This year’s Gamescom Opening Night Live showcase had some heavy hitters in the form of Mortal Kombat 1, Sonic Superstars, Crimson Desert, and Black Myth: Wukong, but it was light on surprises and reveals, something that the Geoff Keighley made clear before the show began several times.

It wasn’t completely free of surprises, though. One was the excellent Thank Goodness You’re Here, which ended up being my favourite part of Gamescom, and the other was Little Nightmares 3. I loved the first two games and their mix of platforming, puzzle-solving, and understated storytelling in a creepy-as-hell Burton-esque world, so a third game that does all that with co-op seemed like a great evolution for the series.

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The reveal trailer had me anxious to see what Supermassive was going to do with the formula and how co-op might shake things up, but a hands-off demo presented by Bandai Namco left me confident in the new approach. The footage I saw took place in a sandy area called Necropolis with new protagonists Low and Alone trudging around an abandoned city where all of its inhabitants had turned to stone.

Despite adding another player, Little Nightmares 3 instantly looked familiar, with Low and Alone making their way through the quiet, dingy streets by completing physics puzzles, helping one another climb around the environment with boxes, and unlocking doors with comically large keys. Only this time, the puzzles sometimes require two players, such as one of the pair having to hold a switch to reveal platforms for the other to cross.

None of the puzzles I saw in the demo seemed difficult, but there were some clever moments that made me excited to see more of the co-op mechanics in action. My favourite was when Low and Alone were attacked by flying bugs, and had to use their unique weapons in tandem to kill them, with Low using his bow to ground the creature and Alone finishing it off with a whack of her wrench.

That puzzle and a few other moments in the demo sold me on how a Little Nightmares game can work in co-op, but the most impressive thing about Little Nightmares 3 was just how well Supermassive has managed to capture the first two games’ distinct creepy vibe, which is unarguably the best thing about the series. I was worried that the addition of another player would strip away the horror and turn it all into a joke, but as Low and Alone cowered in fear from a giant baby that was staring them down and following them through the city, the lump in my throat told me everything was going to be fine.

I walked away from my first look of Little Nightmares 3 with a newfound fear of babies, but also excited to play through it with my non-gamer roommate and see his reaction to whatever this game’s version of the Chef is. Sadly, unless I buy another console and shell out for two copies, that’s not going to happen. Game director Wayne Garland confirmed to Eurogamer earlier this week that couch co-op isn’t an option in Little Nightmares 3 and that it can only be played with a friend online.

This is a huge missed opportunity and something that’s dragged down my excitement. Cooperative puzzle games like this are always better when you’re in the same room as the person you’re playing with, whether that’s to talk through solutions or snatch the controller off them when they can’t figure out what to do as fast as you. Yes, I’m a delight to play games with, thank you very much.

Games like Unravel 2 and It Takes Two have already proven that to me in the past, but couch co-op fits Little Nightmares 3 even more because it’s a horror. I don’t want to hear my co-op partner scream down the mic when some Eldritch monstrosity chases after us. I want to see those reactions in real time, just like I would when watching a horror movie. Supermassive of all developers should understand this, especially when it’s given such good local multiplayer options for The Quarry and The Dark Pictures.

Nothing I saw in my demo seemed to give a good reason for this either, as Low and Alone were almost always on the same screen, even while solving puzzles. I imagine there will be sections of the game where they’re a bit more separated, but even copying the Lego games and having a split screen for these moments seems like a better option than just not having couch co-op.

I’m hoping that the backlash towards this decision and the weird justification of “atmosphere and immersion” means that Supermassive will rethink this approach and try and add local co-op in time for the game’s launch next year. If so, then Little Nightmares 3 has the potential to be something truly special.

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