This Ghostly-Charming Puzzler Functions as the Perfect Alternative to Frightening Flicks

Not all spooky season adventure has to frighten gamers. Starting with well-known tales like mystery-solving cartoons to endearing shows including Over the Garden Wall, many spooky-season staples offer entertainment without raising your heart rate. Moreover, a increasing selection of spooky-cute releases featuring spooky themes, yet without the keep-you-awake intensity of fear. Gloomy Eyes arrived in September, and stands as an superb relaxing alternative to the deeply scary games of 2025.

An Original Single-Player Cooperative Journey

Labeled as a single-player cooperative brain-teaser, Gloomy Eyes teams up a undead youth named Gloomy and a living girl called Nena as they start an quest to restore sunlight to their dark, dark environment. Their appearance is similar to stylized dolls blended with the figures from a Laika film. Their fair-toned and tired-looking aesthetic draws inspiration from the appearance of Tim Burton’s films, and the plot is a archetypal suitable for everyone adventure. These two forms an unbreakable friendship over the span of the game’s numerous levels as Nena strives to show to her religious guardian that, hey, possibly zombies can be friendly.

Innovative Gameplay Systems

This unique label stems from the game’s world-based challenges. When Gloomy and Nena meet, you’ll swap among the budding companions to complete challenges and progress through the areas. Since he's not alive, Gloomy cannot pass through the light of a streetlight, while Nena will get snatched up by wandering undead unless a beam is directed on them.

It's necessary for them to collaborate effectively — actually, you’ll use them in tandem — to advance through areas. Nena might relocate or temporarily shut off lights to create passages for Gloomy, while the thoughtful youth will employ his undead power to shift around objects in the environment, creating routes for Nena.

Engaging Level Design

The puzzles bring to mind a bit of The Gardens Between, in the manner the areas are floating, miniature constructions that the view rotates in conjunction with your protagonists. Gloomy Eyes’ worlds are very enjoyable, leading the duo around a fair and through a haunted house, among other locations. There’s a “diorama view” option that allows you to view from afar and turn the levels, both to appreciate the visuals and hunt for ways that may not have been apparent.

Minor Challenges and Complete Gameplay

Here lies one of the few difficulties with Gloomy Eyes. Similar to other titles with a static view, sometimes it's unclear where the protagonists can and cannot go. You may need to simply collide with a multiple different objects to figure out which ones are interactive, as it’s not always intuitive.

However, those slight obstacles don’t get in the way of a eerie-adorable good time. Gloomy Eyes is relatively brief, with about several hours worth of puzzles. Subsequent stages integrate subtle hidden movement and action elements with the problem-solving, as Gloomy Eyes progresses to a rewarding — and moderately unexpected — finale.

Accessibility and Summary

Those avoiding the scares of intense horror titles ought to experience Gloomy Eyes. You can find it on Nintendo platform, PS5, computer, and Xbox Series X, and is available at a reduced price for a quarter off on digital platforms.

The spooky-cute adventure has been released on several consoles and delivers a pleasurable option for fans looking for Halloween fun minus the fear factor.