Hello Neighbor 2 Beginner’s Guide: Tips & Tricks for New Players

by Mike Alexander / Game Guides, Highlights, Tips & Tricks / 10 Sep 2022

The world was introduced to The Neighbor and his heinous acts in Hello Neighbor way back in 2017. Now, 5 years later, we finally have a full sequel after several spin-off titles. It’s bigger, better, and scarier than any of the games before it, and that might mean you’re a little afraid of getting into it.

But worry not, Hello Neighbor 2 is a fantastic game that has plenty of easy-to-understand game mechanics. With a little guidance, anyone can get to the bottom of this mystery. If you need some help getting started in Hello Neighbor 2, please make use of this Beginner’s Guide to get you sneaking and solving as soon as possible. Grab your crowbar, put your thinking cap on, and let’s get started.

Watch Out for Traps

The core of Hello Neighbor 2 is really the sneaking aspect and avoiding being found by the guardian of whichever location you are investigating. Doing this can be pretty simple, but only if you’re careful and watch your every step along the way.

Because of the depth of the puzzles, you might be too concerned about looking for clues and completely miss that broken glass on the floor, or the mound of squeaky toys just waiting to give away your position.

Stumbling onto these hazards will often result in a chase through the house that either ends in your successfully hiding, or, more often than not, you being dumped outside of the exploration zone and needing to find a new way inside. Always keep an eye out, and be mindful of how much noise you make.

Go Towards the Light

The areas you explore in Hello Neighbor 2 are quite large, and you could get lost if you don’t pay attention to the signs the game gives you. For instance, there might be a light on a certain path, or locations hinted at on a screen. Often these indicators will be quite subtle and easy to miss, but this is actually one of Hello Neighbor 2’s strengths.

You are supposed to become immersed in this game, picking up on every clue and following it to its logical endpoint. You can only do that if you’re taking in all of the visual information no matter how small or insignificant it might seem. That single street light is probably not a fluke, it’s most likely lighting your path to the next puzzle.

Explore Everything

While the puzzles you need to solve will only be at specific locations, the entire town of Raven Brooks is open for you to explore. Check out other houses and observe other people to uncover additional mysteries, and perhaps even find some helpful tools and gadgets.

If a house or other building has a person visible inside or around it, there is a way to sneak around them and explore the inside of that area. You might not find something useful every time, but it’s also a thrill to find a way into a new area, isn’t it?

Inventory Management

Throughout Hello Neighbor 2, you’ll be picking up tools and other items that you’ll need for puzzles or general exploration. All of these things are stored in the protagonist’s tiny backpack, and you can only fit 4-5 items in there before you run out of space.

That’s why it is important to make sure you are carrying only what you need, but, perhaps more importantly, placing puzzle items in their place as soon as you can so that they aren’t taking up space in your inventory. Making this a habit early on will save you a lot of trouble later in the game.

Lure the Pursuer

Whatever location you find yourself in, there will be ways to lure the pursuer to specific rooms. In the first house (one that will be recognizable to fans of the franchise), that comes in the form of alarm clocks.

These alarm clocks can be triggered to cause the pursuer to rush into that room or area, leaving the rest of the location free to explore for a while while they investigate. Just try not to take too much time to do what you need to do because the pursuer will get back to their patrol fairly quickly.

Run

The game never tells you this, but the run button will save your life on more than one occasion, guaranteed. When you’re being chased, use the left trigger button to haul ass to safety and away from your pursuer.

Mike Alexander

Mike has been playing video games since he was able to hold a controller, having been fascinated by Sonic 2 on his mom’s Sega Genesis. That fascination and passion for the art form has grown exponentially nearly 30 years later, and he doesn’t see that fading away anytime soon.
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