This Spooky-Cute Puzzler Acts as the Perfect Alternative to Halloween Horror
Not every Halloween horror experience has to scare players. Including well-known tales such as mystery-solving cartoons to endearing shows including Over the Garden Wall, plenty of Halloween-themed favorites provide fun without requiring raising your heart rate. Additionally, a growing library of eerie-charming titles with Halloween vibes, but not the truly terrifying level of terror. Gloomy Eyes arrived in the fall, and acts as an excellent cozy option to the intensely frightening titles of the current season.
A Distinctive Collaborative Solo Adventure
Labeled as a solo collaboration problem-solving title, Gloomy Eyes pairs up a living-impaired child called Gloomy and a living girl known as Nena as they begin an mission to return daylight to their dark, dark world. Their appearance is similar to Funko Pops combined with the figures from a Laika film. Their light-complected and tired-looking style draws inspiration from the visual style of Burtonesque cinema, and the plot is a quintessential suitable for everyone adventure. The pair develops an unbreakable bond over the span of the game’s numerous levels as Nena strives to prove to her priest uncle that, you know, perhaps living-impaired beings aren’t half bad.
Creative Gameplay Systems
The innovative label comes about from the game’s interactive problem-solving. Once Gloomy and Nena meet, you’ll swap between the budding companions to complete challenges and move forward through the areas. Since he's not alive, Gloomy can’t walk through the illumination of a light source, while Nena may be grabbed by loitering creatures except if a light is directed on them.
They have to work in tandem — in practice, you’ll use them simultaneously — to advance through areas. Nena might relocate or momentarily deactivate illumination to clear paths for Gloomy, while the thoughtful character will use his zombie strength to move items in the surroundings, revealing routes for Nena.
Captivating World Building
These challenges evoke memories a touch of The Gardens Between, in the fashion the stages are floating, diorama-like constructions that the view pans around in sync with your protagonists. Gloomy Eyes’ settings are very enjoyable, leading the companions around a amusement park and through a spooky mansion, amid other locales. There’s a “diorama view” option that enables you to zoom out and spin the areas, simultaneously to admire the artwork and hunt for ways that may not have been obvious.
Slight Issues and General Gameplay
This represents one of the only difficulties with Gloomy Eyes. Comparable to other games with a fixed perspective, occasionally it's confusing where the protagonists may or may not travel. You may need to randomly encounter a multiple different objects to determine which ones are interactable, as the game doesn't always indicate.
However, those minor challenges don't hinder of a ghostly-charming good time. Gloomy Eyes runs on the short side, with about a few sessions worth of puzzles. Advanced areas blend together minor sneaking and exciting moments with the problem-solving, as Gloomy Eyes marches toward a satisfying — and moderately unforeseen — ending.
Accessibility and Final Thoughts
Players avoiding the terror of fear-inducing releases should definitely try Gloomy Eyes. You can find it on Switch console, PlayStation 5, PC, and Xbox, and is available at a reduced price for a discount on digital platforms.
The spooky-cute adventure has been released on several consoles and offers a enjoyable choice for gamers seeking spooky entertainment minus the terrifying moments.