At first glance Eyes in the Dark seems very similar in style to Don’t Starve, with a cartoonish look combined with some eerie visuals. The roguelight marks the first game for developer Under the Stairs, a small studio based in Croatia. The game’s full title is Eyes in the Dark: The Curious Case of One Victoria Bloom and puts the player in charge of the titular Victoria Bloom as she seeks to fight off creatures of darkness with her torch.
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In the short gameplay footage that was shown, it seems that the player can upgrade Victoria’s torch in a variety of different ways, likely picking up power-ups on every run similar to Hades or The Binding of Isaac. Some of these light-based weapons include the Shotgun Bulb, a traditional Torch, and Matches. Some of the upgrades can give Victoria a much-needed power boost in fighting the creatures of the night, such as allowing her to shoot lightning.
Like any roguelike or roguelight, Eyes in the Dark will allow for players to have entirely different builds on each run. However, the game does make itself stand out from the crowd of roguelike games, and that is most striking in its aforementioned style. Opting for a monochromatic look, Eyes in the Dark keeps its gothic style as a unique one. It also seems more of a callback to older roguelike titles such as Dead Cells with its side-scrolling level design.
In terms of its narrative, fans know very little so far except for the fact that Victoria’s journey is one she takes to save her family from the monsters infesting a mansion. It’s likely that the more players attempt to run through the mansion, the more they will find out about the story. This marks Gearbox’s second very recent announcement of an upcoming title, following the reveal of a Tales from the Borderlands sequel.
Eyes in the Dark launches on July 14 on Steam and the Epic Games Store.
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