Not every autumn fright adventure must terrify you. Including well-known tales such as animated detectives to endearing shows including Over the Garden Wall, numerous autumn-inspired staples are enjoyable without requiring increasing anxiety. Moreover, a growing library of eerie-charming games including spooky themes, but not the keep-you-awake degree of terror. Gloomy Eyes was released in recent months, and stands as an outstanding comfortable choice to the truly terrifying titles of the current season.
A Unique Self-Coop Quest
Described as a “self-coop” problem-solving title, Gloomy Eyes pairs up a zombie boy known as Gloomy and a human girl named Nena as they start an mission to return daylight to their gloomy realm. Their design evokes collectible figures blended with the puppets from a Laika film. The light-complected and baggy-eyed style borrows heavily from the visual style of Gothic fantasy movies, and the plot is a quintessential family-friendly adventure. These two builds an unbreakable friendship over the course of the game’s numerous levels as Nena attempts to show to her priest uncle that, hey, maybe the undead can be friendly.
Creative Puzzle Mechanics
The “self-coop” term comes about from the game’s world-based challenges. Once Gloomy and Nena encounter each other, players alternate among the recent allies to overcome obstacles and progress through the stages. As an undead, Gloomy cannot pass through the brightness of a lamppost, while Nena can be captured by loitering creatures except if a beam is shone on them.
It's necessary for them to cooperate closely — in practice, players control them in tandem — to advance through areas. Nena may move or momentarily deactivate lamps to create passages for Gloomy, while the thoughtful youth will use his zombie strength to rearrange items in the environment, opening up paths for Nena.
Captivating Environment Creation
The brain-teasers bring to mind a bit of The Gardens Between, in the manner the stages are floating, model-like structures that the camera rotates in sync with your protagonists. Gloomy Eyes’ worlds are very enjoyable, taking the friends around a fair and through a ghostly building, among other locales. The game includes a “diorama view” button that allows you to view from afar and spin the stages, both to appreciate the visuals and search for ways that may not have been apparent.
Minor Challenges and Overall Experience
And that’s one of the few hiccups with Gloomy Eyes. Like other games with a static view, occasionally it's confusing where the heroes can and cannot go. Players might have to just bump into a multiple different objects to discover which ones are interactive, as clues aren't consistently provided.
Nonetheless, those small challenges don't hinder of a eerie-adorable enjoyable experience. Gloomy Eyes is relatively brief, with roughly a few sessions worth of brain-teasers. Later levels integrate light stealth and dynamic sequences with the puzzle solving, as Gloomy Eyes advances to a fulfilling — and somewhat unforeseen — ending.
Availability and Conclusion
Players steering clear of the frights of terrifying releases won’t want to miss Gloomy Eyes. It’s available on Switch console, Sony system, computer, and Xbox, and is currently on sale for a quarter off on online stores.
Gloomy Eyes is out now on several consoles and provides a delightful option for fans looking for Halloween fun minus the fear factor.
