Tomb Raider 8: Underworld

LEVEL 4: SOUTHERN MEXICO - PART 2: XIBALBA

SOLVING THE MAYAN CALENDAR PUZZLE:

First, go to the small pedestal to the left of the calendar and pick up a second artifact, the STONE HEADDRESS. Now should you have all you need to solve the calendar puzzle.

NOTE: If you're missing the JAGUAR HEAD artifact, you must return to the JAGUAR TEMPLE to get it. To get there from the CALENDAR, first climb down to the road, get on the motorcycle and drive back through the BALL COURT and out the other side. Continue along the road, staying to the left at the first fork. When you come through the tunnel with the stone ramp, turn right. Continue along the road to the next fork. Turn right there (the left path leads back to the start of the level) and continue to the JAGUAR TEMPLE. Refer to the walkthrough for THE UNNAMED DAYS if you need help obtaining the artifact.

Stand near the small, dark hole in the outer ring of the calendar dial and press Interact to place the STONE HEADDRESS, causing a handle to rise up from the dial. Now move to the headless, carved jaguar at the center of the dial and press Interact to place the JAGUAR HEAD on top of the crank where it belongs. With both artifacts in place, the dials will move freely.

This puzzle looks much more complicated than it is. Well, actually it is a bit more complicated in the other versions of the game. Here you only need to turn one handle in one direction to solve it. But here's a full explanation of how it works, in case you've already moved the wheels without looking at the walkthrough.

First, notice how the calendar is constructed of three concentric wheels. The large, outer wheel is controlled by the handle with the STONE HEADDRESS on top. The crank with the JAGUAR HEAD moves the inner and middle wheels simultaneously. Each wheel has a symbol made of raised gold and obsidian on one segment. The goal is to turn the wheels in order to align all three obsidian symbols with the small, golden symbol near center of the dial.

If you haven't touched the puzzle yet, grab the jaguar handle and just keep walking around in a clockwise circle until all the symbols line up. Easy peasy.

If you've already moved the wheels, here's how to get them aligned properly: First, grab the jaguar handle and walk around in a circle to turn it so the obsidian symbol on the middle wheel lines up with the small, golden symbol near the center of the dial. (The inner wheel will also move, but this doesn't matter.) There's an audible "chunk" when the symbol is positioned correctly.

Next, grab the handle with the STONE HEADDRESS and step to the left to turn the outer wheel. This separates the wheels so you'll be able to turn the inner wheel independently. It also moves the symbol on the outer wheel away from its correct position but only temporarily.

Go back to the crank with the JAGUAR HEAD and turn it to rotate the inner wheel so the obsidian symbol lines up with the one on the middle wheel and with the small, golden symbol near center of the dial. Again, the mechanism clicks when you align the symbols correctly.

Finally, return to the handle with the STONE HEADDRESS and move it back to the right to align the obsidian symbol on the outer wheel with the other symbols and lock the wheels in place.

When the puzzle is solved, a cut scene shows a series of huge blocks rearranging themselves back at the BALL COURT. A massive statue of a two-headed snake flanked by huge, fire-breathing serpents rises out of the ground. Then the floor between the rows of snakes retracts, revealing the exit from this area.

XIBALBA GATE:

Unlike the other versions of the game, the elaborate gate in the BALL COURT is not on a timer. So there's no hurry to get there before it closes. Climb down to the motorbike and drive back along the road, through the pressure-pad controlled doors, to the ball court. Drive down the ramp into the room below.

Cinematic: Lara races through the gate, the doors close behind her and she skids to a stop just short of a deadly spike pit. She pauses to catch her breath then begins examining the architecture. Deciphering the carvings she reads, "The Place of Fear. . . . It's definitely Xibalba, the Mayan land of the dead."

NOTE: In the PC/PS3/Xbox game, the next chapter begins here. In the PS2 and Wii games, Xibalba goes on a bit longer.

LONG HALLWAY WITH THREE PITS:

When you regain control of Lara, get back on the motorcycle and drive forward along the hallway that leads out of the room with the spike pit. Ride down the stairs and along the twisting hallway. At the bottom of the next flight of stairs there's a long straightaway with a series of pits. There are wooden ramps at the edges of the first two pits, enabling you to jump the bike across them. But once you clear the second pit, slam on the brakes (R2) and/or steer in toward the wall to prevent Lara from sliding into the third pit, which has no ramp.

Get off the bike and climb the handholds on the left wall. Climb to the right and jump to grab the handhold on the square column. Lara's weight pulls it down, raising the ramps at the edges of the next pit.

Drop down, get back on the bike and jump across the pit. The quick start maneuver can help here: Face the ramp, hold the brake (R2) and rev the engine (L1). Then release the brake to zoom up the ramp and over the pit.

Continue along the hallway, through several twists and turns. At the end of the hall, get off the bike and use the lever to open the door. Then enter the room ahead. (Regardless of whether you walk or drive through, Lara will have the motorbike in the next level.)

Cinematic: Lara walks to the center of the room and checks out the seated statues. She speaks into her camera's audio recorder: "The lords of Xibalba were said to kill visitors for sport by sending them into devious trap rooms." Hmm. . . sounds right up Lara's alley.