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TRAPS
Traps
Walking gleefully, Wile E Coyote-like, into
PlayStation’s most tempting pitfalls
(^1) PRINCE OF PERSIA:
WARRIOR WITHIN
A Prince Of Persia without
death-dealing traps is like a
dirty great burger without
cheese and heart-stopping
bacon. Even though rebooted
PoP can manipulate the
space-time continuum, he’s
still vulnerable to the odd
spiky wall and spinning death
trap. Keep moving, Prince.
(^2) SHADOW OF THE
COLOSSUS
Not content with stabbing 16
giants in their massive
faces, Wander resorts to
traps and trickery to down
the game’s ninth Colossus
- or Basaran, as his pals call
him. Using all his cunning,
our mute hero lures the
beast into some geysers,
which topple the behemoth,
allowing Wander to scamper
up to its head for the kill.
(^3) RISE OF THE
TOMB RAIDER
A Lara, Lara laughs are in
short supply for much of
Croft’s sequel... mainly
because she has to contend
with pointy traps every 37
seconds. To be fair, you have
to be fairly cack-handed to
let these booby traps do you
in as the game slows down
as they swing towards
Lara, giving her the
opportunity to shoot them.
(^4) UNCHARTED:
DRAKE’S FORTUNE
As if dealing with hordes of
merciless pirates isn’t bad
enough, poor Nate also has
to contend with swinging
spike traps on his tropical
quest. Though these bamboo
implements of doom will
kebab Drake given half a
chance, Naughty Dog at least
offers you a QTE prompt to
give you a chance to get out
of harm’s way.
(^5) RESIDENT EVIL
Feeling peckish? Good,
here’s a ‘Jill sandwich’ to
ram down your throat. The
legendary meme was born
out of one of the most iconic
traps in games, with Ms
Valentine nearly crushed by
a descending ceiling after
she pilfers a shotgun from
an adjacent room. Thankfully
Barry Burton is there to
save the undead day.
(^6) DARK SOULS 3
This is just insidious. Dark
Souls’ deadliest enemy is
also its most devious. Luring
your warrior in under the
false premise they’re about
to be awarded juicy items,
the chest-shaped Mimic
offers only toothy death, not
tasty treats. Best of luck if
you trigger one of these
tricksy tyrants, because
they’re very tough to kill.
(^7) HALF-LIFE 2
Barnacles are supposed to
stick to the sides of ships,
not strangle begoggled
scientists. Annoyingly,
Half-Life 2’s version of the
sea suckers are a lot more
homicidal than their real-life
compatriots. If you don’t pay
close attention to certain
ceilings, these elastic-tongue
pests can scoop Gordon up.
An affixation fate awaits.
(^8) METAL GEAR SOLID
2: SONS OF LIBERTY
Who needs elaborate booby
traps when you can fell your
enemies with a cannily
placed copy of Playboy?
Snake can distract his foes
on the Big Shell by laying
down a nudie mag and letting
their hormones do the heavy
lifting. Once the magazine
has their attention, Snake is
free to slaughter them.
(^9) MONSTER HUNTER:
WORLD
What’s the best way to take
down a T-rex wannabe, you
ask? 300 swipes from a
seven-foot sword, of course.
Failing that, you can always
attempt to down an Anjanath
by trapping the beast in a
vine trap. The sticky
shrubbery will briefly tether
the predator, letting your
hunter pounce on its back
for some easy free hits.
HONOURABLE MENTIONS
Did we miss your favourite traps? Got a brilliant In The Mood For idea? Show and tell at twitter.com/opm_uk.
Days Gone
They may not catch Yogi or his
furry friends, but Days Gone’s
bear traps are very good at
offing the undead.
Fallout 3
Forget nuclear armageddon
and pitiless irradiated mutants,
Fallout’s darkest decision
involves rigged prams.
Skyrim
Venture down into one of the
fantasy RPG’s crypts and a
series of pressure plates will
spell your demise.
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