The Temple of the Sun, Cusco

Lore & Background

In the world of Sly Cooper, the Temple of the Sun is a centuries-old Incan sanctuary perched in the Andean highlands above Cusco. Its corridors are lined with carved stonework depicting the sun god Inti, and its inner sanctum houses a relic of such cultural and monetary value that it has drawn the attention of the game's antagonists. The temple's architecture—tiered platforms, narrow passageways, and open courtyards—makes it a natural fortress, one that the temple's armed guards patrol with regularity.

Sly Cooper's crew arrives as part of their ongoing string of heists, each one a step toward a larger goal. The temple's layout forces the crew to split up and coordinate: Bentley may handle a technical distraction while Murray provides muscle or a diversion, and Carmel handles the delicate extraction. The mountain wind that sweeps through the courtyards is both a hazard and a tool, capable of knocking a poorly timed character off a ledge or carrying them across a gap.

The level sits within the broader narrative of Sly Cooper 2, where the crew's thievery is not purely for profit but is entangled with a larger conspiracy. The Temple of the Sun heist is one thread in that tapestry—a chance to strike at a well-guarded target while the antagonists' attention is elsewhere.

In Their Own Story

The wind hit first. A cold, thin gust off the Andes that ruffled Bentley's fur and made the carved stone faces in the corridor seem to sneer. Sly crouched on a narrow ledge, his mask catching the amber glow of a torch, and watched the two guards below trade bored glances. "Murray, you ready?" he whispered. A muffled, enthusiastic "YEAH!" rumbled from behind a pillar three feet taller than Murray himself. Sly grinned. The relic was just ahead, sitting on its obsidian pedestal in the inner chamber, and the wind was picking up. One good gust, one well-timed leap, and the job was half done. The other half—getting out without a single alarm—was the fun part. He pressed forward, paws silent on the ancient stone.

Reader's Guide

The Temple of the Sun opens on a wide Andean courtyard: weathered Incan stonework, carved sun motifs, and a constant crosswind that shreds the ambient sound. The aesthetic is warm ochre and sandstone with deep shadowed alcoves, torchlight flickering against carved reliefs, and the distant blue of the sky visible through open roof sections. The level is vertically layered—ground courtyards, mid-level corridors, and upper balconies connected by ladders, rope bridges, and short jumps.

The heist follows the classic Sly structure: infiltrate, locate the target relic in the inner sanctum, extract it, and escape. Guards patrol fixed routes on each tier, and a single spotted character triggers a short chase before alarms spread. The wind mechanic is the level's signature: gusts sweep through the courtyards on a cycle, pushing characters sideways or lifting them into the air. Time your traversal to ride a gust across a gap, or get caught mid-jump and blown into a wall.

Collectibles—Sly Cards and hidden items—are tucked into the architecture: behind carved pillars, on upper ledges reachable only during a strong updraft, and in a narrow service passage behind the main sanctum. Bentley's gadgets and Murray's brute-force options open alternate routes that bypass the wind entirely.

The escape sequence runs back through the courtyard, now with increased guard density, and the wind working against you. It's a tight, breezy sprint across stone and shadow.

Did You Know?

• The wind mechanic in the Temple of the Sun level affects all crew members equally, meaning even Murray's size doesn't protect him from being blown off a ledge.
• Cusco, Peru, the real-world inspiration for the level, is home to the actual Incan citadel of Machu Picchu, which the temple's tiered stone architecture loosely echoes.
• Sly Cooper 2: Band of Thieves was developed by Sucker Punch Productions, the same team behind the Infamous and inFamous franchises.
• The level's multi-tier vertical design requires players to coordinate Bentley's technical tools with Murray's physical abilities to reach otherwise inaccessible alcoves where collectibles hide.