The Dark Pictures Anthology: Little Hope

After a brief foray into the world of VR, Supermassive Games returned to the horror genre last year with The Dark Pictures Anthology, a series of horror titles exploring different themes. They initially aimed to release two games per year. Thanks to Covid-19 they haven’t been able to keep up with that schedule. The second of those titles, Little Hope, missed its planned summer window. I think we’d all agree, though, that Halloween is a more appropriate release.

If there was ever a time to sit down with some friends and play a scary game, it's Halloween 2020. Little Hope fits the bill perfectly. The annoyances found in Man of Medan have been almost completely removed leaving a spooky tale with jump scares to giggle about, heart racing action, and tonnes of atmosphere. For £25 Little Hope is an absolute steal and highly recommended.

Sometimes the name of a game will leave you with such low-hanging fruit, it's impossible not to draw attention to it. The Dark Pictures Anthology: Little Hope is one such game, with one such name. For example, when replying to somebody saying "I hope this is going to be better than Man of Medan", it's impossible to not reply by smugly saying "LITTLE HOPE... of that" to the raucous laughter of all around. Were I of the opinion that this is a bad game, I would also be saying something like "there's little hope of you enjoying Little Hope."

Get your clean underpants ready as Supermassive Games have unleashed their latest game in time for Halloween: The Dark Pictures Anthology: Little Hope. With solid foundations and a lineage in the genre, will the latest entry in the franchise be a cheap, hollow trick or a dark, sinister treat?

The Dark Pictures: Little Hope is atmospheric, intriguing, and mysterious. It's not exactly scary, however.

Little Hope proves that the Dark Pictures format isn’t a fluke and I’m excited for Supermassive to continue honing its craft. On that note, I love how these games tease forthcoming installments with collectible in-game premonitions. Next up, the seemingly Descent-inspired House of Ashes.

The Dark Pictures Anthology still lives in the shadow of Until Dawn, which remains the superior title, but Little Hope is certainly a step forward for Supermassive Games and a guaranteed good time for folks in need of atmospheric Halloween thrills. It may be a familiar cocktail, but the game remixes things well enough that it ends up with a distinctive taste, though your appreciation of the experience will largely depend on what you think of the finale.

Supermassive's next installment in their scary anthology series Little Hope is a short but spooky tale. It's a step up from its previous title but still has yet to reach the level that Until Dawn set. With a cast of five characters to play from, co-op is the best way to play. It excels at telling an interesting narrative but after 4 short hours it doesn't stand out in much else.

Little Hope renewed my faith in the Dark Pictures Anthology but is held back a bit simply from the lack of quality of life features.

On the whole, then, the second entry into The Dark Pictures Anthology is an improvement over the first. As much as we enjoyed Man of Medan, Little Hope ups the ante in just about every way. Its story is more engaging, it packs in some truly spine-tingling moments, its cinematography is greatly improved, and it looks and performs beautifully. It’s just a shame a duff ending – no matter what the outcome of your playthrough – leaves you feeling unfulfilled as the credits roll.

The Dark Pictures Little Hope is the second in Supermassive Games’ horror anthology, following in the footsteps of Man of Medan and aiming to hit the heights of the PS4 sleeper hit Until Dawn. The studio didn’t quite catch lightning in a bottle with the first installment of this multiplatform offering, but it’s clear that lessons were learned and changes applied from the misstep. Little Hope is lean, atmospheric and compelling, making it an excellent choice for players who are fond...

Little Hope tells a mostly one-note story with underdeveloped characters, and even a fun co-op mode can’t inject enough life to fix that. There weren’t enough meaningful consequences to the choices I made to inspire further digging into its box of tricks, which made additional playthroughs tough going, and the more generous amount of time you have to react to quick-time events deprived me of any gory deaths. A gorgeous setting and some genuinely frantic monster sequences save it from being a complete disaster, but this still feels like a step backward from the heights of interactive horror sto...