The Golden Compass

The game is set in a fantastical parallel universe where the soul of person resides out of the body and lives in the form of animals known as dæmons. The main character, Lyra Belacqua, must navigate different environments to right a situation after her best friend Roger is kidnapped by evil Gobblers, and her uncle Lord Asriel is imprisoned.

In typical 3rd-person action gameplay, Lyra needs to move around the environment with acrobatic actions. When enemies appear, she relies on her wit, hiding behind objects or searching an escape route. If spotted, she can use one of the four collectibles to escape a tricky situation. Courage is represented as health, and solving puzzles greatly depends on it.

Lyra's dæmon, Pan, provides assistance during the quest. Pan can transform into up to four different forms, gradually discovered during the game. The forms allow Pan to interact with the environment in various ways, such as chewing through ropes or grabbing branches.

Lyra's journal stores information about key locations, tasks, and the Alethiometer, a device that reveals answers to questions when operated by a trained user. To ask questions and solve puzzles, Lyra needs to play the Divining game, which consists of three sessions where she matches symbols to keep the focus centred on the device.

Each character can pick up objects that grant new abilities, such as new forms or insights into the workings of the Alethiometer. Conversations often introduce mini-games to keep the talking going.