The Art

of Talos
Principle II
The Art
of Talos
Principle II
Story 7 S1 Southern Coast 109
New Jerusalem 8 S2 Verdant Canyon 117
The Island 24 S3 Circular Oasis 124
The Megastructure 26 W1 Western Delta 134
E1 Grasslands Ring 60 W2 Anthropic Hills 143
E2 Wooded Plateau 69 W3 High Plain 150
E3 Eastern Wetlands 77 Characters 158
N1 Desolate Island 85 Devices 173
N2 Flooded Valley 92
N3 Lost Marshes 101

The Art of Talos Principle II 5

Story
The story of The Talos Principle was about the individual: who am I, and what makes me
human? It was also the story of the birth of a new human civilization out of the ruins of the
old. This meant that to truly pay off the ideas of the first game, the sequel had to be about
how we truly exist as individuals, which is as part of a greater context. It had to explore the
relationship between the individual and society, but also between humanity and its own
context, the cosmos.

We had planted the seeds of this story both in The Talos Principle and Road to Gehenna
(pay attention and you’ll find a lot of foreshadowing) but of course we still had a lot to
figure out. Setting the game a thousand years after the first allowed us to put the player
into an already ongoing story, and making the player character 1k, a new robot, allowed us
to maintain the same sense of exploring the past.

But of course the story couldn’t just be about the past. It also had to be about where this
society is going. And the most exciting way to explore that was to take the player on a
scientific expedition to a mysterious island. Through this classic sci-fi concept, we could
explore the use of technology to control nature, the possibilities and risks of change, and
how history moves forward, all through the humanist lens that defines The Talos Principle.

The Art of Talos Principle II 7

 New Jerusalem
The city of New Jerusalem stands near the dam where the Institute for Applied Noematics Large parts of the area you can explore in the game are dedicated to the past: museums,
created the Simulation that gave birth to our robotic descendants. It forms the emotional exhibitions, and memorials. To some of its citizens, this represents a healthy link to
and intellectual backdrop of the story: its future is the future of human civilization. tradition. To others, the city is turning into a tomb.

The design of the city was meant to expose some of its contradictions. It’s beautiful, but too But New Jerusalem is not a dystopia. Its future is not yet set, and what happens next
big for the number of inhabitants, and the dome wasn’t finished on time for Completion depends on its citizens.
Day. Everything looks futuristic, but if you look closely enough, you can see the decay
creeping in. Energy problems are a constant.

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 The Island
In a game inspired by the legend of Talos, protector of Crete, and full of allusions to Finally, it has to contain traces of the old world, even if it’s only a bit of debris here and
The Tempest, it only makes sense to set the story on an island. Here our characters will there and valleys flooded due to climate change. In this way the island represents all the
experience a journey that will give them a chance to determine their future. dilemmas faced by our characters, and the big question they have to answer: can they get it
right this time?
There are three important aspects to the island. First of all, it has to highlight the beauty
of the natural world, with breathtaking but sometimes harsh landscapes. It also has
to showcase the beauty of human achievement, our ability to transform the world, as
expressed through the towers and puzzles, which this time draw on Brutalism.

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 The Megastructure
This enormous building is the philosophical fulcrum on which the entire story of The Talos Its design echoes the monumental buildings created by our ancestors, which are also so
Principle 2 turns. It represents a mystery and a conundrum. Who built it? What does it do? impressive that some people attribute them to gods or aliens, although at the end of the
And once you’ve answered those questions: what is the right way of dealing with it? day they are human accomplishments.

We wanted the Megastructure to evoke a sense of wonder, beauty, perhaps even a little
dread. It’s something that seems alien, almost beyond comprehension - and yet gradually,
using your intelligence, you learn to make sense of it.

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 E1 Grasslands Ring
An artificial ring-like structure on the wide
lowlands east of our base camp.

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 E2 Wooded Plateau
A heavily forested plateau in the mountainous eastern
part of the island. Supports a large deer population.

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 E3 Eastern Wetlands
A region of low hills interspersed with small bodies of water,
overshadowed by a gargantuan star-like construct.

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 N1 Desolate Island
A remote, rocky island off the north-western coast.
Survey data suggests the area may be prone to landslides.

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 N2 Flooded Valley
A large valley in the northern region of the island, inundated centuries
ago by rising sea levels caused by anthropogenic climate change.

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 N3 Lost Marshes
The north-eastern marshes of the island have mostly been lost
to the sea, with the exception of this small patch of land.

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 S1 Southern Coast
The heavily-eroded cliffs of the southern coast are surrounded
by azure waters and dominated by a particularly unusual tower.

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 S2 Verdant Canyon
A canyon-like formation in the dry, rocky southern region
of the island. Its completely enclosed shape suggests it is
artificial rather than glacial in origin.

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 S3 Circular Oasis
An artificial oasis in the otherwise lifeless desert that
stretches across the south-western portion of the island.

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 W1 Western Delta
A river valley gradually drowned by the encroaching sea.
The brackish water is a unique ecosystem with many endemic species.

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 W2 Anthropic Hills
This rocky highland terrain has been dramatically sculpted
by the technology contained in the Megastructure.

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 W3 High Plain
A high-altitude plateau in the island’s western mountain range.
The surrounding region often has restricted visibility due to fog.

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 Characters
The Talos Principle has always been a character-driven story. Milton, Elohim and Alexandra That’s why the citizens of New Jerusalem are portrayed as people, with everything that
Drennan weren’t just stand-ins for certain ideas, they were people. In Road to Gehenna, comes with that. They have different, sometimes contradictory beliefs. They have their
we had explored a small community. Now we needed to explore something much bigger: a strengths and their flaws. They can be creative, silly, hypocritical, scared, optimistic... they
flawed society on the brink of change. can love, they can hate, and they can grieve what they’ve lost.

The original game asserted that what makes us human is more than our biology; we may be Like us, they’re just trying to make sense of the world.
machines, but it’s not the machinery that defines who we are. So while we had to depict a
society of robots, in many ways these robots needed to be human.

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 1k

In The Talos Principle 2, you are 1k, the one thousandth citizen of New Jerusalem.

As the game literally starts with your birth, it’s up to you to define what 1k believes and
stands for, although others may try to impose their agendas on you.

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 Byron Alcatraz

Named after the travel writer Robert Byron (1905-1941), Byron is one of the First Companions Alcatraz is Byron’s best friend, but his views on humanity and civilization are almost the
and one of the most important characters in the game. An explorer and a born optimist, he exact opposite: he is critical of humanity and thinks we should remain humble and avoid
never gave up on the humanist ideals of Alexandra Drennan, and he is deeply unhappy with expansion. It was very important for us to have a counterweight to Byron, and to do that we
where New Jerusalem is going. Brilliant and inspiring, he’s nevertheless flawed, as years of needed to make sure that Alcatraz was a sympathetic character who expressed his views in a
frustration have made him rash and occasionally a little rude to people who disagree. sensible and eloquent way. And of course he needed to have his own set of flaws.

Byron was written with the actor Peter Wingfield in mind, because we knew we needed Casting Alcatraz was challenging, because we needed the character to have real warmth, and
someone who could bring charm and genuine conviction to the part. we were very relieved when we found Ian Porter, who played Al as a kind and lovable person.

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 Melville Yaqut

Melville, named after Arctic explorer George W. Melville (1841-1912) is, in her own words, Yaqut, named after the scholar and geographer Yaqut al-Hamawi (1179–1229), is a
“New Jerusalem’s only decent engineer.” Gruff, sarcastic, and frequently irritable, she has character who’s still trying to find himself. He loves exploration but also sees the point
kept the city running for centuries. Underneath her hard exterior is a person who truly in trying to limit growth, and he’s not quite sure what to make of the Megastructure.
cares about the world, and when she realizes what the Megastructure has to offer, she His sense of humor sometimes hides his insecurities, and sometimes he gets very
cannot help but yearn for change. melancholic, particularly when it comes to mortality and loss.

We were afraid that Melville would be difficult to cast, but Rachel Atkins nailed the audition Yaqut was written with Adam Green in mind, as we knew he could deliver this unique mix
to such a degree that it was instantly clear she was right for the job. of vulnerability and humor that makes Yaqut so human.

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 Devices
The devices you use to solve puzzles are one of the key components of the game, and
although they may look simple compared to an enormous tower, a lot of effort has to go into
making them. They have to have recognizable, distinct silhouettes, so that the player doesn’t
get confused. Additionally, their visual design should reinforce and complement their
function. And they should also look cool.

In this case, it was also important to distinguish between the devices in the Booting Process,
which are the ones from the original game, and the devices in the real world. These had to
resemble tools that might have once been used on the island, thus hinting at their origins.

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 Jammer
Point at devices to jam them.

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 Inverter
Inverts red to blue and blue to red.

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 Gravshifter
Create a gravitational beam that pulls devices or
bodies towards antigrav surfaces.

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 Driller
Creates wormholes in compatible materials.

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 RGB Converter
Convert two colors into a third

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 Connector
Connects energy beams between devices.

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 Activator
Power up to create a field of influence.

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 Accumulator
When charged will become a mobile emitter
of that color.

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 Fans

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 Emitter

Receiver

Pressure plate

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 Teleporter

Platform

Hexahedron
Use as weight or place another object on top.

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 Rail drone
Power it up to make it move.

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 Swapper
Swap carried item for stored item.

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 Tower Laser

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 Tower Laser

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 Palm reader

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 Somnodrome

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 Somnodrome

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 Progress Ring
Progress Wheel

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 Athena’s Cradle

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