Reanimal Is a Worthy Little Nightmares Successor, but Prepare To Be Confused

Reanimal is an utterly perplexing experience that blends high-impact, memorable set pieces with one of the most baffling stories I’ve ever come across. While Tarsier Studios has succeeded in creating a worthy spiritual successor to Little Nightmares, it’s one that could do with some refinement. The game is, ironically given the creatures you’ll encounter, disjointed. And while that’s less noticeable throughout the game’s high-octane story, you’ll be hard pressed to reach the credits without feeling a touch of cold bewilderment.

Playable either solo or with a friend via co-op, Reanimal centres around a young brother and sister who must reunite their missing friends in a world overrun by monstrous animals. You’ll navigate from sequence to sequence via a boat, engaging in puzzle solving, platforming, and some light combat.

Reanimal Is a Worthy Successor to Little Nightmares

The gameplay perhaps functions as you might expect. The only real surprise, for me, came in the arrival of a tank which made for some chaotic late game fun. I have to say though, while everything demanded of me and my co-op partner in Reanimal was relatively straight-forward, it was truly elevated by the context surrounding it. It’s a tad difficult to discuss but I do feel that Reanimal’s hook lies in never knowing what waits around the corner.

It’s that that elevates the relatively easy gameplay. I doubt you’ll get “stuck” in the traditional sense. In my playthrough, we merely had to repeat a couple of boss or chase encounters, not quite having mastered the timing the first time around. After all, you can’t predict where a threat will emerge from. But whether you’re outrunning an enemy or platforming up a large structure, Reanimal is constantly reinventing itself with unexpected twists and creatures that’ll keep you glued throughout.

While I can’t really fault the gameplay itself, I do have an issue with how it ties in with the narrative. I’ve pondered the events of Reanimal for several days now and at risk of being called stupid by the internet, I cannot in any way make sense of them. It’s not something I particularly dwelled upon during my playthrough. I trusted that Reanimal would follow the typical Little Nightmares formula, ending with a twist that suddenly put the entire experience into perspective.

Reanimal’s World Is Tarsier’s Most Abstract To Date

It arguably does do that, to some extent, but it’s a twist that, for me, sparked more questions than provided answers – nor was it a twist that offered much in the way of an explanation for the vast majority of events experienced. I admit that my vagueness doesn’t help here, but that’s for your own benefit if you intend to play Reanimal. The game’s ending offers an explanation for what triggered this sequence of events, but it does so in a way that almost bookends an experience, leaving the middle totally unexplained.

As I said, Reanimal is full of variation. One minute you’re being chased by, for lack of a better explanation, slithering skin suits, before the next you’re outrunning a giant gull – and I mean giant. Then, you might find yourself in the trenches of a rather diabolical human war or pursued by an enormous spider-like creature. The game’s ending does nothing to piece together any of this leading to Reanimal somewhat feeling like an unchained collection of impressive but unlinked set pieces.

Before those online come for me, I understand Tarsier isn’t known for tying things in a neat pretty bow. In fact, that’s what I adore about the studio; I’m a sucker for a strong narrative and deep metaphor. I just can’t quite land on what the team was going for here though and I can’t imagine I’m the only one who will feel that way. Reanimal, for me, lacked the narrative clarity of those first two Little Nightmares experiences even if it does outshine that franchise in other areas.

Darker in Tone Than Little Nightmares

I would say that Reanimal is the more mature of those two experiences. I’m a certified scaredy cat and while I by no means jumped out of my skin, Reanimal proved unsettling on multiple occasions, both thematically and in terms of its pretty violent visuals. I found it to be balanced though. There are some quite difficult depictions of death featured in the game, but then so too are players chased by an oversized bloke on a bike called The Sniffer. The tonality of the horror is switched up to ensure that Reanimal remains fun despite its oftentimes heaviness.

I did appreciate the illusion of freedom Reanimal was sometimes able to create. It is ultimately a linear game, but players control a boat where you can stumble across small hidden discoveries. We’re not talking about anything major here. At one point I docked my boat next to a warehouse featuring a single room with a collectible inside. I didn’t find anything in the way of hefty side content as I saw some speculating there might be online, but it’s nice to see that curiosity is rewarded.

On The Short Side, Taking 4.5 Hours For My Playthrough

Admittedly, I haven’t found every single collectible yet, but judging by the trophies on PlayStation, I’m close enough to halfway there. Despite that, my co-op partner and I finished Reanimal in four and a half hours, so it is definitely on the shorter side. Knowing the lay of the land now, I’d estimate I might be able to stretch that out by an hour scouring for the remaining collectibles, but I’d have loved for Reanimal to be longer. Three DLCs are on the way though which I’m hoping answer some of my questions. Judging by one trophy, maxing one collectible also unlocks a “secret ending” which I’m yet to discover.

Reanimal is a game that I sense may be divisive. Its confusing world and short runtime don’t exactly set it up for universal success, but it’s hard not to come away from the game feeling entertained and impressed. It’s a jarring adventure but one that is held together by some utterly brilliant set pieces that make it a worthwhile co-op experience. I sense that Tarsier Studios has something fascinating to say with this one. I just wish I could work out what it was.

Pros: Runs well, memorable and impressive set pieces, intriguing world building

Cons: Short runtime, story is confusing

For fans of: Little Nightmares, Split Fiction, It Takes Two

8/10: Excellent

Reanimal launches on 13 February on PlayStation 5 (version tested), Xbox Series X/S, PC, and Nintendo Switch 2. A review code was provided by the publisher. Read a guide to our review scores here.