From dreary atmosphere to unsettling, grotesque but eerily human-like monsters, Little Nightmares managed to craft a unique world full of terror and thrill. Six’s story wasn’t to be the last we’d see of the Maw, as the Secrets Of The Maw expansion pass was announced a while back. After a rather unimpressive foray through The Depths, in the first part of the expansion, The Runaway Kid has reached The Hideaway and must progress through it if he’s to make his escape.
The Hideaway does a better job of handling its areas. While the first bit of DLC didn’t lack The Maw’s characteristical decrepitude, the areas did quickly end up becoming bland. The Hideaway has little in the way of truly memorable locations, but the coal-filled sections of the ship it takes players through do introduce visual elements that suggest an interesting relationship between the organic and the mechanical.
Similar to The Depths, there’s not much narrative to talk about in The Hideaway. The Runaway Kid remains as much of a blank slate as he was in the first part. Considering the atmosphere and horrors witnessed through Six’s story, one does understand his desire to escape, however that extra bit of connection that makes one invested in a character is, still, thoroughly missing. What we do get, on the other hand, is a closer glimpse at the Nomes habits.
The main enemy is a face (and long pair of hands) that should be familiar from Six’s escape attempt. The sections he appears in, especially one set in profound darkness, do a good job of capturing what was great about the encounters in the main game. Despite being fairly easy to get through, at least if one shows patience, they do require the player to get uncomfortably close to the foe, which makes for some tense moments. If there’s one complaint to be had it’s the fact that these sections are a little too short, in the already brief hour-long DLC. With that in mind, we’re dealing with a foe whose presence is felt better than The Granny’s in The Depths.
The Hideaway focuses more on puzzles and platforming. These sections don’t pose many problems and flow nicely, as the solutions revolve around mechanics already encountered in the main game. What’s interesting about them is that they involve befriending and using the tiny mushroom people called Nomes. While they were also encountered when aiding Six’s escape, focusing, for the most part, on them adds freshness to the overall experience. In order to get them to follow him, The Runaway Kid needs to catch and hug them. That works well for the most part, however, there was one particular sequence, where one of the little guys was running through coal, that overstayed its welcome. Grabbing moving targets seems to be a bit clunky, as despite having cornered the Nome, it took a few too many tries to actually have The Runaway Kid grab him. A small complaint, but while the sequence itself tries to add a bit of playfulness to the drab atmosphere, the effect is lost in favour of unwelcome frustration.
On its own, The Hideaway is better than The Depths, but given how lackluster the first part of the expansion was, that’s not necessarily saying much. Indeed, just like The Depths, it still lacks enough punch to be a noticeable addition. The way the DLC begins makes it feel a little too disjointed from the first part. The months long break between episodes doesn’t help either and their brevity detracts from the experience. While The Hideaway isn’t to be avoided, its few good moments aren’t enough to make for a compelling enough experience. It remains to be seen if the third part can turn things around, or shine a different light on the expansion, but at this time, the two chapters released add little and don’t quite live up to what the main game offered.
Bogdan Robert, NoobFeed
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| Platform(s): | PC, PS4, Xbox One |
| Publisher(s): | BANDAI NAMCO Entertainement |
| Developer(s): | Tarsier Studios |
| Genres: | Adventure, Platformer |
| Themes: | Horror, Atmospheric |
| Release Date: | 2017-11-10 |
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