Little Nightmares 3 Won't Have Couch Co-op Despite Supermassive Games Taking Over

Supermassive Games might be known for couch co-op in Until Dawn, but Little Nightmares 3 won't have it.

By Ricky Frech

During Gamescom Opening Night Live, Supermassive Games surprisingly revealed that it is currently working on Little Nightmares 3. The Until Dawn and The Quarry developer handled the enhanced edition of Little Nightmares 2, but many thought the series might be taking a long hiatus after its original developer Tarsier Studios was moving onto a new IP. Because of how well-known Supermassive is for putting couch co-op into its horror games, many assumed that Little Nightmares 3 would also have it after it was announced that the games would have online multiplayer. However, Bandai Namco producer Coralie Feniello recently confirmed that is not something the team plans to do.

In a recent interview with GamesRadar, Feniello noted that "Co-op was the most requested feature from our fans, so it was really important for us to give them that." As mentioned, this makes sense considering how successful Supermassive has been with Until Dawn, The Quarry, and The Dark Pictures Anthology. Now that it's tackling a new genre with Little Nightmares 3, it wouldn't be a surprise to see the veteran developer bring its own twist to the puzzle franchise. Feneillo continued, "I do think that it will add a layer to the game as well, by letting you experience it with a friend."

However, game director Wayne Garland followed that by saying, "Couch is something that we considered, but again, when you come back to the atmosphere and the immersion that we're trying to elicit through Little Nightmares, I think it was important for us that we stuck to our online co-op only rather traditional more party aspects." 

That's about as clear of an indication as you can get that we won't be seeing couch co-op make its way into Little Nightmares 3. The answer about it being related to "atmosphere and immersion" is a little vague considering how terrifying the rest of Supermassive's catalog is, but it does make sense when you consider it. After all, those other games feel more like B-movie slashers than the gripping, atmospheric horror that Little Nightmares 3 looks to be targeting. Either way, seeing Supermassive take on a new genre should be fun when Little Nightmares 3 is ready to ship.

What is Little Nightmare 3's Release Date?

Little Nightmares 3 is currently slated to release sometime in 2024. Supermassive Games and Bandai Namco haven't given us any window beyond that just yet. Bandai Namco's only 2024 game with a date is Tekken 8 on January 26, so we'll probably see Little Nightmares 3 at some point next spring unless there are development setbacks. 

There's also some potential for Supermassive to need to move things around depending on how the next game in The Dark Pictures Anthology is coming along. Season 2 is set to kick off with Directive 8020 at some point. It has not been given a date, so we might not see it until 2024, but its development will certainly impact how quickly Little Nightmares 3 releases.

When Little Nightmares 3 is released, it will come to PlayStation, Switch, Xbox, and PC platforms. 

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