Dark Sanctuaries Puzzles
Puzzles are a prominent component of the Dark Worlds. Many puzzles are scattered throughout the three Dark Sanctuaries, all focused on piano-related contents, with some occasionally related to movable bookshelves.
The piano playing puzzles in the Dark Sanctuary consist of playing certain notes on a piano to unlock a gate. The correct notes needed to play are usually fragmented and scattered throughout the room. Once exposed, they are then present near the piano itself for quicker reference.
The first piano playing puzzle is located past the entrance area. The solution to the puzzle is split into two halves with three notes each, which are revealed by pressing the left and right pressure plates below the piano. The solution is as follows:
⬅⬇⬅ - ⬇⬅➡ (left, down, left - down, left, right)
The second piano playing puzzle is located along the path leading to the Old Man's Study. The solution is split into two halves with four notes each. The Old Man guides the party to the notes as they traverse the area.
First, Kris must go all the way left and press the pressure plate at the end, revealing the first part of the solution. After this, the party backtracks and follows the Old Man to the north, leading to a fork in the path. Taking a left will lead to a pressure plate revealing the latter half of the solution.
The solution is as follows: ⬆⬆⬇⬇ - ⬅⬅➡⬆ (up, up, down, down - left, left, right, up)
The third piano playing puzzle is located within the Library. The piano itself is located in the Small Piano area before the Dark Zone. The solution is split into two halves, located in the left and right wings of the Library.
The left half of the solution is revealed after navigating a brief maze. The right half is revealed after solving the second bookshelf pushing puzzle. The solution is as follows:
⬅⬇⬅➡ - ⬇⬇➡➡ (left, down, left, right - down, down, right, right)
The golden piano puzzle blocks the way to the battle against the Hammer of Justice. Solving it opens the way to the Study's fireplace. The piano itself is located within the Library and is only accessible using the ClaimbClaws. The solution is split into three segments, scattered throughout the Dark Sanctuary.
The solution is located in:
- First notes, in the southwest belltower: A climbing path is available on the upper-left side of the dark room with the swarming Titan Spawn. This path leads to an elaborate climbing course; reaching the end of this course and interacting with the water bucket initiates a battle against Miss Mizzle. After the fight is won, the first four notes are displayed.
- Notes revealed:
⬆•⬆⬅(up, neutral, up, left)
- Notes revealed:
- Middle notes, in the southeast belltower: In the same room featuring the "Dark Sanctuary - Lower Right" SAVE point, close to where the Old Man is first seen, a climbing path is available; it leads to the entryway of a pitch-black maze of Organikk philosophers. On the far-right is the silhouette of a Wafer NPC, marked with yellow ripples. Interacting with the Wafer NPC will prompt it to guide the party north, unlocking a previously-blocked path up top. The path ends with a floor switch, which lights up the room and reveals the middle four notes.
- Notes revealed:
⬇•➡•(down, neutral, right, neutral)
- Notes revealed:
- Last notes, past the money fountain: In the library, left of the room with large red tomes on bookcases, there is a small waterfall flowing into a donation pool. Hiding behind this waterfall is an entryway leading to a pitch-black maze. At the path's end is a wall marked by yellow ripples that appear in tandem with Kris's footstep-ripples. Interacting with this wall gives the option to climb it, leading to another pitch-black maze. The floor switches throughout the room help illuminate the path with yellow ripples. At the end goal of the maze is a blue floor switch which reveals the final four notes. This initiates an escape sequence, as a dark silhouette of a Titan Spawn chases the party back to the start of the maze.
- Notes revealed:
➡⬇⬅•(right, down, left, neutral)
- Notes revealed:
The solution is as follows: ⬆•⬆⬅ - ⬇•➡• - ➡⬇⬅• (up, neutral, up, left - down, neutral, right, neutral - right, down, left, neutral)
The bookshelf pushing puzzles located in the Library consist of pianos that, when played, control respectively colored bookshelves that move around the area. The goal of this puzzle is to maneuver the bookshelves to a marked space on the floor, allowing progression.
The first bookshelf pushing puzzle is located in the large room prior to the third piano playing puzzle. There are two pianos located on the upper layer of the room, colored blue and green, which control the corresponding colored bookshelves. The solutions to the puzzle are as follows:
Blue piano:
- Access to marked area:
⬇⬅⬆➡⬆➡⬆(down, left, up, right, up, right, up) - Accessing the chest containing the AbsorbAx (right half):
⬇⬅⬆➡⬆⬅⬆⬅⬇(down, left, up, right, up, left, up, left, down)
Green piano:
- Access to worship room:
⬅⬆⬅⬆➡(left, up, left, up, right) - Accessing the telescope:
⬆➡⬇(up, right, down) - Accessing the chest containing the AbsorbAx (left half):
⬆➡⬆⬅⬆➡(up, right, up, left, up, right)
The second bookshelf pushing puzzle blocks the way to the right half of the third piano playing puzzle. There is one piano with two separate octaves, colored pink and green, that control the corresponding colored bookshelves. Kris can switch octaves on the piano by pressing [MENU]. The solutions are as follows:
Chest containing a ReviveMint:
- Pink octave:
⬅⬇➡⬆(left, down, right, up) - Green octave:
⬅⬆➡⬇(left, up, right, down) - Pink octave:
⬇(down)
To fill the marked squares:
- Pink octave:
⬅⬇➡⬆(left, down, right, up) - Green octave:
⬅⬆➡(left, up, right) - Pink octave:
⬇⬅⬆➡(down, left, up, right)
The piano pushing puzzles are an inverse of the bookshelf pushing puzzles. Instead of controlling colored bookshelves, Kris controls the piano itself as it slides around the room.
The piano pushing puzzle in the 2nd Sanctuary is located near the beginning and consists of a piano surrounded by destructible bookshelves, as well as a colored bookshelf. The solutions to the puzzle are as follows:
- Opens access to the ladder leading to the worship room:
⬇⬅⬆⬅⬇⬅⬆➡(down, left, up, left, down, left, up, right) - Opens pathway used to continue further:
⬅⬇➡⬆➡⬇➡(left, down, right, up, right, down, right) - Breaks the colored bookshelf revealing a chest containing a ReviveMint:
⬅⬇⬅⬆⬅⬇➡⬆(left, down, left, up, left, down, right, up) - Opens path to a prophecy tapestry depicting Tenna:
⬇➡⬆➡⬆⬅⬆➡(down, right, up, right, up, left, up, right)
The piano pushing puzzle in the 3rd Sanctuary is located prior to the Stairs area and contains a blue pressure plate, a piano, and a gate that blocks the way up. Stepping on the pressure plate reveals a hint as to how to navigate the piano: ⬇⬅⬆ (down, left, up). This sequence allows the party to destroy the gate and continue upward.
After the first gap that the piano jumps over, darkness creeps upward from below at a steady rate. If the darkness reaches the party, they are sent back to the start of the room.