Hollow Lantern

Hollow Lantern is an atmospheric adventure that leans on mood over action. You explore a decaying lighthouse tapping to examine objects, piece together what happened here, and solve environmental puzzles that lean on observation rather than obscure logic. The hand-painted art carries a lot of the weight, and it earns every second of screen time.

We finished it in one long evening and it lingered afterward. The puzzles never resort to that maddening pixel-hunting old adventures were guilty of; hints are available but rarely needed. The sound design, all creaking wood and distant surf, does a huge amount of work.

Short, self-contained, and worth playing in one sitting with headphones on.

What we liked

• Gorgeous hand-painted environments
• Fair, observation-based puzzles
• Superb, atmospheric sound design