Not every spooky season experience needs to terrify you. Including beloved classics such as mystery-solving cartoons to delightful stories such as Over the Garden Wall, numerous spooky-season titles provide fun without raising your heart rate. Additionally, a growing library of eerie-charming releases with autumn atmosphere, yet without the sleep-with-the-lights-on degree of horror. Gloomy Eyes debuted in the fall, and acts as an superb relaxing alternative to the deeply scary releases of 2025.
An Original Single-Player Cooperative Quest
Labeled as a solo collaboration brain-teaser, Gloomy Eyes pairs up a zombie boy known as Gloomy and a mortal child named Nena as they embark on an quest to return daylight to their gloomy environment. They look is similar to Funko Pops combined with the characters from a Laika film. The fair-toned and baggy-eyed appearance draws inspiration from the visual style of Gothic fantasy movies, and the narrative is a archetypal all-ages adventure. The pair builds an enduring friendship over the course of the game’s multiple stages as Nena attempts to prove to her religious guardian that, you know, possibly zombies are actually good.
Original Puzzle Mechanics
The innovative label stems from the game’s world-based challenges. After Gloomy and Nena cross paths, gamers switch between the newfound friends to solve puzzles and progress through the areas. Being a zombie, Gloomy can’t walk through the brightness of a streetlight, while Nena may be grabbed by idle zombies without a light is directed on them.
It's necessary for them to work in tandem — actually, gamers operate them simultaneously — to complete stages. Nena might relocate or momentarily deactivate illumination to create passages for Gloomy, while the open-brained character will employ his undead power to move items in the environment, opening up paths for Nena.
Immersive World Building
The puzzles evoke memories a little of The Gardens Between, in the manner the levels are suspended, miniature designs that the view pans around in sync with your protagonists. Gloomy Eyes’ worlds are very enjoyable, taking the duo around a fair and through a haunted house, amid other locales. Players can use a “diorama view” feature that allows you to view from afar and spin the areas, both for admire the artwork and search for routes that may not have been clear.
Minor Hiccups and Overall Adventure
This represents one of the only hiccups with Gloomy Eyes. Comparable to other games with a locked camera, it’s not always clear where the heroes are able to move. Gamers could require to simply collide with a several various elements to discover which ones are interactable, as the game doesn't always indicate.
Nonetheless, those minor challenges don't obstruct of a ghostly-charming enjoyable experience. Gloomy Eyes has a compact length, with roughly several hours worth of brain-teasers. Later levels combine light stealth and dynamic sequences with the puzzle solving, as Gloomy Eyes marches toward a rewarding — and somewhat unforeseen — conclusion.
Release and Final Thoughts
Those steering clear of the scares of intense horror releases won’t want to miss Gloomy Eyes. The game is out on Switch console, PlayStation 5, Windows PC, and Xbox Series X, and is presently discounted for a quarter off on online stores.
The spooky-cute adventure is out now on multiple platforms and delivers a pleasurable alternative for fans seeking spooky entertainment without intense scares.