Symphonia ð„ž is a fantastic 2D platformer by Sunny Up (we gave it a 9 in our review), and sees you control birdlike musician, Philomen, in their quest to bring together three scattered Founders of the musical world of Symphonia. Doing so will save the world from silence and a fractured citizenship.
As your explore the hand drawn worlds and musical themed lands, you'll uncover a number of hidden items and collectibles. In this guide, we’re looking at unlocking all of Philomen’s memories. Doing so not only gives you an insight to some of the lore of Symphonia ð„ž as well as new gameplay abilities that you can activate in the settings menu.
To unlock all of Philomen’s memories, you must seek out the secret areas in each of the levels and acquire the blue teardrop ‘memory fragments’. Collecting enough memory fragments unlocks one of the four locked memories. There are 14 memory fragments in total to collect.
All secret areas can be spotted with a visual cue, a type of glowing aura eminates from the entrance. The secret areas tend to be more challenging and you may need an ability you find later in the game to access the area, so some backtracking is needed. Thankfully, you learn a fast travel ability after completing Woodwind Glasshouse (Level 2).
Tracking your memory progress
Checking the start menu helpfully gives you an overview of your collectable progress. The teardrop shapes under the diamond representations of each level indicate the collectibles you need to acquire. The first level has two memory fragments to collect, the other three have four per level.
To see how many memory fragments you need to collect to unlock your next memory (and gameplay ability), head to the Heart of Symphonia (the mini-hub area) and head through the doors (indicated by an arrow). There you will see TV like screens with the memory fragment shapes in front of them. The number of spaces is how many fragments you need to collect to unlock each memory.
Level 1 – Founder’s Amphitheatre (2 Memory Fragments)
Memory fragment 1
After the tutorial book where you learn about wall sliding and wall jumping, you will continue on; jumping over some spikes and drop down before wall jumping up. You’ll be presented with two routes, one to the right and one going up using a cushion to launch yourself upwards. The secret area, and memory fragment is upwards.
Memory fragment 2
When you reach the tutorial book for “bouncing with momentum”, look below the platform you are on and see, next to the pit of spikes and another platform that leads to an entrance, by dropping down, where you can see the telltale aura of a secret area.
Check out both collectibles in the below video:
Level 2 – Woodwind Glasshouse (4 Memory Fragments)
Memory fragment 1
As you follow the main path, you will bounce off a drum over a spikey platform and land on a glass platform, which leads to a second, and then on to another drum that launches you up on to solid ground. You are carried to the platform by wind that is blowing you to the right. If you run into the wind use the ‘grappling bow’ (obtained in Level 4 – Brass Palace) you will reach the cushion on the other side of the gap you’ve just come up. Jump up to the next platform and go left and up to reach the secret area.
Memory fragment 2
From the huge (and very pretty) stained glass windows scene. Continue to follow the path until you navigate some vertical platforms with cushions on, above some spikes. Similarly to the second fragment in Level 1, you can continue right or head up. Head upwards.
Memory fragment 3
You’ll reach a room where you have to make a sort of square shape to get higher (going to the right first), where you start by being taken upwards by a gust of wind. Navigate through this room and carry on along the main path. You’ll navigate across some turning squares (the ones with two sides spikey, two sides safe) and some swinging red balls you can grapple. As you drop down a level to head left, once you reach the swinging red ball, you’re meant to go down, you should be able to spot a second route down on at the very left of this area. Swing and jump across (use double jump and twirl if needed) to reach the second route and drop down to the secret area.
Memory fragment 4
Following the main path, you’ll eventually, after lots of spikes and ball swinging, reach a big room with a large spike floor and a wind current that blows you upwards. You’ll need to aim for the platforms in the roof to bounce off them to safely move across the room. As you reach the end, you’ll notice a narrow entrance to a platform above the main path. Use your grappling bow (which you receive in Level 4 – Brass Palace) to safely grab the cushion to the secret area above.
Check out the locations using the video below:
Level 3 – String Meadows (4 Memory Fragments)
Memory fragment 1
Early on in the level, not long after getting the new ability ‘twirl’ that changes the direction of the platforms, and gives you a fancy little jump. You’ll jump up (a coin is to your left above a narrow passage a spikey platform. Above (look for the big moon), where you’re meant to head, head left instead of right, using ‘twirl’ to change the direction of the cushion platform (use the cushion to your right to catapult yourself towards it). Wall jump from the second platform and use the grapple bow (again, from the end of Level 4 – Brass Palace) to reach the cushion above and head to the secret area on your left.
Memory fragment 2
After The Matriarch (the character with the Cello) turns the season to be wintery, continue onwards and you’ll come to a rope that you swing down to lead you to a large spikey area with platforms that appear and disappear with your twirls. You’ll get to a tricky rope bouncy section where you have to descend. You’ll grab a long rope that you swing down, on your left, near the bottom, you’ll see a narrow spikey corridor that you need to launch yourself down. Double jump and twirl as needed to get your to the other side and grab the cushion that leads you to the secret area below.
Memory fragment 3
You’ll eventually arrive at a wide spikey floored area with two swinging platforms that you have to launch to, then upwards from the second one. When you get to the next room, you’ll launch up from a pillar in the centre of the room onto a collapsing platform, as you jump off that, aim for the platform on the upper right. Launch upwards from there to the secret room.
Memory fragment 4
When you arrive at maybe my least favourite room of the game, starting with a collapsible platform over spikes, with a cushioned vertical platform in the way, followed by bouncy ropes and lots of spikes. You’ll get through the first section and activate a switch that opens up a route to the floor above; if you go the correct way (to the left, back where you came, and up), rather than up and left which I did (see the video) you’ll probably have an easier time than I did. Once up, there’s an incredibly narrow gap to the left, with the secret area being above. I think you should have the grappling bow (Level 4 – Brass Palace) before going for this, but it is possible to get through (see the video below).
Level 4 – Brass Palace (4 Memory Fragments)
Memory fragment 1
Early on in the level, you’ll travel through a pipe. When you come out of the pipe, you’ll need to drop to the next level by jumping on a moving platform, over some spikes, on the right of the room, to head left. When you go through in to the next room you’ll be in a tall room with two distinct halves. You should be able to spot the entrance to the secret area at the top left of the right hand half of the room. Use the cushions on the walls to take you up.
Memory fragment 2
You’ll jump upwards into a room with two swinging platforms that swing through a spikey pillar you have to jump over to progress. From the second one, bounce upwards and jump to the cushion above and to the left, using the grappling bow and jump to the platform on left. Go through the pipe to access the secret area. Heading right is the way to go to move forward on the main path.
Memory fragment 3
After the second time you see The Kinglet go through a huge gate, you’ll end up in a room where you must activate a platform to move and you will dodge a whole range of obstacles and spikey bits to proceed. The end of this will have you able to activate a violin activated switch, a quick cutscene will show you a doorway open below, back where you came. Jump back down (dodging all the spikey things) to access the secret area. Don’t worry if you go through the pipe, you can return through it.
If you’re struggling to complete this one, use the statues at the beginning of this secret area as a guide; match the statues to the pipes you go down, in order from left to right.
Memory fragment 4
You’ll go through a pipe as a matter of course and enter a tall room with a spike floor to the left, with a glass platform and a square rotating platform (two sides cushion, two spikey). Use the square to elevate yourself and jump up the middle to reac the glowing gold orb above, using grappling bow. You can go to a similar glowing orb to the left, or to the right. Head to the right and play the violin to go through the glass door (you’ll have the Fields Tune by this point).
Check out all locations in the below video:
Achievements / trophies
Collecting all the memory fragments will unlock a number of achievements / trophies for your trouble:
- Departure – Unlocked for unlocking Philemon’s first memory in the Heart of Symhponia.
- Freedom – Unlocked for unlocking Philemon’s second memory in the Heart of Symphonia.
- Foundation – Unlocked for unlocking Philemon’s third memory in the Heart of Symphonia.
- Vanishing – Unlocked Philemon’s last memory in the Heart of Symphonia.
…Always a Virutoso
This achievement can only be unlocked after you’ve unlocked all of Philemon’s memories. After unlocking memories, you’ll unlock new gameplay abilities in the main menu (press start). Turn on each ability and use it at least once in game to unlock this achievement. This also includes the increased movement speed; just move the slider up (or down).
You won’t be able to activate all of the abilities all at once, you can most, but there are two that is one or the other, so just do one, then the other (they don’t all need to be activated all at once).
That’s it for this guide. Be sure to check out our other Symphonia ð„ž guides, including how to get all the letters and unlock the piano’s secret.
