Not each autumn fright experience needs to scare you. Including iconic favorites like animated detectives to delightful stories including Over the Garden Wall, many autumn-inspired favorites offer entertainment without needing increasing anxiety. Additionally, a increasing selection of spooky-cute games including spooky themes, but not the sleep-with-the-lights-on level of horror. Gloomy Eyes debuted in September, and serves as an superb cozy option to the intensely frightening games of 2025.
A Unique Self-Coop Adventure
Labeled as a single-player cooperative problem-solving title, Gloomy Eyes teams up a undead youth called Gloomy and a human girl called Nena as they embark on an adventure to bring the sun back to their shadowy environment. Their appearance evokes stylized dolls mixed with the characters from a Laika film. Their pale-skinned and tired-looking style draws inspiration from the visual style of Tim Burton’s films, and the story is a classic family-friendly journey. These two forms an strong bond over the course of the game’s multiple stages as Nena tries to show to her religious guardian that, hey, perhaps living-impaired beings can be friendly.
Creative Problem-Solving Features
The innovative label originates from the game’s interactive problem-solving. After Gloomy and Nena cross paths, players alternate amidst the recent allies to solve puzzles and progress through the stages. Since he's not alive, Gloomy is unable to traverse through the light of a light source, while Nena may be grabbed by idle zombies without a beam is focused on them.
They must work in tandem — actually, players control them in tandem — to advance through areas. Nena might relocate or briefly disable illumination to open routes for Gloomy, while the thoughtful boy will employ his undead power to rearrange items in the environment, creating paths for Nena.
Immersive Level Design
The puzzles bring to mind a little of The Gardens Between, in the fashion the levels are suspended, diorama-like constructions that the perspective pans around in conjunction with your heroes. Gloomy Eyes’ settings are highly entertaining, leading the companions around a carnival and through a ghostly building, amid other locations. The game includes a “diorama view” option that enables you to zoom out and rotate the stages, both to admire the designs and hunt for paths that may not have been apparent.
Slight Challenges and Complete Experience
And that’s one of the sole difficulties with Gloomy Eyes. Comparable to other titles with a locked camera, it’s not always clear where the protagonists can and cannot go. Players might have to simply collide with a several various objects to determine which ones are interactive, as clues aren't consistently provided.
Nonetheless, those small obstacles don't obstruct of a eerie-adorable good time. Gloomy Eyes has a compact length, with roughly three to five hours worth of puzzles. Advanced areas blend together minor stealth and dynamic sequences with the puzzle solving, as Gloomy Eyes progresses to a satisfying — and somewhat surprising — finale.
Availability and Conclusion
Gamers steering clear of the frights of fear-inducing games ought to experience Gloomy Eyes. It’s available on Nintendo Switch, PS5, computer, and Microsoft console, and is presently discounted for a quarter off on game marketplaces.
Gloomy Eyes is out now on multiple platforms and provides a delightful alternative for fans looking for Halloween fun without terrifying moments.
