So... With a game like Eagle Island, there appears to be nothing but two cute characters going on an adventure through the wonderous titular island and battling equally cute baddies who disappear in a cloud of smoke upon defeat, in an attempt to save the brother of one of them from a big mean eagle goddess. Surely there isn't anything scary here, right?
- During the beginning of the game, Quill finds himself wandering from the island's shore to the green forest area with his two owls, coupled by cheery music playing in the background. The cheery aspect is quickly broken when a massive shadow suddenly appears and flies across the screen with a loud whoosh accompanying it. Shortly after, the music fades out and a giant terrifying eagle called Armaura enters the scene, swooping down from the skies and taking away one of Quill's owls.
- Armaura looks rather vicious and menacing in contrast to our heroic, much less mean stars that are Quill and Koji. The fact she's also classified as a deity doesn't do anything to lessen this factor.
- The cutscenes where Armaura takes the Totems. It goes like this: you just came to the area's respective Totem after beating the boss so that you may rescue it, when all of a sudden Armaura comes out of nowhere and ensnares the Totem! And there's nothing you can do except watch as she flies away with her catch, the Totem in her grasp screeching in terror and only leaving behind a single magical feather for you to use...
- Have you wondered even for a moment how powerful Armaura may be after seeing her for the first time when she kidnaps one of your owls and later the Totems? You have no reason to worry about it, because you get to battle her for the first time as early as right after the third level. And her might shows.
- Snappers, the big red fish enemies in Smuggleaway Bay. On their own they're actually not that scary and just slowly swim in a straight horizontal line from one end to the other... but when Quill finds himself right in front of one, it suddenly dashes forward with a lot of sharp teeth filling the now open mouth. The fact that the speed change from slow to fast is so abrupt that it's basically instantenous is what turns its attack into a Jump Scare (unless you get used to it). You really don't want to fall in the water with them around.
- Tomb of the Raven. All things considered, it may well be Eagle Island's equivalent of the Shadow Temple. The Background Music and general appearance is hauntingly eerie and creates a rather unsettling atmosphere, and that's not even taking the resident monstrosities into account.
- Remember Rattits from Woodberry Warren? In the tomb, you'll encounter Lobrats – a meaner version of the Rattits with really creepy yellow eyes that glow in the dark.
- The skull imp enemies from the pre-alpha tech demo weren't very terrifying. But here, they go from silly to scary; they will sometimes appear out of nowhere to hunt you down, and also fit the Tomb of the Raven like a glove when it comes to their appearance. Then there's the fact they make strange growling sounds, making them even more animalistic than they already are...
- On occasion, you may get jumped by Ozzards – the tomb’s equivalent of Moletrio and their variants. Like the Moletrio, Ozzards are hidden from the player until all other enemies in the room are cleared out. UNLIKE the Moletrio however, they do not jump out and throw a projectile, instead just fading into existence in a random location at a random time and rushing into the player with little to no prior warning; their eyes glint briefly against the dark background before quickly revealing themselves, and their attacks are accompanied by strange, ghostly sounds. Even better, when you kill an Ozzard, it screams like a banshee. There’s also a chance you'll get ambushed by many, many Ozzards at once, especially on higher difficulties should you decide to take them on. And finally, the game's randomized nature makes their appearances less predictable, so you usually won't know when they (or how many, for that matter) might be around until all the other enemies in the room are gone. Good luck keeping your nerve.
- The Tombguards are lifeless machines that guard some doors and are quite terrifying in their own right. Basically, once you expose a Tombguard's weakpoint, you have to destroy it fast - a fire Tombguard will unleash a loud fiery explosion that is nearly impossible to escape from, an ice Tombguard will freeze the surrounding area and the player character (who will be completely frozen and unable to move), and an electric Tombguard will suddenly shoot a massive beam right in front of it!
- The revelation that Oliver Ornis is the real bad guy after he kills Armaura. To think that someone who you trusted and even helped you out can quickly turn against you and those you tried to rescue is really unnerving, basically putting general humanity in a less positive light. And if that wasn't enough, Ornis also decides to kidnap your faithful owl Koji, and later on attempts to kill the kid you're playing as. This guy isn't fucking around!
