Not every Halloween horror journey needs to scare you. Starting with beloved classics like mystery-solving cartoons to charming series including Over the Garden Wall, plenty of autumn-inspired titles offer entertainment without needing raising your heart rate. Additionally, a expanding collection of ghostly-adorable games featuring spooky themes, but not the sleep-with-the-lights-on level of terror. Gloomy Eyes arrived in September, and serves as an excellent comfortable option to the intensely frightening titles of this year.
A Distinctive Single-Player Cooperative Journey
Described as a single-player cooperative puzzle game, Gloomy Eyes unites a zombie boy known as Gloomy and a mortal child called Nena as they begin an adventure to bring the sun back to their shadowy environment. Their design is similar to Funko Pops combined with the characters from a animated feature. Their pale-skinned and heavy-lidded aesthetic draws inspiration from the visual style of Tim Burton’s films, and the story is a quintessential all-ages adventure. The pair forms an enduring bond over the course of the game’s multiple stages as Nena strives to prove to her clerical relative that, look, maybe zombies are actually good.
Innovative Problem-Solving Features
This unique term stems from the game’s interactive problem-solving. When Gloomy and Nena meet, gamers switch amidst the newfound friends to complete challenges and progress through the levels. As an undead, Gloomy cannot pass through the brightness of a light source, while Nena can be captured by loitering creatures unless a lamp is directed on them.
They must cooperate closely — in practice, players control them in tandem — to advance through areas. Nena could adjust or momentarily deactivate lights to create passages for Gloomy, while the open-brained youth will utilize his supernatural ability to move items in the environment, opening up ways for Nena.
Engaging World Building
The brain-teasers evoke memories a little of The Gardens Between, in the way the levels are hovering, model-like constructions that the camera pans around in coordination with your heroes. Gloomy Eyes’ environments are quite fun, taking the companions around a carnival and through a ghostly building, including other locations. Players can use a “diorama view” button that permits you to view from afar and rotate the areas, both to enjoy the designs and search for routes that may not have been obvious.
Minor Issues and General Gameplay
And that’s one of the only hiccups with Gloomy Eyes. Like other releases with a fixed perspective, it’s not always clear where the characters are able to move. Players might have to just bump into a multiple different items to figure out which ones are interactable, as clues aren't consistently provided.
Nevertheless, those slight speedbumps don't hinder of a ghostly-charming fun adventure. Gloomy Eyes is relatively brief, with approximately several hours worth of puzzles. Later levels blend together subtle stealth and exciting moments with the puzzle solving, as Gloomy Eyes advances to a satisfying — and somewhat unforeseen — conclusion.
Accessibility and Summary
Gamers steering clear of the terror of terrifying games ought to experience Gloomy Eyes. It’s available on Switch console, PS5, computer, and Microsoft console, and is currently on sale for a discount on digital platforms.
Gloomy Eyes is available on several consoles and provides a enjoyable alternative for gamers in search of Halloween fun minus the fear factor.
