With fans of the first title eagerly awaiting the release of Little Nightmares II in 2021, Bandai Namco and Tarsier Studios decided to give a sample of what’s to come. Releasing a free demo on Steam, anticipating players get their first glimpse into the unsettling scenery that the game will take place in. During this demo, we encounter The Hunter in his cabin within The Wilderness and see that this is going to be a bit more intense than the first game was.
Gameplay
Featuring the same 2.5D movement that we experienced in the first game, players are able to explore a semi-large environment. The camera remains fixed on one side of the entire game, giving the same semi-linear progression direction which helps keep the focus on the subtle environment pieces needed to continue moving forward.
The first few things you will encounter are a variety of traps. Each trap has its own way of hiding, but most of them are triggered the same way; throw a shoe at it so it goes off and traps the shoe instead of you. Of course, not seeing the trap is very possible as the Hunter does a good job setting them, so keep your eyes peeled.
After getting a taste of the dangers this environment holds, you reach the cabin and go inside. Here is where you will run into your partner which is presumably Six, but they don’t have their iconic yellow raincoat yet and we are only given a chunk of the game so this character’s identity can’t be officially confirmed yet. Once you meet up with them, they will start guiding you through the cabin to front the path needed to escape. This path will give us our first taste of cooperation as we will have to work with our AI friend in order to complete the necessary tasks to proceed.
Once you reach outside, the next segment gives off a new threat style for this game series and that is a direct attack from the NPC’s. Sure, we have had plenty of sneaking around in the first game and an unavoidable interaction here and there, but this time you are put under fire - literally! Making progress while being shot at from the Hunter’s shotgun was the most stressful moment of the demo and a part of the game I hope to see plenty more of.
Expectations
This demo alone shows that they are increasing the eerieness, creepiness, and overall oddity that this series is known for. I’m looking forward to seeing the strangest and down-right unsettling atmospheres that the Little Nightmares universe has to offer.
The fact that there is an AI to work with and is an actual core function to the game’s progression makes me believe that there is possibly going to be a two-player mode to this game. Either online or local multiplayer would work, but it would be great to solve the odd puzzles filling this world with a friend. This could be a DLC or side story option if it doesn’t fit in the main game, but it should definitely be there.
I would like to see the intensity presented towards the end of the demo to be more prevalent in the game. Downtime to soak-in and examine the atmosphere while solving puzzles is great, but nothing like heavy pressure to really make you want to press forward.
Conclusion
Little Nightmares II presented a demo that held everything I expected from the next chapter in this game series! The only real issue I had with the demo is that it was too short. After playing through this little chunk of the game, all I have to say is that February can’t come soon enough!
