The next project from the team that helped bring LittleBigPlanet to the Vita couldn’t look any farther from the cuteness and whimsy of the build-a-platformer. Swedish developer Tarsier Studios is working on Hunger (currently its working title), a “third-person 3D action adventure game with stealth and exploration elements.”

What that description fails to mention is that Hunger looks moody as all get-out and has a premise to match. The game puts you in the role of Six, a little girl kidnapped and forced into slavery aboard the Maw, a creepy underwater resort for the aristocracy.

And it gets stranger: “When an unexpected twist of fate offers her a chance at freedom, Six takes a journey through the bizarre and unpredictable world of The Maw, and catches a glimpse at the corrupt heart of modern happiness.”

If the game had puzzle elements, I’d think Tarsier was creating something in the vein of the Oddworld series: dark and fantastical little titles that aren’t shy about injecting a bit of social commentary and satire into the adventure.

Previously, Tarsier worked with Media Molecule in developing LittleBigPlanet for the PlayStation Vita as well as the DC Comics level back to LittleBigPlanet 2.

On Monday, the studio released three pieces of concept art for Hunger as part of an announcement that they’ve secured 500,000 Danish Kroner (a little under $100,000) from the Nordic Game Program to begin development. The studio didn’t provide details into what percentage of their actual development costs these funds will cover or what their planned development schedule looks like.

HT: Tarsier Studios via Joystiq