Not every spooky season adventure must frighten gamers. From beloved classics like animated detectives to delightful stories including Over the Garden Wall, many spooky-season favorites offer entertainment without needing increasing anxiety. Additionally, a increasing selection of eerie-charming games with Halloween vibes, though lacking the sleep-with-the-lights-on level of terror. Gloomy Eyes was released in the fall, and serves as an excellent cozy alternative to the truly terrifying releases of 2025.
An Original Self-Coop Quest
Labeled as a solo collaboration puzzle game, Gloomy Eyes unites a living-impaired child known as Gloomy and a human girl known as Nena as they start an adventure to restore sunlight to their gloomy world. They look evokes collectible figures mixed with the characters from a animated feature. The fair-toned and tired-looking appearance draws inspiration from the appearance of Burtonesque cinema, and the narrative is a classic suitable for everyone journey. The duo forms an enduring bond over the course of the game’s numerous levels as Nena tries to demonstrate to her religious guardian that, hey, possibly living-impaired beings are actually good.
Original Gameplay Systems
The “self-coop” label stems from the game’s world-based challenges. After Gloomy and Nena encounter each other, you’ll swap among the newfound friends to complete challenges and move forward through the stages. As an undead, Gloomy can’t walk through the brightness of a streetlight, while Nena can be captured by wandering undead without a lamp is shone on them.
They have to work in tandem — in practice, you’ll use them in tandem — to complete stages. Nena could adjust or momentarily deactivate illumination to open routes for Gloomy, while the open-brained character will utilize his supernatural ability to rearrange items in the environment, opening up routes for Nena.
Captivating World Building
The puzzles remind me a bit of The Gardens Between, in the way the stages are hovering, diorama-like structures that the camera pans around in conjunction with your protagonists. Gloomy Eyes’ environments are quite fun, taking the duo around a carnival and through a haunted house, among other locales. Players can use a “diorama view” option that permits you to zoom out and spin the levels, simultaneously to appreciate the designs and look for paths that may not have been obvious.
Minor Challenges and Overall Gameplay
And that’s one of the only problems with Gloomy Eyes. Comparable to other titles with a fixed perspective, occasionally it's confusing where the protagonists are able to move. Gamers could require to just bump into a several various elements to figure out which ones are interactive, as clues aren't consistently provided.
Nevertheless, those slight challenges don't hinder of a spooky-cute good time. Gloomy Eyes runs on the short side, with roughly several hours worth of puzzles. Advanced areas integrate subtle hidden movement and exciting moments with the puzzle solving, as Gloomy Eyes advances to a rewarding — and slightly surprising — finale.
Release and Summary
Those avoiding the frights of fear-inducing titles won’t want to miss Gloomy Eyes. It’s available on Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 5, Windows PC, and Xbox, and is currently on sale for a quarter off on online stores.
This charming title is available on multiple platforms and offers a enjoyable option for gamers looking for Halloween fun without terrifying moments.
