Hollow Lantern

Hollow Lantern is the kind of game I recommend to people who say mobile games can't be atmospheric. You explore a crumbling underground city carrying a lantern, and light is both your tool and your resource — venture too far into the dark and you risk getting lost with no way back.

It's slow and deliberate, more about mood and small puzzles than action. You nudge levers, find hidden passages, and piece together what happened to the place through notes and murals. The art does a lot of heavy lifting; every room feels hand-crafted.

There's no combat to speak of, and the challenge is navigational rather than reflexive. If you like games that let you breathe and wander, this one's a quiet gem. If you want constant stimulation, it might feel too calm.

What we liked

• Light as a resource you have to manage
• Environmental storytelling done with restraint
• Hand-crafted rooms worth exploring slowly