There are a number of theories and speculation with the release of Little Nightmares II that the 2nd game is actually a precursor to the events of Little Nightmares, given the secret ending and various hints throughout gameplay. However, where does this put the mobile title Very Little Nightmares? All three games feature the iconic little girl in the yellow rain jacket, but is it the same girl through all three? With the potential for DLC and further stories in the future, not to mention the looming possibility of Little Nightmares III in 2025, it’s high time for a timeline of the universe of Tarsier Studios Little Nightmares. 

While we’ve talked about both Little Nightmares and Little Nightmares 2 before, we haven’t discussed the mobile title Very Little Nightmares, released on May 30th, 2019. It’s believed that this is the first game in the timeline, following the adventures of not Six, but The Girl In the Yellow Raincoat. While Six does appear in VLN, she does not yet have her signature yellow jacket, instead sporting a white outfit as she tries to escape with our unnamed Yellow Raincoat Girl. We know that the Yellow Raincoat Girl is not Six due to their difference in hair style, with Raincoat Girl having long, brown hair in a braid, while Six has always had the short cropped dark hair. Without spoiling the game too much, Raincoat Girl does not survive, and we can see her Raincoat being washed out to sea, as well as seeing Six make her escape on a small raft.

Prior to the release of Little Nightmares 2, it was believed that VLN led directly into the first game, with Six taking the raincoat and boarding the Maw herself. It makes sense, as this would give a place for Six to acquire her signature raincoat, and she was already on a raft to the ocean. However, a few key details of Six’s character in LN2 tell a different story. When we first meet Six in LN2, many players don’t actually recognize the young girl as Six without her coat, but when compared to the Six from VLN, we can see that similar white outfit, now darkened and stained from nights on the run.

We see Six acquire her signature look part way through Little Nightmares 2, unlocking the story based achievement ‘True Colors’, reinforcing to the players that this is Six, despite only now receiving her signature look that we know her for. As Six keeps her distinctive raincoat on for the entirety of Little Nightmares, this is a strong indicator that this is when she first finds it again, likely recognizing it from VLN and the Girl from before.

Another important element placing LN2 before the first game is the state of Six throughout the gameplay. As mentioned in my theory article a while ago, hunger and eating are a major aspect of Little Nightmares, with Six doubling over in pain multiple times throughout gameplay, and being forced to a crawl before she can get her next meal. But at no point do we see Six display these same behaviors in LN2. Sure, she has some moments of reflection, showing her own aggressive character, and she’s curious, sometimes pausing to look up at the Signal Tower, or to observe her surroundings, but never with those extreme hunger pangs that were a staple of the first game. But if we take a look at the secret ending of Little Nightmares 2, some important clues come to light.

This ending is achieved by finding and ‘absorbing’ all of the glitching children remains throughout the game, and shows what happens to Six just after she makes her escape at the end of the game. We see Six and her glitchy, shadowy copy, which can be seen in Little Nightmares during every moment of intense hunger. We see a poster for someplace that looks suspiciously like the Maw with its distinctive lighthouse. And most damning of all, we hear the sound effect of a gurgling stomach, starving for something to eat. This is likely the start of Six’s insatiable hunger, and what drives her to the Maw to begin with, setting off the events of Little Nightmares.

Overall, the Little Nightmares timeline has several unexplained mysteries to explore, but we can use some key character descriptions and changes to track the events and locations of Six through all three games. Starting with an escape from the Nest of Very Little Nightmares, Six finds herself captured by the Hunter of Little Nightmares 2, before being rescued and escaping with Mono. Following the tragic events of the Signal Tower, and the creation of this glitchy, shadow Six, our little monster is afflicted with an unstoppable hunger, which drives her to the Maw. From there, the events of the first game can play out uninterrupted, and as far as we know, Six is still there, waiting at the top of the Maw, hungry. Is this the end for our journey? Only time will tell. 

As for Little Nightmares III, it doesn’t look like Six will initially appear at all, given what little we know about the game so far. According to BANDAI NAMCOs official website, the game will follow the adventures of two new kids, Low and Alone, as they venture through the Nowhere. This doesn’t mean we won’t see Six at all, as the Maw where we left her is also a part of the Nowhere, so the possibility of her appearing in a cameo or antagonistic roll is still there.