“That cathartic experience of going through something awful together
Little NightmaresDNA runs strong in Tarsier Studios new game.
A long-limbed man riding a bicycle in a threadbare suit chases children down an alley.
A gangly, bowler-hatted pursuer scuttles down a long table like a spider.
It’s familiar enough territory, at least at first glance.
Its two playerco-op, for starters.
Local or online, though youll still be able to play through solo.
Mervik describes the aim as offering up that cathartic experience of going through something awful together.
New, too, is a directed, shared camera; distinct from Little Nightmares fixed, side-on perspective.
The aim here is more curated, directed scenes, even as you’re off exploring optional locations.
For us, [adventure] has been the word, he continues.
We want that sense of excitement, but also that sense of abject terror.
But if thats all you ever feel, you begin to not feel anything.
But Reanimals most striking twist on Little Nightmares is its new preoccupation with big barnyard bastards.
Theres another beastie that eludes classification, scurrying about the trailer with limbs emerging from a vast cocoon.
The look of the characters and monsters is centered around the shared past of these kids, says Mervik.
Ah, there’s that Silent Hill inspiration again.
A comforting scent made repugnant, like someone pissed in your bread maker while you werent looking.
Id say violent is the word Id use most.
What this world is - why its the way it is.
Oh, its a lovely pine forest.
How can we destroy that?
As someone trying to report on the game, I find the sudden shift a little jarring.
But, as someone who loved both Little Nightmares games dearly, Mervik’s excitement is contagious.
It feels, despite the tangent, like a deeply focused and intentional project.
Short, but never truncated.
Perfectly formed, and perfectly unsettling.
Reanimal looks to carry on that tradition.
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