The Rules for a Sequel

So like the ill-fated Randy from the Scream saga, I am going to kick things off with a few rules you absolutely must follow in order to maximise both your understanding of events in this game and your immersion into the horror that lies ahead. Rule number one is that you must have played the first Little Nightmares, this is a given and I doubt many will make this mistake; but occasionally some will slip through the net. If you have not played Little Nightmares begone. The second rule is that you categorically have to play this game in a dark room, on your own with the best set of headphones you can get your sweaty little mitts on. If you don’t meet these conditions for playing Little Nightmares 2 I don’t even know what to say to you: trust me, it will be infinitely better. The third rule is a funny one for me as I usually avoid them where I can. However, sometimes there is no getting around it; for this game, a controller is a must for reasons I will elaborate on later. Ok, are we all set? Let us take a look at Little Nightmares 2 on PC.

Innocent Until Proven Guilty

The idea of intentionally scaring yourself silly may seem idiotic in the cold light of day but there is something deliciously satisfying about surviving a horror film with all your fingernails intact. Every Halloween I spend a month watching my favourite horror flicks including classics like John Carpenters Halloween and The Thing. There are many types of horror films and in recent times the images of scary children have been the flavour of the day. Children are the embodiment of innocence and for many the absolute line that should not be crossed. Maybe this is why classics like Poltergeist and Omen were so successful. As well as in cinema, this line is also now being tentatively crossed in gaming with such excellent titles such as Limbo and Inside.

Ok, last spoiler warning for the first game: if you are still reading and have not played Little Nightmares please run away screaming now. Little Nightmares placed you in control of a child who from the very start seemed frail, lost and helpless. As you guide her through the brutal and depraved city the developers are misleading you based on the preconceived notion of innocence. This deception is brought home in a shocking sequence that I truly did not see coming. Obviously, I won’t spoil events for the sequel but I stepped into this second game determined not to be so trusting this time around. I think it is a testament to the fantastic storytelling by the writers at Tarsier Studios: they really did get me again and left me staring at the screen with jaw aptly dropped.

Nightmare Fuel

Like in the previous title, each chapter comes with an overwhelming foe that will hound you at every turn. Chapters will also come with a distinct theme (or city location) which will give the game world its own flavour as well as presenting new tricks to learn. I won’t detail any of the later mechanics for the sake of spoilers but one early ability is utilising a discarded torch. If you shine a torch in any dark room it will conjure elongated shapes, that in the right frame of mind can be nightmare fuel. Tarsier uses this to startling effect, often leaving you in a situation where you want to illuminate the darkness but are also terrified of what you might see. 

In one of my favourite episodes of Doctor Who (the Time of Angles), the Time Lord must defeat an army of stone angels that only move when you are not looking at them. In a twisted version of this concept, Mono must direct his torchlight at his attackers in order to render them immobile. This is at first a simple task (although admittedly shocking) but like every new challenge, the developers very quickly start messing with the rules.

Overall this sequel does feel like a continuation rather than an evolution, this is especially so in the first chapter. You wake in the woods, seemingly lost and must start your journey to ‘somewhere’ in earnest. As with the previous title you can walk around within a limited strip of space which has been used in some very clever ways. There is also a good degree of verticality in some areas and you must often backtrack in order to solve some puzzles. The overall direction of your journey is from left to right whether creeping to avoid detection or racing for your life in one of the many excellent chase sequences. The actions open to you are a simple offering, sprint, jump, grab and that is pretty much your lot. You can manipulate certain objects which then becomes key mechanics for progression but I’ll leave those a mystery. While the puzzle-solving didn't really stop me in my tracks the way you achieve your goals is so well thought out, I didn't mind the easier difficulty.

Keep Your Enemies Closer

Very early on in the game you will come across Six, the little girl who you play as in the first title. I won’t go into the details of how this little alliance comes about but in terms of gameplay, you have an AI-controlled buddy along for the ride. As you can imagine, many of the obstacles ahead of you will require the efforts of both Mono and Six in order to progress. These co-op puzzles can range from something as simple as a boost to reach a door handle to more complicated collaborations.

Overall I think this friendship works both story-wise and also mechanically. You can take Six by the hand and lead her but aside from the first area, I didn't feel like this was a well-used mechanic. I addition you can call to Six but this didn't seem to factor into the gameplay much. If I had to be picky I’d say these were great ideas that were just not utilised properly, but this is a really minor issue. On the whole, the way these two friends work together is very well designed and I didn’t come across any pathing issues. I did occasionally wonder how well this would work as a co-op game but maybe Tarsier felt the inclusion of another player might hamper the incredible atmosphere.

Sin City

The world in which you find yourself is cruel, grotesque and sick. In what seems like perpetual night time the rain hammers down like icy blades, washing down rooftops like rivers, overwhelming gutters and drains alike. Even when inside the elements are fighting to tear this dark city down, swelling beams of wood and assaulting plaster with the relentless indifference of time. All around you are signs of death and decay, bodies left hanging and the detritus of these foul creatures in every corner. In many scenes, you can clearly see an influence from contemporary horror films such as The Ring and the now well known slender man. Obviously, the impression of distant streets and silhouettes of industrial structures is an illusion for the sake of atmosphere, but part of me still wanted to break away from my path and explore these places.

Large bloated creatures (who at first could pass as humans) thump around the place going about their depraved activities. In the first game and like in any good horror film, the victim is stripped of any means of fighting back and thus the feeling of helplessness is heightened. Our plucky hero Mono does seem eager to retaliate when he has the opportunity. In some situations, you will use your small size to outmanoeuvre a larger foe in order to gain the upper hand, but obviously fighting these massive beings outright is instant death. Interestingly Mono can also pick up certain items such as axes and pipes in order to take a swing at something. This can be a splintered door that is baring your progress or even some of the smaller foes that are attempting to throttle you. I was worried that giving the player a means to hit back may diminish that essential feeling of inevitable death, however, these combat situations are used sparingly.

Is it PC?

For once my performance section is defunct other than to tell you this game runs like a dream and even on ultra settings I was getting upwards of 130fps at 1440p. I did experience the occasional stutter but I could count these occurrences on one hand so nothing to worry about there. Utilising the Unreal 4 engine Little Nightmares 2 is a very impressive game in the visuals department. The texture work and visual effects are expertly applied and animation is clearly something the team spent a lot of time getting just right. Some of the bigger enemies still have that almost claymation look to them, especially when limbs start to extend, but I actually think this fits really well with the deformed nature of these creatures. Mono and Six exist in a world that will snuff them out in a heartbeat and their tentative movements often reflect this. You can play this game on keyboard and mouse which does about as well as possible, but controller is king here because the analogue sticks offer that fine degree of control over waking speed. There is also a section where you must aim your torch at enemies and this is where playing on keyboard and mouse became an issue.

The sound design in a game like this is vital and why I think playing with headphones on is the way to go. Even though your playtime will probably be no more than ten hours you will visit an impressive range of locations and each will play on your nerves in different ways. Like any good horror director knows, the mind truly fears what it cannot see and yet you can clearly hear something moving in the shadows. One chapter, in particular, has an enemy with such a spine-tingling sound effect that every time I heard it I would immediately dive for the nearest cover (in-game mostly). The sound of the dark city is also something that I found to be both fascinating and dread-inducing. You can hear the hum of barely functional wall fans, the patter of rain seeping into swollen plasterboard and the dry industrial hum from far away. I also loved how well the developers synchronised the sounds effects with the rumble of the controller, which is another reason to go for this input method.

Conclusion 

My first playthrough of Little Nightmares 2 took just under seven hours and that including time taking screenshots for the review. So the obvious issue is that some players may feel that twenty-five pounds for seven hours of gameplay isn’t a good return on investment. I will say I have never rated games in this way because I know from experience I would then have missed out on some absolute gems. Like the prior game, your time in this world is fleeting, but in my opinion is also worth every penny for the experience you walk away with. There are some collectables for those so inclined in the form of hats for Mono and the lost souls of those less fortunate than yourself.

Like my review of Little Nightmares, I have kept my thoughts to a minimum as you should enter this game with the least amount of information possible. If you have played the first game and enjoyed it then I can highly recommend this sequel. It does try a few new ideas but doesn’t stray too far from what made the first game such an excellent title. I have no doubt we will be seeing a third instalment in the Little Nightmares saga and I honestly cannot wait to take even more years off my life.

Thank you for reading my review of Little Nightmares 2 on PC. I didn’t receive a review code for the game (despite a valiant effort to get one) so apologies for the review being a few days after release. If you would like to help my site retweeting my reviews on Twitter is always appreciated and you can follow me @riggedforepic