The first Little Nightmares was a lonely voyage through a hostile, fantastically uncanny dollhouse-like world, and the sequel introduces an AI companion who will immediately please fans of the first game’s raincoated protagonist. How the new main character discovers her and what potential she brings to bear on Little Nightmares II’s subtle narrative arc is one small nostalgic detail in a game that superficially outdoes the original but keeps the basics intact.

The first Little Nightmares fell squarely in step with the kind of atmospheric puzzle platformer that had entered the zeitgeist around the time Playdead debuted Limbo. There were others before that game and many to follow, but rarely does this genre outshine the dreadful yet comionate silent storytelling of that studio’s games about young people in trouble. While it's considerably less ambitious, what sets Tarsier Studios' Little Nightmares II apart from the fold is its close-camera focus and tactile detail, where nearly every environment is packed with tiny touches and movable debris. Even the ladders in this game are all different from the norm as uniquely handcrafted, busted up, dangerous looking connectors which rarely lead to safety.

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For Little Nightmares II, main character Mono behaves similarly to Six. He too can jump, clamber over ledges, stealthily creep under tables, crawl through ductwork, and die many horrible deaths. He doesn’t have Six’s trusty lighter, but he’ll find a few new tricks that slightly differentiate how he approaches certain sections of the game’s five chapters. Six was incredibly vulnerable to hazards and the creepy giant hellions that patrolled most gloomy reaches of the first game, and the sequel predictably ups the ante on these threats, with more loping disfigured monstrosities that, at their best, look like feverish Tim Burton sketches come to life.

Mono and Six meet each other early in the game, and their collaborative efforts to penetrate further into Pale City in Little Nightmares II works remarkably well. Six alternately helps the player up to otherwise unreachable ledges, teaches how to navigate some scenarios by example, and even interacts with certain puzzles directly, somewhat like Ico’s Yorda. Her presence softens the distressing loneliness of the first game, but it’s hardly a spoiler to state that a few circumstances will separate the pair.

In spite of its excellent atmosphere - with special attention to impressive new highs set in of audio design, original score, lighting, and visual detail - Little Nightmares II does suffer from an underweight narrative. The original had similar issues, though it maintained a consistent and energetic focus on evasion which granted it a greater sense of purpose. The sequel's narrative is shakier, with several terrifying escape scenes but rarely a clear idea of what the protagonists are trying to do except survive. There’s a pivot in the back half where the rhythms of escape become those of rescue, but where the duo is traveling and what they intend to accomplish once they arrive is hard to suss out, even in retrospect after completing the game.

Press releases for Little Nightmares II describe an adventure that is purportedly twice as long this time around, but that claim is a stretch. There are, once again, five chapters to the experience, and while the first game’s last section was abruptly short, the sequel’s finale is overwrought, technically longer but with much less meat on the bone. The first half or so of Little Nightmares II is absolutely the strongest, and Tarsier’s masterful artistic direction is so robust that even well-worn horror tropes like a twisted schoolhouse or scary hospital do not feel superfluous or rote.

What hasn’t changed is the controls, which still make certain platforming moments, chases, and intense action sequences clumsier and jankier than others. Luckily, checkpoint distance has been greatly improved in Little Nightmares II, a bugbear which stymied some of the toughest sections in the original. Frustration still looms over chases which need to be reattempted multiple times to get some nebulous jump timing down pat, but quick load times on the PlayStation 4 and the gentler checkpointing make the sequel feel smoother and more welcoming.

As with the first title, replay value will vary among players, though plenty of secret collectibles and swappable hats are tucked away for patient scroungers, and they’re much, much harder to find than before. The strengths of the original – scampering through vents, skulking within sight of monstrosities, and a constant feeling of dread – are amplified in the sequel, with highest marks for the visual design and animation and a clever AI partner along for the ride. Anyone who bounced off the first game won’t really find a more compelling package presented here, but Little Nightmares II is a smart, slick horror platformer that’s easy to pick out of the crowd.

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Little Nightmares II releases on PC, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, and PlayStation 4 on February 11, with Xbox Series X/S and PlayStation 5 versions to arrive later in the year. A digital review code for PlayStation 4 was provided to Screen Rant for the purpose of this review.