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This article is about the level from LittleBigPlanet. For the LittleBigPlanet Karting level, see Serpent's Shrine.
Serpent Shrine is the last level in The Canyons.
Overview & Plot[]
It is recommended that this level is played with two players, as it makes it a little easier to get through the nefarious traps and jumps. The biggest threats in this level are the green serpents snaking their way about a good amount of the level; they have fire on their outside, but they follow an easy-to-read timing so you will know when to jump across the path. There are also sponge blocks hanging down to grab onto, to help your Sackboy survive being wiped out by the fierce snakes. Additionally, there is a two-player puzzle that contains Prizes, which must be collected to get the Collected All Prizes at the end of this level.
Boss Fight[]
The boss in the Serpent Shrine is Sheriff Zapata, and he is very difficult. This is one of the biggest problems when trying to attain the "Play" trophy, and the boss fight combined with the tricky stage itself makes this a daunting task to triumph over. Zapata's fight is divided into two halves:
First Phase[]
This phase of the boss fight has Zapata at the right edge of the screen, behind a platform chucking explosives at you: three impact bombs (one to the far left, one to the middle, one to the far right) followed by a timed bomb.
The key part to this phase is the timed bomb. Dodge the three impact explosives (running to the right, waiting for the first bomb to hit the left and then running to the left to dodge the other two bombs is a viable strategy) and grab the timed bomb. This will explode once the arrow circle rotates around and points at the stationary arrow, so quickly pull it to the far right and leave it next to the platform Zapata's hiding behind (and run away to safety).
When it explodes, the bomb will leave a crater in the lower part of the platform. Repeat this method two to four times to completely blow away the platform, and Zapata will run away to the right to start the second phase of the fight.
Second Phase[]
Second half of the fight.
Zapata has now moved behind three blocks moving up and down, throwing only timed bombs at you now. However, impact explosives will fall from the sky, and your only warning of where they will fall is the spotlight (which only falls on the middle and right up-down blocks); run away from this light. The new objective is to pick up the timed bomb (Zapata throws these all the way over to the far left now) and carry it across the up-and-down blocks to another platform you can gradually blow away.
This is not as simple in practice as it seems, so it might take several times to beat this boss fight. If the fight is draining your three-life Checkpoint during the second half of the battle, then if you are skilled with getting a boost from explosions you can carry one of the timed bombs back to the first half's checkpoint (near the wall underneath the checkpoint) and use the bomb to boost up to the checkpoint.
When Sheriff Zapata is defeated, the explosives behind his wall create a massive explosion. You may then walk to the right to exit. Uncle Jalapeño appears riding in his car, ready to take you to the next theme, The Metropolis.
There is also a silver cow head coin decoration at the end of the level on the Scoreboard. It is impossible to get anywhere else in the game, even as a Prize. Put it on your Sackperson using the Popit and save it to your Costumes so you can use it as much as you like.