A Small Hunger Begins
I didn’t come to Little Nightmares on my own. Surprisingly, I came to this game because of my wife, someone who usually avoids anything remotely spooky. But for whatever reason, this eerie, side-scrolling horror puzzle game caught her interest, and before I knew it, we were playing through it together. When I asked her what it was that drew her in, all she could really say is that the game hooked her. It was fun, challenging in the right ways, and no matter what happened on screen... she couldn't look away.
That alone set the tone for my experience. Little Nightmares isn’t just about fear, it’s more so about curiosity. The kind that pulls you forward even when you’re not entirely sure you want to see what’s next.
Welcome Aboard The Maw
Little Nightmares drops you into the role of a small, raincoat-wearing child named Six, trapped inside a massive, nightmarish vessel known as The Maw. During the entire experience, there’s no dialogue. No exposition. No helpful voice in your ear telling you what’s going on. Instead, the game asks you to observe, to experiment, but most importantly... survive.
You’ll sneak past grotesque, oversized beings, solve environmental puzzles, and navigate spaces that feel just slightly “off”. It's like a bad dream you can’t quite wake up from. Every room you enter feels intentional, like it exists to tell a story you can't quite understand. Every encounter feels like it means something… even if you can’t fully explain what that something is.
The Beauty of Not Knowing
One of my favorite things about Little Nightmares is that it never fully explains itself. You’re left piecing together the story through visuals, character behavior, and the unsettling world around you. And instead of feeling frustrating, I found that ambiguity pulled me in even more. And that, despite all of the horror visuals and unsettling atmosphere, is what hooked my wife as well.
All of it together turns the experience into something personal. Your interpretation becomes the interpretation. What I took away from the "narrative" and experience was different for my wife, and I suspect it could be different for you, too.
What’s really going on in The Maw? Who are these disturbing figures? Why is Six here? The game never gives you clean answers, and I wouldn’t want it to. I do know that future games and other content do expand this world in some ways, but as it exists in this game, this moment, I love it how it is.
Tiny Steps, Heavy Feet
Now, when it comes to how this game controls... Well, it's not perfect.
Movement can feel a little clunky, especially when precision matters. There were definitely moments where I missed a jump or fumbled a grab and wasn't completely convinced it was purely my fault. That said, it never ruined the experience. The game is pretty forgiving with checkpoints, so failure doesn’t set you back too far. It becomes more of a rhythm: try, fail, adjust, move forward.
I will say this, though. If you’re someone chasing that no-death run for the hardest trophy... Good luck. Seriously. I don’t have the patience for that, and this game absolutely doesn’t make it easy. Still, it's not game breaking, but the chunkiness does keep this game from being a near-perfect experience, though I understand that frustration will vary depending on your tolerance level for this sort of thing.
Lessons Learned through Failure
One thing Little Nightmares does really well is trusting the player to figure things out.
It doesn’t hold your hand. It doesn’t give hints. And it definitely doesn’t go easy on you just because you’ve failed a few times. If anything, it doubles down. There’s a bit of trial-and-error baked into the experience, but instead of feeling cheap, it often feels like part of the design. You learn by doing, by failing, and trying something slightly different the next time.
And when it clicks, it’s satisfying in a quiet, understated way. But that all comes with a huge caveat. You have to be okay with this sort of approach and be accepting of the fact that you will get no hints and no assistance. The Maw is a harsh place, and I personally like that I truly had to conquer it instead of having the experience handed to me.
A Straight Path Through Crooked Walls
Little Nightmares is very linear. There’s one path forward, and most puzzles have a specific solution you need to figure out.
Sometimes, I appreciated that. It kept the pacing tight and made the experience feel curated, like I was moving through a carefully designed nightmare. Other times, I found myself wishing for just a bit more freedom. Another way to approach a puzzle. A different solution. Something to make the experience feel a little less restrictive.
It’s not a dealbreaker by any means, but it’s noticeable, especially if you’re someone who enjoys experimenting with different approaches. Personally I think I preferred the linear approach, though that's probably the old man in me talking who doesn't have a lot of time for gaming. I'd much rather a linear path so long as the path is memorable. And this one most certainly is.
Lingering Feelings in the Dark
When I look back on Little Nightmares, I don't think back to the imperfect mechanics or the game's systems. I think about moments.
The way a room felt before I even understood what I needed to do. The tension of sneaking past something I definitely didn’t want chasing me. The quiet unease that never really lets up, even in the calmer sections.
And what made it even better was playing it alongside my wife. There’s something about experiencing a world this strange and unsettling with someone else, especially someone who doesn’t usually gravitate toward horror, that made it stick with me more.
Little Nightmares isn’t trying to be a mechanically perfect game. At its core, it’s trying to make you feel something. And it succeeds. Yes, the controls can be clunky. Yes, the gameplay is linear. But what it lacks in precision, it makes up for in atmosphere, mystery, and a sense of quiet dread that stays with you after the experience is over.
It’s a short journey, but it’s one that lingers. And really... isn't that what a little nightmare is supposed to do?
"Lure Of The Maw" from Little Nightmares (Bandai Namco, 2017). Downloaded via KHInsider. All rights belong to Bandai Namco.