This led many people to believe that Six and Mono won’t be a part of this game either 🙁 

Or so we thought? In the next section, I’ll go into further detail. Also click here to watch the trailer if you haven’t already!

Now let’s get straight into it. You can tell by subtle differences that this game isn’t made by the Tarsier Studios, however Supermassive still incorporated many aspects of the previous two games in the trailer to pay homage. 

First, the most obvious is the two brand new characters, Low and Alone. These names can be found in the official website of the game: https://en.bandainamcoent.eu/little-nightmares/little-nightmares-iii

They also have a description to further explain the premise that states,

“Embark on a new adventure in the unique world of Little Nightmares. In Little Nightmares III, you follow the journey of Low & Alone, as they search for a path that could lead them out of the Nowhere. Trapped within the Spiral, a cluster of disturbing places, the two friends will have to work together to survive in a dangerous world full of delusions and escape the grasp of an even greater threat lurking in the shadows. For the first time in the franchise, face your childhood fears together with a friend using online co-op, or solo with an AI companion.”

Little Nightmares III

In the description under the trailer it says, “Are you ready to return to the Nowhere, little ones? This time, face your childhood fears together.” This could imply that the entire LIttle Nightmare Universe takes place in the region called “The Nowhere.”

Easter Eggs

When watching the trailer, I was able to find many hidden little easter eggs that referenced the first two games. There sure were lots of parallels to the first two games.

Recurring Characters and Locations

First, the most common theory among fans so far is between the new character “Alone” and how she could actually be a character we knew before. In the Little Nightmares 2 comic books they released a character sheet with six characters, two of which are Mono and Six. This leaves four other characters left to explore. 

Girl with Braids

The most notable character so far is “Girl with Braids” or “Spoon” as she is also red-headed and wears pigtails, just like Alone… Her presence can actually be seen in the second game through the scratch marks seen on the walls throughout Pale City, carved out with a spoon. Also her story is quite sad, so if you enjoy learning about the Little Nightmares lore I would suggest you read it if you haven’t already. 

Fat Boy

Next, there’s also a scene in the trailer where Low and Alone find a room full of dumped lollipops. This made me immediately think of the “fat boy” from the comics. 

Other

This makes me wonder if Low could also be one of these characters, like the “Ghost Child” or “The Toddler” or if not what connection does he have to Nowhere. 

Also we see the same stuffed toy bear in the trailer on top of the piano, this is the same one from Little Nightmares 2, where our previous main characters discovered a key in. There is also a key hanging on the string in the promotional artwork for the game. This is especially important  because we know Mono has been known to carry around a key in his design. So, I wonder if that will play a bigger role in the story. 

As for other recurring characters and locations we also see the same furnace as well as nomes, although most of them appear to be dead…

We also see what appears to be the “guests” from the LIttle Nightmares 1 aboard the Maw now seen at the circus/carnival in Little Nightmares 3.

New Setting, New Monsters

Moving forward, we love to see Supermassive make references to the games we know and love, we also get to see brand new settings and new monsters. What makes Little NIghtmares so horrific and memorable has to be the enemies. 

According to the official website description, it also states, 

“Embark on an adventure through the Spiral, a cluster of dystopian lands. Discover places as diverse as the mysterious desert of Necropolis, an unsettling fun fair, a gloomy factory, and who knows what else. Run away from a new cast of foes ranging from ominous beetles to a giant baby, and so many more.”

Little Nightmares III

All of these examples are great places for all the potential horror we’re going to be facing. 

• The “Mysterious desert of Necropolis” or ‘City of the Dead’, in Greek language, can be seen as ominous from their unfamiliar terrain and complete vastness and isolation. Maybe we can explore classic desert enemies like the Sandworm or zombie like creatures, since it is still the land of the dead.

• “An unsettling fun fair,”can provide another great setting for horror as circuses are known for their freak shows and creepy clowns. But I really do hope we get more than just spooky clowns and magicians, and something new and refreshing out of this classic horror setting. For example, they can further expand on the abnormalities of the human condition like a two-headed trapeze artist or conjoined twins, and other uncanny appearances. 

• “A gloomy factory,” dumping out trash, creating this wasteland setting, further enhances the fear of abandonment and unfamiliarity. I predict we might also see monsters form out of the trash, or invisible monsters chasing us from below as we platform and try to make our way across. It would also be fun to see enemies made of the trash itself, changing shape and form as it chases us across the landfill.

These were the three settings we’ve seen in the trailer so far along with two possible additional rooms, the children’s playroom with the piano and the doctor’s office (or psychiatrist perhaps).

As for enemies, so far we have seen the “ominous beetles” and “giant baby” in the trailer. The beetles make a great enemy because most people find bugs atrocious and terrifying anyway. 

But there is something interesting and eerily similar about the “giant baby” to me. First, is how she appears to be a damaged porcelain doll. This could be a reference to LIttle Nightmares 2, in the school setting, with the savage little porcelain children. In LN2, the porcelain skin was designed to make a statement about how “empty” and “artificial” student heads are. 

Second, are her eyes, which appear to reduce anyone she captures to ash or stone? However, this is a phenomenon that has happened previously. Yes, the all-seeing eyes from Little Nightmares 1 have the same abilities. I wonder if this universe will explain who is controlling all of these watchful “eyes” and now they have a physical doll body to further terrorize strangers in Necropolis. 

Shattered Mirror 

Finally, we have the most frequent easter egg which is the mirror as it appears multiple times throughout the trailer. Mirrors in Little Nightmare 3 seem to be important because it is how Low and Alone teleport in and out of locations. Similar to how Mono could teleport through television screens in Little Nightmares 2. 

Okay, but what most of you guys were probably thinking was how the shattered mirror scene and dark smoke could be a reference to Little Nightmares 1, during the final battle between Six and the Lady, where Six uses mirrors to defeat her.

This is especially interesting because the format of the trailer almost makes it look like Six could be the main antagonist of the game. Although Six becoming the Lady is technically not confirmed, we know that the two characters must be connected in some way. I guess we’ll just have to wait until next year to see for ourselves. 

What will Little Nightmares 3 be about?

All that being said, this game could actually be a totally separate and self contained story. I mean we already have two brand new characters in a new setting. So it could play out similar to an anthology of other children in the Nowhere universe. 

Character Design Symbolism 

I honestly appreciate the more detailed character designs this time. Alone and Low look amazing and their headpieces are much more complex and detailed than before. 

First, we have Alone, who wears a pilot helmet, which is reminiscent of the steampunk aesthetic. The pilot helmet could represent her heroism, freedom, independence, or connection to flight somehow. 

Then, we have the iconic plague doctor mask that Low wears, which dates back to the early 17th century. 

Although the character design could just be purely based on fun iconic headpieces as Little Nightmares has always done, I believe there is a huge significance to Low’s design, especially with the plague doctor mask. 

For one, the plague mask’s design is based on a crow or raven, both which often symbolize death, transformation and some sort of bad omen. We also see many crows throughout the Little Nightmares franchise, including the very beginning scene of the Little Nightmares 3 trailer. 

This also fits with the idea of Necropolis, one of the main settings we see in the trailer, which is simply the “City of the Dead” but now I wonder if Low also has some power to cure or to cause death onto others.

Now while I do believe that this game’s story will be entirely different and unique compared to its predecessors, there are still possibilities of this third franchise being connected or the “continuation” of (technically) the first game, as Little Nightmares 2 is the prequel to the first. 

The Main Plot

So far, every Little Nightmares game is trying to satirize or comment on a negative aspect of society/humanity. For example, in 

• Little Nightmares 1 was about gluttony and overconsumption of food. 

• Little Nightmares 2  was about escapism and  overconsumption of media and technology.  

That leaves us with Little Nightmares 3. Based on clues from the trailer I believe LN3 will be about capitalism, materialism that leads to excess waste and pollution. 

In the trailer, locations like the Necropolis desert and gloomy factory portray a world of  what our own future might look like if we continue to accumulate too much trash and neglect the environment. We all know pollution, climate change, and global warming are all huge problems in our world right now, so this would be a perfect topic for LN3 to explore. 

This also begs the question on whether there will be a Little Nightmares 4, 5, etc. cause if that’s the case, each new game could be tackling a new problem society is about. Because if Little Nightmares 3 is the last game (quite unlikely tho, considered Supermassive took control) then the final ending should be more impactful, possibly wrapping every back to the first two games.

Clues in The Sound of Nightmares

If you weren’t aware already, Little Nightmares actually released a brand new podcast, “The Sound of Nightmares” which hasn’t been confirmed to be canon or not, but takes place in a different setting from the games. However, they could be able to help us understand many of the secrets and mysteries regarding the universe of Nowhere. 

Little Nightmares have also created many side projects to further expand on the lore. So it’s not surprising to see them create this new fictional place. It’s also quite unique to create a fully auditory experience. Similar to listening to a much more immersive version of an audio book. 

Here’s a link to the first episode if you haven’t listened to it already: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8yx8tQfbt4Q&t=219s 

“The Sound of Nightmares” is the first audio fiction series from the world of Little Nightmares. Noone, a timid young girl, is committed to The Counties Psychiatric Institute due to her ever-worsening nightmare disorder. She is placed under the care of The Counsellor who has dedicated his life to helping kids overcome their ailments, himself a product of childhood trauma. As their sessions unfold, The Counsellor’s past and Noone’s nightmares are destined to collide”

Little Nightmares III

⇒ “New episodes every Tuesday from August 22 through September 19. Available on Youtube and all your favorite podcast platforms in English, French, German, Spanish, and Italian.”

Making for a total of six episodes. Hmm what a coincidence. As of now three episodes have been released. 

What I find intriguing, as most people do, is that Noone’s name is spelled as “No one.” We’re all aware that Little Nightmares loves to give its characters names that reference numbers, monochrome languages, or other noteworthy symbols. So, it’s no coincidence that Noone’s name is spelled the way it does. 

But here’s one thing I will add. I don’t think that the podcasts were meant to portray the Little Nightmares games as “dreams/nightmares of children with trauma” as we know that trope is well overdone and would ruin the game’s story for many players who believe what we experienced in the games were real, including myself. 

Additionally, there were a few resonant statements from the podcasts that, in my opinion, show the Little Nightmare’s universe the most than others. 

• “Referring to children by numbers…” makes it sound like he finds it quite absurd and heartless. (episode 1)
• “Recurrence implies significance” (episode 2)
• “Gazing into its spiral always gave me relief.I found that it could be used to offer my patients that same relief through hypnotherapy. We will help you remember this…” (episode 2)
• “An old professor of mine thought he did. He believed dreams came from an ever-shifting plane, a quiddity of consciousness. A semi tangible plane outside the mind.
• We know now that there is no center to the universe. Previously we thought it was the sun. before that the earth. Our species always insists that ours is the quantisense of experience. yet scientific observation proves our folly at nauseam. If geocentrism took centuries to disprove the question is not if, but when the same will happen to reality itself. That which we are equipped to perceive, may not be the only world, let alone the predominant one ” (episode 3)
• “What if the cure is the cause? I never had nightmares or headaches before all of this!” (episode 3)
• “Everyone needs someone, don’t leave me alone” (episode 3)

Going back to the word “Spiral” it has made several appearances from the official website description and in podcasts. On the official website it says, “Embark on an adventure through the Spiral, a cluster of dystopian lands.” 

What is interesting is that the Counsellor makes a note of “Spiral” but as a way to hypnotize himself for relief, the same he does to treat his patients to help them recall their memories. This might give us a clue about what the role the “Spiral” will play in Little Nightmares 3. 

Another intriguing concept is how two people who never had contact could share the same “dream” (nightmare in this case) which is referred to as “Transpersonal dreaming”. This could be the process/phenomenon that the children currently on Nowhere are facing?

My Theories 

That being said, here are some of my theories that I have about the purpose of the podcasts and what it reveals about Little Nightmares 3.

1. The children’s nightmares are “transporting” them into another world, “Nowhere”, where the monsters they face are indeed real. This could relate to the whole “Transpersonal dreaming” concept brought up in the first episode. Also, in episode 3, we hear Noone humming Six’s melody (from LN1 and the music box from LN2). This could further prove that there is some portal connecting the two universes together. 

What I find most interesting is this quote from the official website, “Meet Low and Alone and learn more about the boy in the raven mask and the girl with pigtails. Guide the two friends through a menacing world as they search for a way out of the Nowhere.”

The fact that it says they must “search for a way out of the Nowhere,” implying the need to escape, makes it seem all the more sinister. 

2. The real world is corrupted by these “nightmares” and the children’s nightmares could be a way for them to look into the future to find a solution. Maybe the signal tower from LN2 is using the children to create this “Nowhere”

So far, we know that in the comics, the Ferryman was the one who caught children to bring to the Maw, but he could also be the one behind all of these “dreams.” In episode 3, Noone describes The Candleman’s smell as the “ocean” despite her dream taking place in a shopping mall in this episode. Otto also makes a point of how people normally aren’t physically able to recall scent when they are dreaming. This further strengthens the theory of the Candleman being connected or the same person as the Ferryman…Also Otto seems to have some sort of unknown relationship with the Candleman, as he is desperately trying to find out more information about him. As every time Noone mentions anything relating to the Candleman, Otto forces her to wear a device on her head to recall his appearance.

3. For a complete plot twist, the Counsellor Otto who has been recording all of these messages in the podcast is actually just another monster/enemy in the game. Most fans already admit that they don’t trust Otto, and after listening to episode 2 and 3, I have to agree. HIs desperate and overly friendly demeanor comes off as unauthentic and disturbing, considering Noone isn’t even 10 years old. Some fans also theorize that his constant repeating of the phrase, “Sweets for my sweet” is no coincidence and is used to hypnotize the children into endless nightmares… In episode 3 especially, Noone makes a realization about how someone is trying to cause her to have nightmares on purpose. “What if the cure is the cause? I never had nightmares or headaches before all of this!” (episode 3). 

There’s definitely a theme about repetition, hypnosis, broken mirrors, temptation, desire, and loss of innocence throughout these podcasts. 

The Counsellor mentions a girl named “C.C./Cece” whom he is trying to figure out what happened to her through Noone’s similar experiences with her “nightmares.” Other than his name being Otto, we know very little about him. 

Additionally, “C.C./Cece” might just be Otto’s nickname for her; her real name is Cecelia or “Cecil,” which is a phrase that means “the sixth child” and is derived from the Welsh surname Seissylt. The name might also be a play on the Latin personal name Caecilius, whose root word caecus means “blind.”

The fact that it has some sort of connection to the number 6, only makes fans connect the dots that “C.C./Cece” and Six might just be the same person, and the podcasts are trying to explain her backstory. This could also explain how Six ended up in the “Nowhere” in the first place and why she’s trying to escape. 

This would also place more emphasis and importance on the podcasts. 

Thank you so much for reading! I hope you enjoyed it as much I had writing it. It feels like only yesterday when I was writing a theory about the ending of Little Nightmares 2, so time surely does fly. Anyway, comment down below any thoughts or theories you may have about the new Little Nightmares game.