Overview
This Guide’s purpose is to provide the players of “Ancient Guardian” with useful information and tips that will assist them in completing the Act I (Minotaur’s Labyrinth) of the said game. In order to achieve that goal the Guide introduces the players into the basic aspects of the game, presenting the traps and the enemies that lurk inside the Labyrinth, the points of interest and the items that are used. Finally it also contains some advice, regarding the survival and navigation inside the world of the maze.
1. Introduction
“Ancient Guardian” is an action-adventure game where the player takes up the role of a father who tries to find his lost daughter. During this perilous quest, the character, that is a linguist and a historian and not some kind of superhuman, has to travel into various locations, solve puzzles, bypass traps and evade or even fight various enemies. This Guide was written while the game is still in Early Access (alpha 0.5.8.) and only Act I, the Minotaur’s Labyrinth, seems to have been permanently solidified. Under those circumstances it was considered as safe to create a guide that would only contain information and tips regarding Act I, since further major changes are expected in Act II. In this Guide the player will be introduced in the gameplay basics and will learn a few things about the points of interest, the ingame items, the various traps and the enemies that are to be expected. Tips about navigation tactics and survival, inside the procedurally generated maze, will be provided too. All those information can be used both in Story and in Infinite Mode.
2. Methodology
Like with most Steam Guides and this one was created using empirical methodology. The main source of information is the experience of the author from his direct observations of the game. Any sources of reliable information about this game are almost nonexistent, except few Steam Guides that are partially complete.
The player in “Ancient Guardian” can use two different systems: 1) joystick or 2) keyboard and mouse, as we can see in the options. This specific Guide was created using experience obtained via the use of the mouse and keyboard system, therefore it is highly likely that gameplay may be quite different if someone uses the joystick system
3. Gameplay
This section includes: the Interactions, the Points of Interest (referred as PoI from now on), the Items, the Traps and finally the Enemies that are presented in Act I. In other words it presents the basic data involving this Act. Some of the subsections contain images too. It is hoped that those will help the player form a better understanding of the game.
3.1 Interactions
When the keyboard and mouse system is used:
a) Character moves around with the use of WASD keys.
b) The mouse controls the cursor.
c) Key “E” is used to pick up items and interact with doors and levers.
d) The “SPACE” key is used to draw with chalk.
In “Ancient Guardian” (alpha 0.5.8. version) the player has no ability to Jump, Swim or Crouch. On the other hand the player can run if the “SHIFT” key is pressed. Any items gathered and stored in the inventory are applied, when the right keys (1, 2, 3, 4) are pressed.
3.2 Points of Interest
PoIs are important places inside the Labyrinth that affect more or less the gameplay. Since the maze isn’t the same every time (it is a procedurally generated world), the PoIs location is different with every new attempt. Those places are the:
1) Entrance or “The Well”
Image 1
The Well (Image 1) is the entrance point inside the Labyrinth. It serves as the starting location and apart from that it has no other use.
2) Ancient Room
Image 2
The Ancient Room (Image 2) is hidden inside the Labyrinth and contains a precious artifact called “Ariadne’s Tread”. The player is granted entrance via a Secret Door. Only 2 Secret Doors exist in the whole maze both providing access to the same place. This room is protected by a magical electric barrier and is considered as safe place, so no enemies can enter inside there.
Image 3
Two ways can be used to open the Secret Doors (Image 3). One way is to use a key, while the other is to try to find the Door’s combination. Both ways got their pros and cons. The first way requires for the player to find the key, something that sometimes may take lots of time. Also when the option of the key is used, few but critical, seconds are needed for the combination to be put in place so that the door can finally open. As we can understand when the player is already hunted by an enemy that can prove fatal. The advantage of this option is that, if the key is found first and then the Room’s Door, the player can gain access to it, easily and stealthily, spending only few seconds.
On the other hand the second way provides access inside the room without the required key. The game gives hints that can help the player with the combination “puzzle” and the door opens almost instantly when both 3 rings are in the right place (the player has to press the center of the lock). However this method got some drawbacks too. The combination may take lots of time to be found (especially if the player isn’t trained to that kind of thing) and moving those rings produces lots noise that can draw the Minotaur’s attention, if he is close enough.
Inside the room, safe from harm’s way, the player must find the papyrus that is located near the skeleton and try to “translate” it. Basically the translation process is just a minigame where some keyboard keys must be pressed before the time runs out. Image 4 presents the text that is “translated”. As soon as that process is finished, we obtain some information about the story of the Labyrinth and gain access to the chest that contains the invaluable artifact named “Ariadne’s Tread”.
Image 4
The Ancient Room is also a place where you can find and use 3 levers in order to open doors that lead to various other parts of the Labyrinth. Sometimes those parts are dead ends, but other times they even might get you closer to the Exit, bypassing endless corridors filled with deadly traps. Those 4 entrances have another use too as they can be used in various survival tactics, that aim to give you an advantage against the Minotaur (more information in the Advice section).
3)Slaughter Room
Image 5
This specific room, where the Minotaur dismembers and devours his victims, is usually located close to the Exit. It got 4 entrances and it contains the Cuirass, a rather valuable item. Picking up the Cuirass triggers a trap that locks you inside the room with 4 to 6 skeletons that you have to deal with. When the last skeleton dies the doors open and you can leave the area. Since it is possible to get locked inside there with the Minotaur, caution is advised.
4)Exit
Image 6
Finding the Exit is the prime objective of the player. This PoI serves as the exiting point out of the Labyrinth. In order to open the metal grate door you have to use the lever that is located next to it.
5)Breakable Walls
Image 7
Some of the Labyrinth’s walls are breakable. In a fit of rage the Minotaur can break those walls and create a shortcut towards the player’s position. When a wall is broken, you will surely hear the loud sound of its collapsing.
6)Doors
Image 8
The Doors in “Ancient Guardian” can’t be locked and so they offer no protection against hostiles. The player can open a Door stealthily with the use of “E” key or just walk onto it. With this second way though, the Door opens with a loud noise. The Minotaur, if enraged, can break and blast the door away.
3.3 Items
Items are basically essential equipment used for the survival of the player inside the Labyrinth. Some of them are weapons, other serve navigation purposes and other like the First Aid Kit heal the player’s health. Here are presented the Items used in Act I of the game (alpha 0.5.8. version) as well as their respective uses.
1) Chalk
Chalk is an item that the player acquires automatically when Act I begins. It’s use consists of drawing marks that can help the player navigate inside the maze. It can be applied in most of the surfaces of the Labyrinth, excluding the floor (more about Navigation in the Advice section).
2) Flashlight
The Flashlight is also provided automatically to the player. It is used as a source of light and indeed it is quite valuable item, since you have to deal with traps that are hidden inside the darkness of the maze.
3) First Aid Pack
Only one First Aid Pack exists inside the Labyrinth (one in every new level in the Infinite Mode) and can be found onto the hanged man’s corpse. If it is used it will heal the player’s health to maximum.
4) Key
There is only one key inside the Labyrinth and it can be found near the woman’s corpse. It’s used in order to open the Ancient Room’s Secret Door.
5) Sword
The Sword is one of the two weapons you can find inside the maze. It is old and rusty and so it doesn’t deal lots of damage to the Minotaur. The player can acquire a sword if the skeleton that carries it is killed.
6) 9mm Pistol
Found the Pistol and now you think you can kill the Minotaur? That’s not the case in this game, as that gun can’t kill the damn beast. Only one pistol is found in every attempt. You can kill skeletons with one shot, but the same doesn’t apply with the Minotaur. A direct shot will stop him just for a few seconds. The gun’s magazine carries only 7 rounds. Warning: Any shots that are fired inside the labyrinth are bound to attract the Minotaur’s attention.
7) Cuirass
The Cuirass is basically an armor item that gets depleted with each hit. It can sometimes save your life, but in order to get it you must first find the Slaughter Room and then deal with the Skeletons inside it. Picking up the Cuirass, while you are unarmed, may prove to be a fatal error.
8) Ariadne’s Thread
That precious artifact is found inside the Ancient Room. Its main function is to help the player find the Exit. It is quite valuable and not limitless. When the item is used it will start rolling around leaving behind a gold luminous thread. It will continue moving towards the Exit, until it finds it or the thread runs out. Use it wisely!
3.4 Traps
The Labyrinth is a place filled with various deadly traps that are activated when you step onto certain floor plates. The traps can harm the player both directly and indirectly. A careful and concentrated player can easily avoid any traps found, but when you are chased by a relentless enemy like the Minotaur, it is quite easy to make a mistake that sometimes can prove fatal. Hostiles can activate traps and be harmed by them too. For example if a skeleton steps onto a fire trap he can be killed by that trap. On the other hand the Minotaur is very careful and evades the majority of the maze’s traps, but even he can also fall victim to a trap and be harmed. Here are presented all the traps that the player will face in Act I (alpha 0.5.8. version).
1) 2 Spikes Trap
This trap harms the target that stands on top of it. When activated, it’s spikes spring out the floor with a 1.5 seconds delay. Agile players may manage to avoid damage.
2) 4 Spikes Trap
The 4 Spikes Trap works exactly like the previous trap do, but its radius is greater and it deals more damage.
3) Sound Trap
This trap seems innocent enough because it deals no direct damage to the player. What it really does is way worst than any other trap could do, since the loud sound that it produces alerts the Minotaur to investigate the area.
4) Gas Trap
A quite interesting trap that sometimes is mistaken for a sound trap. The player can recognize it by the four pipes surrounding the plate that are used in order to pour lethal hallucinogenic gas inside the area. Once this trap is activated it will fill a large part of the surrounding area with gas. That gas makes the player: 1) choke… to death, 2) experience hallucinations and 3) reduces the visibility. You are advised to stay away from the contaminated area until the gas finally dissipates.
5) Fire Trap
The Fire Trap is basically a plate with a pipe in the middle. As soon the player steps onto the trap, a huge tongue of flame immediately appears that harms the unlucky victim.
6) Dart Trap
You step onto the plate you get shot by darts…
Simple as that. The plate at first seems like the Sound Trap, but it is placed in a different way (like a rhombus) onto the floor.
7) Ball Trap
This was a close one….. Indeed if you fall victim to that trap and don’t manage to evade it is almost game over, because it deals lots of damage. Hidden inside the ceiling and having a trigger plate that looks exactly like a Sound Trap (it produces the same sound!), the Ball Trap is an extremely dangerous trap for the player and the Minotaur alike. Better start watching the ceiling too…
-All the traps presented above got a cooldown time after they have been activated. In other words a trap you have activated now will become active and potentially dangerous again in a short time. The cooldown timer differs according the type of traps.
3.5 Enemies
In the first Act of “Ancient Guardian” the player faces 2 types of enemies. The first is the well known Minotaur, the beast that resides inside the Labyrinth, while the second type is composed of the skeletons of the fallen. Both types got special attributes and are dealt with in different ways
I) The Minotaur
The king of the Labyrinth, Minotaur serves as the antagonist of Act I. This beast won’t stop to nothing while it hunts the player, until the later escapes the maze or is killed. Wielding a battleaxe and wearing heavy armor the Minotaur is a force to be reckoned with. It takes 4 or less hits from his weapon in order to kill an unarmored player in Normal difficulty Mode.
If you get close enough to the Minotaur he will eventually spot you and start hunting you relentlessly. 1) Shooting with the pistol, 2) activating Sound Traps and 3) any other loud sounds are some actions that can attract his attention. When he begins to chase you there are only 2 viable options left: to find shelter inside the Ancient Room or to find the Exit and escape.
The Minotaur is not indestructible, he can be wounded and even killed as we can assume from the existence of the “Justice” achievement. On the other hand he must have very high hitpoints, because shooting him with all 7 rounds of the 9mm pistol doesn’t seem to affect him to the least.
II) The Skeletons
Inside the Labyrinth we can find numerous skeletons that belong to the victims of the Minotaur. Some of them like the one depicted in the Image can raise and start hunting you around. The skeletons are armed with swords that deal a bit of damage with each hit. A single skeleton alone is not more than a mere nuisance, but when you have to deal with many of them like in the trap inside Slaughter Room, that can prove fatal if you aren’t armed.
The good thing about this enemy is that you can easily kill him with a single sword strike or shot of the pistol. Also after some seconds of chase he disintegrates by himself leaving behind his sword.
4. Advice
This section of the Guide includes tips and tactics that may help the players survive and safely navigate inside the world of the Labyrinth. Those tips come from my personal experience of the game and apply in the alpha 0.5.8. version of “Ancient Guardian”.
4.1 Survival Tips
Trying to survive inside the maze while you are hunted by the Minotaur is very difficult since you have to constantly keep running around. It is easy to fall victim of a trap that will either kill you or slow you down. Those tips aim to keep you safe and the same time to give you an advantage against the Minotaur.
4.1 Tips
-The lower your health meter is, the slower you are able to run. It is important to avoid any possible unnecessary damage dealt, mainly that of the traps.
-Shooting with the Pistol and activating Sound Traps can lure the Minotaur to a certain area. That might sometimes prove useful.
-You will hear a cry when you get closer to the Exit…. and the Minotaur
-The Minotaur can be wounded too and beyond a certain point of damage his speed decreases.
-When the Minotaur breaks a wall that means he just made a shortcut towards your current position. Using that ability he can gain access to previously closed chambers that seemed safe. Example: Sometimes the Ancient Room provides access to areas that are dead ends. An enraged Minotaur can connect this place with the main Labyrinth using his ability. It is something that rarely happens as more parameters are needed like breakable walls, etc but still it is possible.
-You are completely safe inside the Ancient Room and that is a huge advantage.
-There is an easy way to obtain a Sword by luring a skeleton inside the Ancient Room. The barrier is going to kill him and you can pick up his weapon.
-When translating the papyrus take your time with the first 5-6 keys and press them when the time almost runs out. With every new key the available time limit is decreased. The point in that puzzle is not to be quick, but to manage to wait enough for the translation bar to completely fill.
-The Ariadne’s Tread is not infinite so it should be used wisely.
-There is a way to easily find the combination of the Secret Door. When I am trying to open the Door I always start rotating the inner ring first. Example: This Image of the Door shows us the combination. We first rotate the inner ring a full turn for the letter “υ” of the second ring. If by any chance (impossible) we hear a click to a certain letter we move to the outer ring. If not, we move the second ring to letter “ε” and we start the same process again till we find the right combination.
-Moving the combination rings when the Minotaur is close is usually a bad idea since he will come near in order to investigate the noise
-When you are close the hanged corpse that has the First Aid Pack, you will hear a very distinctive sound. Following the sound can help you acquire that item.
4.2 Survival Tactics
Those Survival Tactics depend on the Ancient Room’s protection and the access in other areas of the Labyrinth that it provides. So it is necessary to find first the Room and then to unlock it.
Tactic I [Preparation & Cunning]: This specific tactic requires that you have a very well understanding of your surroundings. To achieve that you must explore and mark (more about Marking in Navigation) the most part of the Labyrinth without alerting the Minotaur. When you find the corridor that he is bound to use, in order to reach your position, you will have to use the Ariadne’s Tread. Then and only then you can draw him close to the Ancient Room. The trick here is to lure him to the opposite way from that entrance to another one of the 4 others that the Ancient Room got. To do so you just have to stay outside the barrier, but close to it and wait….(this area should be connected with the other major Labyrinth system). Then you only have to run back inside and escape through the marked way. There is also another small trick you can use in order to gain a headstart of some extra seconds. You can provoke the Minotaur to attack you and then have him bounce off the magical barrier. Until he stands up again you will have already started to run.
That tactic got some drawbacks too. 1) It is time-consuming, 2) if the Tread runs out before reaching the Exit you are in deep trouble 3) something could always go wrong (Minotaur breaks a wall).
Tactic II [Cunning & Guts]: For this Tactic you need to find a Sword and then make the Minotaur follow you until he reaches the edge of the Ancient Room. You will have to hit the Minotaur while you are trying to evade his attacks by hiding inside the Room. Basically you hit him once and then you get behind the barrier. That must continue until his movement speed starts to slow down. Then you only have to use the Thread (to another exit of the Ancient Room) in order to find the Labyrinth’s Exit. He will follow you but his speed won’t match yours and unless you get trapped in a dead end you will escape.
You wonder where are the Guts in that tactic? Well… every time you get outside that barrier could be your last. The Minotaur can and will hit you if you make any mistake. It is highly advised to explore the nearby areas of the Room devising an escape plan and to already have found the First Aid Pack before you draw him over there.
4.3 Navigation
Since the Labyrinth is a procedurally generated world every new attempt is unique. The PoIs are in different places each time and finding them can sometimes be very difficult. For example: There have been times where I found the Ancient Room easily and others I couldn’t find at all. As we can understand basic navigation skills and tactics are required in order to navigate safely inside the disorienting maze, unless you like walking in circles pointlessly.
The Chalk is an item that is automatically provided as the player enters the Labyrinth. This item can assist you in navigating inside the world of the maze, as you can use in order to draw marks in almost all the surfaces of the structure, including the ceiling and the doors.
You can use the chalk to mark the way while you are moving as we can see in Image 9. That way if you are lost there is an option to return back to a certain area or PoI.
Image 9
Also I personally use the Chalk to mark any dead ends I find. This is a good way in order to recognize and avoid entering those places while you are hunted by the Minotaur. For Example: 3 or more crosses for me mean that this corridor leads to a dead end (Image 10)
Image 10
Another good idea is to draw arrows in the walls (Image 11). I use those arrows to point my way back to an important PoI, like the Ancient Room. When you are chased by the Minotaur it is easier to follow arrows than marks.
Image 11
When you are entering the Ancient Room it is useful to mark and number the different entrances (1-2-3-4). This way you don’t get lost and disoriented, plus you can search the different areas and mark those leading in dead ends.
Conclusions
The “Ancient Guardian’s” Act I is very interesting, both in Story and in Infinite Mode. The player must gather the essential for the survival items, bypass traps, explore the maze and be creative when dealing with problems. A very good understanding of the surrounding area of Labyrinth is of top importance, since it is usually that knowledge which assists you with escaping in one piece. Marking the area, drawing arrows and unlocking the Ancient Room can provide substantial help toward that cause. Finally, whichever tactics one uses, the most important thing in games is to have a good time and enjoy the gameplay. In my opinion “Ancient Guardian” – Act I successfully achieves that goal to the fullest.
This guide was written while “Ancient Guardian” Act I was in alpha 0.5.8. version. It depends on empirical evidence so its credibility is relative. The author acknowledges that he may have, unintentionally, overlooked some other important factors and variables of the game and leaves open the possibility to adjust it accordingly, when newer facts may arisen.