Little Nightmares II: PS4 Review

Developed by Tarsier Studios

Released by Bandai Namco

Platform: PS4

When it comes to stealth games, atmosphere is everything.

And Little Nightmares II has it in spades from its deeply unsettling opening moments.

You're Mono, a boy who wears a little coat and appears to have a bag with eye-slits on his head, who wakens on the outskirts of a wood and has to make his way from there.

Whereas Six navigated the Maw in the previous game, moving with caution through areas and solving puzzles, Little Nightmares II throws you into the open a little more - but with the same devilish designs on ending your game before it's began.

Mono has a bit more access to other movements than Six appeared to - among other things, he's able to wave sticks to set traps off as he negotiates the 2.5D world. But in truth, that won't help if you don't see the traps coming in the first place.

From the Wilderness to a creepy school room, there's plenty of unsettling touches scattered throughout Little Nightmares II that make it just about shake off its familiarity from the first game. While the reappearance of Six later on doesn't make the game become a co-op playthrough, it does give the game a feeling of existence within that universe. (And certainly, the game's end will be enough for some).

There is occasionally the feeling that the game is unnecessarily cruel at times as you step out into spotlights and are taken out by various creatures almost instantaneously, but there is also a feeling that gradual learning benefits Mono's journey as it progresses. And the Mono and Six relationship does very much put you in mind of the protagonists Lil and Laarg of Escape Plan that was launched back in 2012 for the launch of the PlayStation Vita. (Remember that?)

Once again, the creatures of Little Nightmares prove to be the nightmare fuel of the game, and add greatly to the unnerving edges that play out. The puzzle platformer refuses to hold your hand, and is all the better for doing so, but it can occasionally frustrate those unable to see where the perverse solution may lie.

Oversized monsters, creepy level design and an eerie atmosphere as you traipse through Pale City make Little Nightmares II something of a low-key triumph. It's a sign that indies are in fine fettle and well worth diving into and certainly this one will keep you up at night from its scares and its puzzles.

A review key for Little Nightmares II was provided by publisher Bandai Namco.