Tarsier Studios gave new soul to the puzzle-platform horror adventure by mixing it with grotesque fairy tales and their truly amazing world creation and storytelling.
Little Nightmares 1 & 2 have their strengths and flaws, but they are amazing games that have a special place in my heart as someone who really loves dark-themed games. I really had high expectations for Little Nightmares 3 (not developed by Tarsier), which sadly did not exceed them, and it fails to match the quality of its predecessors. So now all my hope is on Reanimal, and I have really high expectations set by Tarsier themselves.
Tarsier Studios promised a darker world with Reanimal, which is very exciting, to see a darker world than their previous games that already had an amazing dark world. Now that we have set our expectations for Reanimal, let’s see if it exceeds them or not.
STORY
The story uses the same formula they used before, which doesn’t give a straight answer. Instead, it leaves it to you to decide, and everyone will have their unique take on the story based on their personal perspective. This is great, and it was the perfect choice not to change that formula.
The beginning of the story highlights dehumanizing individuals who obey without having an identity of their own, becoming mere shells created by a leader solely to obey. This strips humans of their most important right: to be different.
This is the prologue of the story and the beginning of the dehumanization. The rest of the game shows how this process continues to grow, with animals demonstrating it through metaphors and showing that it worsens the more it proceeds.
The ending shows one of the outcomes of dehumanization in a great way, which makes you think deeply about the whole story you experienced.
While the story is really great and its meaning can differ a lot with different perspectives, it has one problem, and that’s the length of the story, which takes around four hours. Even though Tarsier has always said they prefer quality over quantity, the game would have benefited from an additional hour or two and perhaps another boss fight to feel more complete and have a decent playtime.
GAMEPLAY
Reanimal is fully 3D, unlike Little Nightmares, which was 2.5D, so you can now move in every direction at any time, which is very exciting and can make the gameplay completely different.
The combat has been greatly improved, and there are more combat sections and mechanics in the game. Still, it isn’t perfect, but it’s way better than Little Nightmares. You have different weapons and some really high-tension fights that are truly enjoyable.
The platforming, however, takes a step back. It introduces no new mechanics and, in fact, features less platforming overall compared to Little Nightmares. This is unfortunate, as the shift to a fully 3D design presented significant potential that could have allowed it to surpass Little Nightmares rather than fall short.
The puzzles also took a hit, being both fewer in number and less challenging.
The full story can be played in single-player, online co-op, and local co-op.
Overall, the gameplay suffers more drawbacks than it achieves improvements.
VISUALS
The amount of talent Tarsier Studios has in creating dark worlds and atmospheres is unbelievable. If not the best, they are definitely among the best people on Earth to do it. Not Little Nightmares 1, not 2, and not Reanimal, none of them have fallen short in this regard.
Everywhere you go gives you a chill; you might see something or someone, but you can feel that thing being empty, alive but dead inside. Everything in the world has a duality of being dead and alive, not only living things but even locations give that same feeling.
For example, the cinema looks abandoned, but it has an audience watching a disturbing movie over and over again. They are there, but they don’t react to you.
The graphics are also great and better while having perfect performance, tested on both PS5 and PS5 Pro.
SOUND DESIGN
The sound design is great and it’s successful in communicating the same feelings that the visuals do, so you have fear crawling through your eyes and ears at the same time.
The soundtracks of Little Nightmares 2 were a masterpiece. Reanimal also has great soundtracks; they’re calm, stressful, and match the atmosphere and gameplay. They’re not better, but they’re still great and connect what you see and what you do to what you hear.
CONCLUSION
Reanimal has a dark story, carefully crafted for a deep exploration into the concept of dehumanization using animals as symbols. The gameplay is fully 3D and features improved combat, but falls short in its platforming and puzzles. The visuals are outstanding, creating an eye-catching dark atmosphere and world with high-fidelity graphics and perfect performance. Sound design and soundtracks harmonize with the visuals to further immerse the player in its darkness. Reanimal has both improvements and drawbacks, with enough shortcomings to place it slightly below Little Nightmares 2.
