Not each Halloween horror experience must scare gamers. Starting with beloved classics like mystery-solving cartoons to endearing shows like Over the Garden Wall, numerous Halloween-themed staples are enjoyable without needing increasing anxiety. Moreover, a growing library of ghostly-adorable games with spooky themes, though lacking the truly terrifying degree of horror. Gloomy Eyes arrived in the fall, and acts as an outstanding comfortable choice to the truly terrifying releases of this year.
A Unique Single-Player Cooperative Adventure
Described as a “self-coop” brain-teaser, Gloomy Eyes teams up a living-impaired child named Gloomy and a living girl called Nena as they embark on an adventure to return daylight to their shadowy world. Their appearance resembles Funko Pops blended with the puppets from a Laika film. The fair-toned and tired-looking aesthetic is influenced by the visual style of Tim Burton’s films, and the story is a classic all-ages adventure. These two builds an unbreakable friendship over the course of the game’s numerous levels as Nena attempts to prove to her clerical relative that, look, perhaps the undead are actually good.
Creative Gameplay Systems
This unique term stems from the game’s environmental puzzles. After Gloomy and Nena encounter each other, players alternate amidst the newfound friends to complete challenges and move forward through the areas. As an undead, Gloomy cannot pass through the illumination of a lamppost, while Nena may be grabbed by idle zombies except if a light is focused on them.
It's necessary for them to cooperate closely — actually, players control them simultaneously — to complete stages. Nena might relocate or briefly disable lamps to clear paths for Gloomy, while the thoughtful boy will employ his undead power to rearrange obstacles in the surroundings, creating paths for Nena.
Captivating World Building
The brain-teasers bring to mind a little of The Gardens Between, in the way the stages are suspended, model-like structures that the perspective pans around in coordination with your characters. Gloomy Eyes’ settings are quite fun, guiding the duo around a fair and through a spooky mansion, including other locations. There’s a “diorama view” feature that allows you to pull back and rotate the areas, both to enjoy the visuals and hunt for routes that may not have been obvious.
Small Hiccups and Complete Experience
Here lies one of the only problems with Gloomy Eyes. Similar to other titles with a fixed perspective, occasionally it's confusing where the heroes may or may not travel. Players might have to simply collide with a few random elements to determine which ones are interactive, as the game doesn't always indicate.
Nonetheless, those small speedbumps don't hinder of a spooky-cute enjoyable experience. Gloomy Eyes is relatively brief, with roughly a few sessions worth of challenges. Advanced areas integrate light sneaking and exciting moments with the problem-solving, as Gloomy Eyes marches toward a fulfilling — and slightly surprising — ending.
Release and Conclusion
Players avoiding the terror of fear-inducing games should definitely try Gloomy Eyes. You can find it on Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 5, Windows PC, and Microsoft console, and is available at a reduced price for 25% off on game marketplaces.
Gloomy Eyes has been released on various systems and provides a delightful alternative for gamers in search of autumn enjoyment without the fear factor.
