Silent Hill 2 remake: How to defeat the Mandarin
As you search the Lakeview Hotel for three figurines to put into the music box in the lobby, you will inevitably come across a straitjacket-wearing Mandarin. You have previously encountered Mandarins using their long, thick arms to hang from floor gratings, but this Mandarin boss isn’t afraid to get in James Sunderland’s face. Here’s how to defeat this gruesome monster:
The Mandarin abuses its roar
Whereas Silent Hill 2 remake bosses like the Abstract Daddy and the Flesh Lip occasionally roar, the Mandarin takes every opportunity to shout to the heavens. Its roar doesn’t do any damage, but it does leave you open to the boss’s other attacks. Be vigilant when getting close and try to stay near the Mandarin’s backside so that it will have a harder time hitting you after a roar.
Watch out for the Mandarin’s forward-lurching movements
When it isn’t roaring, the Mandarin likes to stick to the ceiling and use its oversized arms and ridiculously long tongue to hit you. The fight always starts with the Mandarin jumping from the ceiling and doing a frontal arm slam. This destroys the table in the middle of the Conference Room, giving you more space to fight in. The Mandarin will occasionally do this move during the fight, so be on the lookout for the starting animation wherein it tucks its legs in to the front and prepares to jump.
While it looks similar, the start-up animation for the Mandarin’s tongue lash is more subtle. Instead of tucking its legs in all the way, the Mandarin will quickly arch its body slightly forward before sticking its tongue straight out. Both the arm slam and the tongue lash can be avoided by dodging to the side, so make sure to do so whenever you see the Mandarin start to lurch forward.
Note that the Mandarin will sometimes follow a frontal arm slam with a tongue lash, with the tongue lash having almost no start-up animation aside from the monster rearing its head back. Either keep your distance after each frontal slam or get behind the Mandarin so you can hit it from safety.
The Mandarin’s other tongue attack is a spin move where it swirls its tongue around its body. This attack cannot be avoided by staying behind the monster, so you have to keep your distance when this happens. The Mandarin will lower its head to the ground before it does its tongue spin, giving you ample time to back off before it licks you.
Due to the Mandarin having almost no protection, this boss fight isn’t particularly long. After a couple of melee strikes and gunshots, the Mandarin will drop from the ceiling and die, leaving you free to exit the Conference Room and continue your figurine hunt.
