Nabbing all 18 will require more than one playthrough, as well as a whole lot of patience, and some of them require you to stare at paintings for extended periods of time (probably to induce madness in the player akin to that of the story’s protagonist).
Below is a full list of all the achievements and how to unlock them. Be sure to also check out our complete review of this minimalist but effectively frightening game, along with our Layers Of Fear tips and tricks walkthrough for the more difficult puzzles.
Wanderer
Take a thousand steps
This one is simple to achieve as you’ll get it just by exploring the mansion. Unless you are going for a speed run and not exploring all the nooks and crannies, you’ll probably get this one to pop not long into the second chapter.
Wanderer achievement
It’s covered up for a reason
Get working on the Magnum Opus
This achievement unlocks as soon as you pull the white drape off your unfinished painting at the end of the game’s first segment. You can’t miss it, as it’s required to move forward in the story.
It’s covered up for a reason achievement
Scraps of love
Find a memento of your family
There are a wide variety of different mementos you can pick up throughout the game to unlock this achievement.
One of the earliest can be discovered when you find the first locked combination chest containing a ring. The ring itself isn’t the memento you need (that actually unlocks the “It rings a bell” achievement listed below). Head into the next room near the combination lock and you’ll find a large cabinet with glass doors. Open the left side and grab the photograph to unlock the achievement.
If you missed the photo memento, you can still get the achievement by picking up a hand-written letter discovered after you drop down through the floorboards near a fireplace, or any of the other memento collectibles later in the game.
Scraps of love achievement
It rings a bell
Discover an echo from the past
In the first Layers Of Fear chapter you will come across a room with a candelabra, three paintings, and a chest with a combination lock. Light the candles to reveal numbers on the paintings, which are actually the code for the combination lock. Open the lock to grab the ring and unlock this achievement.
It rings a bell achievement
Artist’s struggle
Embrace death for the first time
There are several locations where you can embrace death and get the achievement to pop. Most involve going into an obviously dangerous area or running towards your ghostly wife when you should be running away. Walking under the stacked chairs in the hallway in chapter four will also unlock the achievement.
Artist’s struggle achievement
Inspired OCD
Search 100 drawers and cabinets
The whole point of the game is finding clues as to why the painter has gone mad and what happened to his family, so of course you should be opening every last drawer and cabinet you find! After the 100th drawer gets raided, you’ll be awarded with the dubious honor of having “Inspired OCD!”
Inspired OCD achievement
The artist’s impression
Collect a rat sketch
The mad painter does NOT like rats, as is evidenced by the hundreds of rat traps that will spontaneously appear and disappear in his fevered explorations. For this achievement, you just have to pick up any of the disturbing rat sketches he’s drawn that are scattered across the game.
The first is discovered after falling through the floorboard by the fireplace. Head over to the candle in the corner and the drawing can be found in the broken wall.
A different rat drawing is found in the bathroom after you discover the doll floating in the tub, and another can be found on the dining room table showcasing a rat with wings.
The artist’s impression achievement
You might have a problem
Gather all drawings of rodents
You’ve always wanted a collection of weird and disgusting rat sketches, right? You’ll have to acquire 16 for this achievement - read our full guide to finding them all right here.
You might have a problem achievement
Those eyes can pierce a man’s soul
Marvel at the Furboy’s portrait for a total of 5 minutes
This ridiculous achievement is available to unlock both at the very beginning of the game and again in chapter five. Just go into the office on the top floor, face the painting, and walk away for five minutes.
Those eyes can pierce a man’s soul achievement
Sketchbook of the damned
Uncover the developers’ faces
To get this achievement you have to fully complete the game and get the ending where you see your wife in the finished painting. Following the ending cut scene, open the book lying on the floor in front of the broken couch to see a sketch of the developers.
Sketchbook of the damned achievement
Finishing touch
Complete a painting
This achievement unlocks automatically when you finish the main story and get any of the three available endings – which specific ending you discover doesn’t matter.
Finishing touch achievement
Art connoisseur (secret achievement)
Gaze at paintings for a total of an hour
An annoying achievement that will have you doing something else for a significant amount of time, you can get this by facing a painting and walking away to watch some T.V. or something.
If you prefer not to “cheat” like that, it is possible to get this achievement organically by playing through multiple times and searching for all three endings, but you’ll have to put in a significant number of playthroughs to finally hit a full hour of looking at paintings.
Art connoisseur achievement
It was worth a try (secret achievement)
Dial 911
An achievement that makes fun of you for not figuring out a puzzle, this one unlocks if you dial the numbers 9-1-1 on the rotary phone in the fifth chapter.
It was worth a try achievement
Instinct of self-preservation (secret achievement)
Heed the warning
Normally when a horror game tells you not to turn around, the first thing you’ll do is turn around to see what’s going to happen!
Stifle that urge and keep walking forward when you hear the crying woman behind you and see the writing on the wall warning you not to look back. After passing through the door frame, the achievement will pop.
If you haven’t gotten the “artist’s struggle” achievement yet, turning around and being killed by the woman will give you that achievement instead.
Instinct of self preservation
I know what I want
Make up your mind
This achievement is unlocked by completing the game and seeing either the self-portrait or wife and child painting. For details on reaching those endpoints, see our full endings guide here.
I know what I want achievement
Whispers long forgotten
Recall every word you said
To get this achievement, you have to discover all the secret spoken word segments. One of them is found in the hallway filled with paintings on both sides – when one goes flying across to the other side, look on the back of the painting to trigger the words.
Stay tuned for our complete collectibles guide that will reveal the location of every whispered phrase.
Whispers long forgotten achievement
Immortalized in my heart
Gather all family mementos
Another achievement requiring that you find all the collectibles, this one pops after grabbing all the family mementos (see “scraps of love” above for a few locations).
A full collectible guide will arrive shortly giving all the locations of each family memento to be found in Layers Of Fear.
Immortalized in my heart achievement
Omniscient
Witness all outcomes
You have to get all three distinct endings for this achievement, which requires changing how you explore the mansion and what you interact with.
For the first ending showing a painting of your wife and the baby, trigger every scene involving your wife, pick up all her mementos, and push the wheelchair found at the end of the game.
For the second ending showing a self-portrait of the painter, don’t trigger any of the death scenes at all and don’t push the wheelchair.
For the third ending showing a painting of just your wife, don’t pick up anything you don’t have to acquire to move the story forward, and only trigger a single wife death scene during the course of the game.
Omniscient achievement
We’re still working towards unlocking all 18 of these Layers Of Fear achievements - let us know when you manage to successfully hit them all!
