Lantern Hollow

Lantern Hollow is the quietest game on this list and maybe my favorite. You guide a lone traveler through a soft, painterly valley, tapping to explore and solving small environmental puzzles that nudge the story forward. There's no timer, no fail state, just atmosphere.

The controls are a single tap to move and a hold to examine things, which keeps it fully playable one-handed. The puzzles are clever without being cruel; when I got stuck, the game eventually hinted gently instead of leaving me lost.

It also sips battery, since most of the screen is static art with slow animation. I read the whole thing over a few evenings and it never once made my phone warm. If you want something calm before bed, start here.

What we liked

• Beautiful, calming art direction
• One-handed tap controls
• Very light on battery