6 Silent Hill: Townfall gameplay tips that could save your life

The town of St. Amelia is a very dangerous place in Silent Hill: Townfall, so you might want to heed our top tips for approaching combat, stealth and puzzles. Follow our advice and it might even save your life.

Silent Hill: Townfall was first announced in October 2022 during Konami’s ‘Silent Hill Transmission’ showcase, where the Silent Hill 2 remake was also revealed.

Developed by indie studio Screen Burn, it’s fair to say that Silent Hill: Townfall has felt like a long time coming for fans. Thankfully, it’s finally out, and that wait was worth it as Silent Hill: Townfall is a fantastic new addition to the series that shifts from the usual third-person perspective to first-person.

Set in the eerie fictional Scottish coastal town of St. Amelia, Silent Hill: Townfall can be a gruelling game with deadly enemies and challenging puzzles. With that in mind, here's how to see the game through to its miserable end.

6 Silent Hill: Townfall tips to help you survive St. Amelia

The CR TV is your best friend in St. Amelia

In the Silent Hill series, typically, it's the static of a radio that helps alert you when an enemy is near. In Silent Hill: Townfall, the radio is replaced by the portable CR TV. This very helpful gadget will not only make a static sound when an enemy is near, but once you’ve tuned in to the enemy's location, you can keep a close eye on where it is. You can also tune in to multiple enemy locations at one time. The CR TV will provide very important lore details and even helps to solve many of the game's puzzles. It's probably your best friend in St. Amelia.

Running away from enemies can save your life

Silent Hill: Townfall features some very dangerous enemies that deal heavy damage. You’ll pick up melee weapons that deteriorate with each hit, while firearms can also be found, although their ammo is limited.

However, even with a full-strength melee weapon or a full round of bullets, attacking isn’t always the best option. Silent Hill: Townfall has a heavy focus on stealth, but the chances are you’ll eventually get spotted. When that happens, rather than going into fight mode, flight mode is a solid and very viable tactic.

Enemies will follow you relentlessly, but if you’re cunning enough to lose their line of sight, you can find a good hiding spot. They’ll loiter for a while, but eventually return to their usual location, giving you another opportunity to attempt that section without being spotted.

As a side note, if you creep up on certain enemies with a melee weapon and hold the attack button, you can land an easy hit that seems to deal slightly more damage than usual.

Pay close attention to your environment

The Silent Hill series has always had fantastic environmental audio and design, and Silent Hill: Townfall is no exception. Sometimes, you might miss the static sound when the CR TV alerts that an enemy is near, so never neglect your natural senses. Listen carefully to sounds in your area, because you might identify a nearby enemy that you missed with the CR TV. Likewise, visual clues are also vital in St. Amelia. The environment can add subtle lore details and perhaps even help solve a puzzle or two.

Opening the map isn't completely safe

This is a mistake that I made very early on in Silent Hill: Townfall. You will rely on your map of St. Amelia and its buildings to navigate your way in the game. However, unlike some map screens in other games, Silent Hill: Townfall will not pause while you’re scouting the area. So, when you do open the map, make sure that there are no enemies nearby. Perhaps even find a small room that allows you to lock the door, just to be safe.

Motion controls aren't just for solving puzzles

Silent Hill: Townfall makes good use of the motion controls for the DualSense controller. For the most part, they’re used for solving puzzles, such as when using the CR TV. Yet, in the settings, you can change the aiming of weapons and throwing objects with motion controls, in case you feel like playing in an alternative way.

You can turn off Silent Hill: Townfall's letterbox bars

You can disable the default letterbox bars in Silent Hill: Townfall. Sure, this gives the game more of a cinematic feel. But for me, I want to see everything I can in St. Amelia through the first-person perspective. So, if that sounds like your preference, you’ll be pleased to know that it can be easily toggled on and off in the game's settings. What’s more, being able to spot an enemy a little more easily could be vital to your survival prospects.

Here’s what we said in our Silent Hill: Townfall review

“Silent Hill: Townfall is the most atmospheric and frightening survival horror game the series has delivered in years,” we said in our review, scoring it an “exceptional” 9/10.

“It feels different from any other game that I’ve ever played, in fact. Perhaps the closest comparison would be the 2015 demo P.T., which, as we all know, was never released as the full planned game, Silent Hills.”

Silent Hill: Townfall is out now on PC and PlayStation 5.