The Little Red Lie
is a side-scrolling stealth horror game by ralphyua and others based on Little Red Riding Hood. The titular Red is visiting the woods where her dear old grandma was killed by The Big Bad Wolf ten years ago. On the way, she encounters a hungry cat and feeds him. A portal then opens, and the cat warns her not to go inside... and that her grandmother is alive and within the swamp behind the portal.
Naturally, Red wants to go in and find her grandma, and refuses to let the cat stop her. The cat ultimately agrees to help her save her grandmother from the wolf and joins her in the other realm, giving her advice. It is up to Red to find her grandma, avoiding the wolf all the while.
Gameplay is stealth-based, as Red must gather items to progress while hiding behind trees and other areas whenever the wolf appears.
This game contains examples of:
- Big Bad: The Big Bad Wolf seemingly killed Red's grandmother, but is actually keeping her captive within the forest and is out to eat Red, who wants to save her. Turns out the wolf is grandma.
- Creepy Cave: The cave at the right of the map is dark, filled with bats, and is the wolf's lair where it keeps the bones of its victims.
- Deliberately Monochrome: The game has a black-and-white aesthetic with the only colors being red and Ascat's pink.
- Don't Go in the Woods: The forest is haunted by The Big Bad Wolf, and Ascat makes it clear that Red should stay far away from it.Ascat: Do not enter the forest. A wolf lives in there and devours anything it finds... ...especially pretty young ladies in bright red dresses.
- Given Name Reveal: Throughout the game, we're never given the name of the cat who talks to Red... until the good ending reveals his name is Ascat.
- Golden Ending: While this game has several endings, only one of them ends on a happy note.
- Hearts Are Health: Red has three hearts representing her health on the top left.
- "It" Is Dehumanizing: Towards the beginning of the game, Ascat refers to the wolf as "it" instead of "she".
- Killed Offscreen: Double Subverted twofold.
- While not depicted on-screen, Red mentions The Big Bad Wolf killed her grandmother. However, Ascat reveals she's still alive. It's also later revealed The Big Bad Wolf did kill her, though she did get reincarnated.
- According to Red, a hunter killed The Big Bad Wolf, not that it's shown on-screen. The fact the creature is present throughout the rest of the game suggests otherwise. However, it's eventually revealed this was Red's grandmother reborn as a wolf-like being.
- Last-Second Ending Choice: Which of the two endings you get depends on whether Red decides to let her grandmother out of the cave at the end of the game.
- Protagonist Title: Sorta. The title (The Little Red Lie) is referencing its protagonist and Player Character, Red.
- The Reveal: What really happened to Red's grandmother- she is the very wolf that is chasing Red down, and was a cannibalistic Serial Kiler punished by Ascat via being eaten by the real wolf.
- Stealth-Based Mission: The wolf will periodically appear on the map, and Red must hide behind trees and other cover to avoid it noticing her.
- Wham Line: Ascat delivers The Reveal in the ending sequence:Ascat: I came to stop you from making a grave mistake. The being behind that rock wall is the wolf.
Red: But I heard my grandma's voice coming from the other side.
Ascat: It is true... for your grandma and the wolf are one in the same!
