How To Complete The Toluca Prison Area In The Silent Hill 2 Remake

Once you enter the Historical Society, and work your way down into the Toluca Prison by way of the impossibly long set of stairs, it truly feels like you have reached the point of no return in Silent Hill 2. The Toluca Prison is massive, and you’ll be contending with the most dangerous enemies you will encounter in the game. It truly is hell on earth.

This guide will help you work through this hellscape, instruct you on how to solve every puzzle, and point you in the direction of the many items and collectibles scattered throughout. We really can’t stress enough how gigantic this area is, so buckle in, it is going to be a pretty bumpy ride.

The Prison’s Entrance

At the entrance, there is a syringe on the desk. Once you enter the hallway there will be a lying form. There’s Handgun Ammo on the desk. You’ll encounter a massive hole. Jump down. You’ll now be trapped in a small room with no exit; look for the brick sections of the wall. There are three of them. You can bust all three of them down, but two of them are dead ends, only one goes anywhere. Once you find the exit, head straight down the flooded path, but watch out, there is a hidden Lying Figure squirming around beneath the surface of the water.

Keep heading straight until you encounter a dry platform. To your right will be a room with The Spiral Key in the center. Once you pick it up, the lights will go out and the room will fill with Creepers. Check the padlock, and you will see that the keys are all covered in blood, except the numbers 2, 3, and 9. The code will be some combination of those numbers. In one playthrough it was 329, in another it was 923, so, it appears to be somewhat random, but it always uses those three numbers (which isn’t a big deal, as there are only a total of six combinations you can make with three numbers). The Spiral Key will open the gate to the right of this room. Unlock it and hop down.

You will now be in the prison’s cafeteria. Grab the Health Drink and go talk to Eddie who is hanging out at the other end of the room. Once the cutscene is over, you can find Handgun Ammo on the bench. There is also a stone tablet that will initiate a Glimpse of the Past on a table in here. Head straight into the next area and you will be in the armory. Here, you’ll find Handgun Ammo, Rifle Rounds, a Save Point, and most importantly, a map.

The Lights And The Mannequin Spiders

Once you enter into the main section of the Toluca Prison, you’ll encounter a new type of Mannequin. Like spiders, these Mannequin’s are able to climb walls. And wouldn’t you know it, the Toluca Prison has impossibly high walls that plunge into abyssal darkness. At the end of each cell block, there will be switches that you can use to bath the room in light. This will help you traverse this area safely, but the light only lasts for a limited amount of time.

You will be better off killing the Mannequin Spiders so that you aren’t constantly being swarmed by them. While more will occasionally appear after clearing major puzzles and such, it will keep exploring these sections far more manageable. Luckily, it will only take a handful of shots from your Handgun to down a Mannequin Spider, at which point you can stomp them out. In an emergency, duck into a cell, as these have lower ceilings, making it much harder for these nasty creatures to sneak up on you.

Exploring The First Floor Of The Toluca Prison

Before you enter into the main section of the prison, head to the chapel. Here you’ll find the first weight (which I will refer to as the “Silver Weight”) on the pulpit. There is a Syringe in the priest’s office (nasty habit, father). On the first floor of the prison, Cell B1 has a Health Drink and a Mannequin. Cell B3 has a destructible wall; break it down to get into A8/A9 when you can get some Handgun Ammo. Cell A3 has a Lying Figure and Rifle Rounds, as well as another tablet to reminisce on.

Now, enter the prison yard. It is impossibly dark out here, but don’t worry, you won’t have to fight any monsters. From the entrance, head straight, and you will run into a statue. Pull the cloth off of it, and you will see a set of scales. Depending on where you place the weights you find, different doors will open up. There is already a weight here. With the Silver Weight you got from the chapel, you will have everything you need to open the first door. Place the chapel weight on the right plate, and the light weight on the left plate. This will open the Snake Door.

After entering into the next section by way of the Snake Door, you will soon encounter a Guard Room. Inside, you’ll find Shotgun Shells and a Syringe. In Cell E4, you’ll find a photo. At the end of the first row of cells, you’ll find a small room with another light switch and Handgun Ammo. Heading down the hallway will lead into a massive room with tall ceilings. This place is flooded with Mannequin Spiders. Between that room with the switch and this room, I killed seven of them. There is also a Lying Figure in a cell. When you are ready to move on, enter the Guard Room and you’ll get Handgun Ammo. Next, you’ll go into the Witness Room. Here you will find a puzzle.

The Generator Puzzle

There is a generator in the Witness Room, and you need to get all the switches to stay engaged. Unfortunately, flipping some of them will reset others. For the easy mode puzzle, flip switches 4, 5, 2, 1, and then 3. For the standard mode version, flip 6, 4, 5, 1, 3, and then 2. For the hard mode, flip the 4, 5, 2, 1, 3, 6, and 7 switches in that order. Once they are all engaged, flip the main switch. All the previously sealed cell doors will now open. Enter into the execution chamber and get the weight covered in red paint (which I’ll now refer to as the “Red Weight”) from the electric chair, now move forward into the hallway with the E Cells. Prepare yourself, there is going to be a bunch of monsters waiting for you.

In this hallway, you will need to kill two Lying Figures and two Mannequin Spiders. Try to fight the Lying Figures with your back up against the wall so that the Mannequins can’t sneak up on you. Once you clear them out, enter into the E Block of cells. Cell E6 has Shotgun Shells, and E7 has a Health Drink. E3, E2, and E1 have Handgun Ammo. In Cell E1, there is a breakable wall. This will lead you to Cell E19.

There’s a Lying Figure in this cell. Outside of it is a giant room with massive ceilings. There is a Bubble Head Nurse wandering around here now. In E18 there are Shotgun Shells, E16 has Handgun Ammo, E10 has Shotgun Shells, E11 has Shotgun Shells, E13 has a Strange Photo, and E17 contains a Health Drink.

Once you have collected everything, slip through the hole in E10, and you will be in another Guard Room. Here you can get Handgun Ammo. The room beside it has Rifle Rounds and a Health Drink. You’ll get the armory key here as well. You can follow the next few doors straight to the armory (how convenient) and get the Hunter’s Rifle. You’ll also get Shotgun Shells and Rifle Rounds.

The Hunter’s Rifle is the most powerful gun in the game. While it will make short work of the Mannequin Spiders that will be harassing you throughout the Toluca Prison, that is a pretty poor use of your limited Rifle Ammo. I’d save this one for particularly hairy situations and boss battles.

Opening The Hornless Ox Door

Now, head back to the yard so that we can open up the next area. Place the lightest and heaviest weights on the left scale, and the medium weight (the Red Weight) on the right. This will open the Hornless Ox Door. The Hornless Ox Door takes you to the second floor. Watch out, as there will be a Lying Figure right around the corner once you climb the stairs. There are a ton of Mannequin Spiders up here as well, so get ready for a fight. I killed seven of them the first time I entered this section.

The Cell Block D Key is in the Guardroom, there is also Handgun Ammo inside. Inside C6 you’ll get a Syringe and Health Drink. You will have to bust through the wall to get inside, just look for the crack. D6 has Rifle Rounds and a Lying Figure, and D3 has Shotgun Shells.

D5 has the Shiv Key. Now, head back to the C Block of cells and use the Shiv Key to open Cell C4. Crawl through the hole to get to the washroom. There is Handgun Ammo on the bench. On the left side of the room, you’ll see a line of stalls. The first stall has a Mannequin in it, the last stall has a Health Drink. The changing room has two boxes of Rifle Rounds and a Syringe inside.

In the showers, there are 3 boxes of Handgun Ammo, 2 boxes of Shotgun Shells, Rifle Rounds, a Health Drink, another Stone Tablet, and a Bubble Head Nurse. When you have collected everything, go to the hole in the wall and take the weight from it.

Be warned, once you grab the weight, you will trigger the dozen or so enemies in this room to rise. Unless you plan to systematically kill them all, make sure you sweep this room thoroughly for all the goodies it contains. After getting the weight, head for the door that was previously blocked in the washroom. It will now be cleared of debris.

You are going to need to fight your way through, but you have many chest-high walls to vault over. Additionally, most of these enemies will go down with fewer shots than typical. You can blast your way out using your handgun, or you can just make a run for it. Since you should have already cleared out the room, I’d try to conserve bullets the best I can and make a run for it.

Opening The Eyeless Boar Door

Now, back to the scales. Put all the weights on the right plate except the lightest weight, which you will put on the left plate. This will open the Eyeless Boar Door. In the visitation area, one of the windows will be kicked in. Hop through it. On the other side, you’ll find Shotgun Shells. In the next area, there will be two Bubble Head Nurses patrolling the halls. Duck into the washrooms, and you will be able to get a jump on them, attacking their back.

There is a Health Drink in the women’s washroom and a Save Point in the men’s washroom. You’ll get Handgun Ammo from a locker in the break room. In the connected guardroom, you’ll find Handgun Ammo. In the bottom left corner of this area (as seen on the map), you will find another glimpse of the past.

In the Infirmary, you’ll find two more Bubble Head Nurses. There is Handgun Ammo in the glass case in front of the main room, and Handgun Ammo in the little office. Surprisingly, there are no items in the main room, just the Nurses you’ll need to kill. However, there is a box of Handgun Ammo, Shotgun Shells, a Health Drink, and the Upper Floor Key in the room past it. There is another Nurse in here as well.

The Typewriter Puzzle

Now, head for the staircase, and unlock the gate with the Upper Floor Key. Follow the stairs and stay on the main path. There will be a Mannequin hiding around the corner once you are nearing the next set of stairs. Keep climbing and you will reach the Warden’s Officer. There is Handgun Ammo on a chair outside the office. In the back room, you’ll find a Save Spot, Handgun Ammo, and Shotgun Shells.

You will see a typewriter on the Warden’s desk, with a note that has “sick” misspelled dozens of times. Use the typewriter and write “SICK”. The drawer will open, and you will get the final weight. In the Warehouse, you’ll find a Mannequin and a Lying Figure. You’ll find Handgun Ammo and another Strange Photo in this room.

Opening The Wingless Dove Door

Finally, head back to the scales to open the final door. Place all the weights on the left except for the Red Weight, which you will place on the right. You can now head into the basement through the Wingless Dove door. There is a Health Drink in Cell F2, a Mannequin in F7, a destructible wall in F9, Shotgun Shells in F12, as well as a Health Drink and a Mannequin in F14.

Crawl through the hole across from Cell F15 to get into the Guardroom. You’ll find Shotgun Shells here, and you will be able to flip switches to open Cell F5 and F6. In F6 you’ll find The Lightest Weight. Head to Cell F9, break through the wall if you haven’t already, and enter F10. Climb the ladder in Cell F10 to get back to the first floor. One final trip to the scales. Balance the scales by placing the biggest weight, the red weight, and the silver weight on the right side and the rest on the left. Doing so will grant you the Execution Lever.

Place the Execution Lever into the mechanism on the gallows and pull it. You will now need to solve the Gallows Puzzle by matching the text and choosing who you think isn’t guilty. Of course, the description of each prisoner changes pretty dramatically across the different difficulties.

If you get the wrong answer, you will be able to try again, but you’ll have to fight some monsters first. Once you have chosen the correct prisoner, you will proceed to the next section of the game: the Labyrinth.