Coin Puzzle



The Coin Puzzle is a puzzle in Silent Hill 2 in room 105 of the Blue Creek Apartments.

Prior to the puzzle, James Sunderland discovers room 209 has a note taped on its door.

"Dear Tim,

I have to run an errand so

I'm going out. 

I left the house key with Uncle

David. (You know where he lives,

don't you? The key is in the room

near the first floor staircase.)

I'll be back as soon as I can, so

please watch the place while I'm

gone."

James enters David's room, 105, and find indents in the nearby drawer, the perfect size for three coins the player picked up earlier.

Intro
If the player examines each coin, they'll notice that each has a picture on them:


 * Old Man - Picture of an old man; hence the name
 * Snake - Picture of a snake; hence the name
 * Prisoner - Picture of a lady prisoner; hence the name

Using these, and finding which is which in the riddle, the puzzle can easily be solved.

Easy
"To the right is the lady.

To the left is the old one. 

''In the center crawls the other. ''

Now just two spaces remain,

But fear not for now,

The puzzle is done.

The puzzle is done."


 * "To the right is the lady" is the Prisoner in the slot at the right end.
 * "To the left is the old one" is the Old Man in the left end slot.
 * "In the center crawls the other" would be the Snake.

Normal
"Three bright coins in five holes be 

At one end sits

the Seducer of she 

The wind from behind

the woman doth play 

The Formless One,

Null, lies furthest from they 

The Old One beside

the Serpent sits not. 

'Tis to the Prisoner's left

that he doth rot"</i>


 * "Three bright coins in five holes be" just means three coins fit into the five slots.
 * "At one end sits the seducer of she" is saying the seducer sits at an end. The seducer, in this case, would be the Snake, seducing Eve to eat the apple (Adam & Eve in the Garden of Eden).
 * "The wind from behind the woman doth play" describes that there is an empty space behind the Prisoner. The Prisoner is facing to the left, so the empty space is to the right.
 * "The formless one, null, lies furthest from they" is saying there's an empty slot at one of the ends.
 * "The old one beside the serpent sits not, 'tis to the Prisoner's left that he doth rot" describes that the Old Man does not sit beside the Snake, and that he is to the left of the Prisoner.

Hard
"First lies the seat of

He who is Peerless

Silent and empty,

heartless and fearless </i>

Beside him sits one who knows

The place of the servant is

next to the throne </i>

Dozens of feet,

yet not a single toe

The One that is Hidden

beside him doth go </i>

Seducer of dreams,

creature of Hades

Lying further from

Man and closer to Lady </i>

Man and Woman seeing all

Heedless to the Raven's call </i>

Silent and Hidden the two may be

They be not there for you to see </i>

Return them to whence

they would be

And blessing shall

descend on thee </i>

I speak thus with

the North Star behind me

The birth of the sun is

the start of the story"</i>


 * "First lies the seat of He who is Peerless; Silent and empty, heartless and fearless" describes the first slot has someone "Silent" in it.
 * "Beside him sits one who knows" determines someone is in the second slot beside the "Silent" one. "One who knows" implies the Old Man, who is wise.
 * "Dozens of feet, yet not a single toe. The One that is Hidden beside him doth go" means that the third slot has someone "Hidden" in it.
 * "Seducer of dreams, creature of Hades. Lying further from Man and closer to Lady" means the Snake is closer to the Prisoner than to the Old Man.
 * "Silent and Hidden the two may be, They be not there for you to see" determines that the first slot, which is "silent", and the third slot, which is "hidden", are empty.
 * "I speak thus with the North Star behind me," meaning the speaker is facing south. "The birth of the sun is the start of the story." In other words, the sun will rise in the east, which is to the speaker's left, meaning the coins must be inserted left to right.

Extra
"Like coins in the hazy

aether tossed

Our souls must by

their sinful weight

Descend to earth

with lightness lost </i>

To "right" the sins

that they hath laid

When thrice in falling they intone

The Happiness shall be thy own </i>

The first note be not by

the Horned One rung

Though it be there that

all sins be sprung </i>

The Bringer of Life and

the Bringer of Shame

The sins of the latter be

even more tame </i>

Though coming

in the Aged One's wake

The Formless One's soul

in fear doth quake </i>

The Needless One, silent,

with hungers all sated

Is least then in sin

with his lusts all abated </i>

For the gravest of sinners

His place be appointed

And if he be lucky

May his soul be anointed"</i>


 * Examining the coins in Extra Riddle mode will reveal a reverse side to each of them: for the Snake, a crescent moon; for the Prisoner, a nest with five eggs; and for the Old Man, a gravestone.


 * "To "right" the sins that they hath laid" is a wordplay, where "right" is used as a verb meaning "to correct", and also suggests the order of the coins. Since relevant symbols can be found on the reverse side of the coins, the order they are placed must also be reversed, right to left, rather than left to right as used in the other difficulties.


 * "The first note be not by the Horned One rung; though it be there that all sins be sprung" refers to the first slot, in this case on the far right. It makes no reference to any of the coins, and uses the word "sprung" suggesting a hole, as in "sprung a leak." Therefore this slot is empty.


 * "The Bringer of Life and the Bringer of Shame; the sins of the latter be even more tame" refers to the Prisoner, who is the bringer of life (suggested by the egg on her coin) and shame (reference to the Garden of Eden). Therefore the second slot is hers.


 * "Though coming in the Aged One's wake; the Formless One's soul in fear doth quake" mentions that the Snake is afraid of the Old Man, thus they cannot be together. This means the Snake must be placed beside the Prisoner, leaving a gap between him and the Old Man.


 * "The Needless One, silent, with hungers all sated; Is least then in sin with his lusts all abated" refers to the final slot, on the far left. This slot belongs to the Old Man, who in death (as represented by the gravestone on his coin) has put an end to his cravings for power, life, etc.