Not each Halloween horror experience has to terrify gamers. From iconic favorites such as mystery-solving cartoons to charming series such as Over the Garden Wall, numerous spooky-season favorites provide fun without needing raising your heart rate. Additionally, a increasing selection of eerie-charming titles featuring Halloween vibes, but not the truly terrifying degree of horror. Gloomy Eyes arrived in September, and acts as an excellent cozy alternative to the deeply scary titles of this year.
An Original Single-Player Cooperative Adventure
Labeled as a solo collaboration puzzle game, Gloomy Eyes pairs up a undead youth named Gloomy and a mortal child known as Nena as they begin an quest to bring the sun back to their dark, dark environment. Their appearance resembles stylized dolls mixed with the figures from a animated feature. The pale-skinned and heavy-lidded appearance draws inspiration from the visual style of Tim Burton’s films, and the plot is a archetypal family-friendly journey. The duo develops an enduring bond over the course of the game’s multiple stages as Nena attempts to show to her clerical relative that, hey, maybe living-impaired beings aren’t half bad.
Innovative Gameplay Systems
The “self-coop” description originates from the game’s interactive problem-solving. When Gloomy and Nena meet, players alternate amidst the newfound friends to overcome obstacles and progress through the levels. Since he's not alive, Gloomy is unable to traverse through the light of a light source, while Nena can be captured by loitering creatures except if a light is directed on them.
They have to work in tandem — in practice, players control them simultaneously — to complete stages. Nena might relocate or temporarily shut off lamps to open routes for Gloomy, while the open-brained boy will use his zombie strength to shift around objects in the surroundings, revealing routes for Nena.
Immersive Level Design
These challenges remind me a little of The Gardens Between, in the way the areas are suspended, model-like designs that the perspective rotates in coordination with your heroes. Gloomy Eyes’ settings are highly entertaining, taking the friends around a carnival and through a spooky mansion, among other locations. There’s a “diorama view” button that enables you to pull back and rotate the levels, both for enjoy the artwork and hunt for routes that may not have been clear.
Slight Challenges and General Adventure
And that’s one of the only problems with Gloomy Eyes. Like other releases with a fixed perspective, occasionally it's confusing where the protagonists can and cannot go. Gamers could require to just bump into a multiple different items to discover which ones are usable, as the game doesn't always indicate.
Nevertheless, those minor speedbumps don’t get in the way of a spooky-cute enjoyable experience. Gloomy Eyes is relatively brief, with roughly a few sessions worth of puzzles. Advanced areas blend together light stealth and exciting moments with the problem-solving, as Gloomy Eyes progresses to a fulfilling — and somewhat unforeseen — ending.
Availability and Final Thoughts
Players shying away from the scares of intense horror titles won’t want to miss Gloomy Eyes. The game is out on Nintendo platform, PlayStation 5, PC, and Xbox Series X, and is presently discounted for a quarter off on digital platforms.
Gloomy Eyes is available on several consoles and offers a delightful option for fans in search of Halloween fun minus the fear factor.
