Tomb Raider I has a serious bug in the 8th level

The game Tomb Raider I (TR1), which I've been playing recently on my iMac M1, has a serious bug in the 8th level, called The Cistern.

In that level, you must collect a Gold Key to continue. Collecting that key should automatically open the door in that room so you can exit directly to the main area. The problem is, if the water level is low (the way it is when you enter the level), that door will not open. Also, you can't go back, because of the spikes that are at the entrance of the area, and plus because you can't jump back because too much high and you don't have reach when jumping.

The only way to get the door to open when collecting the key, is to have the water level high, which you must know beforehand entering that area and do such thing before.

I call this a bug, and not an intended feature, because collecting the gold key and opening the door with the water level low should be possible, since doesn't interfere with the rest of the gameplay and you must end up doing it anyway in order to succeed.

Lara Croft collects Gold Key in 8th level but gate doesn't open

Lara Croft collects Gold Key in 8th level and gate opens because flooded

If you have saved the game after entering this area you must restore a previous savegame or restart the level.

Another funny bug: just after getting the first Silver Key (water level low), Pierre will come to that spot for you. If you scape through the water without making him run off first, he'll get "trapped" in that room, so if you come back later with water level high he'll be there walking below the water level. This bug does not cause any gameplay issue since you can complete everything else perfectly fine anyway:

Pierre from Tomb Raider I walks underwater and shoots at Lara

The emulator in use is DuckStation 0.1-5410-g1905ce3e (dev) for macOS (Apple Silicon native). The game rom is Tomb Raider (USA) for Play Station 1 (SLUS-00152).

Links:

• STELLA'S TOMB RAIDER 1 WALKTHROUGH - LEVEL 8: THE CISTERN
• escaping gold key room in cistern level
• Tomb Raider (1996) Mac Port Gameplay - Caves
• Tomb Raider 2 (1997) Mac Port Gameplay - The Great Wall