Not every spooky season experience has to frighten you. Starting with iconic favorites for example Scooby-Doo to endearing shows like Over the Garden Wall, plenty of spooky-season staples are enjoyable without requiring causing fear. Additionally, a growing library of ghostly-adorable releases including autumn atmosphere, but not the keep-you-awake intensity of terror. Gloomy Eyes arrived in September, and acts as an outstanding cozy alternative to the deeply scary games of the current season.
An Original Single-Player Cooperative Adventure
Labeled as a solo collaboration puzzle game, Gloomy Eyes pairs up a living-impaired child called Gloomy and a living girl named Nena as they start an mission to restore sunlight to their shadowy environment. Their appearance is similar to Funko Pops mixed with the figures from a animated feature. The light-complected and heavy-lidded aesthetic is influenced by the visual style of Burtonesque cinema, and the story is a classic all-ages adventure. The pair develops an unbreakable friendship over the duration of the game’s multiple stages as Nena tries to show to her clerical relative that, hey, maybe the undead are actually good.
Original Puzzle Mechanics
The innovative description comes about from the game’s environmental puzzles. When Gloomy and Nena cross paths, gamers switch amidst the recent allies to overcome obstacles and move forward through the areas. Since he's not alive, Gloomy is unable to traverse through the light of a streetlight, while Nena will get snatched up by wandering undead unless a beam is shone on them.
They must collaborate effectively — actually, gamers operate them simultaneously — to complete stages. Nena may move or momentarily deactivate lights to open routes for Gloomy, while the thoughtful boy will use his zombie strength to shift around items in the world, creating ways for Nena.
Immersive World Building
The brain-teasers bring to mind a touch of The Gardens Between, in the fashion the levels are suspended, miniature designs that the view rotates in conjunction with your heroes. Gloomy Eyes’ settings are highly entertaining, taking the companions around a carnival and through a haunted house, among other locales. The game includes a “diorama view” option that enables you to zoom out and rotate the areas, simultaneously to appreciate the designs and hunt for routes that may not have been apparent.
Minor Hiccups and Overall Experience
Here lies one of the sole difficulties with Gloomy Eyes. Like other games with a static view, occasionally it's confusing where the protagonists are able to move. Gamers could require to randomly encounter a multiple different elements to determine which ones are usable, as clues aren't consistently provided.
However, those slight speedbumps don't hinder of a ghostly-charming fun adventure. Gloomy Eyes runs on the short side, with about a few sessions worth of brain-teasers. Advanced areas combine light stealth and action elements with the puzzle solving, as Gloomy Eyes advances to a satisfying — and moderately unexpected — conclusion.
Accessibility and Conclusion
Those avoiding the scares of terrifying games should definitely try Gloomy Eyes. It’s available on Nintendo platform, Sony system, PC, and Xbox Series X, and is presently discounted for a discount on online stores.
The spooky-cute adventure has been released on various systems and provides a enjoyable option for players in search of spooky entertainment without terrifying moments.
