Not every spooky season journey has to scare you. Including iconic favorites like animated detectives to delightful stories such as Over the Garden Wall, many spooky-season titles offer entertainment without needing raising your heart rate. Moreover, a expanding collection of eerie-charming titles with Halloween vibes, but not the truly terrifying degree of terror. Gloomy Eyes arrived in recent months, and stands as an superb relaxing alternative to the deeply scary titles of this year.
An Original Single-Player Cooperative Adventure
Described as a solo collaboration puzzle game, Gloomy Eyes unites a zombie boy named Gloomy and a living girl named Nena as they start an quest to return daylight to their shadowy realm. Their design evokes Funko Pops mixed with the figures from a Laika film. Their fair-toned and heavy-lidded style draws inspiration from the appearance of Gothic fantasy movies, and the story is a classic family-friendly adventure. The pair develops an strong bond over the course of the game’s numerous levels as Nena tries to prove to her priest uncle that, you know, perhaps living-impaired beings can be friendly.
Creative Problem-Solving Features
This unique term stems from the game’s environmental puzzles. Once Gloomy and Nena meet, players alternate between the recent allies to overcome obstacles and advance through the areas. Being a zombie, Gloomy is unable to traverse through the light of a light source, while Nena may be grabbed by wandering undead unless a light is directed on them.
It's necessary for them to work in tandem — actually, gamers operate them in tandem — to finish levels. Nena may move or temporarily shut off lights to clear paths for Gloomy, while the open-brained youth will employ his undead power to move obstacles in the world, revealing routes for Nena.
Engaging World Building
The brain-teasers bring to mind a bit of The Gardens Between, in the way the levels are floating, miniature constructions that the perspective pans around in sync with your protagonists. Gloomy Eyes’ environments are quite fun, taking the friends around a carnival and through a spooky mansion, amid other locales. The game includes a “diorama view” feature that allows you to zoom out and turn the areas, simultaneously to appreciate the visuals and look for routes that may not have been apparent.
Slight Hiccups and Overall Adventure
And that’s one of the sole hiccups with Gloomy Eyes. Similar to other titles with a fixed perspective, occasionally it's confusing where the protagonists are able to move. Gamers could require to just bump into a multiple different objects to discover which ones are interactable, as clues aren't consistently provided.
Nonetheless, those slight speedbumps don't obstruct of a eerie-adorable good time. Gloomy Eyes has a compact length, with roughly a few sessions worth of puzzles. Subsequent stages integrate minor hidden movement and dynamic sequences with the challenge completion, as Gloomy Eyes advances to a fulfilling — and moderately unexpected — finale.
Accessibility and Final Thoughts
Those steering clear of the terror of fear-inducing releases should definitely try Gloomy Eyes. It’s available on Nintendo platform, Sony system, PC, and Xbox, and is available at a reduced price for a quarter off on online stores.
The spooky-cute adventure is out now on various systems and provides a enjoyable option for gamers looking for autumn enjoyment without terrifying moments.
