Not each autumn fright journey needs to frighten you. Starting with iconic favorites like animated detectives to endearing shows such as Over the Garden Wall, many spooky-season titles provide fun without needing causing fear. There’s also, a expanding collection of spooky-cute games featuring spooky themes, though lacking the keep-you-awake intensity of fear. Gloomy Eyes was released in the fall, and acts as an outstanding cozy alternative to the deeply scary titles of the current season.
A Distinctive Collaborative Solo Adventure
Labeled as a solo collaboration brain-teaser, Gloomy Eyes unites a undead youth known as Gloomy and a mortal child called Nena as they embark on an quest to bring the sun back to their gloomy realm. They look evokes stylized dolls combined with the puppets from a animated feature. The light-complected and baggy-eyed aesthetic is influenced by the look of Gothic fantasy movies, and the plot is a classic family-friendly adventure. These two forms an unbreakable bond over the duration of the game’s numerous levels as Nena tries to prove to her religious guardian that, hey, possibly living-impaired beings are actually good.
Creative Gameplay Systems
The “self-coop” label comes about from the game’s environmental puzzles. When Gloomy and Nena meet, players alternate amidst the recent allies to solve puzzles and move forward through the stages. Since he's not alive, Gloomy cannot pass through the light of a streetlight, while Nena will get snatched up by wandering undead except if a beam is shone on them.
It's necessary for them to collaborate effectively — in practice, you’ll use them in tandem — to finish levels. Nena could adjust or briefly disable lamps to create passages for Gloomy, while the open-brained youth will employ his undead power to shift around obstacles in the surroundings, opening up paths for Nena.
Immersive Level Design
These challenges evoke memories a touch of The Gardens Between, in the way the areas are hovering, miniature designs that the view pans around in conjunction with your protagonists. Gloomy Eyes’ settings are quite fun, leading the companions around a amusement park and through a haunted house, amid other locales. The game includes a “diorama view” feature that permits you to zoom out and spin the areas, both for enjoy the visuals and look for paths that may not have been obvious.
Small Challenges and Overall Gameplay
Here lies one of the few problems with Gloomy Eyes. Comparable to other games with a locked camera, sometimes it's unclear where the characters may or may not travel. Players might have to just bump into a few random items to determine which ones are interactable, as the game doesn't always indicate.
However, those slight speedbumps don’t get in the way of a eerie-adorable enjoyable experience. Gloomy Eyes has a compact length, with approximately three to five hours worth of brain-teasers. Subsequent stages integrate subtle sneaking and action elements with the puzzle solving, as Gloomy Eyes marches toward a rewarding — and moderately unexpected — finale.
Accessibility and Final Thoughts
Gamers shying away from the frights of terrifying releases should definitely try Gloomy Eyes. You can find it on Switch console, PS5, Windows PC, and Xbox, and is currently on sale for a quarter off on digital platforms.
The spooky-cute adventure is available on various systems and delivers a pleasurable option for gamers seeking spooky entertainment without the terrifying moments.
