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Silent Hill 2 gallows puzzle solutions

To complete the Silent Hill 2 gallows puzzle, you'll need all the poem and noose answers for the Light, Normal, or Hard difficulty modes.

What are the Silent Hill 2 remake gallows answers? When you reach Toluca prison in the original Silent Hill 2, you must make a choice between right and wrong, and whether the reasoning for certain crimes committed makes them justifiable. It's an interesting segment and one that perfectly suits the guilty undertones of James' story.

Things are taken up a notch in the puzzle game, there are different answers for each puzzle, one innocent and one not so innocent. That said, it's not as much of a head-scratcher as it is perhaps a moral quandry. If you're unsure, here's our Silent Hill 2 gallows puzzle walkthrough.

Six of the completed puzzles in the Silent Hill 2 gallows poem puzzle in Normal difficulty.

Silent Hill 2 remake gallows poems

There are six poems in the Silent Hills 2 gallows puzzle, and you must match the second half to the first half for an innocent person. You don't actually need to complete all six puzzles, but doing so can help you decipher the correct outcome.

Pay attention to the object, subject, rhyming, and context for a better chance of finding the right answer. Each difficulty presents different riddles, and all answers are below. There may be other combination options as the plates can be heavily randomized, but the innocent answers below should have you covered.

On normal and hard puzzle difficulty, there are two potential solutions to each poem. You may get either. On hard, some of the answers fit more than one poem, which is where the puzzle gets trickier. To solve this, you're always looking for the innocent answer, as we'll detail below.

Hard mode

Poem one (I)

Under veil of nightfall, in the ink of dusk,
A blazing inferno engulfs the wooden husk.
Screams of the innocent fill the night sky,
He, who hell let loose, now watches them die.

  • Innocent answer (I)

Death of the blameless, a damnable sin,
Wracked with guilt, his soul withers from within,
Yet among the pure, the vile also would also dwell.
Demons dressed in piety, they perished as well.

  • Guilty answer (I)

A contorted chill dances on his spine,
As their souls fly forth on Thanathos' sigh.
No sign of regret, not a tinge of guilt,
But a fiery urge to destroy what God built.

Poem two (II)

In twilight's grasp, a thief emerges sly,
Through the veils of night, his purpose veiled, awry.
His nimble fingers, like whispers they glide,
In the goods of others, his needs doth reside

  • Innocent answer (II)

With hands atremble, he seizes what he must,
A wretched dance, fueled by hunger's thrust.
Poverty's embrace fuels his misdeeds,
Thieving to survive, the barest of needs.

  • Guilty answer (II)

His avarice driving every cunning theft,
No conscience stirs, no remorse is left.
Not a hunger's pang, nor a desperate need,
but a heart consumed with relentless greed.

Poem three (III)

In shroud of twilight, a tale doth unfold,
Where the shadows dance, their secrets are told.
A shadowy figure, his motives unclear,
Steals his own kin, one he should hold dear.

  • Innocent answer (III)

A cruel twist of fate, an outcome unsought,
The little one perishes, it was all for naught,
The kidnapper's tears his motives reveal,
From a monstrous mother the child he did steal.

  • Guilty answer (III)

A tragic fruition, a mother's despair,
Her heiress undone by the one she once loved,
Forsooth, it was not love that guided his clasp,
But a spiteful avarice one struggles to grasp.

James stands in front of the Toluca Prison scales having received the execution lever for the Silent Hill 2 gallows puzzle.

Poem four (IV)

In clandestine steps, darkness as his guide,
The man ventures deeper, where riches doth hide.
An unseen intruder with motives untold,
His hands eager to touch, to grab and to hold.

  • Innocent answer (IV)

Amidst the moon's glow, a desperate truth,
The man's life of pain and in peril, forsooth.
Sealed within these walls, his salvation lies,
Steal and live on, the ultimate prize.

  • Guilty answer  (IV)

Beneath moonlit guise, a villain's design,
He treses where treasures brightly shine.
With a selfish hand, with greed as his creed,
Claims the spoils, indulging every single need.

  • Alternate answer (IV)

A contorted chill dances on his spine,
As their souls fly forth on Thanathos' sigh.
No sign of regret, not a tinge of guilt,
But a fiery urge to destroy what God built.

Poem five (V)

With her senses falling, she looks, mouth agape,
At the one who forced her spirit to escape.
Cold steel pierces vein, a sanguine flood,
Gazing back at her, her own flesh and blood.

  • Innocent answer (V)

'Twas a twisted fate that forced the man's hand,
A son at mother's mercy, his life in hell he'd spend.
Forsooth, not all killings are ones of ill will,
For the choice was clear, 'twas either her, or him.

  • Guilty answer (V)

Desperation's grip suffocates the air,
The attacker's past, a tale of despair.
A victim turned assailant, a tragic decree,
On this night of judgment, pain sets both men free.

James looks at the stone at the top of the Silent Hill 2 gallows, depicting a hanging man and two Pyramid Heads.

Poem six (VI)

In shadows cast, the hunter lies in wait,
His violent intent cloaked in a veil of fate.
An enigma unfolds, motives undefined,
As the prey approaches, their fates intertwine.

  • Innocent Answer (VI)

As the spark of life from her eyes did flee,
The man held his gaze with wicked glee,
An unfeeling sigh the man's lips doth escape,
A thirst for more bloodshed begins to take shape.

  • Guilty answer (VI)

The victim's eyes wide with terror and fright,
The attacker's nature now comes into light.
Vicious is his cause and marred with dark pride,
A show of brute strength, for all to abide.

Normal mode

Poem one (I)

For your grace I do not plead, For the flames I did set free,
Sisters shrieked and children cried, No one made it out alive.

  • Innocent answer (I)

Though the young ones deaths I mourn, Their tormentors are no more,
On young souls the nuns did prey, Took their innocence away.

  • Guilty answer (I)

I watched them burn, I heard them cry, I felt a soothing warmth inside,
It felt so good, I cannot lie, And for my bliss, they had to die.

Poem two (II)

The wealth of other I did take, The seventh statute I did break,
And yet my deeds I don't regret, I had my reasons, that is that.

  • Innocent answer (II)

The reason, is I have to say, Was to survive another day,
To them, it was a loaf of break, To me, a cherished step ahead.

  • Guilty answer (II)

What were those reasons you might ask, The trust allow me to unmask
I see, I crave, I need, I take, 'Tis all the sense it needs to make

Poem three (III) 

I took the child, you are quite right, Carried her off into the night,
She did not scream, she did not bawl, I was her father, after all.

  • Innocent answer (III)

Forgive me, child, for I have failed, To save you from her wretched ways,
She whom I loved, who gave you life, A monster hiding in plain sight.

  • Guilty answer (III)

My only daughter, joy of days, They wanted to take you away,
Hush, little baby, and be still, If I can't have you, no one will.

Poem four (IV)

Once the sun has ceased its reign, I cut through the rusty chain,
Pushed the door and snuck within, Filled my pockets to the brim.

  • Innocent answer (IV)

So my guilt is plain to see, I had robbed the pharmacy,
Yet, I did so not for gain, But so I could ease the pain.

  • Guilty answer (IV)

I departed with great haste, Leaving not a single trace,
Ever faithful to my creed, All is right which feeds my greed.

Poem five (V)

Mommy dearest, Mommy sweet, Your love for me was so deep,
"Why, oh, why?" you shouted out, When my knife pierced your heart.

  • Innocent answer (V)

You broke my legs, I couldn't walk, You pulled my teeth, I couldn't talk,
You fed me pills to slow my mind, I took your life 'fore you took mine.

  • Guilty answer (V)

You were, oh, so kind to me, Filled my heart with joy and glee,
In the end, it was for naught, "Why, oh, why?", you ask. Why not?

Poem six (VI)

I waited long, I bid my time, I waited to commit my crime,
The man appeared, he saw me not, A bloody end is what he got.

  • Innocent answer (VI)

In truth he was less man than beast, And on my flesh and soul he'd feast,
My will to live he'd try to break, There is so much a man can take.

  • Guilty answer (VI)

In truth, I did not hesitate, As my blade sealed the poor man's fate,
He knew the rules, they are quite clear, Go against me, your end is near.

Light mode

Poem one (I)

Hallowed was the place,
This one set ablaze.

  • Answer one (I)

T'was the home of evil,
It had to be razed.

Poem two (II)

This one took from others,
T'was a sinful deed.

  • Answer two (II)

Stealing not to eat,
But to feed his own greed.

Poem three (III)

This one, he did kidnap,
His beloved daughter.

  • Answer three (III)

In a fit of anger,
Bloody end he brought her.

Poem four (IV)

This one broke the lock,
To steal, I'll tell you plain.

  • Answer four (IV)

One more place to plunder,
One more wrongful gain.

Poem five (V)

This one dared,
To take his own mother's life.

  • Answer five (V)

Did it just for pleasure,
Not over a strife.

Poem six (VI)

This one clenched his fist,
And has pulled no punch.

  • Answer six (VI)

Turned against his bully,
Turned his brain to mulch.

James looks up at a noose during the Silent Hill 2 gallows puzzle.

Silent Hill 2 gallows noose puzzle

To proceed, James must pull on the noose belonging to an innocent person. Each noose is numbered one to six, relating to the puzzles. There can also be more than one correct noose. Choosing the wrong noose sends you into a deadly pit, but you can just climb back out and try again.

You immediately know whether you have chosen the right noose by the angle of the cutscene that follows. If the camera is behind James as he approaches the noose, you've made the wrong choice. If you are looking at James' face as he pulls the rope, you're on the money. Either way, the floor opens and you fall down.

By pulling on an innocent person's noose, you can simply continue your journey through the prison. Choose the wrong noose, however, and you must run through enemy monsters to a room in the corner containing a ladder. If you're fast and lucky, you can do this without fighting. Climb the ladder, and you'll simply find yourself back at the doors to the yard and ready to try again.

Now you can the Silent Hill 2 gallows problem with minimal issues and continue on your journey to find Mary. We can also help with our guides on how to get out of the horror game remake.