PS4 Review Code Provided by Tarsier Studios
It has been a while since we first journeyed through the strange world of Little Nightmares, but Tarsier Studios has sent us back into this odd dystopia once again with Little Nightmares II. Just as they did before, they created a game that tells its story through the strange visuals and disturbing animations that bring their world to life. This time we take on the role of a new kid named Mono and go through the adventure he had alongside Six, the original protagonist of the series.
Story
After waking up in the forest, following a strange dream of an unknown hallway, Mono finds himself in a world that has been distorted by an evil transmission. Knowing he is trapped in this reality, he sets out to find the source of this transmission alongside his new friend, Six.
Gameplay
When it comes to the controls, you are given the same as you had in the first game. This means you can walk, run, sneak, jump, grab objects, and throw objects throughout the limited 3D environment. The only new mechanic is that you will be able to swing some objects like a weapon for the fighting sections they added. I am happy to say that these fighting sections feel very authentic to the game style and atmosphere.
This game is all about getting through abstract puzzles and overcoming enemies with either stealth or action, so be ready to think each room through on how to proceed. Some will be straightforward while others will require a specific action that will likely not be obvious at first. Each enemy encounter will need its own way of being handled as well, so take a moment to observe each threat before trying to go with your first instinct; presumably being to crouch and move quickly.
Probably the most interesting part of the game is when you reach the TV portals. While I don’t want to give away too much information, know that here you will be facing a mixture of cleverly getting from point A to B while outmaneuvering the brainwashed, signal-searching enemies. While there are multiple parts of the game where you will need to be clever to safely clear the room or segment, I definitely found this whole concept intriguingly entertaining.
Keep on the lookout for hidden areas as well. Just as the first game had, there are hidden collectibles in the form of different hats that Mono can wear and glitched figures. Glitched figures simply have to be touched to be claimed, which will trigger an animation where Mono becomes distraught, but the hats have to be picked up. Once you collect a hat, you can simply select it from the pause menu and you will be now wearing that hat you found. Personally, I found the gnome hat in the beginning and didn’t change it throughout because that hat is all I could have wanted.
Visuals
They kept to the same art style and animations as the first game. All animations were different for each enemy though, which was definitely a nice touch. From clean movements in your own character’s animations to wild movements in the porcelain children to clunky movements of the teacher and even unique, static-lag type movement for the tall “Signal Man” (as I referred to him as). All this with fitting backgrounds and scenery to give off the dystopian style of a town plagued by a strangely dangerous transmission.
Sounds
They didn’t use a lot of background music in the game unless they were trying to bring focus to something or raise the intensity of a situation. This left us with almost nothing but sound effects to hear as we made our way through the desolate and horrid world. The only time I heard non-situational music was when it came from an in-game source which definitely added to the immersive pull this game’s whole set up has.
Replayability
While the levels themselves will remain the same, there are always the collectibles to go back for. Other than wanting to experience the game again, try to better observe certain scenes or sections of the game, or gathering collectibles, there isn’t much of a reason to go back through it.
Conclusion
Little Nightmares II is a perfect continuation of an intriguing series! From start to finish, I kept finding myself enjoying the craziness behind the puzzle-filled adventure and have to admit that this one is actually a bit scarier than the first. The enemies were unique, the situations were fun to get through, and many of the puzzle sections had challenging moments. Truly worth experiencing yourself.
