I’ve always been a bit squeamish around anything that involves horror. It’s a genre that I’ve always been on the fence about whenever it came to either watching or playing them, though not one I’m necessarily opposed to. When I first started Little Nightmares II Enhanced Edition on Switch 2, I didn’t really know what to expect. I’ve known about the series for a while but never really dug too far deep past what trailers or small snippets of gameplay revealed. Initially, I was a bit worried the game would be focused on trying to scare instead of delivering a solid game. Thankfully, I was proven wrong, and I instead found a solid puzzle platformer that made me want to check out not only the original Little Nightmares, but the sequel Little Nightmares III as well.
Fear Itself
The overall mood of Little Nightmares II can best be described as being dark and empty. The main character, Mono, and their companion Six explore a dark world while avoiding monstrous entities. Eventually the two make their way to a mysterious tower that’s emitting a strange signal that seems to call to them. Much like the other games in the series, Little Nightmares II has a story that is more told through the environment and minor cutscenes, which I really enjoyed. It makes journeying deeper into the world a much more rewarding experience, as I wanted to see what would happen to both of these characters.
There are also little moments that I noticed while playing that fleshed out the game even more, such as Six gravitating towards any toys found while exploring. Moments like these made me realize these characters, even after going through so much at the end of the day, are just children. It made their whole journey and attempts at survival all the more tragic.
The game is also not as scary as I expected it to be. Sure, there are moments of unease, such as every time a chase sequence begins or when trying to sneak past monsters, but nothing too serious. Which I liked, not just because of my aversion to horror or anything scary, but because the game’s ambience and tone work just how it is, and a misplaced jump scare would just ruin the atmosphere.
This new Nintendo Switch 2 port also runs smoothly at a crisp 60 frames-per-second with load times that breeze past. To compare it to other Switch 2 editions I’ve played, Little Nightmares II Enhanced Edition feels more in line with games like Dave the Diver and Hollow Knight; even if the overall new additions are minuscule, they make already great games feel and play even better.
A Dark World
Little Nightmares II has some of the most beautifully crafted areas I’ve ever seen. Each time I entered a new segment of the world, I was always in awe at how they managed to blend this semi-real world with a twisted dark sense of dread. I really loved how they worked that into the gameplay, as instead of random floating platforms, it became climbing filing cabinets or moving around the ducts. These sections really made me feel like I was traveling through a ruined world.
From a dreary forest to a run-down hospital or a mind-bending tower, I never felt as if the environment was bland, and each area felt as if it had a reason for being there rather than feeling like padding the gameplay. One other aspect of the game I really enjoyed was how each chapter of the game had its own monster to escape from. Each of them had a different gameplay mechanic, such as a long neck used for searching or using the roof for traversal. It was always fun to see how each new area was crafted to suit them and their personality.
There are also minor collectibles scattered across the world, including hats and shadow remnants. The hats are mainly a cosmetic difference to change how Mono looks. Remnants, on the other hand, are there for those truly dedicated to getting the secret end credits of the game, and reveal how this game ties into the previous. Fans of the series would certainly get a kick out of the finale and how it connects to the broader series, whereas newcomers such as myself would only be further interested in playing the original Little Nightmares.
Mixed Signals
However, were some moments during my adventure that I found to be less than ideal. For starters, the platforming was one of the areas I struggled the most with; I would constantly end up failing jumps and dying over and over again, because the game would often fail to register my grab inputs. There were various moments where this would slow down my progress as I would have to retry areas over and over again. It’s one thing for a platformer to have occasional moments of difficulty, but the ways in which Little Nightmares II tripped me up felt downright unfair at times.
One other aspect that felt a bit weak was the new mechanics that each chapter would introduce. For the hospital, it was the flashlight, which helped with both traversal and to prevent mannequins from attacking. While it was a cool feature on the surface, it often felt underutilized, since by the time I started getting used to it, the chapter ended and the flashlight was never used again. The same was felt with the school, which had me doing some light combat. It wasn’t introduced until around the halfway point of the chapter, and while it was also used slightly in the next chapter, it didn’t feel as if it was really necessary.
There were also some minor graphical glitches and issues with Six I noticed when playing. One particular moment was when I was pushed into a rock by my companion, causing my character to jerk around for a second. Luckily, I just walked out of it easily, but it was quite an odd glitch. The other was that when I emerged from a vent first, the game showed the teacher from the school chapter below us. Afterwards, when Six emerged after me and started walking towards where I was standing, the game pushed me towards the floor, causing her to spot me and die but issues like these could just be unique to this port.
Besides a few other minor moments, the game runs and looks fantastic, which is to be expected as overall this is a really good port of a quality game. However I would also be remiss to mention that, while I found this to be a really solid re-release of the original Little Nightmares II, there is no way for owners of the original Nintendo Switch version to upgrade to the Enhanced Edition. I find the decision to be really confusing as this port doesn’t really add anything huge or worthwhile, and feels as if it could just be a free upgrade pack. This makes it hard to justify for players who just want to replay the game with a much smoother experience.
Light In The Dark
While there are some small hiccups along the way, Little Nightmares II Enhanced Edition was a fun ride from beginning to end. The atmosphere and level design were some of the most unique I’ve experienced in a long while. The monsters of each chapter felt fresh and tied into each level naturally, making no two areas feel the same. Unfortunately, small issues such as platforming and the underutilization of mechanics slightly brought down what was a really solid adventure.
I really liked what I played from Little Nightmares II Enhanced Edition; the dreary world, combined with the fun puzzle-solving aspect of the game, made for a charming adventure that I was really hesitant about starting. However, after how much fun I had, I’m more than interested in checking out more from this series. This is definitely an adventure worth jumping into the darkness.
Disclaimer: Bandai Namco provided a Nintendo Switch 2 copy of Little Nightmares II Enhanced Edition for review purposes.
