There’s a saying that goes like “Don’t fix what isn’t broken”, this is a very important saying that many people in the industry seem to forget, thankfully the people behind Little Nightmares III didn’t forget this crucial advice. Today, I have the honor to bring a Little Nightmares III review for all of you to read, and I’m very happy to see that the people at Supermassive Games didn’t disappoint when it comes to crafting an intricate visual storytelling narrative game. Many doubted that the team would accomplish what Tarsier Studios did, and while it might not be as amazing as Little Nightmares II in my opinion its still pretty close.
The Little Nightmares series is an immensely popular 2.5D Horror Game with a very distinct art style and a variety of environment related puzzles that one needs to solve to progress. It draws from many media, you could argue that Coraline was an inspiration for the first one, while the main idea comes from a popular Indie title called Limbo, which back in the day took the world by storm with its visual storytelling too. Tarsier took that idea and Bandai Namco happened to be interested in acting as a publisher, it was a dream match and a global success.
Little Nightmares III builds upon what isn’t broken, in fact, all of the elements really scream of continuation, or even a resolution itself. We play as Low and Alone, our new duo who will have to travel through the many worlds of Nowhere such as the vast yet empty Necropolis or the dystopian Candy Factory on their quest to free themselves from this new terrifying nightmare. This time, there’s a big new twist to the formula, Cooperative mode couldn’t be properly implemented in Little Nightmares II so it had to be discarded, but Little Nightmares III offers the possibility for you and your friend to tackle this nightmare together.
This is huge, especially when the current gaming landscape is showing us that cooperative games are having a massive surge of popularity recently. It is still possible to play the game alone if you so desire, since you will still be accompanied by a computer controlled version of the character you don’t pick. If you pick Low, or who I affectionately call Plague Kid, you will be able to use his Bow to make your way through nowhere, if you pick Alone, you are constrained to using her wrench. I went with Low since I really like his general design, bow wielders are always quite appealing.
Depending on who you pick, you will be accompanied by a computer controlled version of the character you didn’t pick. Much to the like of Little Nightmares II, collaboration is crucial to survive the nightmare and traverse through it, by using your environment in imaginative ways to solve your issues, and to compliment the weaknesses of each other. This gets further powered up by the fact that you are now able to play it alongside someone else, which makes up for a very interesting experience so you should look forward to grabbing a buddy who wants to tag along.
The setting of the game is genuinely more broken than the other ones, you could argue it does show how things ended and how decay is inevitable. The world of once oppressive adults seems to be whittling away as you move on, crumbling to the ruins of bureaucracy and filled to the brim with disgusting and decaying creatures that one doubts if they are alive or dead anymore. Depictions of suicide are still present here, but there’s a huge focus on exploitation when you analyze all your surrounding environment, as if the main theme of the game wasn’t only delusions but greed itself.
This is some impressive power of telling things by showing you, because not a single world is uttered through the game, and yet, you still infer what is happening on your surroundings and grasp some idea of what’s going on behind the scenes too. Environmental storytelling is definitely the forte of Little Nightmares III and the series as a whole, so rest assured that this entry remains faithful to the others. The world of Little Nightmares III is truly horrifying, since decay seems to be ever present in many rooms, and hostility is more than evident too, I will admit this setting was quite scary compared to previous games.
Everything seems to be out there to get you, being the Monster Baby, or even The Supervisor, a bureaucrat lady with a second personality and a knack for running quite fast after you and your pal. Little Nightmares III outdid itself with the character design, as each new enemy strikes some terror upon you that feels reminiscent to those moments you would find in the first game, but with renewed energy thanks to being developed by another team. It is understandable to doubt of the quality of Little Nightmares III as sending the series to an entirely new team can put the creative ideas behind it at risk, I personally believe that this didn’t happen.
The gameplay is the same as what you remember, even the room transitions are the same, if you want more Little Nightmares in your life then Little Nightmares III is pretty much that, with the addition of being able to play with a friend which is always a plus. This good, very good in fact, when you do a numbered entry on a series this is exactly what should happen, improvements upon what’s already good while ironing the rough parts rather than changing the formula to fit something that the series isn’t. This is the way you respect fans who have been following you since almost a decade and more companies should take notes on this.
Little Nightmares III isn’t without issues however, at times I could swear that it was rather hard to see while using the recommended brightness setting, the environments are very dark. Thankfully there’s a wide array of accessibility options to help people who may struggle with such things, and even if I don’t have visual problems the highlight for objects you can interact with was a life saver in some puzzles, as it sometimes became hard to find what I had to even do because I couldn’t see it. Perhaps I should crank the brightness more but I don’t wanna ruin the artistic intent behind the game, if it is meant to be that dark, so be it.
Things get much better once you find the flashlight halfway around the game, but it would be nice to have some source of light similar to how Six could illuminate her path on command. Leaving this critique aside, Little Nightmares III is exactly how a sequel should be done, just do more of what defined your game, and if you really have the urge to experiment and appeal to a wider market, do a spinoff instead. There really isn’t much to say about Little Nightmares III anymore, the puzzles are fine without anything too crazy, and there’s collectables to pick up along the way too. If you are a fan of the franchise, it is a must get.
Little Nightmares III Review – Verdict
Little Nightmares III: Little Nightmares III is the way to build upon what isn't broken. A primer on how to do a sequel while keeping things fresh, and despite minor inconveniences with the illumination, this tale of two friends was quite an interesting one to see unfold as you advance through the nightmarish world of Nowhere. If you ever wanted to get into Little Nightmares, this is your call to action. – Hiro
[Editor’s Note: Little Nightmares III was reviewed on PC and a copy was provided to us for review purposes.]
