Not every autumn fright experience has to terrify gamers. From beloved classics like Scooby-Doo to endearing shows like Over the Garden Wall, plenty of spooky-season titles are enjoyable without needing increasing anxiety. Additionally, a expanding collection of spooky-cute titles including spooky themes, though lacking the keep-you-awake level of horror. Gloomy Eyes was released in September, and stands as an outstanding relaxing alternative to the truly terrifying titles of 2025.
A Distinctive Self-Coop Adventure
Described as a solo collaboration puzzle game, Gloomy Eyes teams up a zombie boy named Gloomy and a living girl named Nena as they embark on an mission to bring the sun back to their dark, dark environment. Their appearance is similar to collectible figures combined with the characters from a stop-motion animation. Their pale-skinned and tired-looking aesthetic is influenced by the visual style of Burtonesque cinema, and the story is a archetypal family-friendly journey. These two develops an strong connection over the duration of the game’s multiple stages as Nena strives to show to her clerical relative that, hey, perhaps zombies aren’t half bad.
Creative Problem-Solving Features
This unique label comes about from the game’s world-based challenges. When Gloomy and Nena meet, you’ll swap amidst the newfound friends to complete challenges and progress through the levels. Since he's not alive, Gloomy cannot pass through the brightness of a streetlight, while Nena will get snatched up by wandering undead except if a light is focused on them.
They must cooperate closely — well, gamers operate them in tandem — to finish levels. Nena might relocate or briefly disable lamps to create passages for Gloomy, while the thoughtful boy will use his zombie strength to move items in the environment, opening up ways for Nena.
Immersive World Building
The puzzles remind me a bit of The Gardens Between, in the way the levels are suspended, miniature structures that the view pans around in conjunction with your heroes. Gloomy Eyes’ worlds are highly entertaining, taking the duo around a amusement park and through a ghostly building, including other locales. There’s a “diorama view” button that permits you to zoom out and turn the stages, both for appreciate the visuals and look for ways that may not have been apparent.
Slight Hiccups and General Experience
And that’s one of the few problems with Gloomy Eyes. Similar to other games with a fixed perspective, sometimes it's unclear where the heroes are able to move. You may need to randomly encounter a multiple different items to discover which ones are usable, as it’s not always intuitive.
Nonetheless, those minor challenges don’t get in the way of a spooky-cute enjoyable experience. Gloomy Eyes is relatively brief, with about several hours worth of puzzles. Later levels combine subtle stealth and dynamic sequences with the problem-solving, as Gloomy Eyes advances to a satisfying — and somewhat unforeseen — ending.
Release and Summary
Gamers avoiding the frights of fear-inducing titles won’t want to miss Gloomy Eyes. You can find it on Switch console, PlayStation 5, PC, and Xbox Series X, and is presently discounted for a quarter off on game marketplaces.
The spooky-cute adventure is available on various systems and provides a delightful choice for fans in search of Halloween fun without terrifying moments.
