Little Nightmare studio’s Reanimal is a creepy co-op adventure inspired by Wind Waker and Silent Hill 2

rockpapershotgun.com:

Little Nightmares DNA runs strong in Tarsier Studios’ new game. So much so, in fact, that I’d assumed the trailer I watched during an online preview event last week was for a new entry in the horror cinematic-platformer series, right up until the name Reanimal appeared on the screen - shortly followed by a snippet of voiced dialogue.

It’s not just the horror setting, but the Grimm’s fairytale threat, the distorted adults-made-monsters through the trauma-tinged lens of a child’s imagination. A long-limbed man riding a bicycle in a threadbare suit chases children down an alley. A gangly, bowler-hatted pursuer scuttles down a long table like a spider. It's familiar enough territory, at least at first glance. But when Tarsier have a body of work subconsciously scarred by phantasms this vivid, recurring nightmares are just as potent.

Still, Reanimal does have a few new tricks that, even if it were a direct sequel to Tarsier’s previous works, would qualify it as a noticeable departure. It’s two player co-op, for starters. Local or online, though you’ll still be able to play through solo.

“The easy solution would have been to make it split-screen… but we didn’t want people to ever feel alone. We wanted to force players to go through together,” says narrative director David Mervik, who also wrote for both Little Nightmares games. Mervik cites Hazelight’s It Takes Two as an influence, but says that Tarsier aimed for a more minimalist approach with Reanimal.

Mervik describes the aim as offering up “that cathartic experience of going through something awful together.” New, too, is a directed, shared camera; distinct from Little Nightmares’ fixed, side-on perspective. The aim here is more curated, directed scenes, even as you're off exploring optional locations.

The question that sparked the new direction for Reanimal was, says Mervik, “What if we could get that sense of adventure - with a slightly diminished scope than The Windwaker - with that thick claustrophobic dread that