This Spooky-Cute Brain-Teaser Acts as the Excellent Replacement to Halloween Horror

Not all spooky season adventure must frighten gamers. Starting with iconic favorites for example mystery-solving cartoons to charming series including Over the Garden Wall, many Halloween-themed titles are enjoyable without increasing anxiety. There’s also, a increasing selection of eerie-charming games featuring spooky themes, though lacking the keep-you-awake level of horror. Gloomy Eyes was released in September, and acts as an excellent relaxing alternative to the intensely frightening releases of the current season.

A Distinctive Self-Coop Adventure

Labeled as a “self-coop” brain-teaser, Gloomy Eyes pairs up a zombie boy known as Gloomy and a human girl known as Nena as they start an adventure to restore sunlight to their dark, dark realm. Their design is similar to stylized dolls blended with the figures from a stop-motion animation. Their light-complected and tired-looking appearance is influenced by the look of Tim Burton’s films, and the narrative is a quintessential family-friendly journey. The duo develops an strong friendship over the course of the game’s multiple stages as Nena tries to show to her religious guardian that, you know, maybe the undead are actually good.

Innovative Puzzle Mechanics

The innovative description originates from the game’s world-based challenges. Once Gloomy and Nena meet, gamers switch among the budding companions to overcome obstacles and move forward through the areas. Since he's not alive, Gloomy cannot pass through the illumination of a streetlight, while Nena will get snatched up by loitering creatures without a lamp is directed on them.

They must work in tandem — well, you’ll use them simultaneously — to finish levels. Nena might relocate or momentarily deactivate lights to clear paths for Gloomy, while the intellectually curious boy will employ his undead power to move objects in the surroundings, revealing routes for Nena.

Engaging World Building

The puzzles bring to mind a touch of The Gardens Between, in the way the areas are floating, diorama-like designs that the perspective rotates in conjunction with your protagonists. Gloomy Eyes’ settings are quite fun, taking the duo around a fair and through a ghostly building, including other locations. The game includes a “diorama view” feature that enables you to view from afar and spin the stages, both to admire the artwork and hunt for ways that may not have been obvious.

Minor Hiccups and General Gameplay

Here lies one of the only hiccups with Gloomy Eyes. Similar to other releases with a static view, sometimes it's unclear where the heroes are able to move. Players might have to just bump into a multiple different elements to determine which ones are interactive, as clues aren't consistently provided.

Nevertheless, those small obstacles don’t get in the way of a spooky-cute good time. Gloomy Eyes has a compact length, with approximately three to five hours worth of brain-teasers. Advanced areas combine light hidden movement and dynamic sequences with the challenge completion, as Gloomy Eyes marches toward a satisfying — and slightly unexpected — finale.

Availability and Final Thoughts

Those avoiding the frights of terrifying games won’t want to miss Gloomy Eyes. It’s available on Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 5, computer, and Microsoft console, and is currently on sale for a quarter off on digital platforms.

The spooky-cute adventure is out now on various systems and delivers a pleasurable choice for players in search of Halloween fun without terrifying moments.