Not each Halloween horror journey needs to frighten players. Starting with iconic favorites such as Scooby-Doo to charming series such as Over the Garden Wall, many Halloween-themed favorites are enjoyable without requiring raising your heart rate. There’s also, a expanding collection of spooky-cute games with spooky themes, though lacking the keep-you-awake level of fear. Gloomy Eyes debuted in recent months, and serves as an superb cozy choice to the truly terrifying games of this year.
A Distinctive Single-Player Cooperative Journey
Described as a solo collaboration puzzle game, Gloomy Eyes teams up a living-impaired child called Gloomy and a mortal child known as Nena as they start an adventure to bring the sun back to their gloomy realm. Their design resembles collectible figures combined with the puppets from a stop-motion animation. The fair-toned and tired-looking style borrows heavily from the visual style of Tim Burton’s films, and the narrative is a classic all-ages adventure. The duo forms an strong friendship over the span of the game’s 14 chapters as Nena attempts to show to her religious guardian that, you know, perhaps living-impaired beings are actually good.
Innovative Puzzle Mechanics
The “self-coop” term stems from the game’s world-based challenges. When Gloomy and Nena meet, gamers switch between the recent allies to complete challenges and progress through the areas. As an undead, Gloomy is unable to traverse through the illumination of a light source, while Nena can be captured by wandering undead without a light is focused on them.
They have to collaborate effectively — in practice, players control them in tandem — to complete stages. Nena may move or temporarily shut off lamps to clear paths for Gloomy, while the open-brained youth will utilize his supernatural ability to move obstacles in the world, opening up routes for Nena.
Captivating World Building
These challenges remind me a little of The Gardens Between, in the fashion the stages are suspended, diorama-like designs that the camera rotates in coordination with your characters. Gloomy Eyes’ environments are quite fun, guiding the friends around a amusement park and through a ghostly building, among other locales. The game includes a “diorama view” feature that enables you to pull back and rotate the levels, both to admire the artwork and search for paths that may not have been obvious.
Small Issues and Complete Gameplay
And that’s one of the sole hiccups with Gloomy Eyes. Comparable to other titles with a locked camera, it’s not always clear where the heroes are able to move. Players might have to simply collide with a several various elements to discover which ones are interactable, as clues aren't consistently provided.
However, those minor speedbumps don't obstruct of a spooky-cute good time. Gloomy Eyes runs on the short side, with approximately a few sessions worth of puzzles. Later levels integrate light hidden movement and action elements with the puzzle solving, as Gloomy Eyes marches toward a satisfying — and moderately unforeseen — ending.
Accessibility and Summary
Those avoiding the terror of fear-inducing games should definitely try Gloomy Eyes. You can find it on Switch console, PS5, computer, and Xbox, and is currently on sale for 25% off on online stores.
The spooky-cute adventure is available on multiple platforms and provides a enjoyable option for players in search of spooky entertainment minus the terrifying moments.
