Rosewater
Rosewater
Game
Game2018
Lamplight City
Developer Grundislav Games
Lamplight City is a point-and-click adventure game developed by American studio Grundislav Games and released in 2018 by Application Systems Heidelberg. The game takes place in an alternate history version of 19th century America that incorporates steampunk elements, in which players take control of a private detective who tackles a series of cases while trying to uncover the identity of a criminal who caused their… From Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)
277 reactions from 4 sources (Steam reviews, Bluesky, Mastodon, Lemmy) · newest Nov 2, 2026 · last updated Nov 5, 2026 · How this works
Audience score
85
LovedLoved
165 positive · 28 negative
95% range 80–90%
| Source | + | − | = |
|---|---|---|---|
| Steam reviews | 165 | 28 | 0 |
| Bluesky * | 26 | 0 | 50 |
| Mastodon * | 2 | 0 | 3 |
| Lemmy * | 0 | 0 | 3 |
* shown, not counted in the score (label accuracy below our 85% bar or not yet audited).
Steam's own rating
Very Positive
607 of 686 reviews positive (all languages, per Valve)
What players are saying
85% recommend · 164 yes, 28 no
Counted from the reviewers’ own thumbs up/down on the 192 English Steam reviews we collected, not by the AI. Valve’s all-language rating: Very Positive (788 of 881 positive).
Players praise the game's focus on dialogue and investigation over traditional inventory puzzles. [1][2][3] Some reviewers note that choices can lead to unwinnable dead ends, which is frustrating. [4][5][6] The atmospheric Victorian setting and voice acting are widely appreciated. [7][8][9]
Liked
Representative posts
- [4]
Now that AdventureX has brought it to my attention again, time to leave a review on this game I refunded six years ago... Lamplight City touts choices and consequences on the Store page. This is unfortunate, because the game does 'choices and consequences' in exactly the wrong way. Instead of giving you multiple viable options that change how the story progresses based on what you choose, Lamplight City has exactly …
- [1]
An absolutely sublime point&click by Francisco Gonzales, the maker of Shardlight (another one of my favorites.) Here's what makes this game stand out: Instead of tired and annoying loop-de-loop inventory puzzles of other adventure games, this is a true detective game where your main means of progress is talking to people, sussing out potential suspects and reconstructing crimes. Just like in Shardlight, the puzzles …
- [2]
A brilliant modern point-and-click game that dispenses with some of the more vexing elements of older games in the genre (apologies here to fans of LucasArts adventure games!). Most notably, there is no inventory, progress in the game being made mainly through dialogue. There are some puzzles, but none of them revert to the ‘moon logic’ of the classics in the genre. In short, this is a point-and-click game that …
- [9]
"Lamplight City" offers a wonderfully engaging detective experience that stands out with its richly crafted, atmospheric setting. The Victorian-inspired world is brought to life with incredible attention to detail, making the game’s dark, gaslit streets feel immersive and authentic. The story is thoughtfully written, with sharp dialogues and unique characters that add depth and personality to each case. The game’s …
- [3]
I bought this game a while ago when I was on a big point and click binge but just recently got around to playing it and oh my god. I love the approach to the detective point and click style. I always love puzzles, but I liked that this one focuses more on the dialogue and investigation of your surroundings. I grew to like Miles, as dumb as he can be (JUST TALK TO YOUR WIFE OH MY GOD DUDE), and I really liked Bill's …
Summarised from 34 of the 255 public posts collected about this game; every point cites the posts behind it ([n] opens the post) and the split is counted from the posts’ own ratings. Updated Oct 13, 2026. How summaries are made
RottenBot@rottenbot · automated account
85% of the 192 Steam reviewers we collected recommend Lamplight City. The complaint that keeps coming up: unwinnable dead ends from arbitrary dialogue choices. Deal-breaker or nitpick?
Critics, per Wikipedia
On Metacritic, a review aggregator, the PC version has a score of 72/100 based on 16 reviews, which the site categorizes as "mixed or average reviews". GameSpot rated it 6/10 stars; reviewer James O'Connor wrote that the game is "full of great ideas, but isn't quite able to pull them off effectively". Although praising the character and dialogue, O'Connor said the ability to fail a case turns out to be a gimmick, as the cases are not challenging. Richard Hoover of Adventure Gamers rated it 3/5 stars, praising the visuals, sound, music, and worldbuilding. However, Hoover wrote that the game is not sufficiently interactive. Instead of offering branching storylines, player choices seem not to…
From the “Reception” section of Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. Critic context only — not part of the audience score.
Reactions
60 of 277 · most liked firstOne of the first games to get me into the genre a little while back, was Francisco's game Lamplight City. Found it in my inbox after I'd played Unavowed, and I thoroughly loved it. I'd definitely recommend picking it up. store.steampowered.com/app/761460/L...
positive · AI labelView post →Got a pretty decent discount on it too because I already had Lamplight City, so it wasn't too expensive at all. But it's the principle of the thing, y'know? I wanted to just buy the game. store.steampowered.com/bundle/50641...
neutral · AI labelView post →Looking forward to this one, if you enjoy Point & Click Adventure games, you might wanna keep an eye on Rosewater, 'cos the previous game Lamplight City was one of the games that got me into the genre in the first place. And there's still a demo to check out, if you're curious.
neutral · AI labelView post →LAMPLIGHT CITY is my detective adventure game set in an alternate 19th century inspired by Poe, Dickens, Sherlock Holmes, and Gabriel Knight. It's also 40% off on Steam right now! store.steampowered.com/app/761460/L...
neutral · AI labelView post →38. The Darkside Detective: Backside of the Moon Delighted that they announced a 3rd installment, because the first Darkside Detective is the game I credit alongside Unavowed and Lamplight City with really getting me into the Point & Click Adventure genre in the first place, so I'm here for it.
neutral · AI labelView post →After 6 years, someone found a bug in Lamplight City where performing a specific set of actions causes the game to hit an unwinnable dead end state in Case 3. Just goes to show, no matter how much you test, there will always be something that slips by!
neutral · AI labelView post →18. Lamplight City Really enjoyed the developer's latest game, Rosewater, earlier this year, but the previous game Lamplight City is extremely worth checking out; a steampunk detective point & click adventure that's broken up into individual bite-size cases. store.steampowered.com/app/761460/L...
positive · AI labelView post →Hi folks! A little request: if you've played my game, Lamplight City, but haven't yet left a review, please do! Help me reach my dream of having a game on Steam with 1,000 reviews :D store.steampowered.com/app/761460/L...
neutral · AI labelView post →14. Lamplight City This is one of the games that got me into the Point & Click genre, and with the developer's new game Rosewater coming out soon, it's well worth checking out. The individual murder cases break up the gameplay into nice bite-size mysteries. store.steampowered.com/app/761460/L...
positive · AI labelView post →21. The Darkside Detective Here's an Irish game for Patty's Day! This was the first modern Point & Click Adventure game I'd played, and along with Avowed and Lamplight City got me into the genre after thinking for years I didn't get on with it. It's great! store.steampowered.com/app/368390/T...
neutral · AI labelView post →You've heard the phrase "never pay more than 20 bucks for a computer game," but what about paying less than 20 bucks for TWO? Grab Lamplight City and Rosewater - two narrative adventures set in an alternate 19th century - on Steam until May 1st! store.steampowered.com/bundle/50641...
neutral · AI labelView post →LAMPLIGHT CITY is 40-65% off during the Steam Scream Fest! A detective adventure game where getting things wrong doesn’t mean “game over.” Solve 5 cases inspired by Poe, Dickens, Sherlock Holmes, and Gabriel Knight. store.steampowered.com/app/761460/L...
neutral · AI labelView post →Calling all adventure game fans! Enter the alt history steampunk-ish world of Vespuccia! Search dark alleys and foggy streets in search of your partner’s killer in LAMPLIGHT CITY Go out West and gather a posse to hunt for a missing fortune in ROSEWATER store.steampowered.com/bundle/50641...
neutral · AI labelView post →Now that AdventureX has brought it to my attention again, time to leave a review on this game I refunded six years ago... Lamplight City touts choices and consequences on the Store page. This is unfortunate, because the game does 'choices and consequences' in exactly the wrong way. Instead of giving you multiple viable options that change how the story progresses based on what you choose, Lamplight City has exactly one 'correct' sequence of events for each case and if you make a choice…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →You've heard the phrase "never pay more than 20 bucks for a computer game," but what about paying less than 20 bucks for TWO? Grab Lamplight City and Rosewater - two narrative adventures set in an alternate 19th century - on Steam until June 14th! store.steampowered.com/bundle/50641...
neutral · AI labelView post →For A Golden Wake, Lamplight City, and Rosewater, I bumped it up to 10 frames. It's interesting how the frame count worked in all 3 games despite being 320x200, 640x400, and 1280x720, respectively. (Also amusing to note how my rotoscoping process improved with each game) (🧵3/6)
neutral · AI labelView post →There’s something very cool about just being able to carry on if you fail cases in this game. It makes it enjoyable and incredibly relaxing to play. - From Lamplight City (@grundislav.games) #LamplightCity #AdventureGames #IndieGames #Gaming
positive · AI labelView post →I wasted hours clicking everywhere trying to solve the third case about Spontaneous Combustion but could not locate the prime suspect anywhere. I knew the suspect's name and had enough information to deduce a motive but was forced to deem the case unsolvable. Went to forums thinking this was a bug, only to discover that I locked myself out of solving the case hours ago by seemingly unrelated, arbitrary dialogue choices at the very beginning of the chapter. Frustrating and unsatisfying game…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Looking for retro adventure games. i recently played Syberia, Resonance, The Samaritan Paradox and Lamplight City. I'm looking for games along the same direction: 90s/2000s style adventure games. It could be really old games or also retro ones that have been released recently. Do you have any recommendations on games you particularly enjoyed? Any information on Linux compatibility would be a plus. But these days almost everything works anyway, so it's not a big deal.
neutral · AI labelView post →Grab the World of Vespuccia Bundle during the Steam Summer Sale! Get two adventure games set in an alternate 19th century: Lamplight City, a detective game where it’s ok to fail, and Rosewater, a Wild West roadtrip where choices really do matter. store.steampowered.com/bundle/50641...
neutral · AI labelView post →Just finished playing Lamplight City by @grundislav.games. It was my first point and click game in a very long time and a good way to come back to the genre. I left a Steam review, which I don’t do often, but let’s show some appreciation for indie gaming ! Now, Rosewater !
positive · AI labelView post →Welcoming innovative adventure game developer Francisco González of Gundislav Games to LI Retro this weekend! Known for his incredible titles A Golden Wake, Shardlight, Lamplight City, and Rosewater, join him for a masterclass discussion in writing and designing point & click adventures! LIRetro.com
neutral · AI labelView post →Game 37 - Lamplight City: A true modern classic of the genre. Replaying this with a friend reminded me how bold it is. Discarding genre conventions that the designer understands are unneeded for this particular experience helps, rather than hinders, the goal of being a fantastic detective game.
positive · AI labelView post →Another great adventure game developer who's now doing his own thing is Francisco Gonzalez/@grundislav.games - his adventures are all really notable for being complex and replayable, incorporating player choice and offering layered, interesting characters. Lamplight City and Rosewater are awesome!
neutral · AI labelView post →SERIOUSLY GET THIS GAME, fellow indie adventure game likers And also get its Same AU sibling-game Lamplight City while you're at it
neutral · AI labelView post →Get, and I cannot say this enough, this game if you like: Point & click but where your social decisions are important Kinda steampunky AU Wild West found family hijinks (and get its sibling game Lamplight City for the same world but solving crimes in the city with a sad broody wifeguy)
neutral · AI labelView post →His latest adventure game Rosewater is a IndieCade nominated Old West adventure that expands on the universe started in 2018's Lamplight City. Let's Chat with @grundislav.games - Creator of Rosewater, Lamplight City & the Ben Jordan series! youtu.be/B7AXCnTJzZY
neutral · AI labelView post →Get LAMPLIGHT CITY during the Steam Detective Fest! Explore an alt history 19th century city with a dash of steampunk and use your wits to solve 5 cases. Getting things wrong doesn’t mean “game over.” store.steampowered.com/app/761460/L...
neutral · AI labelView post →Rosewater's precursor, Lamplight City, was the first game the Consulting Detective Network took on. It was an amazing adventure game, mystery, and homage to games like Gabriel Night. I cannot express how much excited I am to dig into Rosewater. Go check it out, all.
positive · AI labelView post →Some cases you may lose because you do things in the wrong order that you have no way knowing about, just pure luck. Other than that, the game is good, but this one is a dealbreaker for me.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →🚨 New Quest Quest episode! 🚨 This week, Ben and I sit down with Francisco González (@grundislavgames.bsky.social), developer of Lamplight City, Shardlight, and the upcoming Western point-and-click Rosewater. It’s a delightful chat with a true genre expert! 🔗 Listen here: zencastr.com/z/VRwmQzla
neutral · AI labelView post →Rosewater is a DELIGHT and I recommend you also get its Older Brother Game Lamplight City set in the same AU 19th century world
neutral · AI labelView post →This game is so great (I would die for Danny & Nadine). Get its brother-game Lamplight City while you're at it, treat yourself to a double whammy of the same world.
neutral · AI labelView post →Lamplight City was a very fun adventure game with the premise "what if a Sierra game didn't hate your existence?"
positive · AI labelView post →I think out of all the Grundislav Games, most people sleep on A Golden Wake. Lamplight City and Rosewater have the most "game" elements, with mysteries to solve and epic adventures to have, but A Golden Wake is sneakier. It's a point-and-click about the 1920s Florida land boom, and that's cool!
neutral · AI labelView post →Its a shame the game play is so poor, given the effort that went into the artwork and story line. The game basically consists of going from one character to the next exhausting almost all the dialog options, while avoiding the occasional dialog choice that will lock you out of ever completing the case. Nothing like looking up a cheat out of frustration only to find that something you clicked on at the very start of the case 40 minutes ago locked you out of ever finishing it. Truly awful.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →What games are you looking forward to?. There's so many adventure games being created right now and I was wondering what you're all excited for. Here's some games I'm hoping to play in the next year. I'm leaving a few out just so this doesn't turn into a gigantic list [The Crimson Diamond](https://store.steampowered.com/app/1098770/The_Crimson_Diamond/) - loved the demo and the dev streams for this have been fun to watch [Rosewater](https://store.steampowered.com/app/1226670/Rosewater/) -…
neutral · AI labelView post →Signal boosting Rosewater, one of my favorite adventure games of the last several years, currently on sale on Steam! (You can also get it with Lamplight City for under $20!) It's a fantastic game with great characters, multiple solutions to puzzles and even some randomization to keep things fresh!
neutral · AI labelView post →An absolutely sublime point&click by Francisco Gonzales, the maker of Shardlight (another one of my favorites.) Here's what makes this game stand out: Instead of tired and annoying loop-de-loop inventory puzzles of other adventure games, this is a true detective game where your main means of progress is talking to people, sussing out potential suspects and reconstructing crimes. Just like in Shardlight, the puzzles are few, far between, and always follow a logical train of thought. Instead of…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Lamplight City, is it an adventure game? Yes in the strictest sense, it is, and while certain games in the Adventure genre is referred too as "walking simulators" the pendulum swung in the opposite direction for this game as it's more of a "talking simulator" than it is a traditional point-n-click adventure game. The setting takes place in a damp, dreary 19th century steampunk city, where the political backdrop revolves around the rising steam inventions, mystical aether energy but the story…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I recommend the game, but be very aware that it is neither a classic point&click adventure with an inventory where you combine items, nor is it really a detective game where you need to solves cases by cleverly combining clues. At it's core it's more of a walking simulator or interactive movie. You talk to characters which in turn unlocks new locations, new characters, new dialog options, which in turn unlocks new ... and so on. I still recommend the game, because for what it is, it's…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Lads lads lads play this great game and also Lamplight City which is set in the same AU 19th C North America. Rosewater has: Punchy Lady, grumpy lady, 2 charming fellers & 2 cinnamon rolls, Rootin Tootin science adventure Lamplight City has: Dishevelled troubled wifeguy, grief, CRIMES
neutral · AI labelView post →Buggy and there's no way to restart cases without restarting the entire game if you haven't made multiple saves and just relied on autosave. I'm stuck at a point in case 4 which was reported as a bug in 2018. Even though I'm at the end of case 4, the only way to get through the case now and get the last piece of evidence is to replay the prologue and all four cases. I've already put more than 8 hours into this game. I'm not going to replay the majority of the game just to play the final case.…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I spent a lot of time on this game, sadly I feel like I've wasted it, it's simply not personally rewarding having to backtrack because of dead ends. Very much in the style of old sierra game, if you make minor mistakes at the start it'll cost you hours down the line. as long as you're aware of that then you can go into this game and still enjoy it.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →There's also a great bundle deal right now on steam for this game plus Lamplight City!
neutral · AI labelView post →It's clear time and effort went into making this and I'd rather give it a neutral review than negative, but I didn't enjoy playing it either. * Characters & world-building: There was clearly some effort, but the world feels dull, and the characters are flat and simplistic. It seems they tried to build by adding a LOT of talking (comments on items/locations, dialogue with other characters, newspapers) - but little of it is interesting or compelling, and a good portion of it isn't even…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Alternate title: "The only good white guy is a dead white guy." The positives: The art and animation are terrific. Music and sounds very good. The voice-acting never dips below competent, and is often very good. The unfolding of the various mysteries is handled well, the writing skilled enough--for what it is, which I'll come back to. On the other hand, the puzzling isn't great--mostly click everything and talk to everyone and ask everyone about everything then go to next place, click…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →My favorite detective game might be Lamplight City, which has the same recurring element where you find a lazy, good enough to arrest someone solution to the crime... but if you keep working at it you actually get a deeper understanding of what happened.
positive · AI labelView post →As promised: here's my writeup on @grundislav.games' excellent Lamplight City, another fine addition to the wonderful library of modern point-and-click adventures. (Video version coming soon!) moegamer.net/2026/01/24/l...
neutral · AI labelView post →Final hours to get Lamplight City in the Steam Detective Fest! Explore an alternate history 19th century as a haunted detective. Getting things wrong doesn’t mean “game over.” store.steampowered.com/app/761460/L...
neutral · AI labelView post →If your ears perk up at the chance to hear a modern adventure game creator talk in detail about adventure game puzzle design, Francisco Gonzalez of Grundislav Games (Rosewater, Lamplight City) has you covered!
neutral · AI labelView post →This is a gorgeous game, and I can't recommend it enough. Buy it, play it, leave a positive review, and while you're at it do it for Lamplight City too. If you like point and click, these games are the best out there right now.
neutral · AI labelView post →Rosewater is great. Elevates the Point and Click genre. The writing and the art and the sound are all A+. It's part of the same world as a previous game but you do not have to have played Lamplight City at all to enjoy Rosewater. But you should play Lamplight City because it's awesome too.
neutral · AI labelView post →Lamplight City is the best game @grundislavgames.bsky.social has made so far, IMHO, and Rosewater promises to be even better. Play iiiiit. Play them boooooth. 8)
positive · AI labelView post →If you ever get stumped in Lamplight City my hint to you is a very good message the game makes you learn: your wife is always smarter than you
positive · AI labelView post →While a bit uneven at times, its so cool that a game trusts you enough to allow you to solve cases wrong, and give weight to actually investigating and deducing. Sadly I don-t like most of the decisions made about the main characters, the dramatic core and drive of the overarching plot... The companion that-s with you at all times becomes immediately obnoxious and, honestly, just kinda evil.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →This is a good pixel-art quest in a Victorian entourage, but as soon as you play it, you dive into a world with excellent voice acting and feel at home in a Victorian city full of intrigue and mysteries. You collect your clues, suspects and documentsin a casebook and you can always remember where you've been when you start the game again and look at your objectives list in the casebook. Puzzles are relatively easy, but the focus is on a well-told story. Recommend!
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →You want a point and click investigation game where your partner helping you solve crimes is a ghost? You gotta play Lamplight City! It's so good! And I really enjoyed sinking my teeth into this alt world and the story of this poor sad investigator store.steampowered.com/app/761460/L...
positive · AI labelView post →Started getting into this game until I leaned of the content and themes. Not interested in modern ideologies in 19th century Britain. Hard pass.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →In my opinion the quintessential pixel art point and click adventure game. This is what got me started with my love for these style of games. Moody, mysterious, and the right amount of cozy. I enjoy playing these games right during the end of years holiday season when i have a few hours to kill. Highly recommend!
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →
Posts are quoted from public profiles with links to the original. Want yours removed? Contact us.