Not each autumn fright adventure needs to frighten you. Starting with well-known tales for example Scooby-Doo to charming series like Over the Garden Wall, many autumn-inspired titles are enjoyable without needing raising your heart rate. Additionally, a growing library of spooky-cute titles with spooky themes, yet without the sleep-with-the-lights-on intensity of horror. Gloomy Eyes debuted in the fall, and acts as an superb relaxing choice to the intensely frightening releases of 2025.
A Distinctive Self-Coop Journey
Described as a “self-coop” puzzle game, Gloomy Eyes pairs up a zombie boy known as Gloomy and a mortal child called Nena as they embark on an adventure to return daylight to their dark, dark world. Their design resembles collectible figures mixed with the puppets from a Laika film. Their pale-skinned and baggy-eyed aesthetic borrows heavily from the look of Burtonesque cinema, and the story is a quintessential suitable for everyone journey. These two builds an unbreakable bond over the course of the game’s multiple stages as Nena attempts to demonstrate to her clerical relative that, you know, perhaps living-impaired beings are actually good.
Innovative Problem-Solving Features
This unique description stems from the game’s environmental puzzles. After Gloomy and Nena encounter each other, players alternate between the budding companions to complete challenges and progress through the stages. Since he's not alive, Gloomy is unable to traverse through the light of a light source, while Nena may be grabbed by idle zombies without a light is shone on them.
They have to work in tandem — actually, gamers operate them in tandem — to advance through areas. Nena could adjust or momentarily deactivate lights to clear paths for Gloomy, while the thoughtful youth will employ his undead power to rearrange items in the world, creating paths for Nena.
Immersive World Building
The brain-teasers bring to mind a bit of The Gardens Between, in the fashion the areas are suspended, miniature designs that the perspective rotates in conjunction with your characters. Gloomy Eyes’ settings are very enjoyable, taking the duo around a carnival and through a ghostly building, amid other locations. Players can use a “diorama view” option that allows you to view from afar and spin the areas, both to admire the artwork and hunt for routes that may not have been apparent.
Slight Challenges and Overall Gameplay
And that’s one of the sole problems with Gloomy Eyes. Like other games with a fixed perspective, sometimes it's unclear where the characters may or may not travel. Players might have to simply collide with a multiple different objects to determine which ones are interactable, as the game doesn't always indicate.
Nonetheless, those slight challenges don't obstruct of a ghostly-charming good time. Gloomy Eyes runs on the short side, with about three to five hours worth of brain-teasers. Advanced areas blend together subtle hidden movement and exciting moments with the challenge completion, as Gloomy Eyes marches toward a fulfilling — and somewhat surprising — finale.
Accessibility and Summary
Those shying away from the scares of fear-inducing releases won’t want to miss Gloomy Eyes. You can find it on Nintendo Switch, PS5, computer, and Microsoft console, and is available at a reduced price for a discount on game marketplaces.
This charming title has been released on several consoles and offers a delightful alternative for fans seeking autumn enjoyment without the intense scares.
