Walkthrough The Forgotten City

Welcome to our walkthrough for the mystery adventure game The Forgotten City! This guide will lead you to the “best” ending (of 4), and therefore we encourage you to go ahead and try to complete the game at least once for yourself — the mystery is half the fun, after all!

That being said, some players don’t have the time or the energy to dig into every nook and cranny of a game, and they deserve the good ending too. With that in mind, we’ve created a walkthrough that should guide you as efficiently as possible to the best ending.

Note that in order to better accommodate people having the guide up on their second monitor, this guide has long stretches without photos wherever we believe text directions will suffice. If you find anything confusing, don’t hesitate to leave a comment, and we’ll do our best to either give you directions, or else update that section with a helpful image!

Basic Settings and Tips

It’s important to know that you can turn a crosshair, and the objective markers, on or off in the Interface section of the Settings menu. The crosshair makes aiming the bow much easier, while the Objective Markers naturally makes it simpler to find your way to your next task.

It’s also good to remember that at any point while playing, you can press [X] and some golden butterflies will guide you to your next objective (assuming you have one selected, and it isn’t hidden).

How to Use this Guide

This section contains minor spoilers for The Forgotten City

This guide will only cover necessary dialogue, which means you’ll miss out on a lot of background and fun details if you only choose the dialogue options the guide tells you to. The main reason the guide is built this way is for people to experience the full story as quickly as possible, and to help people who are stuck while progressing.

Thanks to the nature of the time-loop in the game, if you accidentally choose a dialogue option that changes your path or upsets a character, you can easily break the Golden Rule by stealing something or shooting someone with your bow, and then head through the portal to reset the time loop.

Since you keep all the items you gain (and Galerius can do all your chores for you when the time loop resets) you don’t lose much or any progress when you reset the loop. Therefore, I encourage you to chat people up! This game is built around it’s characters and their philosophies, so you’ll cheat yourself out of a large part of the experience if you focus on going quickly to the ending.

Time Loop Tricks

Anything you do, whether it be speaking to a character or stealing an item, will stay with you when you go back through the portal and reset the time loop after you or someone else breaks the Golden Rule. This is important to remember when you’re trying to figure out the game’s many puzzles.

A Timely Warning

Unlike some RPGs, where all the NPCs just wait around for the hero to show up and talk to them, time seems to pass in The Forgotten City. What this means is, if you go through the time loop, and then stand there staring at Galerius for 20 minutes while you take the dog for a walk, you might continue with the walkthrough to find that NPCs aren’t where they should be. Make sure you pause the game with [ESC] if you need to take a break for any reason.

While we’re giving out warnings, you should also remember to save often. I suggest quick-saving before every conversation you begin with [F5] (quick-load is[F9], btw), since if you accidentally pick the wrong dialog option, you can be locked out from certain paths until you restart the time loop, which is a real pain in the natis (even if there are no lasting consequences).

It’s also good to know that, since time passes while the game is running, you can find yourself at the end of the day while completing a task. Someone breaks the Golden Rule at the end of the day, so you’ll have to run back to the shrine where the portal is, and then pick your task up where you left off, whenever that happens.

Part 1: Welcome to The Forgotten City

You’ll wake up by a river at night, and have a conversation with a mysterious stranger. You’ll be asked to choose a gender (this doesn’t matter at all for our purposes) and then a profession. This can make a fair bit of difference in your playthrough, so let’s take a look at your options and the benefits of each one:

• Archeologist – Years of studying history give you occasional insights into the ancient world.
  • The Archeologist profession is the only choice for those of you playing this game because you’re into Roman history — you’ll get extra tidbits of insight while investigating the city, and while talking to the NPCs.
• Soldier – You have a military-issued firearm, but only 10 bullets. You’ll have to use them judiciously, since there’s no way to get more.
  • Players who aren’t confident in their aim might consider picking this profession, as it will make the brief combat sections of the game much easier.
• Fugitive – Your time on the run from authorities has made you quick on your feet, and you’re 25% faster when sprinting.
  • The choice for speed-runners. This makes getting around the city faster, and also can make kiting enemies in the brief combat sections easier.
• Amnesiac – Your recent head trauma has increased your pain threshold, making you 50% harder to take down.
  • The other combat focused choice next to Soldier, choosing Amnesiac will make the combat sections more forgiving. If you really, really struggle to stay alive when you play action games, you might consider choosing this profession.

Ultimately, I’d recommend archeologist, as the combat really isn’t that difficult, and there isn’t very much of it. However, if all of your previous video-game experience is walking simulators or narrative games, go ahead and pick Soldier or Amnesiac if you want to guarantee you’ll have an easier go of it. Finally, players who hate walking around the same city streets multiple times should choose Fugitive to limit time spent going from point A to point B.

Once you choose, you’ll continue your conversation. You need to ask her what her story is, but then you can ignore the rest of the dialog options (select “That’s all the questions I had) and accept the quest to find Al.

Now turn around and follow the waypoint on your screen to enter the ruins. Scroll up on the mouse wheel to raise your flashlight (mouse wheel down will lower it) — soldier players should note that their flashlight is on their gun, so resist the urge to hit that left mouse button! Follow the lit lanterns through the ruins (hold shift to run), and you’ll come to a small structure with a note on the door.

Read the note to open the door to the shrine, then head forward and you’ll fall into some Roman baths. Head forward out of the water, and continue forward following the lit braziers. You’ll exit the baths, and find yourself in a ruined city. Keep following the lit braziers, and you’ll eventually cross a bridge.

Head up the stairs, and you’ll find a golden man hanging from a tree. Keep going, and you’ll enter a small structure with some stairs. Head up until you can’t go any further, then exit out the doorway and head towards the nearby shrine with a lit brazier in front. Take a deep breath IRL for role-playing purposes, then walk into the portal inside the shrine.

You’ll meet Galerius as you soon as you head out of the shrine. Talk to him until he offers you a tour, then accept with the “Lead the way” dialog option. He’ll lead you to the patrician’s plaza, where you’ll be stopped by Horatius. After he exchanges words with Galerius, Horatius will speak to you. Select the “Alright, lead the way” dialog option to let him take you to the magistrate. You can press [E] once he starts the tour to follow him automatically.

Follow Horatius into the villa, then when he tells you to, head up the stairs and head out onto the porch to find Magistrate Sentius. Speak with him, and once you’re done asking questions, select the “That’s all the questions I had” option and accept the quest to investigate who will break the Golden Rule. Then follow him down the stairs and find his daughter Sentia lying on a couch.

Ask her “Do you know a way out of here?” and then select “Can I help?” when she tells you about her sister’s disappearance. Once you select “That’s all the questions I had” she’ll ask if you will help her find her sister — select “Alright, I’ll do it.” Select “I’ll get right on it” when you can, to get the objective marker for this quest. Turn around from Sentia and follow the objective marker to Sentilla’s room, and look at the note under her pillow.

Go back to Sentia and talk to her again, and tell her you found the letter — she’ll tell you to go next door and speak with Iulia. Head out the front door of the villa and go right down the stairs. You’ll see a gladiator doing push-ups; he’ll stand up and talk to Horatius when you get close. Wait for them to finish talking, then talk to the gladiator.

He’ll talk to you about the election — continue the conversation until you can choose “Fine. Mind if I ask some questions?” Then choose “I need to speak with Iulia”. He’ll tell you she’s not there. Ask him “What’s your story?” and then “I’d like to meet Malleolus”. Then ask him what he wants to let you see Malleolus, and ask him what he wants as a bribe. Tell him you’ll see what you can do, then leave him.

We’re going to go to the Shrine of Apollo now, by heading up the staircase (1) facing Malleolus’ villa. Head up, past the priestess, and head through the 4-way arch that leads into the market. Then take your first left and enter the building there (2).

Inside, speak to Lucretia, and ask her what happened. Then ask her if there’s anything you can do to help, and she’ll tell you to get the silphium resin. Tell her you’ll get right on it, then leave the shrine. Follow the objective marker to Desius(1), and ask him about the resin. Tell him you can’t afford it, then turn around and steal it from his stall (2).

This breaks the Golden Rule, naturally, and you’ll have to run for it. Head out of the market towards the villas, but don’t go down the stairs. Instead, turn right once you enter the 4-way arch, and run the way you entered the city, up the hillside back to the room where you game through the portal. Note that you can press [X], and butterflies will appear to guide you to the shrine (though they’re a bit hard to see once everything goes grey). You should also have an objective marker labeled “Sentius” on your screen, so use that to help you find the portal.

Go through the portal again, and you’ll go back to the beginning of the time loop, when you first entered the city in the past. Head out of the shrine and Galerius will talk to you again. This time he’ll give you a way to use the zip lines scattered througout the city. Use it on the nearby zip line to cross over the lake, then continue to the market and re-enter the Shrine of Appolo (you can press tab to open your quest log, and click the eye next to “Dying Gasp” to track the quest if you don’t have an objective marker).

Speak with Lucretia and give her the silphium resin. Continue speaking with her, and ask her “What’s your story?” and then “Tell me more about Naevia”. She’ll then tell you about another patient of hers. Say “Who?” or “Go On.” and then accept the quest to help this other patient. Once you’re done talking to Lucretia, Iulia should be standing — speak with her and ask her “Do you know anything about Sentilla’s disappearance?” She’ll tell you to talk to Ulpius about it, at which point you may end your conversation with Iulia and leave the shrine.

Take a right as you leave the shrine, and once you enter the 4-way arch(1), head left and up the stairs there(2). Continue up the 3 flights of stairs, then turn right to take a final flight of stairs, and you’ll find yourself in front of a large building. Turn right (3) and cross the bridge, then continue up the stairs there. Go right past the statue pushing the boulder(4), up the stairs flanked by braziers, and up a final flight of stairs. Then turn right and you’ll soon come across two servants (5).

Approach them and Octavia will start talking to you. Talk to her for as long as you like, then end the conversation. Once you do, Ulpius will threaten to kill himself, and Octavia will ask you to intervene. You can’t do anything about this (yet), so don’t worry and pick whatever options you want.

Now we’re going to follow in Ulpius’ footsteps, but with better aim. Stand on the ledge where he jumped and look down. Aim for the pool below, then walk off the ledge. You’ll fall safely into the water — hold spacebar to swim up, then exit the pool.

You should see Malleolus nearby practicing his speech. Go speak with him, and ask him what he thinks about The Golden Rule. Tell him goodbye, and he’ll tell you to take his key and leave through the front door. Turn around and head to the door to your right, grab the key from beside it and unlock the door, then head through.

Part 2: The Golden Bow and the Palace

If you’ve been following our walkthrough from the beginning, you should just be leaving Malleolus’s house. From Malleolus’s house, head straight and up the long staircase to enter the market. Continue through the market until you reach the last stall, then enter Desius’ shop, which is the last shop on the left. Walk straight to the shelves from the doorway, and note the location of the key on top of the shelf. Then turn left and also note the position of Desius’ chest. This will matter in just a moment.

Leave the shop and go back to the central path through the market, then head left and you’ll see a woman in a yellow dress cowering on the stairs. Approach her to start a conversation, and reply “I’ll get right on it” when you can. Once the conversation is over she’ll run into the shrine and it will collapse on her. Whoops!

Save your game now with [F5] or from the menu. Then keep going towards the baths (you should have an objective marker now) to confront the assassin the woman told you about. He’ll attack you no matter what you say, breaking the Golden Rule.

As soon as the world goes grey, turn around and sprint to Desius’ shop. Remember the key and chest we looked at? Steal the key, open the chest, and take the money inside. Then run back to the portal (use the waypoint to Sentius to guide you) and go through once more. When you exit the shrine and talk to Galerius, you’ll now have the option to tell him “I need you to take care of some things urgently”. Do so, and have him take the silphium resin to Lucretia for you.

The turn around from Galerius, and head back towards the portal shrine. Turn left when you’re in front of the shrine (1) and head up the stairs that lead up to the aqueduct. At the top of the stairs, go around the stairwell and climb the ladder (2) to get on top of the aqueduct. Once on the aqueduct, head across it towards the other side of the city. You’ll pass through a archway and then onto another stretch of aqueduct (3) — continue on the aqueduct and then go up the stairs you’ll eventually reach. Go left at the top of the stairs (4) to once again find Ulpius getting ready to jump.

Octavia will chat you up again — tell her you really need to talk to Ulpius to skip right to the part where Ulpius threatens to jump. Once again, tell Octavia you’ll talk to Ulpius.

Ask Ulpius “Is this what Sentilla would want?” Click through the next few lines of dialog where you only have one option, then when he tells you he needs two thousand denarii, reply “Actually, I do.” When he asks if you want him to work for you, make sure you select “No. You’d be free.” When he says he wishes he could repay you, ask him to tell you about his relationship with Sentilla. Go through all the dialog options with him, and he’ll tell you to look in the locked room in Malleolus’ villa. Say you’ll get right on it to get the objective marker.

You can’t safely jump off the cliff this time, so instead turn around and head down the stairs towards the statue of the guy with the boulder. To the left of the statue you’ll see Octavia gardening, and past her is a zipline. Ride it down then continue forward a bit to the stairs. Go down them and continue to the long staircase that leads down to the patrician’s villas. Straight from the staircase will take you to Malleolus’s house — use the key to unlock the door and head inside.

Go left when you enter to find the stairs. On the second floor, follow the red carpet until you come to a set of doors — unlock them and go inside to find Claudia crying. You can apologize and leave without talking to her. Go back the way you came and exit Malleolus’ villa, then go find Ulpius (if you don’t have an objective marker for him, hit [TAB] and make sure you’re tracking the quest “Vanishing Act”). Once you find Ulpius, talk to him again and tell him you didn’t find Sentilla in Malleolus’s upstairs room. Tell him “I’ll see what I can do” and end the conversation.

Then, if you aren’t already in the market, head there, and continue through until you come across the woman in the yellow dress again. Tell her you’ll help, then when she says she’s going to hide in the shrine, tell her “Do not go in there!” and then say “Just trust me”. Then continue towards the baths to where the assassin appears. When the assassin asks you where Quinctius is, tell him the (Lie), that you saw him worshipping in the shrine. Follow the assassin, point and laugh when he dies, then grab the bow, the arrows, and the bounty notice from his corpse.

There are now two paths you can take: the short path, or the path with combat that nets you the Golden Bow.

The Short Path

Head back through the market to the 4-way arch, and take a right to head to the apartments. Stick to the main paved path, and you’ll come to the entrance to the apartments right before the stairs that lead to the shrine you arrived in.

Go through the doorway pictured above, and then head straight and then up the staircase on your left (1). At the top of the stairs, turn left and head straight into the room there, and open Naevia’s chest (2). Take the Key to the Chest in the Shrine of Apollo, then go all the way back to the 4-way arch.

Turn left once in the arch to enter the market, and go into the first building on your left — the Shrine of Apollo. Speak with Lucretia there, and ask her “What’s your story?” and then “Tell me more about Naevia”. She’ll tell you about a patient, reply “Who?” or “Go on.” Then to tell her you’ve figured out the cure for rheumatism, and take the willow bark from her.

The Combat Path

Turn around from the shrine, and head left and down the stairs into the market. Once you approach Desius’ stall with the bow in your inventory, he’ll come and propose a “Joint business venture”. Tell him to “Go on”, and accept his offer once he explains it. Take the “Fake” Golden Bow from him, then head to the Shrine of Diana, which you should have a quest marker for (if you don’t, start tracking “The Gilding” in your quest log).

Head inside the shrine, and extinguish both braziers and take the quiver from the base of the statue. Then aim at the bow in the statue’s hands, and you should get a prompt to exchange the fake bow with the real one. Do so, and the braziers will light again. Try to leave through the doors, and you’ll discover Desius has done you dirty (big surprise).

After you get done talking to Desius, you should be already looking at the hornet’s nest on the ceiling, and your bow should be out (equip it with mouse wheel down if it isn’t). Take aim by holding [Mouse 1], then release Mouse 1 to shoot the nest with your bow. It will turn to gold and fall to the floor, busting a hole that you can enter. Do so, then grab the arrows in the nearby chest. Jump down a few more times until you reach a tiny body of water with a skeleton and chest nearby.

Grab the arrows from the chest, then shoot the algae across the water with your bow. It will turn to gold, and you can climb onto it (hold [SPACE] and [W], then climb up to the rocks and continue forward. You’ll need to crouch with [C] to go through the small tunnel. When you exit, you can uncrouch, then read the nearby scroll entitled “Naevia’s Journal Vol. 1”.

Climb up the nearby ledges with ropes draped over them, then do a running jump past the golden statue toward the lit candle to cross the gap. Continue up the path, using [SPACE] + [W] where needed, and you’ll reach an amphora of arrows and some ivy. Grab the arrows, then use your bow on the ivy to create a golden bridge.

Cross the bridge you’ve made, then continue forward a bit and do the same to the next ivy bridge. Cross that one and you’ll find some ivy growing on a wall — use your bow on it to turn it into a ladder, then climb it by simply walking into it, then looking up while holding [W] to climb. Climb up a few more rocks to enter the palace. You’ll enter a large room — cross it and grab the arrows from the chest on a table at the far end, then continue through the hallway to the right of the chest.

Once you round the corner, you’ll encounter your first enemy. They can be managed with the bow: one arrow to the head will turn them to gold, or two to any other body part. The easiest thing is to aim for the chest, since one shot will stun them, and then you can fully statueify (that’s a word now) them with a second shot. If they end up statuefied in such a way that they block your path, you can use [E] to kick them out of the way.

You can also kick them if they get too close, even while drawing your bow! The best strategy when you encounter an enemy that doesn’t have a clear environmental trap nearby is to simply turn around and sprint for a few seconds. Then turn around and calmly deliver two arrows to their chest.

Continue past the statue you made through the hallways (there’s only one way forward, and you’ll find a doorway where the doors are lying on the ground and form a ramp. There will be 2 enemies in the next room, so be ready. The first one will charge you once you come through the doorway, but you can actually hit the second one from range before they aggro. Grab the arrows from the amphora in this room, then head out the doorway that leads outside.

Read this whole paragraph before you progress. Head down the stairs and into the courtyard, and Naevia will speak to you briefly from a balcony. Then, enemies will rise from the three nearby pools of water (easily spotted by the golden butterflies flying above them). If you quickly shoot the pools of water, the enemies will be statuefied before they can leave the water and attack you.

Read this whole paragraph before you progress. Once you’ve handled the enemies, head to the 4th pool, which has been drained because of a hole in it (1). Grab the arrows from the chest, then draw your bow (don’t release yet!) and jump down the hole. Immediately shoot the algae on one side of the water, then shoot another arrow into the algae on the other side (2). If you’re fast enough, you should statueify all the enemies with just two shots.

Clean up anyone that didn’t get caught in the algae, then continue forward through the water, then through the tunnel beyond. Draw your arrow as soon as you see the chest, and shoot the algae in the water just past the chest to statueify the enemy there. Jump up to grab the arrows on the other side of the water from the chest, then continue down the water-filled tunnel. There are two more enemies in the distance here, but you should be able to get ’em golden before they reach you.

A rock wall will block your way forward — turn the bush at it’s base golden, then jump onto the bush and climb up the rock. Grab the arrows from the chest and continue forward until you reach a narrow rock “hallway” with a few enemies. Take them out, then go to the end of the hall and grab the arrows from the chest. Then go back to the start of the hallway and shoot your bow at all the plants growing from the walls, and jump from plant to plant to reach the upper level.

Statueify the ivy bridge and cross it, then grab the arrows from the amphora. Continue forward and you’ll see a hole in a wall that leads back into the palace. Don’t drop down until you’ve taken care of the enemy in the room below, then crouch and go through the hole to drop down into the palace. Grab the arrows from the amphora and then head out the doorway into the courtyard.

Aim between the two hedge-trees and shoot your bow at the fountain to statueify the enemies there (1), then walk onto the nearby table and jump down into the courtyard. There’s a doorway lit by braziers to the left of the fountain; once you get close enough, a group of 4 enemies will run out of it towards you. Head back the way you came and jump back up to the table you got into the courtyard from, then take out the enemies with your bow — they can’t reach you from up here (2).

Once they’re all gold, jump down again and head through the doorway into the next courtyard (1). Go straight from the door to grab the key from the table, and read Naevia’s Journal Vol. 2 as well. Then turn left and unlock the doors, then head through. Go up the stairs, and continue until you round the corner and find the amphora. Grab the arrows, and then shoot the curtain that’s down the hall from you to trap the enemies there inside (2).

Head past the curtain you shot and around the corner and shoot the curtain on your left, and then the one further down the hall. Turn right at the last curtain, grab the arrows from the chest, and crouch to head out the hole to the right of the doors. Turn the ivy bridges to gold and cross them, then make the ivy on the wall gold and walk into it as you cross the last gap to the hole in the wall. Enter it to re-enter the palace.

As soon as you crouch to enter the hole, shoot the curtain across from you, then finish exiting the hole and grab the arrows from the amphora. Then shoot the ivy to the left of the curtains and climb up it. Once you’ve climbed up, wait a moment for all the enemies to run towards you, then shoot your bow at the curtains you can see below you. Cross to the other side of the room you’re in, and drop down.

Head towards the brazier and turn left, then shoot the enemy down the hall before you head through the doorway. Once you head through, grab the arrows from the chest on the left, then continue past the enemy you statuefied until you see algae on the ground. Keep going forward a bit, and you’ll see the shadow of some enemies coming around the corner. Run back the way you came, and use your bow on the algae once your foes step on it to turn them golden.

Continue forward until you come to a large room with a desk. Read Naevia’s Journal Vol. 3, then through out the doorway to the balcony. Once you’re out on the balcony, get ready for a jump scare — the doors to your left will bust open and an enemy will come through. Make them golden, then go through the path they opened. Another enemy will be there, so be ready to shoot them as well.

In the next room, there will be some enemies and some algae to shoot, but it can be tricky to get them to stand in it properly. There’s also an enemy just outside on the balcony that you can lure onto the algae if you want. Either way, deal with the enemies and then head out the doorway to the balcony. Continue on the balcony to the next doorway (which will have an enemy in it), then back into the palace, where you’ll encounter a gruesome scene.

There’s only one way forward, so continue through the hall and up the stairs, then around the corner and through the next hall to the next set of stairs, then through the double doors. You’ll see a half-peeled statue strapped to an upright table — approach it and a brief conversation will begin. Then you’ll turn and be confronted by Naevia.

To avoid fighting, always pick the peaceful option (the one that doesn’t have (Draw golden bow) after it). Then, when you can, say “Wait! I can undo all this, if you tell me the treatment for rheumatism”. Then say “I can cover her in gold again”. The conversation will end, and you can draw your bow and use it on the woman strapped to the table behind you. The conversation with Naevia will pick up again, and she’ll tell you the treatment for rheumatism.

Walk past the newly-statuefied woman and Naevia and into the hallway beyond her. Keep going and you’ll find yourself on a balcony — take the zip-line, and it will drop you off at the entrance to the market. Enter the shrine of Apollo (the first building on your left when you enter the market) and speak to Lucretia. Ask her “What’s your story?” and then “Tell me more about Naevia”. Then to tell her you’ve figured out the cure for rheumatism, and take the willow Bark from her.

Part 3: The Roman Plaque and Rufius’s Rheumatism

Go find Rufius. He can usually be found somewhere near the temple or the garden below: exit the market (by heading towards the large villas) and take a left once you pass into the 4-way arch. If he isn’t in the garden to your right once you go up the first flight of stairs (1), then continue up the stairs to the palace and continue your search for Rufius (2). Tell him you have a cure for his rheumatism, and give him the willow bark.

Then tell him you’ll be going, and head down to where the large villas are, by way of the 4-way arch. Head to the doorway just down the stairs past a burning brazier (to the left of Malleolus’ Villa). Domitius will try to talk you out of going into the cistern — say whatever you want to him, then ignore his advice and go through the blue door that leads to the cisterns.

Head through the next door just beyond, then continue through the hallway and down a couple flights of stairs. There will be a peeled (those enemies from the temple) once you reach the bottom of the stairs, so draw your bow and be ready to use it. Go straight from the bottom of the stairs and take your first left, and you’ll see a waterfall and some ivy.

Shoot the ivy with your bow, then climb up. You’ll have to shoot a few more sections of ivy, and jump from ivy to ivy, in order to reach the top of the cistern. Once you make it to the top, you’ll see a woman tied up — save your game, then go talk to her. Ask “What will you do if I release you?” when you can, then tell her “I’m sorry, but if I let you go, everyone else is going to die”. If you want to see one of the “bad” endings, go ahead and let her go instead, then reload your save and continue with the walkthrough.

Then tell her “It’s too dangerous. Let me see if I can go persuade Sentius to let us go” to make sure you have an objective marker for Sentius. Continue with the conversation, and just make sure you don’t select the “I’ve changed my mind…” option. You’ll have to exit the upper cistern the way you came in, via the golden ivy, so I suggest you save your game again before you begin the climb down.

Take a right once you’re back in the main cistern (we’re still simply retracing our steps), then go up the stairs and through the doors, then follow your objective marker to find Sentius (he should be standing out in front of his villa). Speak with him, and once you can, tell him “I know what you did to Sentilla”. After that, it doesn’t matter what you say to him.

Once you’re finished talking to Sentius, you should have a new Main Goal, “Divine Intervention”, and a quest maker for Equitia. Track it if you aren’t already, and follow the objective marker to speak with her. If you don’t have this quest for some reason, just look for the woman in a white robe, who is usually under the 4-way arch, or else somewhere in the market.

Once you find her, Ask her “How would I go about talking to whichever god is responsible for The Golden Rule?” or “What’s your story?” if the first option isn’t available. Eventually, she’ll ask to you ask around and see if anyone has noticed any patterns. Tell her “Alright, I’ll do that.” and then “I’ll get right on it”.

Now you need to go speak with a bunch of NPCs. Most of them should be located as described in the following section, but you might have to hunt for them a bit. Generally, if these NPCs aren’t where they’re described below, they’ll be in the apartments just below the shrine with the portal. You can take the path you took when following Sentius back through the portal to reach the apartments. From the 4-way arch, when facing the market, turn left and follow the path, keeping the rocks to your right, until you find the apartments.

Ask each of the below-listed NPCs “What’s your story?” and, if it appears, “How did you end up here?” Note that you don’t have to speak to every single one — after you’ve spoken with a few, use [TAB] to check your Quest log, and look at “The Common Thread”. Once you have at least 3 things that “people mentioned” in your Quest log under The Common Thread, you can return to Equitia — she should also show up as an objective marker on your screen once you’ve talked to enough people.

Here’s who you can speak with for this quest:

1. Fabia – Somewhere in the market, usually in the bakery (second shop on the left from the 4-way arch)
2. Desius – In his shop in the market (3rd on the left from the 4-way arch)
3. Lucretia – In the Shrine of Apollo or on its porch (1st building on the left from the 4-way arch)
4. Iulia – In the Shrine of Apollo
5. Georgius – In or in front of his shop (2nd building on the right from the 4-way arch). You’ll have to also ask him “Why don’t you tell me what you remember?” when he tells you he doesn’t remember much.
6. Galerius – On the farm in between the portal and the villas
7. Octavia – In front of the great temple on the hill above the villa
8. Horatius – In front of Sentius’ villa
9. Rufius – Either in the garden near the 4-way arch, or else further up the stairs

Once you’ve gotten at least 3 threads to tell Equitia about, return to her and say “I’ve been asking people about how they wound up here…” Tell her about the 3 patterns you saw, and she’ll ask you to meet her in the baths. Follow her (if you lose her, just go to where you found the assassin, through the market from the 4-way arch, or make sure you’re following the quest “The Common Thread” and use your objective marker).

Once you and Equitia make it to the far end of the baths, she’ll speak to you, and drop some truth bombs on you. Speak to her as much as you like, then tell her “I don’t have any questions right now” to continue the conversation. Choose “Tell me more about confronting the God of the Underworld head on”; you’ll also have to choose “Tell me more about escaping with a guide” to exit this conversation. When you do so, say you’ll start by talking to Livia.

Exit the baths the way you came in, and head through the market to the 4-way arch. Turn right and head to the apartments — follow the objective mark for Livia to help you find your way (if for some reason she isn’t in that direction, just trust the objective marker and head towards Livia). Speak with Livia, and tell her “I figured it out. I know where we are”. Misery loves company, so that’ll brighten her day (or evening).

Now go into your Quest Log with [TAB] and start tracking “The Roman Plaque”. You should see a few objective markers pop up on your screen once you leave your quest log; find Rufius (he should be nearby in the apartments, hopefully) and speak with him. Ask him if he knows anything about a Roman Plaque, and when he says he has no idea what you’re talking about, say “Come on. You owe me one, remember?” He’ll relent and give you a key, plus some directions. Note: if you click too quickly through Rufius’ lines, it’s possible for him to not give you the key, so save before you speak with him, and go slow.

Even though Rufius helped us, we’re going to do some snooping now. Before we look for the plaque, we’re going to go into Rufius’s room. Go to the apartments if you aren’t there, and then head up the wooden stairs that are to the right of the entrance (if you came in from outside). Turn right at the top of the stairs and head into the room there. On your left on the table is an Incomplete Note — examine it, and then leave.

Head back to the 4-way arch, then go through the marketplace, and take a left once you go up the ramp(1). Continue straight, keeping the amphitheater on your left, and enter the caves(2). Take a right(3), then another right(4), to find the shrine.

Unlock the door with your key and head inside, then grab the plaque on the table to the right. Then leave the shrine, and take your first right through a stone arch. You’ll go down some stairs, then stay straight at the fork and go down the next flight of stairs. Once you reach the golden statue of a woman, go right (instead of down the stairs). You’ll come across a ruined hut — inside, open the chest and grab the wine inside.

Once you have the alcohol, exit the hut and take a left, going back the way you came (1). When you reach the stairs, go right, down the staircase(2), and then head left up the next stairs you see (3) to return to the apartments.

Go through the apartments, and then head back to the market by going left after exiting the apartments. Open your quest log and start tracking “The Greek Plaque” if you want some help finding Georgius. Then continue to the market, turning left at the 4-way arch (1). The second building on the right is Georgius’s shop (2) — speak with him, and tell him you’re looking for the Greek plaque, then say goodbye.

The next shop down the road on the right is Vergil’s — talk to him next, and ask him about the graffiti on the front of his shop, and then ask “Why does somebody think that?” Then ask “You like men?”, and continue the conversation until you can say “I think I already know who it is.” Vergil will then ask you to talk to Rufius for him, and then you can tell him “I’ll be going now”.

If you’re tracking “The Greek Plaque”, you should have a waypoint to Duli’s Cell now. Head further into the market, and then go into the building just past Desius’s shop, on the other side of the path that leads to the amphitheater and the caves. Inside, approach the cage to speak with Duli. Ask him about the Greek plaque in his cell, then once you can, ask “Alright, what’s it going to take for you to give it to me?”, then after a bit more convo say “So all I need to do is persuade everyone to vote for Galerius?”

Part 4: Democracy In Action, The Egyptian Plaque

Start tracking “Democracy in Action”, then use the objective marker to head back to Malleolus’s house. Use your key to unlock the door and enter, then go speak with Malleolus. Ask him “So, you’re Quinctius?” He’ll deny it, say whatever you want then end the conversation. From Malleolus, turn around, then go right and towards the wall (1), then right again to find a fairly well-hidden staircase (2). Continue down the hallway on the red carpet until you reach double-doors (3). Unlock them and speak with the woman inside.

Say “Can we talk?” and then “Why are you locked in this room?” Then say “How would you like some help getting back at Malleolus?” When you can, select “Just a hunch. I was hoping we could figure out his true identity together…” When she asks why you’re helping her, say “I just hate to see such a beautiful woman treated so poorly”. She’ll ask you for wine; say “Actually, I don’t have any questions.” Then tell her “I have some wine right here.” She’ll give you the letter, and you’ll explain what it means. She’ll get upset — tell her “No. I think I’ll hang onto it” and then “I’ll be going now”.

Go downstairs and back to Malleolus, and say “I want you to withdraw from the election.” When he asks you why, tell him “Because I know you’re Quinctius…” and then you can lie to him or not about who you are. When he asks if you’re going to kill him, say “Not if you withdraw from the election immediately and release everyone in debt bondage to you.” Finish your conversation as you like and leave his villa.

Start tracking “The Sinner” if you aren’t, and follow the objective marker to find Rufius. Ask him “Are you the one threatening Vergil?” Then say “I know it was you…” Since you got him the Willow Bark, he’s feeling better, and will explain himself and promise to leave Vergil alone. Now return to Vergil, and you’ll be able to tell him that you spoke with Rufius.

Say goodbye to Vergil, then commit a crime! You can use your bow on someone, steal something from a shop, or whatever you like. To make it easier to get back to the portal, you can do this in the apartments, which are very close to the shrine. Head back through the portal, and when you reset the time loop, speak with Galerius and say “I’m [name], and I need you to take care of some things urgently.” Then send him on all 4 errands.

While you wait for him to do his chores, start tracking “The Egyptian Plaque”, then go speak with Aurelia, who should be just down the stairs to the left, in the apartments. Speak with her, and when you can, ask “I’m looking for Khabash. Have you seen him?” She’ll suggest you talk to Georgius, so let’s do that. Head back to the market, and follow the Objective Marker to speak with Georgius. Tell him “I’m looking for Khabash…” and then say “You can trust me…” Then finish your conversation with him, and follow the objective marker through the market to the temple, whch is the last building on the right before the baths.

Head into the temple, and head to the right of the statue to find a small trapdoor on the ground. Crouch and head through it, then continue through the tunnel until you find an old man sitting in a large cavern. Go speak with him, tell him your name or not, and then say the following when you have the option:

1. “I’m looking for Kabash.”
2. “Sounds easy enough.”
3. “I’m not sure. It’s a complex question.”
4. “It is.”
5. “Whose version of right and wrong?”
6. “No, I don’t think so.”
7. “I think there’s no such thing as a “correct morality.”
8. “I think we need to follow the laws and customs of our community.”
9. “No, I suppose not.”
10. “What’s your point?”
11. “I’m not sure about that. What about “do not kill”?
12. “I agree.”

This will please him, and he’ll help you now. Ask him “Do you know where I can find a plaque that was removed from the obelisk?” He’ll tell you a long story (it doesn’t matter how you respond) and at the end of the conversation he’ll give you a key. You can talk to him more if you like, then you can say “I’ll be going now.”

If you’re still tracking “The Egyptian Plaque”, you’ll have an objective marker leading you to the Catacombs. Head back the way you came onto the wooden bridge, then turn right and jump down to reach the locked door. Open it, and head through into the catacombs. There’s only one way forward, so simply continue until you reach water. There will be an enemy ahead, so be ready. Head forward through the water and down the stairs, then through the doorway at the bottom.

Once you go through the doors, turn right and jump up the broken concrete pillars here (1). Then crouch to start sneaking, and sneak across the room and up the concrete ramp (2). Once you get to the top of the building, grab the arrows from the vase, then get up onto the wooden walkway (3), and jump across the gap to the other side (no need to sprint).

Once you land on the other side of the gap, start sneaking again, and sneak all the way down the wooden walkway. Stick to the left, and exit the room through the doorway flanked by the large statue. Once you’re a decent way inside, you can stop sprinting and simply continue forward. You’ll finally meet Khabash — no matter what you say, he’ll give you the Egyptian plaque, then throw the 4th plaque down the hole. Jump down the hole once you’re done talking to him.

You’ll land in the water — swim to the bottom and grab the 4th plaque. Then exit the water via the staircase and continue forward. You’ll go down some stairs and then find sand and water; take a left, then a right where a statue of a woman points the way forward (1). Turn right in the next large hallway, and make your way carefully around and continue straight past the large circular disc on the ground (2). Once you pass the stone disc, there’s only one way forward — you’ll make your way left, then right again, and finally make your way left and out a small doorway. Turn left and you’ll see another circular disc on the ground — head around it to the right, and turn right into the large hall.

You’ll see Khabash at the top of the huge staircase. Take care of the last stone disc in front of you, and move forward a bit. You’ll start a conversation with Khabash; say the following to avoid killing him:

1. “There’s no need for this to end in violence.”
2. “If something can be destroyed by truth, it deserves to be destroyed by the truth”.
3. “Isn’t being a good person a worthwhile pursuit, in and of itself?”
4. “Even if your beliefs about the afterlife weren’t quite accurate, isn’t the important thing they motivated you to live good lives?”

You can just kill him if you want, but you’ll have to run back to the shrine and go through the portal because you broke the Golden Rule. Either way, head all the way up the ramps, past Khabash, then climb the ladder past him. You’ll enter a small stone passageway — continue forward and climb the next ladder, then exit through the nearby double doors with hieroglyphics.

Turn slightly right once you exit the doors, and continue through the hole in the wall there (1). Take a right once you go through the hole, then take your next left (2) and pass through a series of rooms to return to the cavern with the old man (3).

 Continue forward, following the wooden walkway up and around, past the old man you spoke with earlier. Take a left once you reach him and continue on the wooden walkway, then continue this way until you reach the small trapdoor in the temple of Demeter that you entered by.

Exit the temple, and turn left, then head for the 4-way arch. You should find Equitia there — ask her what the status of the election is, then ask her if she can hold it early. When she asks why, reply “Holding it early may prevent conflict between the voters”. She’ll agree, and begin gathering people for the election. To watch the proceedings, head through the market, and turn left once you go up the small ramp. Continue forward a up the stairs, and you’ll see the amphitheater on your left. ‘Take a seat’ and watch the action!

Note 1: If you took a long time finding the previous tablets, the election may have already taken place, in which case you should do something to break the Golden Rule, and then send Galerious on all 4 errands again. Then find Equitia and follow the instructions in the above paragraph.

 Once the election ends, head back the way you came, and turn left once you go down the stairs to find Duli’s cage. Once Horatius unlocks the cage, head in and grab the plaque (Duli may speak to you, it doesn’t matter what you say to him). Duli will almost immediately break the Golden Rule, but that’s fine, since we got what we needed. You can watch him do so, or you can just start running back to the shrine with the portal. Either way, take the portal back to the beginning of the time loop once Duli breaks the Golden Rule.

Part 5: The Great Temple and the Epilogue

Now we’re going to make our way to the Great Temple by way of the aqueduct. You can tell Galerius you’re busy, then turn right and head into the nearby structure and go up the stairs. Head up the ladder at the top, then run across the top of the aqueduct until you reach the Great Temple. Track “A Hurculean Task” to help find the Obelisk, then go up the stairs and turn left, then continue straight and you’ll reach your objective.

You’ll have the Octavia/Ulpius interaction again — you can handle this how you want, since we’re going to undo all of this very soon. Once Ulpius does or doesn’t jump, walk up to the obelisk, and place all four plaques in their slots on the four sides of the obelisk. This will open the door to the Great Temple. Walk up the stairs, and head inside. You’ll go through a series of rooms, representing the different eras of the Forgotten City. At each door, you’ll speak a different name:

1. At the first door, you’ll have to speak the name of the Roman God on the list, which is “Pluto, Father of Riches”.
2. At the second door, speak the name of the Greek god, “Hades”.
3. At the 3rd door, speak the name of the Egyptian god “Osiris”.
4. Finally, speak the name “Nergal” at the fourth door (and get ready for a surprise).

Keep going forward into the massive, futuristic chamber, and speak with the man on the throne, the God of the Underworld.

There are a few ways to get him to free everyone from the city:

Option 1 — Persuade him that he’s been unfair (see steps below for how to do this).

Option 2 — Fail to persuade the god. Once negotiations break down, you can shoot the glass chamber to his right, grab the crown from the woman (Proserpina) inside, and then run back to the portal in the shrine. Then return to the God of the Underworld and show him the crown, and tell him you’ll kill his wife again if he doesn’t abolish the Golden Rule.

How to Convince Pluto/Hades/Osiris/Nergal to Abolish the Golden Rule:

Follow these steps, and note that any time there’s only one dialog option to choose, it is not listed below, since you have no choice but to click it in order to continue the conversation.

1. First, exhaust all of the dialog options under “What’s your story?” then say “Let’s talk about something else”.
2. Next, exhaust all the dialog options under “What is this place”, then say “Let’s talk about something else”.
3. “Are you responsible for the Golden Rule?”
4. “What do you consider a sin?”
5. “That principle is not as easy to apply as it sounds.”
6. “I’ve seen some terrible things here that you didn’t consider a sin…”
7. “Experiments on the golden statues.”
8. “That seems like an extremely literal interpretation of the rule.”
9. “No, of course not. Never mind.”
10. “I’ve heard enough. This just shows how unreliable and subjective your moral code is…”
11. “No, but that’s my point…”
12. “And if you did, you’d be proving my point.”
13. “Let’s talk about something else.”
14. “That’s all the questions I had.”
15. “I’m from the future”.
16. “I was hoping you could tell me.” (Lie)
17. “Shouldn’t you know this, as the God of the Underworld?”
18. “I’d like you to put an end to The Golden Rule.”
19. “The golden rule is corrupting this city…”
20. “Rufius has become so paranoid that he’s jumping at shadows…”
21. “How can you expect us to live without sin…”
22. “You’ve given terrible punishments to hundreds of people…”
23. “If our positions were reversed…”
24. “No.”
25. “What makes your kind superior to mine?”
26. “Why does wisdom and technology make you superior?”
27. “So you think you’re not obliged to treat us fairly…”
28. “What was it the Roman Stoics said? “Treat your….””
29. “Everyone has superiors. There’s always someone more powerful…”
30. “But didn’t you say Jupiter was your leader?”
31. “I’m saying: If you can’t follow your own rule, how can you expect humans to?”
32. “You’re not a monster. You’re a human, and you made a mistake.”
33. “Humans make mistakes. It’s in our nature.”
34. “Perhaps he made a mistake too.”
35. “Perhaps when you took on human form, you took on some human foibles as well.”
36. “We just want to return to the world.”
37. “Why?”

The god will finally agree with you, and abolish the Golden Rule, then send you back to your time. You’ll see Al Worth nearby, approach him and begin a conversation. Say whatever you want to him, then the conversation will end and you’ll find yourself back in the ruins. Follow the objective marker to the river, where you’ll meet Charon. If you tell her you know who you are, you’ll get a neat little conversation before Al shows up.

She’ll ferry you both downriver, and you’ll get the “good ending”, which takes place one year later. You’ll get a chance to talk to all the NPCs from the game, and hear about their new lives — it’s pretty neat, and honestly one of the sweetest, most satisfying epilogues I’ve seen in a game. Enjoy! Note that if you run all the way to the end of the hall, you’ll end the epilogue, so make sure you talk to everyone you want to as you make your way through the museum.