse to dawdle; with your back to the elevator shaft take two lefts, a right, a left and an immediate right, avoiding the hordes of the undead along the way. At the final turning keep going forwards and a cutscene begins to play…
CUTSCENE: Lara stumbles around the corner but keeps running away from the zombies, who stop and stare ahead menacingly. Lara sighs with relief and turns another corner, only to find THE HOOKMAN waiting for her at the end of the corridor. She skids across the floor then immediately turns and slides adroitly into a conveniently-placed vent directly opposite the corridor, screaming as she falls into the darkness…
Level end!
Secrets: 0 Pickups: 6, including the Right Pistol Kills: 3
CUTSCENE: After landing on the hard metal at the bottom of the ventilation shaft, Lara brushes herself off and stands up, ready to face the challenges that lay ahead…
It seems we are now in the ventilation system of the asylum. Go forwards and you’ll be helpfully blasted to the right by the air current of a fan to end up next to GOLDEN STAR #2. Save here if you’d like, then go around the corner and slide down the slope.
[savegame.2 leads here]
After sliding down STOP and look to your right: ahead of you is a seemingly bottomless pit which is too wide to be crossed with a simple running jump, so instead you must make use of a series of ledges situated on the left wall. To reach these ledges, jump up and grab the monkeyswing fitted into the ceiling, then swing forwards and to the left; after lining yourself up with the upper-most ledge, drop and immediately grab three times in quick succession to reach the bottom ledge, then traverse to the right across the corner. To climb up into the opening it will be necessary to use a move exclusive to custom levels: press JUMP and the up directional key while keeping hold of ACTION to vault up and grab the upper ledge. Pull up then walk ahead and the first CHECKPOINT of the level will be triggered.
A second deep pit — this time lined with spikes — looms ahead around the corner and to the right; another series of ledges located above it leads upwards to another opening. Make a running jump angled slightly to the right to grab the first ledge, shimmy to the right until you’re close to the end, then vault up to the next ledge using the same special move mentioned previously. Shimmy right again then vault up to another ledge; follow this one around the corner to pull up into the opening, then stop a moment.
There is a slope in front of you that leads to another spike-lined pit; to avoid being skewered, turn around and hop backwards while holding ACTION to slide and grab the edge of the slope, then shimmy to the left until you have almost reached the end of the ledge. To continue onwards you will be required to deploy another custom move: Press JUMP and the down directional key while still holding ACTION to jump backwards and grab another ledge on the opposite wall. Shimmy to the right, then when you’re near the end jump backwards again to another ledge on the other wall. Shimmy left, jump backwards at the end then pull up into the opening.
Two fans are blowing air across the following corridor, but this time they will send you careening into a spike pit to the right if you don’t make the effort to move against the current! Position close to the left wall where the fans are to give yourself the best chance to survive, then step into the stream of air while holding down the up and left directional keys and aim for the opening at the other end. When you’ve successfully made it across, go forwards and another CHECKPOINT will trigger at the end of the hallway.
The camera angle changes as you turn the corner. Prepare yourself for a jumpscare then start moving towards the camera, and shortly afterwards SOME KIND OF MUTANT CREATURE will leap from the left across the screen! It was just a hallucination… right??? But there’s no point in worrying about it for the moment, so continue onwards to reach a three-way intersection: to your left is a closed gate, to your right is a hallway that leads to a trapdoor we will have to spend quite a bit of time getting to open, and straight ahead is another windy fan to do battle with. Run against the air current along the central corridor to reach an alcove on the left with a button on the wall; press it and return across the air stream to the intersection where the gate is now open, then follow the newly-accessible passage to find GOLDEN STAR #3. I highly recommend saving here so you can easily restart the upcoming puzzle if necessary; no matter what you choose, proceed into the next room when you’re ready.
[savegame.3 leads here]
You are now in a boxed chamber separated into three different levels, each with their own grey box of shelves; a tunnel snakes behind two walls on the lower level, and a button can be seen high up to your left with your back to the entrance. Your next objective is to manœuvre the grey boxes around the room so that all three are stacked directly below the button, allowing you to press it and open the trapdoor at the other end of the intersection you just passed through. First things first, pick up the large medipack (1) on the platform in the centre of the room, then we can get started on the arduous task ahead:
[For reference: The wall with one end of the tunnel is North (N); the wall with the entrance and STAR #3 is South (S); the wall with the button and the other end of the tunnel is West (W); the remaining wall is East (E).]
1. Firstly, move the middle box in the NE corner two tiles S across the lower box to rest by the middle of the E wall. Pull the lower box out one tile W, then go around to the other side and pull it one tile S. Return to the middle box and move it two tiles W across the lower box onto the central platform where the medipack previously lay.
2. Return to the lower box and move it one tile S then one tile W. Move the middle box two tiles S into the gap, then vault up and move the upper box three tiles W across the middle box into the SW corner.
3. Return to the middle box and move it two tiles N back onto the central platform, then move the lower box one tile E and one tile N. Move the middle box two tiles E back to the middle of the E wall, then move the lower box one tile N and one tile E. Move the middle box two tiles N to return it to its original position.
4. Pull the lower box two tiles W, then go around through the tunnel and pull it one tile N into the entrance. Return through the tunnel to the middle box and move it four tiles W into the NW corner. Return through the tunnel to the lower box; the MUTANT CREATURE can be seen through the gaps in the shelves before promptly leaping away out of view.
5. The CREATURE has damaged the tile it was standing on, so go around through the tunnel to the other side of the lower box and push it one tile N, then use the tunnel to move it three tiles W, three tiles S and one tile E to bring it outside of the tunnel and back into the main room.
6. The lower box should now be in place in front of the other entrance to the tunnel and directly below the button, so move the middle box two tiles S to rest on top of the lower box. Finally, move the upper box two tiles N to rest on top of the middle box, then vault up onto it and press the button to open the trapdoor and complete the puzzle.
Return to the intersection and follow the remaining hallway to find the open trapdoor. Drop down and proceed along the passage, taking note of the second instance of silver grating in the floor on the way. At the end of this passage is GOLDEN STAR #4 — obviously you do NOT want to have to do all of that shoving and pulling all over again, so don’t forget to save your game here before you go any further!
[savegame.4 leads here]
Return through the passage and step onto the silver grating —
CUTSCENE: Lara noisily bursts through the floor of the silver grating to land in a chamber bathed in a low blue light. The camera pans down to reveal the PISTOLS — but how on earth did they end up here…?
—
to land in the next room. As tempting as it may be, do try and resist the urge
to immediately run and retrieve the pistols (or pistol in this case) or you
will start the upcoming boss fight, and you ought to pick up all the supplies
scattered around here first: when facing the pistol, turn to the left to pick
up a large medipack (2). The following text
will appear on screen while you do this:
DIALOGUE: Pulsa 4 para desenfundar la pistola la primera vez.
/ Press 4 to draw the pistols for the first time.
Heed this instruction, then turn around and return to the centre of the room. Some flares (3) can be found not far from the pistol to the right; light one here and walk forwards (with your back to the pistol) to note the exit door in the wall, then head right from that position towards the corner of the room for an not-quite-so useful botiquín pequeño (small medipack) (4). Finally, proceed to the corner directly diagonal of this one for another box of flares (5). Now all that is left is the pistol, but consider reading ahead first to know what you’re getting yourself into. When you feel ready, pick up the PISTOLA DERECHA (RIGHT PISTOL) (6).
Immediately either press 4 or go into the inventory to select the pistol, then start jumping back and firing at the MUTATED INMATE (1) — you’ve now initiated the boss fight of this levelset, as the giant blue health bar on your screen can attest! The most important thing to do here is to not stop firing (and to have automatic aim enabled in the settings), as well as to keep your distance from the creature to the best of your ability. When its hits land they can apply poison damage, which will cause the screen to distort shortly thereafter. Therefore, the second most important thing is to monitor your health and promptly heal when the bar is dangerously low; you can use the 9 shortcut for this but I would recommend using the inventory instead so you can take a breather and reflect on your current position in the arena, then readjust if necessary.
After you kill the first creature, two more MUTATED INMATES (2 & 3) will join the fray and your health will then be depleted at a higher frequency. Keep whittling down the lifebars of the remaining creatures and healing when necessary; I found the whole battle to be really hectic and it certainly doesn’t help that the corners of the room are pitch black, but as long as you get your shots in whenever possible you should eventually emerge victorious and the following cutscene will play:
CUTSCENE: The camera shows the door in the wall swinging open. Is the nightmare finally over? Only one way to find out…
Head through the open door to find yourself in a hallway with rapidly blinking lights and a CHECKPOINT will trigger a few steps therein. The second Quick Time Event is now upon us so read ahead if you want to be prepared, then keep going through the hallway…
CUTSCENE: Suddenly the camera is thrown back to reveal that THE HOOKMAN has appeared behind Lara in the middle of the blue-tinged chamber! The door to the hallway slams shut, and the screen momentarily fades to black.
Level end!
Secrets: 0 Pickups: 9, including Green Key and Blue Key Kills: 9
CUTSCENE: Nothing happens for a few moments save for the incessant blinking of the hallway lights, then the purple mist from the Manor returns with a vengeance and starts barrelling ahead towards Lara!
[VIDEO REFERENCE #2: 28:22]
As with the previous QTE you should be pressing and holding the forward key as soon as the mist appears on the screen. Unfortunately the next part of the hallway is lined with a series of spike pits — why can’t things ever be simple?! — and you will have to jump over all of these with the correct timings if you want to survive.
Firstly, do a few running jumps to put some distance between yourself and the mist, then as the camera angle changes do more
running jumps over the first four spike pits by
pressing jump as you reach the middle of the preceding tile for each one. After
the fourth pit the camera changes again to
face Lara, which does make the sequence slightly more difficult but not
impossible; for reference, there are two tiles before the fifth pit (or one if you’re counting after the camera
changes), three tiles before the sixth, one tile before the seventh, and
finally four tiles before the eighth — do not stop moving and prepare yourself
to do running jumps over all of them. Once you’ve cleared the final pit, keep moving forwards to fall down a deep hole
into a pool of water.
Follow the underwater passage along, picking up some flares (1) near the start thereof, until a current pulls you across and through the surface of a pool. This part of the asylum has been turned on its side, and we’ll need to do some exploring before it will rearrange into the correct position. To your left is a T-shaped hallway which, while in its current state, is arranged to be a deep hole with a fatally long drop. Walk to the edge and look down to see an open door on the left side. Turn around, hop backwards, then press action for a second to safely drop onto this door; the camera will go all wacky, but thankfully this will stop when you enter the white-tiled room and the area magically rearranges itself off-screen.
Exit the white-tiled room into the corrected hallway then turn left to find the pool you just emerged from, a pair of large grey doors next to a blue-rimmed keyhole in the far wall, another box of flares (2) in the upper-right corner, and GOLDEN STAR #5 on the left-hand side. After picking up the flares, dive into the pool and retrieve the LLAVE VERDE (GREEN KEY) (3) from the hollow at the bottom. Swim up and suddenly the pool looks a hell of a lot deeper than you remember it being… even so, you should be able to reach the surface with ample breath left. Climb out and save at STAR #5 if you’d like, then return to the hallway.
[savegame.5 leads here]
The flickering in this hallway is particularly disorienting, so light a flare to stabilise the lighting somewhat. Aside from the one you entered this area from, none of the doors in the first part of the T open; in the next part there are two pairs of large grey doors on both ends of the corridor — the left-hand of which also leading to nowhere — a locked door to the left, and a door to the right which has a corresponding keyhole.
Our next destination lies behind this door, so use the green key on the lock but then immediately jump and roll in the air and rush back to the pool area, because a mutant dog (1) will be biting at your heels as the door is unlocked. There are quite a few of these little guys in this level, and they’re rather sturdy too; they usually take approximately 20 shots from the solitary pistol to be brought down. I suggested running back towards the pool because it’s easier to kill the dog this way: you can jump back and forth between any of the corners of the pool to confuse its pathing and subsequently lose less health from its attacks.
Once the dog is dead, return to the previous hallway and approach the unlocked door. Step into the doorway then immediately hop back to avoid being bitten by another dog (2). This one can be killed from the safety of the corridor as it will keep running around in circles inside the room, and will only turn to bite you if you’re in or beyond the doorway. After you’ve killed it, enter the room and pick up the large medipack (4) on the floor. Use it IMMEDIATELY if your health is dangerously low, because the ground will suddenly give way and you will take damage from falling onto a slope. A CHECKPOINT will trigger at the end of the first part of the slope, then you will continue sliding for a moment until a cutscene plays:
CUTSCENE: Lara lands, bounces and slides down to the floor from what appears to be a sizeable mound of blood-red flesh. As the sound of loud clunking steps fills the room, she looks behind her shoulder to see a large pair of doors swing open in the corner — but the being who opened them is apparently invisible, and hunting for her…!
Thankfully
Lara was able to find a hiding spot offscreen within a tiny crawlspace with
another large medipack (5) nestled inside
beneath her feet. You must now escape from the unseen
entity without alerting it to your presence; if you so much as attempt
to stand up outside of the crawlspace then it will fling you into the row of spikes along the back wall of the room
before the animation even finishes! You will also be killed if you move outside
of the first line of chequered tiles that surrounds the large, darkish-brown,
metallic square-lined structure inside this room except for when you have no
choice but to do so, meaning you must proceed from here with the utmost
caution.
Once you’ve picked up the med and you’re ready to move, light a flare for additional visibility, press and hold the CRAWL button, then press and hold the up and left directional keys simultaneously to exit the crawlspace and move alongside the first side of the metallic structure without leaving the safe zone. Once you’re along the side you can let go of the left directional key for the moment and continue crawling forwards, then as you approach the corner make a curving movement to the left again to stay on the path along the next side.
From this camera angle you will eventually be able to see a rectangular shape of metal jutting out from the structure. As you approach this rectangle make a curving movement to the right around its first corner, then immediately curve to the left to stay to the side of the rectangle; you can use the down directional key to reverse if you’re caught in a bad position. At the end of the rectangle, curve left to return to the structure, then curve left again shortly afterwards to turn the corner.
From this point, crawl straight alongside the metallic structure until you reach the open doors. When you cannot crawl any further, stand up and quickly run inside as the doors shut behind you, then follow the passageway along and up some stairs around a few turnings until you come across an intersection and another CHECKPOINT. A fleshy arrow on the wall is pointing to the right, but you should defy its instruction and instead turn left to pick up some flares (6) in the corner and a large medipack (7) to the right in front of a blockage of flesh. After picking up the med, roll and draw the pistol to kill the mutant dog (3) that will attack shortly afterwards — these corridors are a little claustrophobic and you will inevitably take damage from a few bites, but you can minimise the health loss by trying to jump and roll around the dogs during each ambush.
When the fighting is done, return to the intersection, light a flare and continue along in the direction of the arrow. A heartbeat will begin to pulse as you proceed through the corridors, more arrows will be painted on the walls, and gradually more flesh will be seen crowding the floor and the ceiling. At the third turning a second dog (4) will leap ahead from the left, so briefly stop to neutralise it then keep going along the passage; a third dog (5) attacks at the fifth turning, so kill that one as well before moving swiftly on. After the tenth turning, go to the middle of the next corridor then roll and draw arms to kill a fourth dog (6) that is coming toward you from behind. The flesh on the ceiling will probably make dodging this one’s attacks more difficult, but try your best to jump around it anyway and don’t hesitate to heal if necessary.
Proceed
onwards around a few more corners and the flesh will eventually encompass so
much of the corridors that only a small opening to the right side remains.
Enter this opening by crouching down and crawling through it, hugging the wall
to the right all the while to avoid getting stuck on the geometry, then move
slightly left and continue crawling onwards along the grotesque tunnel of gore.
After turning the corner, approach the opening into a wider area and a cutscene
will play:
CUTSCENE: A sweeping flyby shows the upcoming area: the flesh has spread to and swallowed up what appears to have formerly been a stairwell within the asylum. Only remnants of the original infrastructure remain, but there is still just enough of it left for you to be able to ascend to your next objective, the passageway at the top of the chamber.
[savegame.6 leads here]
GOLDEN STAR #6 can be seen to the right just outside the opening if you’d like to save your progress thus far, then it’s time to start climbing up the chamber. You need to be careful here, because if you fail a jump for whatever reason you’ll most likely fall and drown in the gooey mass of gore all the way down at the bottom. There is a checkpoint halfway through the climb, but unfortunately you will probably have to wait until Lara suffocates within the gorey goo for it to be loaded unless you were lucky enough to snap your neck from the fall.
Approach the left-hand stairs leading upwards and do a standing jump over the gap, then do a running jump over another gap to reach the vestiges of a landing. Follow this landing to its end, then jump up at the broken-off piece of stairs to grab a ledge. Traverse all the way to the right and jump backwards at the edge onto another slice of flooring, do another standing jump over the gap, then run ahead and jump to grab onto another ledge.
Shimmy right then vault up at the end to grab a second ledge; shimmy right to the end of this one, then drop and immediately grab onto a third ledge located below; shimmy right around the corner, then vault up at the end to grab a fourth ledge; shimmy right to the end of the wall, then vault up to grab a fifth ledge; shimmy right around another corner, then vault up at the end to grab a sixth ledge; finally, shimmy all the way to the right of this ledge, then jump backwards onto a piece of landing.
Make a standing jump over the gap, then make a running jump past the magically-floating railing to grab the ledge in the opposite wall. Traverse all the way to the right onto the edge of some stairs, then pull up.
To your right along the wall is a fleshy slope with a flat part near the end. Make a standing jump with a curve to the left while facing the slope, then hold ACTION whilst sliding to grab the edge. Shimmy to the right and pull up onto the flat part, then turn right to see a fleshy platform set within the opposite wall. Carefully walk to the edge towards the direction of the platform, then make a standing jump to the right onto the platform where a CHECKPOINT will trigger upon landing.
Look ahead towards the next wall and you can see the reason for the checkpoint: to progress from here, you are required to make a tricky jump onto the triangular part of the mound of flesh projecting from the wall. Because none of the platforms involved in the jump are perfectly square, it’s all too easy to either fall off to your (eventual) death during the run-up, or to land on the slope adjacent to the triangle instead. The most successful strategy here in my experience is to first stand with your back against the wall at the part closest to the preceding slope; turn slightly to the left so you are positioned diagonally from the triangular piece of the flesh; then make a running jump without grabbing, aiming for the point of the triangle that is closest to your position, without letting go of the forward directional key until you’ve landed onto the flesh.
Once you’ve successfully landed onto the triangle, carefully walk up the flesh to the right then jump and grab to pull up onto the ledge above. From here you will be required to make another diagonal jump rightwards onto a wider slope set within the wall ahead; you can do a standing jump at the edge, but the elevated part of this particular tile that you’re standing on can turn Lara away and make her fall off if you’re not careful enough. You can also do a running jump if you start from near the middle of the tile, running along the direction of the elevated part, until you make the jump towards the slope. Either way, once you’re sliding on the slope press ACTION to grab the edge, then shimmy all the way to the right to pull up onto a flatter part of the flesh.
Roll and use look to see your next destination straight ahead. Because this tile also isn’t completely flat, the easiest way to reach the following ledge is to use the ‘step-jump’: firstly, turn around and hop backwards off the current tile to grab its edge, shimmy all the way to the right until you can go no further, pull up, then roll to get into the correct positioning. Hold down WALK and the up directional key to have Lara make one step forwards; as she is bringing her left leg back from the step, release WALK and press JUMP, then hold ACTION while in the air to grab the next ledge. Turn around and look up to see a slope above; because the ceiling is low above this tile, you’ll have to be careful with your positioning in order to successfully make the next jump. Turn around again and hop backwards to grab the edge, then shimmy slightly to the right so that you’re in between the middle and the corner of the edge. Pull up, roll and do a running jump and grab to the slope, then pull up once more and immediately do a jump with a mid-air roll onto the next ledge.
Take one or two steps forward onto the next tile, then turn right and look ahead to see the passageway — you’ve almost made it! To cross the final gap you can make a simple running jump and grab, but you have to be careful not to be thrown off-course by the unruly geometry on the current tile. With your back to the wall, make sure you are standing on the right edge of the tile and that you are facing away from the small hill of flesh on the tile’s left-hand side, then do the running jump and grab to reach the ledge. Pull up and go ahead into the passageway — a CHECKPOINT will trigger halfway through — then slide down the slope on the left.
Walk across the next room and through the open door to find yourself in a slightly more alive copy of the hallway from the start of the level. This time there are three smaller doors, one straight ahead and two to the left, all of which can be opened with buttons. The large grey doors to the right are non-functional for the moment, so start off by opening the door straight ahead and picking up the large medipack (8) in the middle of the room, then approach the two doors on the left-hand side of the hallway.
If you press the buttons for both doors and peer through each doorway then both rooms will appear empty, but looks can be deceiving: when you enter the room to the right the hallway will revert to its ‘normal’ state (relatively speaking…), whereas if you enter the room to the left then nothing will happen because the hallway is currently still in its ‘flesh’ state. To progress you will need to jump between both states until you’re able to retrieve the blue key from its room, whereupon you can then proceed to unlock the large grey doors by the pool and finish the game shortly thereafter.
Firstly, enter the white-tiled room to the right to switch to the ‘normal’ state of the hallway. A button has appeared next to the large grey doors on the right-hand side of the hallway; press it, return to the two smaller doors then head into the room on the left to transform the hallway into its ‘flesh’ state. Head to the opposite end of the corridor through the now-open large grey doors to find a door and a button to the right. Press the button then immediately draw your pistol to fight off two more dogs (7 & 8) that have appeared behind you; you can use the slopes on the wall to jump out of their reach and minimise health loss.
Enter the doorway you just opened to find more flesh blocking entry into the room, then return to the other end of the corridor and into the room on the right to transform the hallway one final time into its ‘normal’ state. Return to the room that was blocked off in the flesh world to find the LLAVE AZUL (BLUE KEY) (9) on the floor, then exit to the hallway. Heal up if your health is low, then proceed straight ahead towards the pool and the locked doors — suddenly a MUTATED INMATE (9) will emerge near the pool and ambush Lara! Dive into the pool to escape it for the moment, then read ahead to consider your strategy.
No health bar will appear at the bottom of the screen this time around, so it can be difficult to know how close you are to killing it — I would say approximately 50 shots should do the trick, but it could easily take more or slightly less depending on how many bullets actually land. If you’re lucky the creature could get stuck running into the wall in the hallway, which will obviously make the whole thing a hell of a lot easier. Otherwise you can repeatedly leave the pool, get as many shots in as you dare, then return to the pool while you wait for it to move away.
[savegame.7 leads here]
The creature will eventually explode after you’ve shot it enough times, and then there is nothing left to do but to use the blue key to unlock the large grey doors by the pool and step inside… but if you’re watching the screen closely, you can see a clown (or should I say payaso) staring at Lara from near the pool as the doors slam shut behind you! There is nothing you can do now, so keep going ahead and a final CHECKPOINT triggers just for the hell of it. Turn the corner and approach the empty room…
CUTSCENE: Lara can be heard breathing rapidly off-screen as the camera moves around the empty room. A loud noise is heard and Lara gasps with fear. Someone takes a few steps forward, and nothing happens for a few moments… then suddenly the clown’s arm flashes on the screen, and the camera veers into black…
Level end!
*TOTAL STATISTICS*
Secrets: 0
Pickups: 25, including four key pickups Kills: 12
END OF WALKTHROUGH