How To Find The First Symbol In Resonance A Plague Tale Legacy (Chapter 5)

• Chapter 5 — “Desolation It Wrought” — tasks you with finding four symbols to unlock a large latched door in the Central Temple. Three can be done in any order; the fourth is locked until a story beat triggers.
• The first symbol is found by completing a jumping platform trial — crossing a field of spiked tiles in the correct order based on symbols shown on the ground near the tile field.
• The correct jump order for the platform section is: Points (Dots) → Squid (Kraken) → Points → Flower → Squid. Step on any wrong tile and Sophia is impaled instantly.
• To reach the trial, take the door directly opposite the latched door in the Central Temple, cross the broken bridge, enter the building beyond it, navigate the broken platforms inside, regroup with Leni, and fight soldiers before reaching the tile field.
• After crossing the tiles, interact with the Receptacle pedestal on the other side. Sophia records the first symbol in her Journal. Return to the Central Temple and enter it into the correct pedestal to remove the first latch.
• The Light Splitting upgrade for the Sphere is unlocked at the very start of Chapter 5 — make sure you grab it before heading to any symbol trial.

How to find the first symbol in Resonance A Plague Tale Legacy Chapter 5 is the question most players hit shortly after starting “Desolation It Wrought.” The chapter opens up into a large outdoor area with four separate symbol trials radiating from a Central Temple — and with no clear signal about which door leads where, it is easy to take the wrong route and find yourself in the wrong trial entirely.

This guide is focused specifically on the first symbol — where the door is, how to reach the trial inside, how to solve the jumping tile puzzle, and how to use the symbol once you have it. If you want to see how Chapter 5 fits into the full picture of the game, our Resonance A Plague Tale Legacy chapters and collectibles guide covers every chapter’s structure. And for a refresher on every puzzle in Chapter 4 before you carry that knowledge into Chapter 5, our Chapter 4 puzzles guide has all the solutions.

Before You Start: Get the Light Splitting Upgrade

Do not head toward any symbol trial before picking up the Sphere upgrade at the very start of Chapter 5. When the chapter begins, the second trial entrance is visible just ahead of you. Go through that door and interact with the Receptacle inside. This unlocks Light Splitting — a new Sphere ability that lets Sophia split her light into three colored beams (red, green, and blue) and aim them at separate targets simultaneously.

Light Splitting is used throughout Chapter 5’s trials and in many of the colored-gem door puzzles you will encounter. You need it immediately in the Central Temple’s entrance puzzle as well. Grab it first, then proceed to the trials.

How To Find The First Symbol In Resonance A Plague Tale Legacy Chapter 5

How to Use Light Splitting

Hold R1 (PlayStation) or RB (Xbox) to activate the Sphere as usual. With Light Splitting unlocked, use the D-Pad Left or Right to cycle between the three colored beams — red, green, and blue. Each beam can be aimed independently at a separate colored target. When all three beams hit their matching colored gems or switches, the mechanism triggers.

This is different from the Light Revelation ability used throughout Chapter 4. Light Revelation reveals hidden lines and symbols. Light Splitting actively shoots beams that activate colored mechanisms. Both are used in Chapter 5, so pay attention to which situation calls for which.

How to Reach the Central Temple

After unlocking Light Splitting and opening the initial door with it, you move out into a large open area on the island. The army has already landed — you can see their ships from the clifftops. Fight through the enemies in the open area and navigate toward the large door on the far side.

The path there involves going right from your first enemy encounter, crouching under some rubble, climbing stairs on the left, and pushing forward along the right edge of the cliffside path until you reach a door. When you try to enter, Leni gets grabbed — get inside and fight off the shielded soldier who ambushes her. Help Leni up afterward.

You are now inside the Central Temple. Interact with the Receptacle in the center of the room. Four pedestals rise from the floor. Four doors open in the surrounding walls — each leading to a separate symbol trial. Once you complete each trial and return, you input the symbol into the matching pedestal to remove one of the four latches holding the large door shut.

Three of the four symbol trials can be completed in any order. The fourth door leads to an area that is blocked off until a story beat later in the chapter unlocks it.

Finding the Door for the First Symbol

The trial that gives you the first symbol is behind the door directly opposite the latched main door in the Central Temple — so when you are standing in front of the large door you need to eventually open, turn 180 degrees. The door you want is straight across the room from you.

Head through that door. It leads you out onto a broken bridge. Cross the bridge and look for the door at the far end. Interact with it and step inside the building.

Inside the Trial: Getting to the Tile Platform Puzzle

As soon as you take a few steps into the building, Leni gets separated from you. The path forward splits her off to one side. Do not panic — you will regroup with her shortly.

Turn around and follow the path in front of you. You need to cross a series of broken platforms — jump from one to the next across the gaps. The platforms are stable enough to land on, but be careful of your footing. Watch for a spike pressure plate on the ground during this section — step on it and Sophia dies. Walk around it carefully or jump over it.

Continue along this path until you regroup with Leni near a wooden gate. Move through the gate together and head up the stairs. You will hear soldiers talking nearby — they are just ahead.

Jump the gap toward the soldiers and fight them. There are a few in this area, so clear the room before doing anything else.

Reading the Tile Platform Order

With the soldiers down, look at the ground near the edge of the platform. A sequence of five symbols is laid out on the floor in front of you — carved into the stonework or marked in some way that makes them clearly a reference sequence. These five symbols, in the exact order they appear, tell you which platforms it is safe to jump to in the tile field ahead.

The sequence you need to memorize is:

• Points (Dots)
• Squid (Kraken)
• Points (Dots)
• Flower
• Squid (Kraken)

Sophia also records these in her Journal automatically — open it at any time to review the sequence if you forget before crossing. The symbols on the floor are your reference guide. The Journal is your backup.

Crossing the Tile Platform Field — Step by Step

Move to the edge of the area to see the floating tile platforms stretching across a gap. Each platform has one of the five symbols on it. Multiple platforms carry the same symbol, so you cannot simply jump to “any Dot platform” — you need to follow the correct sequence, left to right or in whatever direction the platforms extend, matching the order from the floor clue.

Jump on the wrong platform and spikes fire up instantly, killing Sophia immediately. There is no warning, no recovery window. One wrong step ends you.

The safe jump order (from the floor sequence):

1. Jump to a Points / Dots platform.
2. Jump to a Squid / Kraken platform.
3. Jump to a Points / Dots platform.
4. Jump to a Flower platform.
5. Jump to a Squid / Kraken platform.

Take your time between each jump. There is no timer. The spikes only trigger when you land on a wrong tile — not from waiting. If you are unsure which platform to aim for, check the Journal one more time before committing to the jump.

Tip for collectible hunters: There is a hidden route within the tile field that lets you reach a side area with a collectible Artefact. To do this, on the final Squid / Kraken jump, jump left instead of straight. From that position, climb the rocks on the left side and shimmy across a gap to find the hidden relic. After collecting it, continue through the secondary path of platforms back to the main exit side. This extended route requires a different set of platform jumps — refer to the Journal for the extended path.

Claiming the First Symbol

Once you make it across the tile field, you find a Receptacle pedestal on the other side. Interact with it. This reveals and records the first symbol in Sophia’s Journal.

After the symbol is recorded, a path opens on the right side of the area. Use the zipline to travel down to a beach area — more soldiers are waiting here. Fight them off, then take the stairs and head through the door to return to the Central Temple.

Entering the First Symbol Into the Central Temple Pedestal

Back in the Central Temple, look at the four pedestals that rose from the floor when you first interacted with the Receptacle. Each pedestal has a rotating dial you can interact with to select a symbol. The pedestals correspond to specific symbol trials — match the symbol you just collected to the correct pedestal.

Rotate the dial until the first symbol appears at the top of the wheel. Interact with it to confirm the selection. One of the four latches on the large door releases. You will hear a mechanical sound and see the corresponding lock on the door disengage.

Three more symbols remain before the main door fully opens. You can now move on to any of the remaining symbol trials in any order you prefer.

What Comes After the First Symbol

Chapter 5 is the longest chapter in the game at roughly 2.5 hours, and the first symbol trial is just the beginning of it. The second and third symbol trials involve more complex Light Splitting puzzles with colored lenses, corruption-clearing mechanics, and multi-stage rooms that go significantly deeper than the tile field challenge of the first trial.

The fourth symbol comes through a Theseus memory sequence — a combat trial where Sophia (as Theseus) fights through a flooded arena and defeats a boss named Cadmos before claiming the final symbol. This section is locked until the story forces it open after the third symbol is collected.

Once all four symbols are entered and all four latches release, the main door opens and the chapter drives toward its story climax — which ends with Sophia and Leni in a very different situation than where they started. For a complete overview of everything in the chapter including collectible counts and approximate playtime, see our Resonance A Plague Tale Legacy chapters and collectibles guide.

If you want to understand how the Light Splitting mechanic fits into the broader puzzle design of the series, our dual-timeline mechanic breakdown covers how the Sphere abilities tie into the Minoan architecture across both timelines. And for everything you need before starting out, our Resonance A Plague Tale Legacy beginner’s guide covers the core mechanics from the ground up.

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