Lanternwake is a free top-down action adventure you play in the browser, inspired by the lanterns of the Mid-Autumn festival. The moon has gone dark on the fifteenth night, and a child with a star lantern sets out to climb to it. Across four hand-painted chapters you fight ink and paper creatures with a three-hit combo, roll through telegraphed attacks, and plant three kinds of light — a Firefly, a Lotus pad and a Candle — to solve the road and beat four bosses. No download, no sign-up, and it saves at every rest.
How to play Lanternwake
- Press Begin the journey. Walk with WASD or the arrow keys (the left stick on touch); the camera follows the lantern along the road.
- Strike with J, X or a left click. Three strikes in a row make a slash, a backslash and a spinning finisher that hits everything around you.
- Roll with Space, K or a right click. The start of a roll cannot be hit, so roll through a shockwave or a lunge the moment it comes, not before.
- Choose a light with 1–3, Tab or the mouse wheel and plant it with L, Q or a middle click. Each costs one charge from the lantern; every three blows you land rekindle one.
- Use the lights on the road: a Firefly lights the dark, dispels ink tendrils and pins what wanders into it; a Lotus pad floats on open water so you can cross it; a Candle burns brambles and lights stone lamps.
- Each chapter ends with a guardian. Watch how it attacks, use that chapter’s light the way the hints suggest, and strike while it is stunned. Beating one heals its land and adds a charge to your lantern.
Tips
- Against the Old Carp, plant a Firefly between you and it before it charges — it trips on the light and bares the ink knot on its back, which takes far more damage than its scales.
- Paper moths tear in two when struck while free. Pin them with a Firefly first and a single blow finishes each one.
- Broken clay warriors stand up again after a few seconds. Plant a Candle on the shards while they lie there and they stay down.
- Lotus pads leapfrog: plant one, step onto its far edge, and plant the next. Only three float at once, so planting a fourth sinks the oldest — keep moving forward and it will be the one behind you.
- When the lantern is empty outside a fight, just wait a moment: it rekindles one light every few seconds when nothing is hunting you.
- Walk into the little side paths. Each chapter hides five wish lanterns, and lighting them all is the only score the journey keeps.
FAQ
Is Lanternwake free to play?
Yes. Lanternwake is completely free to play online in your browser, with no download, no account and no in-game purchases.
Does Lanternwake work on mobile?
Yes. On a phone or tablet an on-screen stick moves the child and four buttons strike, roll, plant a light and switch between lights. It also plays with a keyboard and mouse, or with a gamepad.
How long is Lanternwake, and does it save?
There are four chapters — the Lotus Marsh, Bamboo Night, the Lantern Stair and the Moon Banyan — each ending in a boss. A test player that never gets lost walks the whole road in about twelve minutes, so a first journey with exploring and a few retries takes most people twenty minutes or more. The game saves at every rest point in this browser, so Continue picks up where you stopped.
What are the three lights?
The Firefly lights the dark, dispels ink tendrils, pins enemies that touch it and pulses damage. The Lotus opens a pad on open water that you can stand on. The Candle burns brambles, lights stone lamps and sets fire to anything that stands in it. You find one in each of the first three chapters.
What happens when I lose all my health?
The child wakes at the last rest point with full health and a full lantern. In a boss fight you start again at the edge of the arena, and the boss keeps any phase you have already broken.
Is Lanternwake multiplayer?
No. It is a single-player story adventure; there are no other players, chat or accounts.