Magic Lanterns is a cute puzzle game for the PC with simple play mechanics. Each Magic Lanterns board is filled with colored lanterns. You simply find a group of two or more like-colored lanterns and click them to eliminate. That group will disappear and lanterns above will collapse to fill the hole. The more lanterns you group together for elimination the more points they are worth.There are three modes where you can play levels a la carte. Panic mode gives you a limited time to try to complete the level. Perfect mode gives you a limited number of moves to complete a level. Finally, puzzle mode is a carefully crafted level where lanterns do not continue to fall from the top and you must eliminate all lanterns on the screen to pass the level.
In addition to these three modes there is a special mode called “Lantern Quest”. Lantern Quest is a series of levels from perfect mode strung together with a few puzzle mode levels thrown in as bonus rounds. The thing I enjoyed about Lantern Quest is that you get to learn a little about Japan. In Lantern Quest, you are joined by a tour guide, Hana. Hana takes you from the Kyushu in south Japan to Hokkaido in north Japan. Along the journey, you stop in different villages and learn a little something about the matsuri celebrations in that location. Some matsuri have been celebrated for over a thousand years and Hana fills you in on the traditions such as building and racing massive floats through the streets. In each location, you help the locals prepare for the matsuri by sorting their colored lanterns typically by playing a perfect mode level.
Along with lanterns, there are other objects that can either help or hinder your sorting efforts. Boxes can appear that get in the way of matches and will not disappear until they hit the bottom of the screen. Paint jars can paint the lanterns around them with the color they contain. Random lanterns can change the color of the lanterns around them to a random color. Part of the fun of the game is strategically using items at the right time.
Aside from the 60+ levels that come with the game, there is a community section built into the game. In this section, you can download and play levels designed by others around the world. You can even edit those levels or create your own unique levels and post those for others to play. The level editor is really easy to use. It’s great to see a nice feature like this in a puzzle game since it encourages community participation.
Another neat feature of Magic Lanterns is the scoreboard. Each level has a Top 5 Ranking of the best players for that level around the world. At the end of the level, Magic Lanterns connects to the game server to upload your high score for others to see and downloads the current Top 5 Players.
I'm a Software Developer. I love playing games, especially MMOs. In my free time, I usually play a game or tinker with software and hardware. I usually go for fantasy MMOs although with my recent foray into EVE Online I've found a love for futuristic MMOs as well. I typically like playing fighter classes or utility magic classes. Although I like the social interaction in MMOs and groups, I sometimes like to voyage off alone into the unknown parts of the world on an exploratory expedition.
