Microsoft The Lamplighters League (PC/Xbox Series) - update: Paradox Interactive writes off entirety of development costs (~$29.5 million), 80% of HBS studio staff reportedly laid off in July

[Commissar SFLUFAN]

 

 

[Mr.Vic20]

Day one for me on anything hairbrained puts out! 

[Commissar SFLUFAN]

The game's full title leaves little doubt as to its inspiration:

 

The Lamplighters League and the Tower at the End of the World

[Commissar SFLUFAN]

FAQ from the Steam Community page:

 

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What is “The Lamplighters League and the Tower at the End of the World”?
It is an exciting turn-based strategy game with engaging characters, taking place in an all-new world set in an alternate 1930s with an occult twist, carried by a unique artistic direction. Globetrot across a variety of exciting locales around the world and outwit your enemies in strategic turn-based combat - and, if you play your cards right, you might just save the world.

 

When will the game be available?
The game is to be released later this year, 2023. Stay tuned!

 

What platforms will The Lamplighter League be on?
The game will be available on PC and Xbox Series X|S.

 

What is the official game website, where can I read more about the game?
Here!

 

How many characters are there in the game?
At this moment the game features 10 characters in the base game + one more is waiting for you in the digital deluxe edition! While you will start with three: Ingrid, Lateef, and Eddie, you will be able to recruit more as you complete different missions all over the world. When you replay the game, you can select whichever 3 starting characters you want.

 

I have a question I want to ask a Developer, where can I do that?
We will post F.A.Q. issues on the Official Discord and Forum. Feel free to post it there and make sure to follow us on both platforms not to miss a thing!

 

How often will Development Diaries get released, and where can I read them?
We aim to release Dev Diaries on a bi-weekly basis, and you will be able to read them on our forum, official website, and Steam community hub page.

 

Is there a beta and where can I apply?
We don’t have an active beta program now, but we’ll let you know on our social media and website if we will have one.

 

How can I be posted about the news?
Sign up for the newsletter and never miss a thing!

 

Is there a community I can join?
Sure thing — Join our Discord server to become a part of our community!

 

Will the game be Steam Deck compatible?
Yes, the game will be playable on Steam Deck. However, we need to mention that this is not our main platform and we are not going to focus on it for now.

 

 

[BloodyHell]

Definitely all in. Not only a great dev, but also one of my favourite genres. 

[Commissar SFLUFAN]

This tactics game is going all-in on pulp classics, mashing up Indiana Jones, The Mummy, and XCOM to make something surprisingly original | PC Gamer

WWW.PCGAMER.COM

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In The Lamplighters League, you lead a secret group of scoundrels fighting against an occult army in the 1930s.

 

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One of the other major distinctions between Lamplighters and its genre peers is that it isn't fully turn-based: a real-time infiltration phase precedes missions. Controlling your three-character squad as a little troupe, you freely wander the same map you eventually perform combat on, sort of like a top-down action game. 

 

Individual or small groups of enemies patrol the map or stand guard, each emanating an awareness ring that represents Lamplighters' light stealth system. "Each of our characters has a limited number of real-time takedowns that they can use to sort of soften up the enemy," says Rogers. Choosing which troublesome enemies to pick off is part of the opening phase, as is the work of scouting and positioning your trio. Sometimes there'll be environmental actions you can take, like smashing through a crumbling wall to open up a flank. You're setting the table for the turn-based fight to follow, a twist I like.

 

One of the other major distinctions between Lamplighters and its genre peers is that it isn't fully turn-based: a real-time infiltration phase precedes missions. Controlling your three-character squad as a little troupe, you freely wander the same map you eventually perform combat on, sort of like a top-down action game. 

Individual or small groups of enemies patrol the map or stand guard, each emanating an awareness ring that represents Lamplighters' light stealth system. "Each of our characters has a limited number of real-time takedowns that they can use to sort of soften up the enemy," says Rogers. Choosing which troublesome enemies to pick off is part of the opening phase, as is the work of scouting and positioning your trio. Sometimes there'll be environmental actions you can take, like smashing through a crumbling wall to open up a flank. You're setting the table for the turn-based fight to follow, a twist I like.

 

 

 

The Lamplighters League pilfers from the finest strategy games around, and it's utterly thrilling

WWW.ROCKPAPERSHOTGUN.COM

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We chat to the devs at Harebrained Schemes about their upcoming turn-based strategy game, The Lamplighters League.

 

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As is so often the case in systemic turn-based tactics games, things started to go wrong in my preview session for The Lamplighters League when a nearby torch met a cunningly placed oil slick and erupted into flames. A load of enemies were instantly enveloped in its hot sea of death, as intended, but one of our heroes - the tank-like bruiser Fedir - also ended up getting burned by mistake. As an ex-mob enforcer, he's certainly built to take a few punches, and his abilities are all focused on making him the centre of attention, his attacks growing more powerful as his rage levels continue to grow. "You want him to get attacked," game director Chris Rogers tells me, calling on the phrase 'you wouldn't like him when he's angry' as the basis for Fedir's ability set. But with that extra fire damage he receives, it's just a little too much all at once. He gets knocked down, and the tide of battle quickly goes south.

 

In truth, I played no part in this downfall. Rogers was in the control cockpit for this one, showing me exactly how Harebrained Schemes' latest game actually works. It's quite a different proposition from their last game, Battletech, and in this quite literal trial by fire, studio head and co-founder Mitch Gitelman actually pulled a dollar out of his pocket at one point and put a bet on whether Rogers would make it out alive. He certainly had his work cut out for him. Rogers won that dollar, and here's how the game's emphasis on deep, customisable character builds set him up for success.

 

 

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In my preview session, we had the aforementioned Fedir, warrior nun healer Anna Sophia, and cult assassin Celestine who, rather like Hard West 2's Flynn, uses dark magic for the greater good, albeit at a cost to herself. Naturally, each character has their own abilities and individual skill trees to dig into, but you'll be able to give them special bits of gear and consumable items to help them in battle. So far, so XCOM-like. But the real kicker comes in the form of 40 tarot cards that can be used to give your heroes unique abilities and passives, allowing you to "put together your way of playing," says Rogers.

 

Missions being in real-time, giving you space to roam the procedurally generated map (as long as you remain undetected, that is), get a lay of the land and plan your combat attacks. It calls to mind Mimimi's stealth strategy games Desperados 3 and Shadow Tactics: Blades Of The Shogun, but Rogers tells me "this plays a little bit looser than that" and that it won't be "quite as punishing" (although try telling that to Fedir). "You'll make mistakes, kind of recover and play through the tactical stuff," he says. "Our stealth gameplay is more like the opening gambit."

 

To demonstrate, Rogers picks off a few goons guarding a nearby radio tower with each character's special real-time ability. Fedir has a powerful charge attack, while Anna can throw lures to distract guards to look in a certain direction. Celestine, on the other hand, is better at sneaking, cutting the awareness circle around an enemy's feet in half, allowing her to creep up from behind without being noticed. These all have limited charges, Rogers tells me, so don't expect to be able to take out the entire map without getting into a fight.

 

 

 

Lamplighters League is a Game Pass marvel coming for XCOM’s crown | PCGamesN

WWW.PCGAMESN.COM

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PCGamesN played Lamplighters League and interviewed Harebrained Schemes at GDC 2023, and strategy game fans can expect an XCOM-like extravaganza.

 

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Despite all the XCOM comparisons I’ve been making, Lamplighters League still has its own strategy game DNA. I really enjoyed seeing how you could find yourself in near-defeat situations and manage to plan your way out, as each character ends up with such a breadth of abilities they can use in conjunction with their team and the environment. The more you know each agent inside and out, the better you’ll play, and you’ll also get more out of their narratives too.

 

I said as much to Gitelman, who looked pleasantly surprised by this thought and even giddier than at my first play session on that incredibly windy San Francisco morning.

 

“This is the thing that I adore about this game,” Gitelman says with a smile. “You can get into these really hairy situations and if you use your characters well in combination – switching between them, using their AP, using your special abilities – you can improvise your way out of this stuff, and it feels like an action-adventure movie.”

 

 

 

The Lamplighters League fixes my least-favorite part of turn-based strategy games | Windows Central

WWW.WINDOWSCENTRAL.COM

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Adding 'real-time infiltration' makes the gaps between battles feel so much more natural and dynamic.

 

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In The Lamplighters League, the non-tactical moments remind me more of a third-person Dishonored. Your three-person crew can stealth-kill guards, blow up patrols with environmental effects, find loot and secret paths, and generally move like real characters instead of chess pieces. Then, once the battle starts on your own terms (or when you're caught), the gameplay switches to the strategic style that turn-based strategy fans love.

 

You start the game with three set characters and have seven more you can recruit over the course of the game, each with their own distinct abilities, weapons, and stories. Your 1930s squad of "scoundrels and misfits" gather at your base after every mission, where you'll find playable characters and non-playable supporting cast that add insights to the story. 

 

Gitelman said that while you can't "romance" your recruited squad, certain people will get closer over the course of the story, and dialogue will change based on who accompanied whom on missions. I don't think there will be any Fire Emblem-style relationship system or anything, but Gitelman also laughed and suggested things could get "raunchy" between some characters. 

 

Regardless, these aren't the disposable, randomized characters you recruit in most tactics games. In fact, if you decide to replay the 25-hour campaign, you can choose to start with any trio of the ten playable characters for a distinct experience. 

 

 

 

The Lamplighters League assembles the best of the worst to save the world

WWW.SHACKNEWS.COM

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The Lamplighters League is a new tactical RPG that asks you to assemble misfits and assassins together after the main heroes lose.

 

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In a hands-off demo shown at GDC 2023, The Lamplighters League combines multiple genres together. While the game primarily features turn-based combat on a grid like X-COM, it has sections of real-time infiltration, a character-driven story, and a deck-building mechanic for extra skills. It also makes several nods to tabletop games like Pandemic and Arkham Horror, in that you have a limited amount of time to prevent several evil entities from ending the world. Specifically, you have around 35 weeks to stop three groups of the Banished Court — Nicastro, Marteau, and Strum — by stealing their treasure.

 

To accomplish this, you’ll need to reform The Lamplighters League from scratch after the main group of heroes attempted a cavalry charge against the cult and failed. After choosing one of three difficulty settings as well as whether to start a custom game or a randomized one, you’ll need to start recruiting new team members, mainly by rescuing them from whatever plight they’ve gotten themselves into. After a few weeks rebuilding the facilities at headquarters, you will have a larger team to pick from when heading out on main missions and when setting certain members on side expeditions, which works in similar fashion to the operations you can assign from the war table in Dragon Age: Inquisition.

 

However, you’ll need to make sure that the characters you choose aren’t under too much stress before going on a mission. Without enough rest and relaxation, team members can become overtaxed and begin to panic or become reckless, which can make you lose precious turns or break an otherwise well-planned infiltration. Much like in Darkest Dungeon, you’ll need to rotate members so that they are as close as possible to peak mental health.

 

 

 

The Lamplighters League is a pulp spy movie turned tactics game | Digital Trends

WWW.DIGITALTRENDS.COM

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The Lamplighters League turns a pulpy 1930s spy movie into a tactical RPG, and it's a natural fit based on what we've played so far.

 

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The spy theming pairs with that idea naturally. One of my characters, for instance, is a “sneak” named Lateef whose able to instantly knock out enemies if he can sneak up on them before being spotted. It’s a basic ambush idea that’s standard in a lot of tactics games, but its given a natural thematic flair here. Lateef has a few more special abilities too, like the ability to stay invisible in cover and nimbly clamber up walls. It helps that I can split the party up at any time during exploration too, allowing me to sneak into an area with just Lateef, take down an enemy or two before an encounter starts, and get out.

 

Other agents  have entirely different playstyles and abilities. One character I controlled could knock down loose walls and dash into multiple enemies to knock them out. In a later mission, I get to play as an a spy who wields dual guns and can aim them at separate targets like Mario in Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope. Each agent already feels distinct from the others both in how they explore the environment and how they can get an advantage in battle.

 

The combat is fairly classic otherwise, taking an “if it ain’t broke” approach. Each member of my squad gets two action points during a turn, which can be spent to move, shoot, or trigger special abilities. There’s a bit of environmental mischief in play too. In one mission, I toss a Molotov cocktail at a pool of oil to light up some cultists. Everything in my demo moved smoothly, avoiding some of the genre “jank” that was present in Empire of Sin.

 

 

 

GDC 2023: The Lamplighter's League Brings Pulp Adventure Style To The Tactical Combat Genre | MMORPG.com

WWW.MMORPG.COM

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What happens if the world is in danger and the best of the best are all unavailable to answer the call? Enter the best of the worst, which take center stage in Harebrained Schemes' latest turn-based tactical strategy game, The Lamplighters League.

 

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It's an interesting dynamic having two people on the same team that, at one time, were two extremes. A nun who abhorred violence finally had to take up arms herself because she was tired of nothing getting done teamed up with an assassin who used violence as a means to an end. These are two of the varied and diverse set of characters Lamplighters League brings to bear.

 

Harebrained Schemes’ Mitch Gitelman, executive producer on The Lamplighters League took a second to expand upon an idea that also helps to set this tactical RPG apart from the studio’s other titles: characters not units.

 

Instead of controlling various units on the battlefields, you control these characters. Their backgrounds, history, and personalities all inform how they are used in combat as well as how they interact with each other.

 

“Chris was talking about characters, not units. One of the things that we do is the character's background informs their gameplay and the gameplay informs the character's background. We actually develop both sort of simultaneously and go back and forth.”

 

As a result, each character has their own unique traits and abilities, as well as a skill tree to invest into, building the character up as each mission passes.

 

 

[Keyser_Soze]

Coming October 3rd!

 

[Greatoneshere]

It's Harebrained Schemes. I loved the Shadowrun trilogy and BattleTech, I'm definitely in for this.

[DPCyric]

8 minutes ago, Greatoneshere said:

It's Harebrained Schemes. I loved the Shadowrun trilogy and BattleTech, I'm definitely in for this.

 

I love basically everything they have done I was a big backer of Golem Arcana (RIP), have met the team in person (I'm in one of their YouTube videos lol) and FYI they are the team (renamed after MS dissolved them) that did the Shadowrun FPS and Crimson Skies.

[Greatoneshere]

1 minute ago, DPCyric said:

 

I love basically everything they have done I was a big backer of Golem Arcana (RIP), have met the team in person (I'm in one of their YouTube videos lol) and FYI they are the team (renamed after MS dissolved them) that did the Shadowrun FPS and Crimson Skies.

 

They seem like a great group of people who just love making good games that respect the audience and somehow make compelling games on what are certainly not big budgets. BattleTech felt epic, for example.

[Commissar SFLUFAN]

Recent gameplay deep dives:

 

 

 

[Commissar SFLUFAN]

Recent previews:

 

The Lamplighters League takes a shot at approachable turn-based tactics that won't bury you in percentage symbols | PC Gamer

WWW.PCGAMER.COM

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But you might get burned by flaming mummies because your pulpy merc keeps snoozing on the job.

 

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If that sounds rather run-of-the-mill by the standards of the genre, well, that's because it is. The Lamplighters League is a grab bag of tried-and-tested ideas: XCOM's pairing of soldierly and supernatural abilities, Jagged Alliance 3's characterful mercs, and Mario + Rabbids' (curse its Nintendo exclusivity) family-friendly looks. All of them are smoothly melded together alongside cinematics that would give the animation boffins at Dreamworks a run for their money.

 

What sets The Lamplighters League apart is its approachability. With no knotty menu systems, and powerful but straightforward ability combos to play with, it's the sort of turn-based tactics game you can dig into without your eyes glazing over at the sight of an overwhelming number of percentage symbols. In a genre that has so often seemed confusingly dense to the uninitiated—due in part to some of developer Harebrained Schemes' own games, like tactical wargame Battletech—The Lamplighters League looks like an attempt to lower the bar of entry.

 

 

The Lamplighters League is a desperate turn-based race to save the world

WWW.THESIXTHAXIS.COM

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As loveable as they often are in movies, rogues and scoundrels really don’t make for the best heroes. When you’re up against world-ending dangers, you

 

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You need to use every tactical trick available to you, using the two action points each character has per turn very, very wisely. Thankfully you can use them however you like, switching back and forth between your characters, shooting and then moving (where this would often end a turn in other turn-based tactical games), and generally trying to coordinate attacks and abilities to take out the most dangerous foes as quickly as possible.

 

And even if you manage to complete an objective and win what feels like the main fight, you then still need to get out of there. Heading to the extraction point, the Banished Court can continue to summon reinforcements to Transmat Towers, Hijack missions give you optional objectives to divert more resources… if you think you can hold on against the endless waves of enemies. It’s tough as nails right now, though I wasn’t able to adjust the difficulty level available to me.

 

Speaking of nails, The Lamplighters League absolutely nails its visual style and theme, really capturing that 1930s pulp adventure and the desperate mission to stave off the world dominating schemes of the Banished Court. That tone feeds straight into the struggle to not just complete missions, but get out the other side in the game’s tough style of turn-based combat.

 

 

The Lamplighters League might be about to rip up the XCOM rulebook

WWW.ROCKPAPERSHOTGUN.COM

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RPS has been playing a middle section of The Lamplighters League's tactics campaign, getting to grips with its full age…

 

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But having been roundly defeated in every mission I've tried my hand at so far, and losing all three of my agents in the process (which is quite dire in Lamplighters, as they get removed from play on death, not so much in a permadeath sense, but you'll have to fight to get them back later on in the game), I'm beginning to think those early assumptions might have been incorrect, and that I might need to unlearn some of my XCOM exercises to appreciate this better. When I started playing it more like a heist game, for example, playing defensively in combat but still actively moving forward toward my objective instead of turtling in one place, I had a bit more success. I still only managed it by the skin of my teeth, though, as the sheer number of enemies I had to fend off was, to put it lightly, frighteningly overwhelming.

 

The three agents you take into each mission are all very capable in their own right, but even my fast favourite trio of two-shot gunman Eddie, sneaky evasion master Lateef and healer Ana Sofia just aren't enough to effectively deal with (in one mission, at least) 14 other gun-toting goons by themselves. Fourteen! That wasn't really even an exception, either, as other missions were similarly crowded, chucking six, nine, even ten bodies at me at once in a single encounter, and who all had just as much health as my lot (if not significant 15-20 level armour ratings to boot), and who could all seemingly do twice as much damage per attack as well. In short, if I let even two or three of them get anywhere near me, it was effectively lights out, both for that initial agent, and the one I'd send in to 'stabilise' them afterwards to bring them back to life. Agents can hang on for three turns before truly carking it in The Lamplighters League, but when your enemies are so aggressively capable at wiping you out, even losing one for a single turn can be deadly to your chance of success.

 

 

The Lamplighters League's opening mission confirms it's a hot GOTY contender

WWW.ROCKPAPERSHOTGUN.COM

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We've been hands on with The Lamplighters League, and it's shaping up to be one of 2023's most exciting turn-based stra…

 

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The boss fight was easily the highlight of this opening mission, though, which pitted your budding trio against a Scion and their gaggle of minions. Scions are big powerful henchpeople belonging to one of the three villain factions, and the one blocking our heroes' exit in this particular mission was Lady Nicastro, a fearsome presence with an evil-looking mask and an equally evil-looking large health bar. You're encouraged to escape rather than engage her head-on at this point, although the layout of the docks means you'll need to be very crafty indeed to make it through completely undetected.

 

 

[Commissar SFLUFAN]

[Commissar SFLUFAN]

 

 

[Commissar SFLUFAN]

[Commissar SFLUFAN]

[Commissar SFLUFAN]

 

[Dodger]

Looks interesting. Definitely playing it since it’s on Games Pass.

[Commissar SFLUFAN]

 

[Greatoneshere]

I'm definitely super pumped to play this but I'm not sure when I'm going to get to it. All episodes of The Expanse: A Telltale Series will finally be out so I can play it all at once, I still want to get to Starfield, Lies of P and Blasphemous 2; and the Cyberpunk 2077 DLC and RE4 DLC are also dropping. And then Alan Wake II and Spider-Man 2 are at the end of October. A great problem to have but damn. Right now I'm trying to wrap up Armored Core VI: Fires of Rubicon on PC, I'm still decently early into the game. Thankfully I play Baldur's Gate III online with a group once a week so that's getting done separately at least, if slowly.

[Commissar SFLUFAN]

 

[Commissar SFLUFAN]

 

Also, a playable demo has been released on Steam/EGS/Xbox/Microsoft Store.

[Commissar SFLUFAN]

Game Information

Game Title: The Lamplighters League

 

Platforms:

• Xbox Series X/S (Oct 3, 2023)
• PlayStation 5 (Oct 3, 2023)
• PC (Oct 3, 2023)

 

Developer: Harebrained Schemes

Publisher: Paradox Interactive

 

Review Aggregator:

OpenCritic - 74 average - 58% recommended

 

Critic Reviews

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Gert Lush Gaming - Jim Smale - 9.2 / 10

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The atmosphere, the gameplay, and the awesome cast of characters really shine through this absolute gem of a strategy game. A true genre-defining entry and one of the best games this year.

But Why Tho? - Kate Sanchez - 9 / 10

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Thrilling in all the right ways, The Lamplighters League is a love letter to the adventure genre in film. It’s a love letter to rogues and scoundrels that made those stories an essential part of our cultural history.

GameWatcher - Bogdan Robert - 8 / 10

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The Lamplighters League's stimulating turn-based battles encourage you to carefully consider your actions each turn. Use your agents unique abilities in just the right order and you can go well beyond the default number of action points, while taking down entire groups of opponents.

MMORPG.com - Mitchell Gassner - 8 / 10

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The only other flaw to the combat of The Lamplighters League is the limited camera control. Strategic combat requires a good overview of the battlefield, and with the lack of any camera zoom or control over the viewing angle, you are stuck with a static isometric view of the fighting. You can rotate and scroll the map, but keeping track of a large map without any extra controls is cumbersome. It’s not enough to turn me away from recommending The Lamplighters League to any avid turn-based combat fan, but it is definitely a big miss.

Screen Rant - Ben Brosofsky - 4 / 5

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The Lamplighters League has enough meat on its bones to make it a comfortable crowd-pleaser for tactics fans, and the careful integration of its many systems couples with a smooth learning curve to make it accessible to genre newcomers. The game taps into some of the best elements of customization and management while neatly avoiding crunchiness, and the only thing that's likely to become overwhelming is the occasional drawn-out battle. Simple to pick up and satisfying to master, The Lamplighters League is a polished tactical adventure that carves out a niche with swashbuckling swagger.

The Games Machine - Nicholas Mercurio - Italian - 8 / 10

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Characteristic, original and engaging, The Lamplighters League is a small pearl that offers an interesting and engaging story, also strengthened by a very valid game design.

Windows Central - Chelsea Beardsmore - 4 / 5

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The Lamplighters League is a solid turn-based strategy game that gives players a good amount of gameplay to sift through. Although the gameplay can get a little repetitive, its ability to continuously offer up new gameplay features or agents is impressive.

GAMES.CH - Joel Kogler - German - 78%

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The Lamplighter’s League may look like a chance to play out your own pulp adventure fantasy, but it turns out to be an intricate combat puzzle full of synergies and silly combos. While performance can be a bit of an issue and the story fails to leave much of an impact, the core gameplay is fun enough to keep this title memorable. It won’t deliver the instant mainstream appeal something like X-COM will have, but passionate fans of turn-based tactics shouldn’t miss this hidden (albeit slightly unpolished) gem.

3DNews - Алексей Лихачев - Russian - 7.5 / 10

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An engaging turn-based strategy game with fun ideas, in which you are constantly nervous because of this game's version of timers. It is difficult to get rid of the feeling that you are choosing wrong missions and make the game more complicated for yourself by making wrong decisions. The other problem is bugs, especially on Xbox, so it's better to wait a bit for updates.

God is a Geek - Mick Fraser - 7.5 / 10

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If its level of challenge is your bag, you'll have a great time with The Lamplighters League. If not, then the easy charm and likable characters might justwin you over anyway.

GamesRadar+ - Ali Jones - 3.5 / 5

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"The ability to swap between characters at will means that it's easy to get the most from the Action Point system"

IGN - Jon Bolding - 7 / 10

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The Lamplighters League starts slow, but its mix of squad tactics, stealth, and pulp adventure soon builds momentum thanks to excellent design of both heroes and enemies.

PCGamesN - Paul Kelly - 7 / 10

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The Lamplighters League attempts to deviate from tradition, promoting creativity over power, but ultimately falls short. However, its simplicity puts it into the more approachable realms of turn-based tactical games and is a great choice for anyone looking to try the genre for the first time.

Try Hard Guides - Erik Hodges - 7 / 10

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The Lamplighters League is a solid, if a bit underwhelming XCOM-like that is digestible to newcomers to the genre, if not totally fulfilling to veterans. While the game features a strong setting and aesthetic, somewhat lackluster voice acting, poor dialogue writing, and tired genre-specific mechanics hold it back from its full potential. The game is far from a pass, however, and if the premise really excites you, you just might find it more enjoyable than I did.

PC Gamer - Jon Bailes - 62 / 100

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An over-ambitious and technically flawed tactics game that can't live up to its more accomplished influences.

TheSixthAxis - Aran Suddi - 6 / 10

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The Lamplighters League doesn't quite live up to its promise and expectations. There's a fun mix of real time exploration and turn-based combat, but it's a step short of the best strategy games of the year – others like Shadow Gambit: The Cursed Crew have done it better. Given more time and more engaging narrative The Lamplighters League could have been great. It will have to settle for decent at best.

XboxEra - Jesse Norris - 5 / 10

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At launch, I cannot recommend The Lamplighters League on Xbox.  It runs terribly, while looking ugly, and is a broken and buggy mess.  Once this game is patched up and fixed though, it’s a gem.  Great gameplay, a deep meta-game, intriguing story, and one of the best videogame soundtracks I’ve ever heard will be there waiting for you (and hopefully still in Game Pass).

ACG - Jeremy Penter - Wait for Sale

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Video Review - Quote not available

Console Creatures - David Pietrangelo - Recommended

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The Lamplighters League is an engaging and fun ride from start to finish. Its take on turn-based tactics is rewarding, while the compelling story is told through great voice acting and accompanied by a fantastic score.

Rock, Paper, Shotgun - Sin Vega - Unscored

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A strong turn-based foundation and colourful setting held back by grind, blind chance, and a need for efficiency over tactical variety.

 

[Greatoneshere]

While 55% recommended is not good, 73 is pretty much just a bit below where Harebrained Schemes' other games sit at, and it sounds like a lot of that is due to the game being buggy, etc. Definitely still on my radar - Battletech has a 78 on metacritic yet that game was awesome to me so I get the sense Harebrained Schemes hits a very specific niche that turns off a lot of people automatically. An original game idea in a unique setting is refreshing.

[Commissar SFLUFAN]

 

I've also updated the reviews post.

[TheLeon]

I’ll download it, but I’ve got a bunch of games all vying for my attention right now, not sure when I’ll get around to trying this one. 

[Brian]

In this current climate, those scores would have me polishing up my resume and reaching out to people. 

[Commissar SFLUFAN]

1 hour ago, Brian said:

In this current climate, those scores would have me polishing up my resume and reaching out to people. 

 

And it's not like the review scores are "bad" - they're merely "just not quite good enough".

[Keyser_Soze]

At least it's not a "full price" game, only $50

[Keyser_Soze]

Also, I hate to call him out because he seems like a nice fellow but the review from XboxEra that gave this game a 5/10 is the same guy who gave Redfall an 8.5 out of 10

[Brian]

Playing through the intro, it was very choppy on my laptop. It definitely needs more time in the oven. I’ll revisit it later. 

[Commissar SFLUFAN]

 

 

Recent developer videos:

 

 

 

 

[Commissar SFLUFAN]

 

 

[TheLeon]

I’ve played a couple missions, and I generally dig it. Funny how a game like this, that’s definitely not pushing things graphically, still has a performance/quality option. 

[Commissar SFLUFAN]

Paradox just wrote off the entire capitalized development costs of the game

 

320 MSEK = $29.5 million

 

Paradox Interactive writes down MSEK 171 of capitalized development cost for The Lamplighters League - Paradox Interactive

WWW.PARADOXINTERACTIVE.COM

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Paradox Interactive is a world leading PC games publisher known for games such as Cities: Skylines, Europa Universalis and Crusader Kings.

 

Quote

 

Paradox Interactive has today decided to write down capitalized development costs for the game The Lamplighters League, in addition to the regular degressive amortization done during the game's first three months. Overall, this will result in that all of the game's capitalized development costs of MSEK 320 will be recognized as costs in the fourth quarter of 2023. The game's impact on profit before tax for the fourth quarter is estimated to MSEK -248. The write-down stems from a revised sales forecast, which was established after the game's release.

 

"The Lamplighters League is a fun game with many strengths. Even though we see cautiously positive player numbers in subscription services, the commercial reception has been too weak, which is frankly a big disappointment. Game projects are by their nature always risky, but at the end of the day we haven't performed at the level we should. It is painful but makes us more eager to roll up our sleeves and do better," says Fredrik Wester, CEO of Paradox Interactive.