Arkham is underwater, the corpses are moving on their own, and your ammo pouch never has quite enough in it. These The Sinking City 2 tips and tricks cover everything worth knowing before you step into Frogwares’ flooded Lovecraftian nightmare, from combat habits that save bullets to picking the right talents early. Whether you just started Calvin Rafferty’s search for his wife or you’re stuck on your first big fight, this should get you through in one piece.
The Sinking City 2 Best Tips to Progress
- Shoot for weak points instead of unloading a full clip into every enemy.
- Stomp on downed Slither enemies so the worms inside can’t bring them back.
- Avoid fights you can sneak past. Enemies respawn once you leave the area anyway.
- Investigate every scene you can. It’s the main way to earn Talent Points.
- Buy four Basic talents as fast as possible to unlock the Intermediate tier.
- Keep a boat handy. Backtracking through unlocked shortcuts is often faster on foot.
- Listen before you look. Sound cues warn you about nearby threats before you see them.
What Is The Sinking City 2?
The Sinking City 2 is Frogwares’ third person survival horror set in a version of 1920s Arkham that’s been swallowed by a supernatural flood. You play as Calvin Rafferty, whose wife Faye had her soul trapped in the Dreamlands after a ritual went wrong, leaving something else wearing her body. The game keeps the investigation and puzzle solving that made the first Sinking City interesting, but leans much harder into tight, resource lean combat this time around.
Get Your Controls and Settings Sorted First
Before you wade into the water, spend two minutes in the settings menu. On keyboard and mouse, E interacts with objects, Shift sprints, Spacebar dodges, right click aims, left click fires, and R reloads. If you’re on a controller, the layout is different, so check the bindings rather than guessing mid fight.
It’s also worth turning up dialogue and ambient audio if you can. Enemies make distinct sounds before they show themselves, and reacting to a noise is a lot cheaper than reacting to a bite.
Aim for Weak Points, Not Center Mass
A regular Slither enemy usually takes around six shots to put down if you’re just spraying bullets at its torso. That’s expensive when ammo is this scarce. Instead, watch for the weak points that flash up randomly on their body. Each one counts as two regular hits, so landing shots there drops most enemies in about three shots total.
This single habit will stretch your ammo further than any amount of hoarding. It also means the reticle shrinking as you aim doesn’t add bonus damage on its own, that only kicks in once you find the specific upgrade for it later.
Always Finish Off the Slither
Downing a Slither enemy isn’t the end of the fight. These enemies are corpses puppeted by worms, and if you walk away without finishing the job, the worms will reanimate the body behind you. Once an enemy drops, stomp on the remains to make sure it stays down for good.
Skipping this step is one of the most common reasons players get swarmed mid exploration. It costs a second or two, and it saves you from fighting the same enemy twice.
Dodge with Purpose, Not Panic
Dodging is one of the most reliable defensive tools in the game, and most enemies telegraph their attacks clearly enough that a well timed sidestep works almost every time. There are two things worth remembering though.
- Keep some distance – Standing too close to an enemy means you can still get grabbed even after a successful dodge.
- Dodge early rather than late – Waiting until the last possible second is riskier than it needs to be, especially against enemies with wide swings.
Skip Fights You Don’t Need
Not every enemy in Arkham needs to die. Many areas have enemies that respawn once you leave a certain radius, so burning your entire stock of ammo clearing a street is often a waste. If you can crouch behind debris, throw a bottle to pull an enemy’s attention elsewhere, or simply walk around a threat, do it.
Save your bullets and crafting materials for fights you can’t avoid, particularly boss encounters and story critical rooms where retreating isn’t an option.
Investigate Every Scene You Can
The investigation system carried over from the first game is still one of the best ways to get ahead. Crime scenes have glowing evidence markers you can inspect, and linking clues together in your casebook often rewards you with a Talent Point. Optional investigations never block your main story progress, but skipping them means missing out on upgrades, safer routes, and extra supplies.
If a room feels like it has more to find, it probably does. Frogwares built these detours to be worth the detour.
Choosing the Right Talents Early
Once you reach your first Talent Table, spend Dream Essence on whatever fixes the problem that’s actually slowing you down, not whatever sounds the strongest on paper. Talents are grouped into tiers, and buying four talents from one tier is what unlocks the next.
| Tier | How You Unlock It |
| Basic | Available the moment you find the first Talent Table |
| Intermediate | Buy four Basic talents |
| Advanced | Buy four Intermediate talents |
| Eldritch Rewards | Opens after completing specific in game goals |
Because reaching the next tier matters more early on than any single perk, prioritize speed over perfection with your first few picks.
| Your Playstyle | Consider Starting With |
| Struggling to survive early fights | Carapace of the Damned, Deathless Vigor |
| Running low on ammo constantly | Alchemical Abundance, Profane Reload |
| Landing consistent weak point hits | Reticle Ritual, Wandering Bullet |
| Finishing enemies up close | Butcher’s Zeal, Feral Surge |
| Sneaking past instead of fighting | Silent Hunter |
| Going all in on high risk damage | Vessel of Destruction, Crimson Threshold |
Treat this table as a starting point rather than a fixed build. A talent that sounds powerful is wasted if your usual weapons and habits rarely trigger it.
Keep Your Resources in Check
The Sinking City 2 wants you to feel the pinch of a low ammo count, and that’s by design. Craft what you need before a big push rather than after, and check your inventory before heading into any area flagged as dangerous. Picking up every scrap of material you find is usually worth it too, since crafting refunds and carrying capacity upgrades make hoarding less painful later.
Use the Boat and Shortcuts to Move Faster
Arkham’s flooded districts are split between routes you walk and routes you take by skiff. Getting comfortable switching between the two early will save you time, especially once you start unlocking shortcuts that cut straight back to a safe room or a shop. Revisiting old areas with new upgrades is a normal part of the loop here, so don’t treat backtracking as wasted effort.
Surviving the Shoggoth Boss Fight
Shoggoth is the first real boss test in the game, and it looks a lot scarier than it actually is once you know the pattern. Activate all three strange devices scattered around the arena to force it to expose its eyes, then shoot the eyes directly. It’ll get more aggressive with each hit it takes, so keep circling back to the devices instead of trying to just outlast it with raw damage.
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FAQs (Frequently Asked Questions)
Q. What is the best early tip for The Sinking City 2?
A. Aim for the glowing weak points on enemies instead of spraying full clips at them. It kills most standard enemies in about three shots instead of six.
Q. How do I stop Slither enemies from getting back up?
A. Stomp on their body immediately after they go down. If you walk away too soon, the worms inside will reanimate the corpse.
Q. Do I need to fight every enemy I see?
A. No. Many enemies respawn once you leave the area, so sneaking past or distracting them is often smarter than fighting.
Q. When do I unlock talents in The Sinking City 2?
A. The first Talent Table appears a few chapters into the story, shortly after an early story event points you toward a nearby hotel.
Q. Should I do the optional investigations?
A. Yes, when you can. They hand out Talent Points, upgrades, and supplies, and they never block your main story progress.
Q. How do I beat the Shoggoth boss?
A. Activate the three devices around the arena to expose its eyes, then shoot them. Repeat until it goes down.
Q. Does reticle shrinking add extra damage?
A. Not by default. That effect only applies once you find and equip the specific upgrade for it later in the game.
Q. Is The Sinking City 2 connected to the first game’s story?
A. No, it follows a standalone story with a new protagonist, Calvin Rafferty, though it keeps the same flooded Arkham setting and investigation mechanics.
Q. What platforms is The Sinking City 2 available on?
A. It’s available on PC through Steam, PS5, and Xbox Series X and S.
Q. Is there a demo available?
A. Yes, Frogwares released a free playable demo covering the opening hour of the game.
