Close Your Eyes

Close Your Eyes is a short first-person horror game developed as part of the Ludum Dare event with the theme Caught in a Loop. The game takes the idea of ​​​​the familiar childhood game of hide-and-seek but transforms it into a tense and surprising experience, where players must both search and survive against a mysterious entity.

Close Your Eyes Background

The game opens with a gentle scene: two children playing hide-and-seek in a quiet house. The player takes on the role of the seeker, closes his eyes and counts to ten and starts to search each room—living room, kitchen, hallway…

There is no background music. Only the sound of wooden footsteps echoes in the empty space, creating a realistic and slightly chilling feeling right from the start even though nothing has happened yet.

Close Your Eyes Mechanics

Although very simple, Hide and Seek creates constant tension thanks to three main elements:

• Shift: Players can close their eyes to listen to the surrounding sounds. This isn’t just a bonus feature—it’s key to survival.
• Hide in cupboards, under tables: When you hear breathing, water, or strange footsteps, you must find shelter immediately.
• Looping environment changes: After each trip through the hallway, a small detail changes—a TV turns on, a kettle boils, a mirror appears, the room locks…
• The game doesn’t have overt jumpscares—it lets you sense danger through your hearing.

When the game starts to get creepy

After a few rounds of seemingly normal searching, things start to get a little unsettling:

• A terrifying scene in the bathtub flashes by.
• Breathing sounds from behind you when you close your eyes.
• The house loops, but each time something seems off.
• A bird-like entity starts to hunt the player.

From here, Close Your Eyes is no longer hide and seek—it’s a real escape.

Climax & Open Ending

The player must listen, hide at the right time, and remember the changing details to overcome the loop. When the environment changes enough, the character finally meets his friend named Sam, and the game ends with the words: To be continued—revealing that this is only the beginning.

Close Your Eyes impresses with its simple but extremely tense gameplay; sound is the main weapon, not overusing jumpscares but creating a feeling of being constantly hunted. The game is suitable for people who like short indie games, relying on feeling and hearing more than action. But if you want a familiar horror game experience, you should definitely not miss Slender 8 Pages.