Not each Halloween horror experience must scare you. Starting with iconic favorites like Scooby-Doo to endearing shows like Over the Garden Wall, numerous autumn-inspired favorites are enjoyable without needing causing fear. Additionally, a growing library of ghostly-adorable releases featuring spooky themes, though lacking the truly terrifying degree of fear. Gloomy Eyes arrived in the fall, and serves as an superb relaxing option to the deeply scary titles of this year.
An Original Single-Player Cooperative Adventure
Described as a “self-coop” problem-solving title, Gloomy Eyes teams up a zombie boy known as Gloomy and a mortal child called Nena as they begin an adventure to return daylight to their shadowy world. Their appearance resembles collectible figures blended with the puppets from a animated feature. The pale-skinned and heavy-lidded style is influenced by the visual style of Tim Burton’s films, and the story is a archetypal all-ages journey. These two builds an strong bond over the duration of the game’s multiple stages as Nena tries to demonstrate to her religious guardian that, look, maybe zombies are actually good.
Creative Problem-Solving Features
The innovative term originates from the game’s environmental puzzles. After Gloomy and Nena meet, players alternate among the newfound friends to complete challenges and advance through the areas. Being a zombie, Gloomy is unable to traverse through the brightness of a streetlight, while Nena may be grabbed by loitering creatures except if a beam is directed on them.
They have to work in tandem — actually, you’ll use them simultaneously — to advance through areas. Nena might relocate or temporarily shut off lamps to clear paths for Gloomy, while the open-brained boy will utilize his supernatural ability to move items in the environment, opening up routes for Nena.
Engaging World Building
The brain-teasers bring to mind a touch of The Gardens Between, in the manner the stages are hovering, diorama-like structures that the perspective pans around in sync with your heroes. Gloomy Eyes’ environments are very enjoyable, leading the duo around a fair and through a haunted house, amid other locations. Players can use a “diorama view” feature that permits you to view from afar and turn the stages, both for appreciate the visuals and search for routes that may not have been clear.
Slight Hiccups and Complete Experience
This represents one of the only difficulties with Gloomy Eyes. Similar to other titles with a locked camera, it’s not always clear where the characters may or may not travel. Gamers could require to just bump into a few random objects to figure out which ones are usable, as the game doesn't always indicate.
Nevertheless, those slight challenges don't hinder of a spooky-cute good time. Gloomy Eyes is relatively brief, with roughly a few sessions worth of puzzles. Advanced areas blend together light stealth and dynamic sequences with the puzzle solving, as Gloomy Eyes progresses to a rewarding — and somewhat surprising — conclusion.
Accessibility and Summary
Players shying away from the frights of fear-inducing titles ought to experience Gloomy Eyes. The game is out on Switch console, Sony system, computer, and Xbox Series X, and is currently on sale for a discount on digital platforms.
Gloomy Eyes is out now on multiple platforms and delivers a delightful option for fans in search of Halloween fun minus the terrifying moments.
