I’ve always been intrigued by the Little Nightmares series but never actually played one. So, third time’s the charm — the stars aligned and my time to creep through this dark and eerie world began with Little Nightmares III.
Full disclosure: I am not a horror girlie. This was a bold move for me, and as it turns out, my nerves were justified.
The Nightmare Begins
Little Nightmares III creeped me out just enough that I sometimes dreaded picking up the controller again — but in that weirdly satisfying, “this game is doing its job” kind of way. The atmosphere was spot-on; the mechanics, not so much.
In Little Nightmares III, you follow little boy Low in a raven mask, and little girl Alone with red pigtails and goggles, across four nightmarish landscapes to escape the land of Nowhere. The best friends each have their own abilities: Low with a bow, and Alone with a wrench. The game really doesn’t give you much more than that, but you do learn a little bit more about the protagonists as you progress.
Players choose to play the game as Low or Alone, each with their own ability and a few alternate costumes. It adds a nice touch of customisation, but the replayability doesn’t go much further than that. Both characters go through largely the same experience, so you won’t get drastically different playthroughs.
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At first, the creepiness ramps up gently — enough to lull me into a false sense of security. Then came Chapter 2’s scuttling boss, which had me clutching my controller a little too tight, and the darker designs of the later chapters, where I basically lived with my flashlight on. To be fair, I’m a self-professed chicken, so what’s mild spookiness to some left me shaking in my boots.
Janky mechanics and story-lite
Given there are two main characters, I assumed there’d be local co-op. Nope. It’s online-only, though the inclusion of a Friend’s Pass softens the blow a bit. Playing solo works fine, though — it’s almost a cosy horror experience, with enough sneaking, sprinting, and puzzle-solving to keep things interesting without being overwhelming.
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The story, however, felt a little thin. There’s an emotional core thanks to the main duo’s growing bond (the ending hurt my heart a little), but much of the worldbuilding feels vague. Maybe longtime fans will pick up more context from the earlier games, but as a newcomer, I didn’t feel like I was missing crucial lore — mostly because not much was explained in the first place. It couldn’t hurt to have a few tutorials in place either.
The real horror, though? The jank. Despite using a controller as recommended, I had moments where my character randomly dropped items or lagged behind my inputs. Combine that with the awkward camera perspective, and some sections — especially the boss fights — became exercises in frustration rather than fear. It was also quite dark overall, which made some parts difficult to navigate, even with a flashlight.
Accessibility
Little Nightmares III opens strong with a robust list of accessibility options. There’s colourblind mode, a character off-screen indicator, and even the ability to highlight characters. It’s a solid offering, though I suspect it’s compensating for the game’s fixed camera perspective.
You can’t adjust the angle much, which makes depth perception tricky — especially during the final boss fight, where I died more times than I’d like to admit. You can choose between mouse and keyboard or controller, although the game strongly recommends the latter (as do I).
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It delivered, sort of…
Little Nightmares III nails its eerie atmosphere and unsettling charm, even if the experience occasionally stumbles over its own mechanics. It’s short (I cleared it in under ten hours) and a little pricey for its length, but it still delivers a compelling blend of tension, puzzles, and uneasy beauty. Not quite a dream — but not a total nightmare either.
Little Nightmares III is out now on PC via Steam, PlayStation 4 and 5, Xbox Series X|S and Xbox One, Nintendo Switch and Switch 2 for $62.95.
Quest Daily scores the Little Nightmares III:
7/10
A copy of Little Nightmares III was supplied to Quest Daily for this review.
