Skip to main content

Eyes in the Dark is an inventive ‘rogue-light’ with some bright ideas

Whenever I hear about a new indie roguelike, I can’t help but roll my eyes initially. It’s not because I don’t like the genre. On the contrary, Rogue Legacy 2 is one of my favorite games of the year and I’d argue Hades might be the best game of the entire decade so far. It’s just that the genre has been done to death at this stage and I’m always left wondering how many more ways it can be pulled apart.

Eyes in the Dark: Launch Trailer

Eyes in the Dark once again proves that game developers are much more creative than I am. The new Gearbox-published title is immediately notable for its striking black-and-white art style. What makes it really shine, though, is its flashlight-based combat, which helps it stands out among a crowded genre. It may not stand side-to-side with some of the best modern roguelikes, but it’s a bright idea worth checking out.

Recommended Videos

Shine a light

Victoria shines her flashlight in Eyes in the Dark.
Image used with permission by copyright holder

The game takes place in 1922, with the young Victoria Bloom visiting her grandfather’s mansion. Aesthetically, it’s a little all over the place. It’s presented like a silent movie with dialogue cards during cutscenes, but it has a modern cartoon art style and a fairly standard soundtrack you’d hear in any other roguelike. The only thing that really emphasizes the setting is its black-and-white palette, which is as distinct as it is functional.

The core premise of the game is that Victoria’s grandpa is kidnapped by bugs, so she must head into the ever-shifting manor and save him. Her only weapon is a flashlight, which can be aimed with the right joystick if you’re using a controller. Whenever she enters a new room, it’s cloaked in a thick black fog that dissipates as you aim at it, revealing the enemies hiding within.

The flashlight essentially acts like a gun, damaging any enemy in its beam. Victoria can acquire different bulbs during each run, which changes how the beam of light shoots out. Some shoot damaging bubbles of light instead of a horizontal beam. Others shoot out in a burst of sparks, like a shotgun blast. It’s a clever spin on the twin-stick shooter that replaces bullets with light patterns.

The game’s roguelike (or “rogue-light,” more accurately) elements are all fairly standard beyond that. You’ll collect upgrades that alter both your flashlight and your side weapon, a light slingshot. The goal is to beat a bug boss in each of the mansion’s nine zones, gradually unlocking new areas. There’s a bit of progression too, as each run grants you knowledge points that can be spent on permanent perks and new upgrades. It’s easier than most roguelikes I’ve played and has a lot of visual repetition, but none of that detracts from the creative design ideas on display here. I’ve had plenty of fun over the past week testing out builds while booting up quick runs on my Steam Deck (it’s a perfect game for the platform thanks to its controller layout).

Victoria fights a spider boss in Eyes in the Dark.
Image used with permission by copyright holder

If you’re hungry for a fun roguelike that brings some neat twists to the table, Eyes in the Dark is worth checking out. Between its striking visual style and its clever flashlight combat, it’s one of the more inventive new releases to drop this summer, even if it just winds up being a flash-in-the-pan curiosity in the long run.

Eyes in the Dark is available now on PC.

Giovanni Colantonio
As Digital Trends' Senior Gaming Editor, Giovanni Colantonio oversees all things video games at Digital Trends. As a veteran…
Topics
This AMD-powered MSI gaming PC with RTX 4060 is 10% off today
The MSI Aegis Z2 gaming PC on a white background.

You're going to want to take advantage of any discount that you encounter when shopping for gaming PC deals, as these machines can get pretty expensive. Here's an offer from Amazon to consider: the MSI Aegis Z2 with the Nvidia GeForce RTX 4060 graphics card at $143 off, which brings its price down from $1,400 to $1,257. That's a pretty nice bargain for a gaming desktop of this caliber, but you're going to have to hurry with your purchase if you want to make sure that you get it at 10% off. The offer may be gone as soon as tomorrow!

Why you should buy the MSI Aegis Z2 gaming PC

Read more
You may have access to hundreds of free games you’re not taking advantage of
Living room with Microsoft Xbox Series X (L) and Sony PlayStation 5 home video game consoles alongside a television and soundbar.

Ever since Nintendo was the first to breach the $80 threshold for games with Mario Kart World, the concerns over game prices have been top of mind across the industry. Between tariffs, inflation, cost of living, and what appears to be an inevitable recession right around the corner, I have already been preparing for how I can be a more discerning consumer of games.

There are tons of ways to be more thrifty with our favorite hobby. You can wait for sales, trade and borrow games, rely more on subscription services like PlayStation Plus and Game Pass, or just stick to the wealth of free-to-play games. But there's one resource I never see brought up that could give you access to a huge library of major titles for free: your local library.

Read more
In a sea of giant games, Rematch’s simplicity is a gift
A screenshot of players celebrating in Rematch.

There are a lot of words I’d use to describe Rematch, the new multiplayer soccer game from Sifu developer Sloclap. It’s fun, it’s approachable, it’s elegant. But there’s one word I wouldn't use: ambitious. I don’t mean that in a derogatory way; in fact, that’s exactly what I love about it.

Rematch needs little setup or explanation to get across what it is, which separates it from so many modern, formula-twisting video games. It’s an online multiplayer soccer game where teams of three to five, depending on the playlist, compete in six minute matches. The teams are dropped on a basic pitch, the only notable twist of which is that all the sides are walled off. Players pass, block, and shoot and the team with the most points at the end wins. There are no gimmicks, no tricks, and no flourishes like flying cars that make for a cool sales pitch. It’s just soccer.

Read more