Not every autumn fright adventure needs to frighten you. Starting with well-known tales such as mystery-solving cartoons to endearing shows such as Over the Garden Wall, plenty of spooky-season staples offer entertainment without requiring increasing anxiety. There’s also, a increasing selection of eerie-charming releases with autumn atmosphere, yet without the sleep-with-the-lights-on degree of terror. Gloomy Eyes debuted in recent months, and stands as an excellent cozy choice to the truly terrifying games of this year.
A Unique Collaborative Solo Quest
Described as a “self-coop” puzzle game, Gloomy Eyes pairs up a zombie boy called Gloomy and a human girl named Nena as they begin an mission to bring the sun back to their shadowy realm. Their appearance resembles stylized dolls blended with the figures from a animated feature. Their fair-toned and tired-looking style borrows heavily from the visual style of Burtonesque cinema, and the narrative is a classic suitable for everyone adventure. These two forms an strong friendship over the course of the game’s multiple stages as Nena attempts to demonstrate to her clerical relative that, look, maybe the undead can be friendly.
Innovative Gameplay Systems
This unique label stems from the game’s environmental puzzles. Once Gloomy and Nena cross paths, you’ll swap amidst the recent allies to complete challenges and advance through the levels. As an undead, Gloomy cannot pass through the light of a lamppost, while Nena may be grabbed by idle zombies without a lamp is shone on them.
They have to work in tandem — actually, gamers operate them in tandem — to advance through areas. Nena might relocate or momentarily deactivate lamps to clear paths for Gloomy, while the intellectually curious boy will utilize his supernatural ability to rearrange objects in the surroundings, revealing ways for Nena.
Engaging Level Design
The brain-teasers bring to mind a bit of The Gardens Between, in the manner the stages are suspended, miniature constructions that the camera rotates in sync with your protagonists. Gloomy Eyes’ worlds are highly entertaining, taking the duo around a carnival and through a ghostly building, amid other locales. The game includes a “diorama view” option that enables you to zoom out and turn the stages, both to appreciate the designs and search for routes that may not have been obvious.
Slight Challenges and General Experience
This represents one of the only hiccups with Gloomy Eyes. Comparable to other releases with a fixed perspective, sometimes it's unclear where the protagonists can and cannot go. Players might have to simply collide with a several various items to figure out which ones are interactive, as the game doesn't always indicate.
Nevertheless, those small obstacles don't obstruct of a ghostly-charming fun adventure. Gloomy Eyes runs on the short side, with approximately three to five hours worth of puzzles. Subsequent stages blend together light stealth and exciting moments with the puzzle solving, as Gloomy Eyes marches toward a satisfying — and slightly unforeseen — finale.
Release and Final Thoughts
Those steering clear of the frights of terrifying releases should definitely try Gloomy Eyes. You can find it on Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 5, Windows PC, and Microsoft console, and is currently on sale for 25% off on game marketplaces.
The spooky-cute adventure is out now on various systems and provides a delightful choice for gamers looking for autumn enjoyment without the terrifying moments.
