Little Nightmares 2 recently released to plenty of praise from fans and critics alike. This short horror experience features the adventures of the new protagonist Mono, as well as a mysterious companion he picks up along the way. These small children are left to fend for themselves in a world seemingly at odds with life itself. All of this climaxes in a dramatic encounter that presents the faintest implications of reasons for what exactly happened to this seemingly Earth-like place. However, even though there seems to be plenty more story to tell about the protagonists, monsters, and the world they all inhabit, it seems like Tarsier Studios will not be the one to tell it.
On February 18th, a Q3 earnings call from Embracer Group revealed that Tarsier Studios would be moving on from Little Nightmares to work on new IPs published by the holding company. However, with both the successful sales of Little Nightmares 2 and publisher Bandai Namco’s interest in continuing the series, it feels like it can’t be the end for the Little Nightmares series. SPOILERS FOR LITTLE NIGHTMARES 1 AND 2’S ENDINGs WILL BE DISCUSSED.
Little Nightmares 2 ends with strong hints that it is actually a prequel to the first game, seemingly taking place a very short amount of time before Little Nightmares 1 starts. Mono is trapped in what appears to be a time loop, either becoming the new Thin Man or the old one that he himself had dispelled. Six dooms him to this fate for unknown reasons, and in the secret ending her shadow self points her towards posters showing The Maw to satisfy her growing hunger pains. Finally, and most notably, the Signal Tower seems to have contributed towards at least a chunk of the world being the nightmare it is and is still at large, manipulating the populace and maintaining the monstrous status quo. There are so many hanging plot threads and unanswered questions that the universe almost seems to be begging for further expansion.
There’s more than enough room to take the lore further and build out more of the series’ world, even if very few concrete answers are provided. There could be a look at what Six is doing from another character’s perspective before the events of Little Nightmares 2 (which technically already happened in the mobile game Very Little Nightmares), or after Little Nightmares 1. That would be a very interesting prospect, as showing what Six intends to do with The Lady’s powers might finally explain what her true nature is. It would be fascinating to see Six as a sometimes-hazard, sometimes-helper in a sequel from a new protagonist’s point of view — and perhaps this new character finally would be able to finish a game without being killed or altered in some way.
Alternatively, a new game could look for answers even further backwards. Why does Six go by that name? What made the world so screwed up? Are there any places that are normal? These questions have been lingering over fans’ heads since the original, and a prequel could shed some (partial, of course) light on the topics. The oldest set of comics suggests that there’s more to this somewhat fantastical world than just the most awful, monster-ridden places, and it would be great to see that explored. A new game could even expand on the culture of the Nomes, small creatures present in Little Nightmares and Very Little Nightmares that build tiny civilizations in places the grotesque creatures of the games can’t reach. A co-op title featuring the little creatures would be nicely in line with their portrayals thus far.
Bandai Namco is now left in the awkward position of having a beloved, successful, and contemporary IP on its hands with no developer to build on it. Tarsier has apparently left all the lore it wrote for the series with Namco, and while one of Little Nightmares’ comic adaptations has fallen through, a TV show is rumored to be in the works to fulfill the same role. Namco has a massive amount of influence in the game industry, and even if it can’t find a suitable studio it owns to continue Little Nightmares, it still should be able to hire someone that can do the series justice. An indie North American dev, a small European studio, or even a Japanese developer could be brought on to make the next horror puzzle-platformer, with story supervision handled by Namco itself.
It certainly has good reason to continue the Little Nightmares franchise. Little Nightmares 2 has sold over one million copies just a month after its release, and it’s the first title developed by Bandai Namco Europe to do so that quickly. The accompanying press release for this news also announced that the Little Nightmares series as a whole has now reached over five million players total, which Namco noted to be an important milestone for the western-led franchise. This is where Namco’s declaration of not being able to wait to show fans what’s next comes from, so a continuation of some kind looks very likely.
That sums up the situation with Little Nightmares 2 quite well: a successful game that is likely to receive some manner of sequel, but not from the original creators. A lot of fans are concerned over Namco’s ability to uphold what makes the series special, and keep the magic intact while toeing the line between answering questions and presenting new ones. Much of Little Nightmares’ appeal is its ambiguity due to an absence of words, after all. Not every studio Namco could bring on would be able to hold itself to that strict stylistic choice. And after Little Nightmares 2’s awkward but sparse combat, it’s clear that not every style of gameplay is a good fit. But for now, these questions, concerns, and fears will have to wait for more news on Little Nightmares’ future.
Little Nightmares 2 is out now on PC, PS4, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch, with PS5 and Xbox Series X versions currently in development.
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