The Architect's Tomb

Get used to these moving platforms and spinning blades. You'll have to cross this area a few times.

Save your game in the light on the left. There's a floor switch that opens part of a gate in the distance. You can't do anything with it yet. Instead, traverse the moving platforms while avoiding the spinning blades.

Break all of the containers in the area for red orbs. Open the gate on the right side and clear out the hall of enemies. Approach the upper arena and battle the Cyclops and small Cerberus dogs. Although you could stone the Cyclops with Medusa's Gaze to get it out of the way, another Cyclops appears right after. Instead, lure the small dogs into the hallway. More appear and should follow you to the hallway. Defeat them with the Blade of Artemis. You must work quickly to avoid their larger counterparts. If you're low on health, return down the hall to open a replenishing chest.

Use the crane to rotate the stone block over your intended target.

There's also a ladder on the upper side of the area. Climb it and break the wall at the top to find a room with chests, including a health or magic chest.

Climb the ladder on the far left side to reach the crane mechanism. Before rotating the crane, walk out to its end and jump to the ledge. Break the wall to reveal a couple chests. Return to the crank.

Rotate the crane so the stone block is over the breakable flooring below your position. Release the crane using the lever at its far end. This breaks the flooring. Rotate the crane again so the stone block is over the switch on the far right side of the area below. Release the block so it lands on the switch.

Rip off the Architect's head.

Drop down to the area where the floor switch is and defeat the Cyclops. Pull the statue in the back corner to the open floor on the far right side. Drop the statue inside then go down so you can pull it onto another switch.

There's one more switch to press: that switch at the beginning of the area. Return over the moving platforms and step on the switch. Now you must traverse the platforms quickly to reach the gate before it closes.

Roll into the room to avoid the closing gate. Read the note on the table and use R2 to examine all of the blueprints around the room's edges. Stand behind the corpse sitting at the table and use the R2 button to pull off the Architect's Head. Place it in the lock behind you.

Exit toward the bridge. Break anything you find for red orbs. Search the right side for a couple chests. Save your game then enter the structure ahead.

Finally Kratos recovers Pandora's Box.

Descend the spiral staircase into the room with the conveyer flooring. Tons of harpies and archers protect the room. Use the Army of Hades (hopefully upgraded) to assist in the battle. Clear out the archers quickly then concentrate on the harpies. Avoid standing too close to the room's edge so you don't suffer damage near the gears.

When the barrier lowers, enter the next room. Examine the mural on the floor. Enter the next room and pull the lever to reveal Pandora's Box. Examine it. When you regain control, pull the box out of the temple's entrance. Unfortunately, Ares has other plans.

The Path of Hades

You can explore some optional paths for more chests but traversing the spinning poles is quite a challenge.

Walk up the spine flooring and use the health chest on the right. Save your game. Leap across the platforms. Go forward to find a red orb chest. Follow the platforms right to find another. Proceed left from the second chest to find the next ledge.

Combat the Hades undead troops. Advance up to the next ledge and defeat more of the Hades undead. Approach the spinning pole with the blades. The goal is to traverse the spinning pole while avoiding the blades. If you just nick a blade, you plummet to your death. The poles adjust speed and even change direction.

Start across the pole and search a ledge on the right for a chest. Return onto the pole and go forward to a second chest and a Hades archer. If you want another chest, proceed along the pole to the right. Stop on the ledge to defeat an archer then continue along the next pole to reach a chest at the end.

Return to the previous chest and jump to the pole to its left. Before reaching the end, leap to a ledge on the right for another chest and an archer. If you want another chest, you can continue onto the pole connected to this ledge and follow another pole to the left to find a chest at the end.

Return to the main pole and reach the next ledge. Defeat the archer. Proceed onto the pole to the left. Go to its end, jump to the pole on the right, and go to the end of that pole to find two chests. Defeat the harpies that attack. Return to the pole and jump to the ledge on the right. Continue across the next pole.

You may soon grow to loathe this pole.

Follow this pole to its end. Battle the harpies on the ledge before advancing to the next area. Use the chest on the right side and the save game point on the left.

Next you must jump across the moving platforms while avoiding the archer fire at the far end. Use Zeus' Fury for assistance or just try and avoid the projectiles until you can get close enough to the archers to attack. Defeat the remaining archers and Hades minotaur on the ledges. Clear out all of the enemy presence on these ledges as you continue to ascend. A barrier blocks a spiked pole. You must defeat all enemies before the barrier falls.

Traversing the vertical spiked pole is extremely challenging--which is a nice way of saying it's extremely frustrating. If one of the blades simply touches Kratos, you fall down to the very bottom. It might not sound that bad but get nicked near the top and you must start over completely.

Each satyr defeated raises a platform in the background.

The key is patience. Don't try to go too quickly. If you're patient, you'll notice larger gaps in the spikes that you can work your way through. Since the pole is rotating, you'll be shoved against one side unless you work against the rotation. Keep this in mind if you're trying to climb diagonally between a couple spikes. When you near the top and the area is clear, press the jump button to ascend quickly. You can use the jump button at any time to try and bypass a segment quickly but it's much more dangerous because you could accidentally nudge a spike and go crashing down. There are two poles to traverse. Defeat the enemies between the first and second pole.

Save your game at the top and use the health and magic chests. Cross the platforms. Stick to the right to find a chest. The next ledge contains Hades satyr. You must defeat enough satyr to create the next platform walkway. There are a couple chests to replenish your health and magic as needed. As you cross the platforms, leap to the left and right to find chests. Leap across the final set of platforms to reach the rope. Climb the rope out of Hades.

Temple of the Oracle, Part 2

Save your game in this familiar location. Use chest as needed to replenish health and magic. The temple has seen better days. Ascend the staircase into the ruins. In the top courtyard, defeat the Cyclops and minotaur to lower the barrier. Exit to the left side.

Eliminate the gorgon and archers on the way up the staircase. At the large chamber, use Zeus' Fury against the archers. Cross the debris bridge to the chest on the other side. Go left and up more stairs. Combat the minotaur and archers in the hallway.

Reach the area where you saved the oracle--it's now in ruins. Drop down to the area below. Save your game. Go through the far passage and find the oracle on the ground. Speak with her. Open all of the chests on your way down the staircase.