Yet Another Zombie Defense HD
Yet Another Zombie Defense HD
Game
Game2021
The Red Lantern
Developer Timberline Studio
The Red Lantern is a narrative, dog sledding game about survival. You play as the Musher who, along with her team of 5 sled dogs, must find her way home. Care for your dogs, discover their stories, and learn how to navigate the unknowns of the Alaskan wilderness and prepare for your new life. From the Steam store page
328 reactions from 4 sources (Steam reviews, Bluesky, Lemmy, Mastodon) · newest Nov 5, 2026 · last updated Nov 5, 2026 · How this works
Audience score
77
LovedLoved
214 positive · 64 negative
95% range 72–82%
| Source | + | − | = |
|---|---|---|---|
| Steam reviews | 214 | 64 | 0 |
| Bluesky * | 12 | 0 | 36 |
| Lemmy * | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Mastodon * | 0 | 0 | 1 |
* shown, not counted in the score (label accuracy below our 85% bar or not yet audited).
Steam's own rating
Very Positive
1,303 of 1,555 reviews positive (all languages, per Valve)
What players are saying
76% recommend · 190 yes, 60 no
Counted from the reviewers’ own thumbs up/down on the 250 English Steam reviews we collected, not by the AI. Valve’s all-language rating: Very Positive (1,901 of 2,364 positive).
Players praise the game's beautiful visuals, voice acting, and charming dogs. [1][2][3] Many reviewers find the game too short and repetitive for its price. [2][4][5] Some players report progress-breaking bugs and unobtainable achievements that remain unaddressed. [1][6][7]
Liked
Representative posts
- [9]
So, probably wondering why i'm not recommending the game even though I got it for free? First the positives, which are that the game is quite nice looking and it was pleasant to look at everything (even the somewhat janky animations of some of the animals), the voice acting for a bit can be pretty solid and obviously doggos. The downsides though? For starters, its a "rail-shooter visual novel" where you dont play …
- [1]
this game was an absolute bliss until I realised that the journal is not completable in the game's current state. the issue that events, even when encountered, do not trigger their journal entry has been brought up by MANY players yet the devs seem to not care at all, and it saddens me. Despite this, the game is a wonderful experience, I loved petting the dogs, and if the devs didn't neglect this I would have been …
- [3]
Just because you're a master in The Long Dark doesn't mean you're gonna have an easy time here! Yet another quality Steam game you can get for 100% off for a limited time. This time your job is to survive in the Alaskan wilderness with 5 faithful furry friends. Be warned though, the survival aspect is no joke, so prepare to die on your first several runs while before you get the hang of things... Other than that the …
- [4]
Short, cozy, fantastic game - fairly overpriced. Wish it had 10x the content (and it took 10x longer to actually beat the game) - what's there already is quite good, but I imagine they were concerned about spending too much money developing a niche game. 10/10 voice acting
- [2]
It's a beautiful game, but very short and repetitive after awhile. I would wait for a sale, because it's too short to reasonably be worth the full price tag. The VA for the main character did a fantastic job. Worth it if your just looking for something different to do for an afternoon.
Summarised from 34 of the 298 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 12, 2026. How summaries are made
RottenBot@rottenbot · automated account
76% of the 250 Steam reviewers we collected recommend The Red Lantern. The complaint that keeps coming up: too short and repetitive. Deal-breaker or nitpick?
Reactions
60 of 328 · most liked firstthis game was an absolute bliss until I realised that the journal is not completable in the game's current state. the issue that events, even when encountered, do not trigger their journal entry has been brought up by MANY players yet the devs seem to not care at all, and it saddens me. Despite this, the game is a wonderful experience, I loved petting the dogs, and if the devs didn't neglect this I would have been so much happier. Now, just looking at it in my library frustrates me, because I…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →So, probably wondering why i'm not recommending the game even though I got it for free? First the positives, which are that the game is quite nice looking and it was pleasant to look at everything (even the somewhat janky animations of some of the animals), the voice acting for a bit can be pretty solid and obviously doggos. The downsides though? For starters, its a "rail-shooter visual novel" where you dont play the game besides making a choice between 1-2 options (extremely rarely 3+). The…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I was super hyped for this after watching the trailer, n it turned out to be a total letdown. As a roguelike it’s got barely any content to work with. Play two or three runs n u start running into the same events over and over. On top of that the gameplay’s really low on interactivity, with just a handful of branching choices n super basic QTE to handle.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Not every game can be a beautiful fairy tale, an adventure, and a lesson in humility all at once. The Red Lantern did that.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Beastro is $9.89 on Steam after you claim The Red Lantern for free store.steampowered.com/app/2417470/... Deck playable also on Game Pass Ultimate
neutral · AI labelView post →Pros: Game is beautiful, music, voice acting, sound effects and volume mixing are all great. Could probably run on a barbie laptop from 2009. Very cute, if simplistic story, good time waster Cons: Be prepared to be very frustrated for your first few runs. Encounters can result in "Upgrades" bc the mc is a little dumb and went out into the Alaskan wilderness with 5 dogs, 3 bullets, a rusty rifle, and a pack of bandaids. Until you find upgrades, your runs are going to be short and very annoying.…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →It's a beautiful game, but very short and repetitive after awhile. I would wait for a sale, because it's too short to reasonably be worth the full price tag. The VA for the main character did a fantastic job. Worth it if your just looking for something different to do for an afternoon.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Just because you're a master in The Long Dark doesn't mean you're gonna have an easy time here! Yet another quality Steam game you can get for 100% off for a limited time. This time your job is to survive in the Alaskan wilderness with 5 faithful furry friends. Be warned though, the survival aspect is no joke, so prepare to die on your first several runs while before you get the hang of things... Other than that the art style, animations and wealth of meaningful and brutal interactions you…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →---{ Graphics }--- ☐ You forget what reality is ☐ Beautiful ☑ Good ☐ Decent ☐ Bad ☐ Don‘t look too long at it ☐ MS-DOS ---{ Gameplay }--- ☐ Very good ☐ Good ☑ It's just gameplay ☐ Mehh ☐ Watch paint dry instead ☐ Just don't ---{ Audio }--- ☐ Eargasm ☐ Very good ☑ Good ☐ Not too bad ☐ Bad ☐ I'm now deaf ---{ Audience }--- ☐ Kids ☑ Teens ☑ Adults ☐ Grandma ---{ PC Requirements }--- ☐ Check if you can run paint ☑ Potato ☐ Decent ☐ Fast ☐ Rich boi ☐ Ask NASA if they have a spare computer ---{…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Fun and engaging, but contains progress breaking bugs that remain unaddressed after being reported by users for multiple years.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Short, cozy, fantastic game - fairly overpriced. Wish it had 10x the content (and it took 10x longer to actually beat the game) - what's there already is quite good, but I imagine they were concerned about spending too much money developing a niche game. 10/10 voice acting
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I enjoyed this game for the most part! I'll agree with people saying once you find the cabin it does get a bit monotonous (it already kind of is but at least there's a linear goal there). I recommend it as someone who wants to just play through the game, and not achievement hunt whatsoever as it's impossible. Literally impossible, there are unobtainable achievements that people have been reporting for years and nothing has been done, so if you're okay with it just being a new game you play,…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Overall: 7/10 Story: The narrative is a pretty simple one where you play as an unnamed woman who leaves her previous life behind and moves to Alaska with her dog Chompers with the intention of starting over fresh and getting a change of scenery through dog-sledding. That's really about as deep as the narrative here is because it's not trying to tell an emotionally charged, linear story. There's enough characterization and progression to give your expeditions a sense of purpose, but the plot…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →At first, the five sled dogs were just there to get me from place to place. Somewhere along the way, they became the reason I wanted to keep going.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Not every game can be a beautiful fairy tale, an adventure, and a lesson in humility all at once. The Red Lantern did that.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →The negative reviews had me thinking this was a worse game than it actually turned out to be. the pacing isn't great, and it takes you out of the immersion the further into the game you get, but i've been having a fun time playing it regardless. It took me 3 hours to complete the "main quest", and the rest is mostly achievement hunting and unlocking more dogs. The graphics are nice and the dogs are cute but the core "story" of the game isn't long enough to justify $25 dollars imo. Also, Steam…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I feel bad that I got this game for free, it's too good for the developers not to get anything :(
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Reviewing (mostly) every game (or DLC) in my library, part 499: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️☆☆☆☆ (6/10) The Red Lantern offers a visually stunning and cozy Alaskan adventure with adorable sled dogs, but beneath the charm, it’s a largely linear, point-and-click experience with minimal player control. While the art, voice acting, and dog personalities stand out, the shallow gameplay, repetitive mini-game, and inconsequential choices make it a charming but ultimately limited experience. Pros: ✅ Stunning…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →The Red Lantern has a fishing minigame!! Thank you @speederyt.bsky.social for the suggestion! #theredlantern #indiegame #gaming #videogames #fishing #fishingminigame
neutral · AI labelView post →A survival game where you mush a dogsled through the Alaskan wilderness with your pack of dogs. Sounds cool on paper, but it ends up being a repetitive loop of managing hunger and cold without much tension or payoff. The dogs are the best part, each with their own names and personalities. But the game doesn't do enough with that. It's short and the runs start blending together fast. Not much reason to go back once you've seen what it has to offer.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Despite being nearly 4 years old at the time of this review, The Red Lantern is still a buggy and broken mess. Do not buy this game if you care about cohesion, depth, the and ability to complete all achievements without the use of cheat software. To be fair, this game doesn't *completely* suck my white ass. The atmosphere is gorgeous and each dog's unique personality makes them equally charming. I really enjoyed my first run as trying to manage your very limited resources made every meal a…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →The Red Lantern is free on Steam now! It's a story rich survival game where you look after huskies 🥰
neutral · AI labelView post →The Red Lantern is a lovely little game and currently 90% off on Steam. And absolute bargain to pet all the things! store.steampowered.com/app/1053710/...
positive · AI labelView post →A cozy hardcore walking simulator were choices matter, story with progession and characterization with dogs. Its unique and left me in emotional termoil killing one of me dogs. This puts survival in accessible mechanics and I can't recommend it enough. Words of advice save the bullets for when you need them. There are way more options for food than there is protection, I paid for killing the wild life, thankfully I didn't pay for this. It isn't worth 25$, good game regardless
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Just heard that The Red Lantern is free at the moment on Steam! Lovely little game, definitely worth grabbing while you can 😊 store.steampowered.com/app/1053710/...
positive · AI labelView post →Episode 5 is ✨OUT NOW✨ 🔥 Cozy Game News 🔥 Fantasy Life Controversy?? 🔥 The Red Lantern Review 🔥 Emails + MORE linktr.ee/slowburncast
neutral · AI labelView post →TURN ON DOGS ALWAYS LIVE IN THE OPTIONS BEFORE PLAYING. DX R.I.P Barkley! You saved me from a moose and it stomped you to death. I only seen the option after making it to the cabin... I'm too sad and traumatized to play again. 0/10 for that aspect. The rest of the game is fine. Visuals, gorgeous. Kill, all, moose..
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Cute game, but unfinished and definitely not worth the astounding $25 original price. There are way too many bugs the developer needs to fix, including addressing the current issue of 100% being impossible due to a glitched final achievement. If you only care about the main central story, the meat of what the game has to offer, this game will take you about an hour to finish, maybe two. Then the replay value goes down dramatically. This game also mentions a dog sled race being the final goal of…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →its beautiful, amazing visuals and plays smoothly. however there is almost no story and barely any goals. you just get accessories after encountering specific things with specific dogs. i wish there was any sort of story to this to keep me interested is all. the graphics are worth the money but the lack of story leaves it feeling like a demo more than a finished game
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →✨Slow Burn Side Quest✨ Introducing our BRAND NEW cozy game club! Each month we will highlight a game and discuss it on our discord and a future show! This month's game is "The Red Lantern" which is also on sale right now!!
neutral · AI labelView post →Live at 4:30 mst! Doing two games today: The Red Lantern to make up for yesterday and Mail Time, which is today's scheduled game! Long one, see you later ~
neutral · AI labelView post →“The Red Lantern” is an okay, but flawed experience. The story is fairly shallow, and in terms of gameplay, the rogue-lite progression system is likewise shallow. The Red Lantern's frozen trails of Alaska did not offer enough variety in it’s procedurally generated events. As a result, the game quickly becomes a matter of "Which event will I see again?" It’s enrapturing visual style and atmospheric music cannot alleviate such gameplay concerns. The game takes 2-3 hours to complete, and there is…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →The game is alright, it's not the best thing in the world but it could be enjoyable to some people. You can't really do anything in the game other than controlling the dogs to go left or right in a fork. Every time I fail or lose the game it just gives me extra bullets and the more you lose the more of a boost it gives you and sadly there's no way to stop that other than restarting the entire game. However, the only things that were enjoyable for me were the graphics, the animations, voice…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →The game looks beautiful the concept is awesome. But seriously could you atleast let me drive the seld !!!!! Let me the player do some interaction with the game besides clicking to shout left or right. I have a keyboard , let me press A or D !!!! The game basically auto drives, choice based systems are good only if player gets to interact with the consequences.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →This was a decent game (especially considering it was free) but unfortunately the flaws outweighed the positives. Although I am at least relieved that I was warned about the final achievement being impossible to earn legitimately so I didn't waste time trying like many other players did. On the positive side of things, the actress voicing the protagonist did an excellent job and the dog models were adorable and varied. The initial gameplay was actually moderately challenging as you tried to…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Chloe from Life is Strange goes in an adventure in the Alaskan wilderness with adorable dogs and kills everyone multiple times.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →The good: - Atmosphere is quite nice, the skyboxes are especially well-made. Honestly not the best graphically, but it's passable. - The dogs are cute (especially Iggy <3) - The premise is pretty interesting The bad: - Got very boring, very fast. I played through 4 runs before winning, and the only one that was remotely interesting was the first one. The fact that the game doesn't vary between runs is a major problem and the runs all blend together quickly. The fact that you can get almost to…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →TLDR: A resource management roguelite masquerading as a dog sledding adventure, where forced failure runs, minimal interactivity, and on-rails gameplay squander the beauty of the Alaskan wilderness. PROS: ➕Doggos + pets ➕Scenery and art CONS: ➖Narrator’s quips are a bit cheesy and get annoying ➖Minimal gameplay - don’t even steer the sled ➖”Forced” to lose multiple times until you get item pickups Content (Game world/Narrative) – [3/10] The game world consists of the frozen Alaskan…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →TLDR: Play only when free and prepare to be forced to die outside of your control. Conceptually this game is phenomenal, the animation style alone is worth playing for if its free and it runs very well. In reality, this game railroads you. You can shoot an elk between the eyes and it will live, the hunting mechanic is poorly designed and sometimes will flat out never let you win, you will be forced to get hurt, forced to never find food or firestarter or bullets, and forced to fail. It does…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →This game was free to keep. It's atmospheric and with a lot of dialogues, igood for some cozy time.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →So it is basically a roguelite walking simulator, which is just an awesome mix and pure fun. It is a truly unique experience
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →10 films to get to know me - Seven Samurai - Man with a Movie Camera - The Rules of the Game - Laputa: Castle in the Sky - Stalker - The Passion of Joan of Arc - Raise the Red Lantern - Faust: A German Folk Legend - Chungking Express - Street Without End
neutral · AI labelView post →Doki Doki Literature Club I went in blind. I got through the first chapter and got so pissed off that there was no option to be a better friend to hopefully prevent the first negative event. It made me drop the game. Years later I learned about the game from an analytical video essay and I reposed that was probably the War Games style winning move. The Finals Another player spouted off unambiguously Nazi BS. I reported them. I doubled back to check. They hadn't been removed after…
neutral · AI labelView post →If I had paid full price for this game I would be absolutely livid. You do not move, operate, or interact with anything. The gameplay is entirely your sled moving automatically and quick time prompts appearing to say "your dog smells something, want to check it out?" Note that almost all the positive reviews are from people who have received the game for free. I don't mind short games, some of my favourites are only a few hours long, but those hours have to be entertaining. I still cant…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I played on the steam desk, and I left the game with a very good impression. of course, the game reminded me of The Long Dark, but this game has a completely different story, I like it
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →"For everyone seeking to find their place." A visually outstanding game with gorgeous animations, although an occasional bug or graphical glitch appears, but it's nothing major. The overall sound design and soundtrack are both very nice, and for better or for worse, the narrative is quite abundant. Don't get me wrong, the VA's is great and the narrative is well written, but there's just a bit too much of it. It kinda sounds like complaining about the grass being too green, but the…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →🚨 FREE GAME ALERT 🚨 🔔The Red Lantern 💥Is on a #Giveaway on #Steam 📅Until June 18th @ 5pm UTC ☑️Type: Solo narrative dog-sledding survival ✅Reviews: Very Positive ✴️SteamDB Rating: 78.77% 🔗Link:⬇️ store.steampowered.com/app/1053710/... #Gaming #DogLovers #IndieGames #Survival
neutral · AI labelView post →If you can accept that this isn't much of a game and more cutscenes playing in order more or less to your or the game's choosing, then sit back, grab a hot cup of cocoa and relax. Enjoy the scenery, the fluffy companions and the expansive but serene wasteland fresh with new-fallen snow.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →This was February's "side quest" game for the @slowburncast.bsky.social podcast community! (The "side quest" is like a book club, but for cozy games. ☕) This week's episode will talk about The Red Lantern - so check it out once it drops, and join the discussion on Discord: linktr.ee/slowburncast
neutral · AI labelView post →Pretty beautiful and solid game, short and nice graphics, but last achievement is broken. You have been warned.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Cute game and a really fun idea, but really falls off on the execution. The RNG is the sole biggest issue with this game. Decisions don't matter and scripted encounters will often leave you without the resources you need to progress. The game tries to be a rogue-like without any of the good features of a roguelike. There is little variety in encounters, and most of the time you will have a run ended outside of your control, receive an item that completely solves the thing that killed you out…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Not the greatest game but a good game if you wanna calm your mind and dont wanna play something rough
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →That was very cute. Loved every second of it. If you are looking for a game for one night (even though with new update you can spend more time) then this game is for you. Very well done, beautiful scenery, adorable dogs and amazing VA. I got it for free, but will gift this to someone probably. Oh, also.. I wish I could adopt Iggy and Stilton, absolute mvps!!
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →FREE STEAM KEY: The Red Lantern - Ends June 18th www.indiegamebundles.com/the-red-lant... #gaming #indie #indiegame #freebie #steam
neutral · AI labelView post →love dogs, love snow and I love getting thrown 10 feet across the air by a 2000 pound moose. as far as I care the game is a 10/10 for me
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →The Red Lantern is a great narrative based game about dog sledding to a destination. The graphics and beautiful, and the atmosphere felt nice. The narrator also does a great job throughout the story, and her interactions with different events and the dogs provide a nice touch. Story wise, this isn't anything super special, and it plays out more like a visual novel with choices. The gameplay is also relatively simple, but it is more challenging than you'd expect. It is pretty hard to make it far…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →The game is sooooo captivating! It kept me hooked throughout the entire thing, and the fact that not only can you end up adopting ALL 9 dogs in one save, go on multiple runs and experience different, random events, is just so cool! 10/10, would recommend.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →The game is played through runs where you're traveling one direction across a map to the end cabin (with the eponymous red lantern). You're able to choose left or right at every fork in the road to determine if you'd rather go through forests, plains, mountains, etc., but they all end at the cabin (so it's not open-world). Each run takes approximately 30-45 minutes, depending on how often you stop. Each dog has a unique storyline played out through 2-3 interactions with nature on a run, after…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I enjoyed the very start of this game on the way to the cabin, I liked that it was challenging and you learned a new thing you needed after every failure, making it easier to progress to the cabin each time. However, after reaching the cabin, when you go out onto the sled again, it's super easy and there's no challenge to it. So it gets boring to play because there's no challenge. Effectively stopped playing after reaching the cabin, as it was too boring for me to even want to complete the…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Wonderful game perfect for the holiday season. Great recommendation for the Steam Deck
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →
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