Not each spooky season experience must scare gamers. From beloved classics like animated detectives to charming series including Over the Garden Wall, numerous Halloween-themed favorites are enjoyable without needing raising your heart rate. Additionally, a increasing selection of spooky-cute games featuring spooky themes, but not the truly terrifying intensity of fear. Gloomy Eyes debuted in recent months, and acts as an excellent cozy option to the truly terrifying titles of the current season.
A Distinctive Single-Player Cooperative Journey
Described as a single-player cooperative brain-teaser, Gloomy Eyes pairs up a living-impaired child called Gloomy and a living girl called Nena as they embark on an adventure to bring the sun back to their shadowy environment. Their design evokes Funko Pops mixed with the puppets from a Laika film. Their light-complected and tired-looking aesthetic borrows heavily from the look of Burtonesque cinema, and the story is a archetypal suitable for everyone adventure. These two develops an unbreakable connection over the span of the game’s numerous levels as Nena tries to show to her priest uncle that, hey, maybe living-impaired beings are actually good.
Creative Puzzle Mechanics
The innovative term stems from the game’s interactive problem-solving. When Gloomy and Nena cross paths, players alternate between the newfound friends to solve puzzles and progress through the levels. Being a zombie, Gloomy is unable to traverse through the brightness of a streetlight, while Nena will get snatched up by wandering undead except if a lamp is shone on them.
They have to cooperate closely — actually, gamers operate them together — to advance through areas. Nena could adjust or temporarily shut off lamps to create passages for Gloomy, while the intellectually curious boy will utilize his supernatural ability to move objects in the world, revealing paths for Nena.
Captivating Level Design
These challenges bring to mind a touch of The Gardens Between, in the way the levels are hovering, model-like designs that the perspective moves across in sync with your characters. Gloomy Eyes’ worlds are very enjoyable, taking the duo around a carnival and through a spooky mansion, among other locations. There’s a “diorama view” feature that permits you to view from afar and rotate the stages, simultaneously to enjoy the designs and hunt for paths that may not have been obvious.
Minor Hiccups and Overall Adventure
And that’s one of the sole problems with Gloomy Eyes. Similar to other releases with a fixed perspective, occasionally it's confusing where the protagonists may or may not travel. You may need to randomly encounter a multiple different elements to determine which ones are interactable, as the game doesn't always indicate.
Nonetheless, those slight speedbumps don't obstruct of a eerie-adorable fun adventure. Gloomy Eyes is relatively brief, with approximately three to five hours worth of challenges. Subsequent stages integrate minor stealth and action elements with the problem-solving, as Gloomy Eyes advances to a fulfilling — and slightly surprising — finale.
Release and Final Thoughts
Gamers shying away from the frights of terrifying games should definitely try Gloomy Eyes. It’s available on Switch console, Sony system, Windows PC, and Xbox Series X, and is presently discounted for a discount on online stores.
This charming title is available on multiple platforms and provides a pleasurable alternative for players in search of spooky entertainment without the terrifying moments.
