It Takes Two: Platforming Prodigy Trophy Guide — Helltower Walkthrough

To unlock the Platforming Prodigy trophy in It Takes Two, both Cody and May must each individually complete the Helltower challenge in the Cuckoo Clock chapter — climbing a series of increasingly brutal rotating platforms to the very top. The trophy doesn’t pop for both players at once; each person has to finish the run themselves. The full climb takes under five minutes once you understand the timing patterns, but the clamping walls section and the 45-degree rotation platforms will absolutely humble you if you go in blind.

This guide breaks down every section of the tower floor by floor, with specific timing cues for the parts that most walkthroughs skip over entirely.

Where to Find Helltower in the Cuckoo Clock Chapter

The Cuckoo Clock chapter is the fourth major area in It Takes Two. Unlike the earlier chapters, it strips away almost all combat and leans hard into puzzle-platforming — which makes the Helltower stand out even more when you hit it.

Once you’ve passed through the clock’s interior and emerged into the large Bavarian village area, look to the far side of the town from where you entered. You’ll spot two optional minigames side by side: a horse riding challenge on one side and the Helltower right next to it. The tower is unmissable — it’s the tall structure with platforms spiraling around it. Walk up to the base and interact to start the climb.

Quick note before you begin: complete both the horse minigame and the nearby Zelda easter egg area before moving on from this section. The Zelda easter egg unlocks a separate missable trophy, and it’s easy to walk past it if you’re focused on Helltower.

Platforms 1–3: The First Section Is Genuinely Fine

Seriously, don’t psych yourself out here. The opening three platforms rotate smoothly and continuously around the tower — no snap jumps, no sudden direction changes, nothing tricky. They move at a consistent speed in a wide arc, which gives you plenty of reaction time.

Jump onto the first platform when it swings toward you, ride it partway around, then hop to the second and third. The only way to fall here is by waiting too long at the base or jumping sideways off the edge out of panic. Take it slow, let the platform come to you, and you’ll reach the third level in about 30 seconds without issue.

This section exists mostly to teach you the core rhythm of the tower — land, stabilize, look for the next platform, jump. That rhythm matters a lot more once the rotations get unpredictable.

Platforms 4–5: Timing the Shoot-and-Retract Mechanic

This is where the tower earns its name. Platforms 4 and 5 don’t rotate — they shoot outward from one side of the tower, pause briefly, retract, then shoot out from the opposite side. The pattern is: extend → hold → retract → extend opposite → hold → retract → repeat.

The critical mistake here is staying stationary on a platform after landing. As soon as you land on either of these platforms, move toward the next one immediately. The hold phase is short — community testing puts it at roughly two seconds before retraction begins — and if you’re still standing there when it pulls back, you’re dropping to the bottom.

How to handle it cleanly:

• Watch the platform’s full extension before jumping. Don’t jump mid-travel.
• Land near the inner edge of the platform, closer to the tower, so you have more time to react.
• The moment you land, orient yourself toward platform 5 and get ready to jump.
• For platform 5, the same rules apply — land, move, don’t linger.

If you’re playing as the second player on a shared screen, the camera can compress slightly here and make depth perception harder. Give yourself an extra beat to confirm the platform is fully extended before committing.

The Clamping Walls Section: The Real Checkpoint

After platform 5, you’ll land on a small rotating platform that snaps in 45-degree increments rather than moving smoothly. That snap-rotation is your signal that the clamping walls section is next — and this is where most players restart three or four times before figuring out the logic.

The mechanic works like this: two walls on opposite sides periodically slam together, meeting in the middle, then separate back outward. Your goal is to wall-jump up between them using the clamp timing as your window.

Here’s the pattern that actually works, broken down beat by beat:

1. Walls separate. Do not jump yet. Wait.
2. Walls begin closing. Still wait — this is the trap that gets most people.
3. Walls clamp fully together. Now jump onto the wall surface.
4. Hold your position. Stay pressed against the wall while it’s clamped. Don’t attempt to jump again yet.
5. Walls begin to separate again. Use that moment to jump across to the opposite wall.
6. Hold position on the opposite wall. Wait for the next full clamp cycle.
7. Repeat — one jump per full clamp cycle, alternating walls, climbing incrementally each time.

The single most important rule: one jump per clamp cycle. Trying to squeeze in two jumps during one open phase almost always sends you into a wall or off the edge. The walls don’t have a long hold at the clamped position — but it’s long enough to land, stabilize, and prep the next jump. Trust the rhythm instead of rushing it.

One non-obvious detail: the wall surface has enough friction to keep you in place while clamped, but if you’re holding a directional input away from the wall, you’ll slide off. Keep your input neutral or pressed toward the wall while waiting for the cycle to complete. This isn’t documented anywhere obvious in the game’s UI, but it makes the section dramatically more consistent once you know it.

Each player has to complete this independently, so if one of you is struggling here, the other person can watch the full cycle a few times and call out the timing. Having someone narrate “clamp — jump — hold — clamp — jump” out loud makes a surprising difference.

Platforms 6–9: The Final Rotation Gauntlet

After surviving the clamping walls, the remaining four platforms mix the two movement types you’ve already seen: some rotate smoothly, some snap in 45-degree increments. The game is essentially asking whether you’ve internalized both patterns well enough to switch between them on the fly.

Platform 6 rotates smoothly — same as the early section, no surprises. Platform 7 snaps at 45 degrees. Platform 8 returns to smooth rotation. Platform 9 snaps again before the final top surface.

For the smooth platforms: ride, don’t rush. Let the arc carry you most of the way to the next platform’s position before jumping.

For the snap platforms: the key difference from smooth rotation is that these platforms pause briefly between each 45-degree increment. That pause is your jump window. If you jump while the platform is mid-snap, you’ll get inconsistent launch angles. Wait for the pause, then go.

This section is legitimately easier than the clamping walls — the challenge is mostly mental, since you’re tired and don’t want to drop back to the bottom. Keep your movements deliberate. The top is right there.

Once you reach the summit, the Platforming Prodigy trophy unlocks. There’s also an optional fireworks display at the top you can trigger — purely cosmetic, but a satisfying flourish after that climb. Again, both players must reach the top independently for both to receive the trophy; one person finishing while the other watches doesn’t count.

Common Helltower Mistakes — And How to Avoid Them

Q: I keep falling on platforms 4–5. What am I doing wrong?
Almost certainly waiting too long after landing. The shoot-and-retract platforms don’t give you time to stand still and think. Land near the tower-side edge and immediately start moving toward the next jump. Treat landing as the beginning of the next jump, not a pause.

Q: The clamping walls keep crushing me even when I think I’m timing it right.
You’re probably jumping on the open phase rather than the clamped phase. It’s counterintuitive — you’d expect to jump when the walls are apart — but the section requires you to jump onto the wall when it’s clamped. Watch one full cycle without jumping to confirm the rhythm, then commit.

Q: Does it matter which player goes first?
No. There’s no order requirement. Both players can attempt Helltower in any sequence. The only requirement is that each player completes the full climb without assistance — you can’t be carried through on another player’s run.

Q: Can I practice sections mid-climb, or do I start over from the bottom each time I fall?
You restart from the base every time. There are no mid-tower checkpoints in this minigame. That’s partly what makes the clamping walls so high-stakes — falling there means repeating the entire lower section before getting another attempt at it.

Q: Is there any difference between the PS4, PS5, and PC versions for this section?
The timing patterns are identical across platforms as of the January 2025 patch. Frame rate doesn’t meaningfully affect the wall-clamp timing windows, so a locked 30fps on last-gen consoles is perfectly viable for completing this.

Q: My co-op partner keeps distracting me during the climb. Any tips?
Communicate before starting. One person goes, the other watches silently until it’s their turn. Talking through the clamping walls section in real time can actually help — but only if the watching player is narrating the cycle, not chatting about something unrelated.