Tomb Raider Legend Level 3 - JAPAN: MEETING WITH TAKAMOTO

The level begins with a cut scene ("Fashionably Late in Tokyo").  Lara checks in with Zip as she enters the suite where the party is being held.  He tells her to see the bartender, who will call Nishimura.

NISHIMURA'S PARTY: From CHECKPOINT 1, proceed downstairs and talk to the bartender.  Then head for Nishimura's office, down the hall to the left when facing the stairs.

Opening the office door triggers a cut scene ("Nishimura's Warning").  After a brief exchange of pleasantries, Nishimura cautions Lara to beware of Takamoto, but Lara says she can handle him.

Return to the party room, initiating another cut scene:

Takamoto insists he doesn't have a piece of sword.  When Lara presses, things get nasty.  Takamoto disappears, leaving his goons to deal with Lara.  She dives behind the bar, does a quick change and comes up fighting.  (This cinematic is titled "Meeting with Takamoto".)

When the cut scene ends, Lara is beside the bar at CHECKPOINT 2.  There are 7 thugs scattered around the room.  Without the tight outfit and high heels, Lara can run and jump again, but she has only her pistols until she picks up another weapon.  You may want to take cover behind the bar at first.  Pick off the nearest enemies and then move out, grab a bigger gun, and deal with the rest.

After the fight, Nishimura emerges from his office.  He guesses that Takamoto must have returned to his penthouse.  According to Zip, security is tight in Takamoto's building.  Lara's solution is to go via the roof.  Nishimura graciously provides her with a key to the elevator.

Pick up an RC650 ASSAULT RIFLE (if you didn't snag it during the fight) plus any ammo and health packs the Yakuza goons drop.  Then proceed to the elevator—not the one upstairs where you entered, but a service elevator at the end of the hall nearest the bar.

After activating the elevator, there's a brief cut scene as Lara rides up to the roof and spots a shiny red Ducati motorcycle.

ON THE ROOF: Go through the glass doors on the left past CHECKPOINT 3.  If you explore the rooftop a bit, Lara and her helpers will converse over the headset, commenting on which building is Takamoto's, the state of the broken pedestrian bridge, etc., but this isn't necessary to advance the action.

Face the door where you just came out, stand back a bit and use the pistols to shoot the fuel barrel in the storage cage beside the door.  After the explosion, a vertical pipe is now accessible.  Climb to the top and jump to the ledge on the right.  From there, climb onto the roof.  Go to the top of the skylight and climb onto the higher section of flat roof.  Shoot the small wooden box to get the bronze reward (1/6) inside.  (Using pistols and manual aim—Z/R3/right stick button—makes this easier and saves ammo.)

Go to the far end of the skylight and use the magnetic grapple to pull open the sliding window.  Drop down through the opening and go down the ramp to the room with the motorcycle and CHECKPOINT 4.  Locate another wooden crate under the stairs.  Shoot it and claim another bronze reward (2/6).  Move one of the cardboard cartons aside to find another similar wooden crate.  This one contains a bronze reward (1/4).

Now get on the bike (by pressing Interact) and ride out onto the roof, triggering CHECKPOINT 5.  Line the motorcycle up facing the ramp at the base of the broken pedestrian bridge (the bluish metal structure with the two arches) and then gun it.

When you reach the ramp, an interactive cut scene begins.  Press the keys indicated on the screen to keep Lara from crashing to her death.

CONSTRUCTION ZONE: CHECKPOINT 6 registers when you reach the other building.  Before engaging in any acrobatics, climb down to the scaffolding and go to the far end, jumping across the gap partway along.  Shoot the crate to obtain another bronze reward (3/6).  Climb back up to the CHECKPOINT.

Now take a running jump to grab the horizontal bar.  Swing around it and jump to grab the edge of the scaffolding.  Pull up and take a running jump across the gap to the next scaffold.  When you reach the window hanging on a cable, manually target the shiny bit of hardware connecting the window to the cable (using Z/R3/right stick button) and shoot it to make the window fall.  Jump to grab the dangling cable and swing to the next scaffold.  Go to the end of the platform to CHECKPOINT 7.  Kick the barrel out of the way and jump up to grab the angled cable to slide down to the building across the street.

Turn left and use the magnetic grapple to pull the hanging scaffold toward Lara.  Detach the grapple and wait for the scaffold to swing out.  When it swings back toward Lara, run and jump onto it.  Press the Jump key twice to attach the grapple to a bracket high above and swing out to the corner of the building.  While hanging from the cable, turn to the right, swing and jump to land on the small ledge with CHECKPOINT 8.

Again, use the grapple to catch the first of 2 hanging scaffolds.  Start it swinging then release the cable.  When the scaffold swings toward Lara, run and jump onto it.  If the first scaffold is still swinging when Lara gets situated, take another running jump to the next one.  Otherwise, use the grapple to start the second scaffold swinging and then jump onto it when it swings your way.  On the second scaffold, press Jump twice to attach the grapple to a bracket high above and swing out.  Turn right so Lara is hanging facing the building.  Swing and jump to the rooftop garden and CHECKPOINT 9.

ROOFTOP GARDEN: A group of security men arrive.  Lara is up against 3 thugs and a pair of pit bulls.  The dogs will quickly knock Lara down, preventing her from fighting back.  To avoid that, jump up onto the planter.  Deal with the men first.  Along with the usual bullets and grenades, you can shoot the lanterns to cause extra damage.  Just don't stand too close when that happens.  Then kill the dogs with pistols while still standing on the planter.  Pick up any dropped health packs, grenades and ammunition.

TAKAMOTO'S OFFICES - STAIRWELL: Enter the building where the men came out.  First go downstairs to get a bronze reward (4/6) in another breakable wooden box.  Then climb the stairs to the very top.  Find the break in the railing and jump onto the pipes.  Take a running jump to grab the light-colored horizontal shelf between the pipes against the left wall.  Traverse as far as you can to the right and then jump back onto the ledge behind Lara.  Cross the pipes and shoot the wooden crate.  Inside is a bronze reward (2/4).  Drop to the ground (losing a little health) or return across the pipes and down the stairs.  Follow the hallway to the doors at the end.

OFFICE WITH CUBICLES and BIG-SCREEN DISPLAY: Enter, crossing CHECKPOINT 10.  It doesn't take long for the 6 armed bodyguards to notice Lara.  Keep your distance from the guys with shotguns if possible.  You may want to deal with the men in the raised conference area to the right first and then run up there to shoot the others from above.  Pick up any dropped health packs, grenades and rifle rounds.  You can also swap the assault rifle for a SHOTGUN if you like.

Zip says there's no way out, but Lara disagrees.  Before finding—or, more accurately, making—an exit, locate a bronze reward (3/4) in the left of the two metal cabinets in the raised conference area and a bronze reward (5/6) in a wooden crate in the closet in the far right corner of the room (relative to the entrance).

Use the magnetic grapple to pull the huge news display screen.  It won't come down all the way, so finish the job by shooting the shiny brackets at each upper corner.  (Use pistols on manual aim.) When the screen falls, 2 more thugs appear in the opening.  You can hide under the screen and shoot through the crack between the screen and the floor.  Then climb up over the screen, pick up dropped health, grenades and ammo, and exit through the doors ahead.

ROOFTOP WITH NEON SIGNS: Crossing the threshold triggers CHECKPOINT 11.  In a brief cut scene, Lara comments on the lovely evening while scanning up the wall of signs.  There's a vertical pipe to the right of the doors (when facing them).  Climb to the top and jump to the right to grab the shelf with the air conditioning unit.  Traverse around to the front of the shelf and jump up to get on top of it.

Turn toward the signs and use the magnetic grapple to pull the sign above the door down toward Lara.  Climb on top of it, take a running jump to grab the ledge ahead and climb the ladder to a higher ledge (CHECKPOINT 12).

Turn back toward the signs.  Use the grapple to pull the next sign down.  Jump to grab the horizontal bar, swing and jump to the ledge behind the sign.  Climb the vertical pole, jump back to catch the edge of the ledge behind and pull up.  Take a running jump to grab the long, grayish vertical pole ahead.  Here Alister begs Lara not to look down.  (Bet you did anyway.) When you reach the top of the pole, turn around to face the signs and jump to grab the horizontal bar attached to the back of the sign.  Lara's weight rotates the sign 90 degrees.  Still hanging from the same bar, turn around, move all the way to the right of the bar (toward the building), swing around and jump back to the vertical pole.  Climb up and jump onto the ledge (which is now horizontal since you turned the sign).  Take a running jump to the small ledge ahead, which is CHECKPOINT 13.  (Is anybody else wondering what the people down in the street are thinking about all this?)

Jump to grab the vertical pole.  As she climbs, the guys will warn Lara that the bars won't hold.  Very true.  Timing is crucial here, but nothing starts to break until Lara reaches the top of the vertical pole.  So, first jump to grab the pole, turn so the building is on Lara's right and then position the camera behind her.  That way when she reaches the top, she'll be in position for a straightforward series of jumps.  Now climb to the top of the vertical pole.  Immediately jump to grab the first in the series of horizontal bars before the pole breaks away from the wall.  Quickly swing, jump and grab across all 4 horizontal bars before they detach.  Beyond the last bar, there's a safe ledge.

WAITING ROOM WITH CHANDELIER: Re-enter the building and cross CHECKPOINT 14.  Takamoto has 5 more bodyguards stationed here.  Circle around to the right, dealing with the 2 men there first.  Then you can kill the rest from the balcony using guns, a well-placed grenade or two, or by shooting the chandelier so it falls on them.  They drop health packs, grenades, a SHOTGUN and ammunition.  There's also a bronze reward (6/6) in a box on the balcony and a bronze reward (4/4) in one of the cabinets in the computer room at the bottom of the stairs.  (It's the middle cabinet on the left.)

HALLWAY WITH GUN TURRET: Go through the open doors on the lower level to CHECKPOINT 15.  Zip warns Lara about the danger ahead.  Enter the security office on the left and check the cameras for a peek at what lies ahead.  Press the fire alarm to activate the sprinklers and reveal the laser tripwires in the hallway.  Return to the hall, pull the ornate carved ball off its stand and have Lara roll it ahead of herself as a shield from the gun turret.  After clearing the danger zone, continue along the hallway and through the door.

TAKAMOTO'S PRIVATE OFFICE: The chime indicating CHECKPOINT 16 sounds just before Lara confronts Takamoto.

In a cut scene ("Takamoto Found"), Lara confronts the crime lord, who still denies having the artifact.

When the cut scene finishes, 3 thugs with shotguns try and put an end to Lara.  Kill them quickly to avoid losing too much health.  Pick up any health and grenades they drop.  You'll also find a SHOTGUN and ammo.  To get out of this room, climb onto the table and use the magnetic grapple to start the dragon statue swinging.  It will crash through the window, drawing the attention of 2 more Yakuza goons.  Hang back a bit to kill them without getting too close to their shotguns.  Climb into the opening you just made, take any useful items and follow the hall to Takamoto's office.  There you'll find a table loaded with rifle ammo (and an ASSAULT RIFLE if you don't already have one).

GOLD REWARD: The red lacquered chest contains the bronze reward (1/1).  Move the chest around the corner and down the hall.  Shove it through the opening above the dragon room and it will fall, crashing to pieces and revealing the golden Buddha.

NOTE: It's up to you whether to take a SHOTGUN or RIFLE for the upcoming fight with Takamoto.  The shotgun is definitely the right choice if you prefer in-your-face close combat.  If you'd rather engage from a distance, take the rifle.  Be sure to bring as much ammo as you can find and carry.  You'll most likely run out, but every bit helps.

Go to the elevator in the hallway near the dragon room.  Use the button to activate it.

Another cut scene ("Artifact Revealed") shows Lara riding up to Takamoto's inner sanctum.  Sure enough, he does have a piece of the sword and, after a little persuasion, he makes it clear just why he values it.

FIGHTING TAKAMOTO: After the movie, Lara is standing at CHECKPOINT 17.  Immediately run behind one of the large statues to avoid being shot by the gun turrets.  There are 4 guns, one in front of each statue, mounted beneath the elevated walkway that encircles the room.  Climb the vertical pole behind the statue and jump to land on the walkway.  The automated guns can't hit her here, but Takamoto has already leaped to the upper level and is waiting for Lara to make her move.  Now you can choose whether to get up in his face or hang back and patiently wear him down (or use a combination of these).

If you've got good reflexes, go for the direct approach.  Run around the edge of the room toward Takamoto.  When he fires energy blasts, jump to clear the low bursts and roll under the high ones.  Start shooting as soon as you get a lock (red reticule).  When you're almost on him, use a grenade if you like.  Then, when Lara gets close, he'll begin firing vertical beams, which cause quite a bit of damage.  Dodge sideways and keep firing.  Soon he'll run off to the other side of the ledge.  Repeat the same tactics until you wear him down.  It doesn't take too long to kill him at close range, provided you can manage to keep Lara alive.

If, like me, you don't have very nimble fingers, you can use the "boss battle of attrition" strategy: Once you've climbed to the upper level, stay behind the statue.  Gradually move sideways until you're able to target Takamoto.  If you're using the rifle, the reticule will turn red, showing you have a lock.  When you run out of ammo and switch to pistols, you won't be able to get a lock.  Instead, make sure the reticule turns from white to gray.  Then, while you won't be hitting him dead-on, some of your shots will connect.  Shoot at him until he fires an energy blast.  Then dodge back behind the statue.  You'll need to stay fairly close to the edge and keep the statue directly between Lara and Takamoto; otherwise the edges of the blast will hit her.  When he's taken some damage (shown by the orange bar at the top right of the screen), Takamoto will run along the ledge to a new position.  Run to the next statue—on the opposite side of the walkway from him—and quickly take cover.  Repeat and repeat and repeat, and eventually you'll kill him.

Destroying Takamoto triggers another cut scene ("Recovery and Exit").  As Lara takes the sword fragment, Nishimura arrives by helicopter to help her escape.  Once Lara's in the air, Zip contacts her over the headset to say that Rutland's gone to Ghana.

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