Little Nightmares 2 (2021)
Little Nightmares is a solid game, but Little Nightmares 2 expands on the previous horror puzzle-platformer in clever ways, with more intricate puzzles, even more impressive visuals, and a co-op mechanic. As someone who is a pretty poor platform game player (I rush too much), making players do tricky platforming while scared is such a brilliant conceit and LN2 executes it incredibly.
The sequel introduces a new protagonist, Mono, though it also brings back the first game’s lead, Six, as the other playable character. While traveling through a forest laden with traps, Mono discovers a creepy old house filled with decaying meat, scary mannequins, and Six, who is being held hostage. From then on, Six is with you—though not all the time. Little Nightmares 2 lets you play through much of the game with an emotional support character, which helps things feel less scary as you’re not entirely alone—but when Six and Mono are separated, the fear creeps up the back of your throat like bile. — AM
