The third and final major map in Saga’s campaign comes with its own set of strange nursery rhymes. Here’s how to find and solve all the nursery rhymes in Watery in Alan Wake 2.
Where to Find and How to Solve All Eight Nursery Rhymes in Alan Wake 2
Nursery rhymes are technically optional in Alan Wake 2, but they reward Saga with Charms that she can equip on her bracelet to gain passive bonuses. Some of these can be remarkably powerful, such as additional health or the ability to survive a fatal blow, so it’s worth taking some time to finish any rhymes you find.
Watery is the first zone where you’re likely to simply stumble across rhymes in your environment. It’s also likely to be the first zone where you find rhymes that can trigger an ambush once solved, so be sure to heal up and reload before you complete any rhyme.
It’s also not always obvious what changed or where in your environment upon the solution to any nursery rhyme. When in doubt, there’s often a trail of black slime (long story) on the ground nearby that you can follow.
- Shooting Range nursery rhyme
- Radio Tower nursery rhyme
- Downtown Watery nursery rhyme
- Latte Lagoon nursery rhyme
- First Lighthouse trailer park nursery rhyme
- Second Lighthouse trailer park nursery rhyme
- Ranger Cabin nursery rhyme
- Lighthouse nursery rhyme
A Note About the Dolls
The Dolls found near various nursery rhymes in Watery can reportedly appear in multiple locations depending on where you go first. The following locations are where they turned up for me, but don’t be shocked if they appear in other places in your game. A bunch are apparently hard-coded to appear at the Lighthouse if you don’t have them yet.
#1: Shooting Range Nursery Rhyme
After you talk to the Kaskelas in downtown Watery, you’re free to head north to get to Coffee World. This takes you down a deer trail into a small wooded area. If you look at your map, there’s a distinctly separate clearing nearby, west from the Kari’s Garage logo, and this rhyme can be found there.
You can also collect the Moose and Deer Dolls from the equipment cases that surround the rhyme.
The Gentle Beast with a beautiful crown
Runs through the woods with a worried frown
From the Hunter he flees between the mighty trees
To make it out alive.
Put the Moose Doll on the Woods to solve the puzzle.
Your reward, a Coffee Mug Charm, appears on the base of the moose statue you passed on the way here.
#2: Radio Tower Nursery Rhyme
The Radio Tower is found north of the Hunting Shack Break Room where you found the crossbow.
Three little Deers ventured to roam
And found a nice place to eat and play
One little Deer never came home
And two of the Deers cried all day.
This is another one-step solution, but you do have to have the Deer Doll that’s found near the previous rhyme. Place it on the House to complete the puzzle.
On a typical run through the game, this will be the first nursery rhyme that really bushwhacks you. Turn 180 degrees upon solving the rhyme and you’ll see a deer run away from you.
Pursue it and you’ll be jumped by two Taken wolves, which can be a tricky fight at this early stage of the game; don’t be afraid to retreat into the nearby pool of light to heal up or reload.
Your reward for victory, found on the dead deer nearby, is the Deer Charm.
#3: Downtown Watery Nursery Rhyme
Once you’ve retrieved the Screwdriver from the Percolator at Coffee World, you can backtrack to downtown Watery to break into a locked trailer on the northeast side of town. This lets you claim the Trickster Doll and solve a new rhyme:
There once was a faithful Girl
At home she stayed and there she prayed
For her Lover to return
But he collected fair maidens just as he did
Their stolen riches and broken hearts
Place the Maiden Doll (which may be either here or at the Ranger Cabin, below) on the House and the Trickster Doll on the Jewelry. A second Coffee Mug Charm can now be found outside the trailer in its mailbox.
#4: Latte Lagoon Nursery Rhyme
After you clear the boss fight in Watery’s Overlap, you’ll be returned to the Watery area. The floodwaters have receded, much as they did in Cauldron Lake after you defeated Nightingale.
That being said, this marks a significant difficulty spike for both Watery as a zone and Saga’s game in general. For whatever reason, Watery immediately post-Overlap fight is swarming with Taken, especially in the Trailer Park. You may want to put off exploring the rest of this zone until you’ve got a couple more upgrades under Saga’s belt.
With the floodwaters gone, you can now move a little further into the Latte Lagoon at Coffee World, which was half-flooded the last time you were here. A new rhyme has appeared at the end of its dock:
A Devil, with a prize, lured the animals two
To his boat all shiny and new
Who would float and who would sink?
Asked the Devil with a wink
The Moose went splash, the Deer sailed on
But which one of them was therefore gone?
To complete this 3-stage puzzle, place the Deer Doll on the Boat, the Trickster Doll on the Jewelry, and the Moose Doll on the Sea. One of the rafts will subsequently float by the end of the dock, which lets you grab the Mr. Drippy Charm.
#5: Lighthouse Trailer Park Nursery Rhyme
Once you’ve cleared the Overlap, you can visit the dock on the south end of the trailer park. Here, you can find the Wise Elder and Bear Dolls on the fish cleaning station, and the Mother and Child Dolls on a bench near the dock’s shoreside entrance.
The Old Fisherman had great luck
His catch at Sea was beyond belief
But the Hungry Guest found relief
In the Fisherman’s bountiful truck
Place the Wise Elder Doll on the Sea and the Bear Doll on the Candy.
This creates a trail of fish that leads back down the dock. Upon reaching its end, you’ll get attacked by a hammer-wielding Cultist Taken, in addition to whatever lesser enemies the Trailer Park’s jacked-up spawn rate feels compelled to hit you with.
Win through and you’ll get the valuable Coffee World Token Charm, which is on the fish cleaning station’s counter.
#6: Lighthouse Trailer Park 2 Nursery Rhyme
While you’re at the Trailer Park, use the bolt cutters to take the chain off a gate on the east side of the lot. This lets you get inside a locked trailer with a new rhyme on its floor:
The Old Man who could not see
Had no children of his own
So he cared for a Fawn not yet grown
For the Deer for him was dear
And filled his life with love.
Place the Wise Elder Doll on the Eye and the Deer Doll on the Heart.
This causes a Taken to spawn inside the trailer and a Deerfest Charm to appear on the short chest of drawers near his spawn point.
#7: Ranger Cabin Nursery Rhyme
It’s easy to not notice this, but there’s a cabin north of Coffee World that you couldn’t reach on your first visit to the park.
You can return there after you clear the Overlap, as above, to find the Maiden and Monster Dolls, as well as a new nursery rhyme laid out behind the Cabin:
A young Woman eager and smart
Ventured into the woods, the beasts’ lair
The King of the Forest stole her heart
And together they now live, without a care.
This is a simple one: place the Bear Doll on the Heart.
If you explored the Ranger Cabin thoroughly before you solve this rhyme, you may have an idea already about where it’s going to lead you. Just the same, follow the trail of black slime to the rustic honeymoon suite on the second floor and collect the FBC Charm from the bed.
#8: Lighthouse Nursery Rhyme
The hillside that surrounds the Lighthouse is one of the more dangerous areas in Saga’s game, especially right after you clear the Overlap. It’s not as bad if you wait until later in the game, around Return 5 or 6, but you’ll never not get into a series of fights here.
The rhyme can be found all the way at the top of the hill, next to the Lighthouse itself:
An old Watcher of the Sea before his demise
Cursed the waters that ruined his eyes
So he played a trick on the Ocean deep
The waves to fight and havoc to wreak
And in doing that wrong, lost his soul’s song.
Place the Wise Elder Doll on the Eye and the Trickster Doll on the Sea.
Solving this nursery rhyme causes a number of new Taken to appear on the path behind you, and spawns a trail of black slime that’s often difficult to see.
Follow that trail all the way back down to ground level, back towards Watery, and you’ll find that the rhyme has removed a fallen tree that was blocking a small clearing next to the makeshift bridge.
Take the Lighthouse Charm off the crashed speedboat. It increases the cap on health you can regenerate when standing in Break Rooms and other well-lit areas.
That’s where to find and how to solve all nursery rhyme puzzles in Watery. For more Alan Wake 2 tricks and guides, check out our dedicated game hub.
Published: Nov 8, 2023 02:55 pm