How funny can a horror game be? I can give you the answer. Whether the developers intended this reaction is another matter entirely.
A huge, fat clown is hot on my heels, trying to eat me. An exorbitantly violent baby crawls through the shadows to finish me off. Screaming killer dolls stagger toward me with outstretched arms.
I should be terrified. Instead, tears of laughter fill my eyes. Is this a bad sign for the horror adventure Little Nightmares 3? That depends entirely on what you expect from the game.
Two children at the fair
The premise of Little Nightmares 3: Two children, Low and Alone, must survive in a dark world called The Nowhere. They can only do this by working together, solving puzzles, and using their wits to escape their numerous enemies.
And this is where I come in. More specifically, me and my colleague Antonia Dreßler from IGN Germany.
As a team, we were left alone with the co-op game for two hours. What followed was a series of failures, bad luck, and mishaps, which usually resulted in Low and Alone dying pretty quickly, leaving us laughing in front of the screen.
Want some examples?
One thing is certain: Little Nightmares 3 will be a blast for cozy co-op sessions with a friend!
Here are a few in-game previews of what you can expect in the game:
Try, die, try, die, try, …
But what was our problem? Little Nightmares 3 knows no mercy. If you don’t solve a puzzle quickly enough or don’t understand the situation in front of you in a fraction of a second and react correctly, you’re monster fodder.
The major weakness in the version I played: Important, usable objects were often lost in the highly detailed environment. They didn’t stand out visually from the rest of the scenery, nor was there a slight glow to indicate that we should take a closer look at the object.
This may delight puzzle fans, but it can also be annoying at times. When Antonia and I had to start a scripted confrontation with a voracious clown for the twentieth time because we overlooked a small detail, we stopped laughing and became annoyed.
The controls didn’t make our lives any easier. Not only is the button layout very unintuitive, guaranteeing premature death at the beginning, but some inputs were also recognized semi-well, to say the least – and just like that, we were eaten again / fell down an abyss / were crushed / went up in flames.
Scary alone or fun with friends?
The crux of the matter: Little Nightmares 3 is only halfway scary when you play alone.
For the last twenty minutes, I tried out the passages I had previously completed as a team on my own – then the AI takes over the second character and does a good job of it. Since the AI also knows how to solve the puzzles, it gives us subtle hints when we observe the second character.
Can you tell there’s been a change of developer? Little Nightmares 3 is no longer being developed by Tarsier Studios, like its two predecessors, but by Supermassive Games (Until Dawn, The Quarry). They are experienced horror veterans who are continuing the legacy of the first two games in a worthy manner. The atmosphere, the staging, the focus on puzzles – everything feels like Little Nightmares as fans know and love it.
The bottom line is that the gameplay was significantly better in single-player mode, the atmosphere was more intense due to the much less frequent trial and error, and the creepy mood was more effective. So you have to decide:
- Do you want to experience an atmospheric single-player adventure?
- Do you want to spend a highly enjoyable evening with your friends?
Unfortunately, it seems that Little Nightmares 3 doesn’t allow you to do both. What a shame! But fans of the series can still look forward to its release on October 10, 2025.
Editor’s conclusion
Rarely have I laughed so much at a press event as I did that morning at Bandai Namco. The potential for hilarious co-op games is huge in Little Nightmares 3. But the critical question is: should that be the case?
After all, LM3 strives to be a creepy horror experience. The often pitch-black world, bloodthirsty monsters, a very successful sound design with guaranteed jump scares – and yet there is the unintentional comedy that arises when you and your fellow player act completely silly once again. This is great fun, but it doesn’t quite fit together. Technically, the title leaves little to be desired. The visuals are pretty, the graphic style even stunning. The game world is a disturbing yet fascinating place that I want to learn more about from the very first second. I’m particularly taken with the wacky enemy design. The depressing clowns are almost cute when they’re not trying to rip my head off. Contrary to its name, Little Nightmares 3 won’t give you nightmares in co-op mode. And if it does, it’s only because of the sometimes terribly clunky controls. I can well imagine playing through the game twice. The first time alone with my silent AI companion. And then with my wife. After all, we are state-certified zero checkers in co-op games – it’s going to be fun!