Little Nightmares is a puzzle-platformer from Tarsier Studios, following a small child through the decaying Maw, a vessel of grotesque proportions. The complete main game and all three DLC chapters finished in a single run of roughly four and a half hours.
The horror character designs are the standout, with the Janitor’s gangly arms, the chefs’ melting faces and the heavy breathing making every encounter memorable. The atmospheric dread lands throughout, with the haunting melody and the chanting keeping the mood uneasy.
The hunger mechanic escalates across the run, with a haunting melody playing whenever the child grows hungry. The scale fantasy impresses, with ordinary furniture looming as architecture and giant doors dwarfing the small protagonist.
The DLCs are strong, with the gnome teamwork chapter the favourite as the little creatures are rallied to feed the furnace. The closing confrontation is fair, resolving through a simple fight rather than a punishing gauntlet.
The wordless storytelling carries the same mood as Inside, with the story told through imagery alone. The tight length suits the format, with the complete package including all DLC in about four and a half hours.
The depth perception is the main frustration, with beams and platforms hard to judge when crossing. The controls feel awkward, with grabbing occasionally iffy and falls off edges easy to come by, while the darkness demands maximum brightness.
Overall, the horror designs, the atmosphere and the hunger mechanic make this a memorable journey through the Maw. The depth perception and the awkward controls are the caveats.