Not every spooky season journey needs to frighten you. Starting with beloved classics such as mystery-solving cartoons to charming series such as Over the Garden Wall, many autumn-inspired staples are enjoyable without causing fear. Moreover, a growing library of eerie-charming titles featuring Halloween vibes, but not the sleep-with-the-lights-on intensity of horror. Gloomy Eyes arrived in September, and stands as an superb relaxing alternative to the intensely frightening games of this year.
An Original Collaborative Solo Quest
Described as a “self-coop” brain-teaser, Gloomy Eyes teams up a living-impaired child named Gloomy and a living girl known as Nena as they embark on an quest to restore sunlight to their shadowy environment. Their appearance resembles Funko Pops mixed with the figures from a Laika film. The light-complected and tired-looking style draws inspiration from the visual style of Burtonesque cinema, and the story is a quintessential all-ages tale. The pair forms an unbreakable bond over the course of the game’s numerous levels as Nena tries to show to her priest uncle that, you know, possibly the undead are actually good.
Creative Gameplay Systems
This unique label comes about from the game’s interactive problem-solving. When Gloomy and Nena meet, you’ll swap among the recent allies to complete challenges and move forward through the stages. Being a zombie, Gloomy can’t walk through the brightness of a streetlight, while Nena will get snatched up by idle zombies unless a light is shone on them.
They must work in tandem — well, players control them together — to finish levels. Nena might relocate or momentarily deactivate lamps to create passages for Gloomy, while the open-brained youth will utilize his supernatural ability to move obstacles in the world, revealing routes for Nena.
Engaging Level Design
The puzzles remind me a touch of The Gardens Between, in the way the levels are suspended, diorama-like designs that the view pans around in coordination with your heroes. Gloomy Eyes’ settings are very enjoyable, taking the friends around a carnival and through a haunted house, among other locales. The game includes a “diorama view” feature that permits you to zoom out and rotate the levels, simultaneously to admire the artwork and search for paths that may not have been apparent.
Slight Issues and Complete Gameplay
And that’s one of the only problems with Gloomy Eyes. Comparable to other games with a locked camera, occasionally it's confusing where the heroes may or may not travel. You may need to simply collide with a multiple different elements to discover which ones are interactable, as it’s not always intuitive.
However, those slight obstacles don't hinder of a spooky-cute good time. Gloomy Eyes has a compact length, with approximately a few sessions worth of challenges. Subsequent stages combine light stealth and dynamic sequences with the challenge completion, as Gloomy Eyes advances to a satisfying — and moderately unexpected — ending.
Accessibility and Summary
Players shying away from the frights of fear-inducing games ought to experience Gloomy Eyes. You can find it on Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 5, PC, and Xbox, and is presently discounted for a discount on game marketplaces.
This charming title is available on several consoles and delivers a delightful alternative for players in search of Halloween fun minus the intense scares.
