The Ghostly-Charming Brain-Teaser Acts as the Excellent Alternative to Frightening Flicks

Not every Halloween horror experience has to scare gamers. Including iconic favorites for example Scooby-Doo to delightful stories such as Over the Garden Wall, plenty of Halloween-themed favorites are enjoyable without requiring causing fear. Additionally, a growing library of ghostly-adorable releases with Halloween vibes, yet without the keep-you-awake degree of fear. Gloomy Eyes debuted in recent months, and acts as an outstanding relaxing choice to the intensely frightening games of 2025.

This title image
Visual: Developers, ATLAS V, Art Team, Publishers

A Unique Single-Player Cooperative Journey

Known as a single-player cooperative problem-solving title, Gloomy Eyes unites a living-impaired child named Gloomy and a human girl called Nena as they embark on an adventure to return daylight to their gloomy realm. Their design resembles stylized dolls blended with the figures from a animated feature. Their light-complected and heavy-lidded appearance borrows heavily from the appearance of Gothic fantasy movies, and the story is a quintessential family-friendly journey. The duo builds an unbreakable friendship over the course of the game’s numerous levels as Nena attempts to show to her priest uncle that, hey, maybe the undead aren’t half bad.

Innovative Problem-Solving Features

The “self-coop” term originates from the game’s environmental puzzles. Once Gloomy and Nena encounter each other, you’ll swap amidst the budding companions to solve puzzles and move forward through the levels. Since he's not alive, Gloomy cannot pass through the illumination of a streetlight, while Nena will get snatched up by idle zombies without a light is shone on them.

They have to collaborate effectively — actually, gamers operate them simultaneously — to finish levels. Nena might relocate or momentarily deactivate illumination to create passages for Gloomy, while the thoughtful boy will use his zombie strength to move items in the surroundings, opening up routes for Nena.

Gloomy Eyes screenshot
Visual: ARTE France, ATLAS V, Art Team, Game Company

Engaging Level Design

The brain-teasers evoke memories a bit of The Gardens Between, in the manner the stages are suspended, model-like designs that the view rotates in conjunction with your protagonists. Gloomy Eyes’ worlds are quite fun, leading the duo around a carnival and through a ghostly building, including other locales. Players can use a “diorama view” button that enables you to pull back and turn the stages, both to appreciate the visuals and search for paths that may not have been clear.

Slight Hiccups and Overall Gameplay

And that’s one of the few difficulties with Gloomy Eyes. Like other titles with a locked camera, occasionally it's confusing where the characters can and cannot go. You may need to simply collide with a several various elements to determine which ones are usable, as clues aren't consistently provided.

Nonetheless, those minor challenges don't obstruct of a eerie-adorable good time. Gloomy Eyes runs on the short side, with about a few sessions worth of puzzles. Advanced areas blend together subtle hidden movement and action elements with the problem-solving, as Gloomy Eyes marches toward a fulfilling — and somewhat unexpected — finale.

Accessibility and Conclusion

Players steering clear of the frights of fear-inducing games ought to experience Gloomy Eyes. You can find it on Switch console, PlayStation 5, Windows PC, and Xbox Series X, and is currently on sale for 25% off on game marketplaces.

Gloomy Eyes has been released on several consoles and delivers a enjoyable option for players looking for spooky entertainment without the fear factor.

Mark Avery
Mark Avery

Lucas van der Meer is a musician, writer, and digital artist exploring the boundaries of sound and technology.