This Ghostly-Charming Brain-Teaser Functions as the Perfect Replacement to Halloween Horror

Not every autumn fright adventure needs to frighten players. Starting with iconic favorites like Scooby-Doo to delightful stories including Over the Garden Wall, numerous autumn-inspired staples are enjoyable without needing raising your heart rate. There’s also, a expanding collection of ghostly-adorable releases including spooky themes, yet without the keep-you-awake intensity of fear. Gloomy Eyes debuted in September, and serves as an outstanding comfortable alternative to the truly terrifying titles of 2025.

A Unique Collaborative Solo Adventure

Labeled as a solo collaboration brain-teaser, Gloomy Eyes teams up a living-impaired child called Gloomy and a mortal child known as Nena as they begin an adventure to bring the sun back to their dark, dark environment. Their appearance is similar to stylized dolls blended with the characters from a Laika film. The fair-toned and heavy-lidded style draws inspiration from the visual style of Gothic fantasy movies, and the story is a classic suitable for everyone adventure. These two forms an strong friendship over the span of the game’s 14 chapters as Nena attempts to prove to her religious guardian that, hey, maybe the undead are actually good.

Original Puzzle Mechanics

The innovative term comes about from the game’s world-based challenges. Once Gloomy and Nena encounter each other, you’ll swap between the budding companions to overcome obstacles and move forward through the levels. Since he's not alive, Gloomy can’t walk through the brightness of a streetlight, while Nena will get snatched up by loitering creatures without a lamp is shone on them.

It's necessary for them to work in tandem — in practice, you’ll use them in tandem — to complete stages. Nena may move or briefly disable lamps to open routes for Gloomy, while the intellectually curious boy will employ his undead power to shift around obstacles in the surroundings, opening up ways for Nena.

Engaging Level Design

These challenges bring to mind a bit of The Gardens Between, in the manner the areas are floating, diorama-like constructions that the perspective moves across in coordination with your heroes. Gloomy Eyes’ settings are highly entertaining, taking the friends around a carnival and through a spooky mansion, among other locales. There’s a “diorama view” button that enables you to view from afar and spin the levels, both to appreciate the visuals and look for routes that may not have been clear.

Slight Issues and Overall Experience

This represents one of the only hiccups with Gloomy Eyes. Comparable to other releases with a static view, it’s not always clear where the protagonists can and cannot go. Gamers could require to randomly encounter a multiple different elements to determine which ones are interactable, as it’s not always intuitive.

Nevertheless, those minor obstacles don't obstruct of a spooky-cute good time. Gloomy Eyes has a compact length, with roughly three to five hours worth of challenges. Later levels blend together minor stealth and dynamic sequences with the challenge completion, as Gloomy Eyes marches toward a rewarding — and slightly unforeseen — conclusion.

Accessibility and Final Thoughts

Gamers steering clear of the terror of intense horror games won’t want to miss Gloomy Eyes. The game is out on Switch console, Sony system, PC, and Xbox, and is currently on sale for a quarter off on online stores.

The spooky-cute adventure has been released on multiple platforms and provides a enjoyable alternative for gamers seeking spooky entertainment without intense scares.