Lanterns of Vael

Lanterns of Vael is a quiet, hand-drawn adventure that trusts you to explore at your own pace. You wander a fog-covered town relighting lanterns, and each one you restore reveals a little more of what happened to the people who lived there. The puzzles are environmental and logical rather than obtuse — I never once had to brute-force a solution.

The mood is the real draw. The art is soft and watercoloured, the soundtrack is barely-there piano, and the whole thing feels like a long exhale. It's the game I kept coming back to on bad days.

It's short, maybe four hours, and it never overstays its welcome. If you want something calm and complete rather than endless, this is it.

What we liked

• Beautiful hand-drawn art
• Logical, fair puzzles
• A genuinely relaxing atmosphere