The Talos Principle 2 - Road to Elysium

Road to Elysium is a three-part DLC to the first-person adventure puzzle game The Talos Principle 2. The puzzles usually involve plotting out lines of sight and activating doors in the right order to get to the last room of the chamber. This DLC adds three visually stunning worlds that further develop the mechanics of the base game, while continuing its rich narrative and exploring new philosophical themes.

As in the base game, the typical level is a self-contained 3D chamber with an objective room locked behind a series of gates. A few generators are stuck to the wall in specific locations; they act as a source of colored light beams, which must be channeled through portable connectors in order to unlock gates or charge other targets. The sequel progressively introduced a number of new tools, such as color inverters and hole drillers.

Orpheus Ascending takes place in the mind of Sarabhai, exploring themes of love, death and resurrection. You play as 1k, retrieving the shattered fragments of her personality in an attempt to bring her back to life. The puzzles focus on lasers in ways which hadn’t been exploited neither in the base game nor in the original Talos Principle. They demonstrate how laser obstruction can lead to surprising results, such as creating loops or alternating between colors. Much like any world in the base game, this advanced side of the lasers is taught through compact yet increasingly difficult puzzles.

Isle of the Blessed is a direct sequel to the events from the base game. It takes place on a giant, gorgeous island housing a puzzle exhibition, and you play as Yaqut as he tries to impress Miranda. This part is meant to be a calm epilogue where you meet with everyone again and rejoice about a bright-looking future. The puzzles follow through on the mechanics of the base game; they are moderately difficult, but they come in larger setups than before. Things culminate in the Hexahedron, a massive maze at the center of the island that is completely different from previous puzzles.

Into the Abyss, the third and final part, goes back to the time when Byron was trapped inside the megastructure. Guided by the original Elohim, you face the twisted nightmare of Athena as she’s haunted by her fears and failures. The darker tone is reflected in very hard challenges, although you only need to complete a third of them in order to escape. This part doesn't pull any punches, featuring spectacular actionable elements, advanced laser tricks, very large chambers—and risky soft-lock situations. The lasers are brought back front and center, and they’re pushed even beyond the Orpheus Ascending puzzles to their absolute limits.

This description was written by Andréas Andrieux.