07. Hells Descent - Dr. Fitch's Office

SCARLET'S DOLL in hand, take a look around to learn you don't have much of a choice in where to go. This area is the only one in the game without a map, so please bear with me as I try to lead us through in a coherent manner.

Go straight until you see Josh, but don't follow him as it's a dead end. Go left instead. Follow this path and look for a stairway to your right that leads down. Jump across and button mash A to climb up safely. Go left now and look to your right for a place where you can jump across. Jump over the fan and look to your right. There is a doll at the end of this short hallway. Examine it for a cheap scare or bypass it and jump down the fan shaft.

Kill the Swarms down here and grab the PISTOL AMMUNITION. Keep going, going, going until you hit a dead end marked by an "Exit" sign. Back up and look to the side to see a place where you can drop down. Head up those stairs and get the HEALTH DRINK there. Turn around and go down those stairs. Keep on ever downward until you see Josh. Get out the pistol and look to your left because there's a Smog for you and a CHILD'S DRAWING to your right.

Up ahead, jump across and go left. Drop down, turn left, climb down, keep going left, and the next time you drop down, keep going forward. After you climb down a ladder, go over to where the two cages are and look right for a spot where you can squeeze through. Behind the fan awaits a CROWBAR. Backtrack. When you see a red "Biohazard" sign, you know you're back to where you need to be.

Hit the switch on the wall to stop the fan ahead. When you drop down and see Josh run away, look in front of the nearby fan for a CHILD'S DRAWING. In the room with three fans, duck under the one not working, cut open the fleshy wall, kill the Swarms, pull the switch, duck under the nearby fan, and then drop through the hole in the floor.

The next big room has six fans you can manipulate. Before you do anything, duck under fan numbers 3 and 2 to get the SERUM. Go back out. Time for a switch puzzle.

Manipulating the Fans

• There are five switches here to control the fans, located on the walls between the fans they affect. One switch is connected to two fans, and they work by turning one off and the other on. They will not work if both fans they are connected to are either on or off. For instance, the switch between fans 3 and 4 will not operate since they are both off. We want to go through fans 4, 5, and 6 to get out.

  Flip the 4/5 switch to turn on number 4. Then flip the 3/4 switch to turn on number 3. Now flip the 2/3 switch to turn on number 2. Go back and flip the 5/6 switch, then the 4/5 switch, and finally the 3/4 switch. You should now be able to safely duck under fans 4, 5, and 6.

Continue on and you should see a save point at the base of the ladder if you need it. We're almost home free. After dropping down another ladder, you should see Josh. Follow him to a brick wall, where a new hallway will appear. At the end is Dr. Fitch. Talk to him and give him Scarlet's doll.

Scarlet

• Three cheers for awesome, creepy-as-hell boss music! Scarlet looks intimidating, but don't be fooled. Her only attacks are swiping with her arms and slamming them down for a shockwave-like attack. Scarlet makes really wide motions with her arms before she swings, so there is no reason why you shouldn't be able to dodge in time. The only thing that might trip you up is when she swipes twice: first in one direction and then the other. Do a rolling dodge when she raises an arm high and slams it down. To damage Scarlet, you need to hack away at her porcelain body. The fire axe is perfect for this. Dodge a swipe then hack away until she starts collapsing. After a while, you should get a button prompt for a finishing move.

  Scarlet's second form is faster, and she's going to hop around the area for a bit. Stay in combat stance and get ready to hit B when she comes your way. The only way to really damage her is to wait for her to crawl on the ceiling. Get ready to hit B when it appears on the screen to dodge her attack. She will crash to the floor, inviting Alex to finish her. Try it and she will push him away and continue the assault. Don't try to attack her normally; just wait for her to knock herself silly from falling down. The only buttons you need for this stage are the left trigger, B, and X.

Afterwards, you'll awake in Dr. Fitch's office, no better for your ordeal. Except now we have the FOUNDERS KEY. Alex will clue you in as to where to use this. To the Town Hall!