How to get the shotgun in In Sound Mind

After a few hours of playtime with In Sound Mind, the pistol may not be doing it for you anymore. If you’re seeking an upgrade to your arsenal, the shotgun is the next logical step. Unlike the pistol, which required finding different pieces to be assembled, In Sound Mind’s shotgun is acquirable after completing an optional puzzle.

Players shouldn’t worry about the shotgun until after finishing Allen’s tape. This is the second major tape in the game, rewarding a flare gun as a permanent inclusion to Desmond’s inventory. After returning to the main facility from Allen’s tape, you’ll want to take the elevator to the first floor.

After reaching the first floor, take a left at the fork. Keep following this path until you see a room cordoned off with police tape to your left. The plaque above reads “ventilations.” Use the glass shard to cut the police tape and open the door. You’ll notice a dark pit in front of a suspicious air vent.

Use your newly acquired flare gun to get rid of the darkness, then break the vent with the glass shard. The shotgun is hanging by a string, but it’s just out of reach. Shooting at the wooden board in the vent’s top left corner with the pistol untangles the shotgun, causing it to fall to the floor below.

After doing that, return to the basement floor. As soon as you step out of the elevator, you’ll want to make a left at the staircase right beside you. Take both flights of stairs and open the door waiting at the top. This room carries another familiar sight: a dark pit with a red light source hanging on the wall above it. Use the flare gun again to eradicate the darkness.

And there it is. All you have to do is walk up, interact with it, and the shotgun is all yours. It starts you off with four bullets of ammunition.