Layers of Fear Guide | How To Solve The Empty Frames Puzzle

Here's a guide on how to solve the empty frames puzzle in Layers of Fear.

Game Guide by Groot on Jan 19, 2026

In the world of Layers Of Fear, your eyes can often play tricks on you. During the first chapter of the Painter's Story, you will enter a room filled with empty frames and easels that has no obvious way out. To move forward, you must change how you look at the world around you. This guide will help you see through the illusions to find the hidden exit.

Layers of Fear, Guide, How To Solve The Empty Frames Puzzle, Nintendo Switch 2, Gameplay, Screenshot, NoobFeed

Seeing the Hidden Door

When you first walk into the room, you will see a Canvas on an Easel in front of you and another Easel near a Statue that has no head. To start, walk to the opposite side of the room. If you turn around and look back, the Canvas will look like an empty Frame. If you look through that Frame, a new Canvas will show up near the door where you first entered.

Go back to that new Canvas near the entrance. If you look at it from the far side of the room again, it also turns into a Frame. Looking through this second Frame will reveal a third Easel on the left. When you look through this final Frame, the Door on the far wall will finally appear.

Layers of Fear, Guide, How To Solve The Empty Frames Puzzle, Nintendo Switch 2, Gameplay, Screenshot, NoobFeed

Finding the Key

The Door is locked, so you will need to find a Key to get out. You must stand in a very specific spot to see it. Go back to the very first Frame and stand a bit to the right. From this angle, you should be able to see the Easel near the Statue, which now has its own Frame.

Walk over to this newest Frame and look through it at the Statue. When you look through the glass, the Statue will disappear. Look down at the floor where it used to be to find the Key. Once you pick it up, you can unlock the Door and keep exploring the rest of the house.

Also, check our Layers of Fear Review other guides below: