The Lamplighters League

The Lamplighters League is a turn-based tactics game set in a fantastical 1930s-inspired world blending pulp adventure and supernatural mystery. Players lead a ragtag band of misfit agents from an ancient secret society, drawing inspiration from classics like Indiana Jones, Hellboy, and The Mummy, as they undertake thrilling missions to combat a rising ban and save the world from shadowy threats using strategic combat, stealth, and narrative-driven choices.

The Lamplighters League: Review

Introduction

In the shadowy underbelly of an alternate 1930s, where occult cults clash with ragtag bands of misfits in a desperate bid to avert doomsday, The Lamplighters League emerges as a pulpy fever dream of adventure serials reborn in digital form. Drawing from the swashbuckling spirit of Indiana Jones and the eerie mysticism of H.P. Lovecraft, Harebrained Schemes’ latest tactics game transports players to a world teetering on the edge of supernatural catastrophe. As a game historian, I’ve long admired how titles like XCOM and Shadowrun—ironically, from the same studio—have elevated turn-based strategy into narrative-driven epics, blending tactical depth with storytelling flair. The Lamplighters League aims to continue this legacy, but instead of cyberpunk grit, it channels the high-stakes thrills of pulp fiction. My thesis: While it delivers charismatic characters, inventive hybrid gameplay, and a nostalgic homage to classic adventure tropes, the game’s ambitions are undermined by technical woes, repetitive structures, and a narrative that, for all its charm, rarely escapes the clichés it seeks to subvert, rendering it a solid but uneven entry in the tactical RPG pantheon.

Development History & Context

Harebrained Schemes, founded in 2009 by industry veterans Mitch Gitelman and Jordan Weisman (the latter a tabletop RPG pioneer behind Shadowrun and MechWarrior), has built its reputation on crowdfunding successes and strategic depth. Emerging from Bungie’s experimental mobile arm, the studio’s early hits like Shadowrun Returns (2013) and BattleTech (2018) showcased a knack for blending turn-based tactics with rich lore, often funded via Kickstarter to foster direct audience engagement. By 2018, Paradox Interactive acquired Harebrained for $7.5 million, drawn to their expertise in squad-based strategy amid the booming market for XCOM-like titles. Paradox, masters of grand-scale simulations like Crusader Kings and Cities: Skylines, sought to expand into narrative tactics, greenlighting The Lamplighters League as an “incubation project” post-BattleTech.

Development began as a side endeavor, initially envisioned as a rebel uprising in a small European fiefdom against a fascist duke, but evolved into a globe-trotting occult war inspired by 1930s pulp magazines (Weird Tales, Amazing Stories). Game Director Chris Rogers emphasized creating “characters, not units,” prototyping on paper with 3×5 cards to intertwine personality, visuals, and abilities. The hybrid real-time infiltration and turn-based combat stemmed from early experiments, aiming for “impossible recoveries” and scrappy underdog vibes akin to The Mummy (1999). However, the era’s technological landscape posed challenges: Unity engine (used here) enabled stylized visuals but struggled with performance on large maps, exacerbated by COVID-19’s shift to remote work, which disrupted the studio’s collaborative “watercooler” culture.

Launched on October 3, 2023, for PC (Steam, Epic, GOG) and Xbox Series X|S (with backward compatibility for Xbox One), the game arrived in a crowded tactics scene dominated by XCOM 2 (2016) and Jagged Alliance 3 (2023). Paradox’s short seven-month marketing window—from announcement to release—contrasted Harebrained’s prior Kickstarter transparency, limiting hype. Budget constraints and scope creep (e.g., redesigning the strategy layer for broader appeal) inflated costs, leading to a “soft yes” greenlight that Rogers later cited as a risky pivot. Post-launch, significant layoffs (over 80% of staff) and Paradox’s divestment of Harebrained in 2024 underscored the project’s turbulence, with the publisher writing off $22.7 million in profits. Despite this, the game’s vision—a fresh IP evoking TTRPG expansibility—highlighted Harebrained’s experimental ethos, though it exposed indie ambitions clashing with AAA expectations in an increasingly saturated market.

Narrative & Thematic Deep Dive

At its core, The Lamplighters League unfolds as a serialized pulp thriller in an alternate 1932, where a secret occult war rages over the Bright Storm, a mystical tower granting dominion over magic. The Banished Court—a tyrannical cult divided into three Scion-led houses (the ruthless Marteau’s industrialists, the arcane von Hagen’s ritualists, and the monstrous Strum’s tidespawn hordes)—stands poised for victory. Millennia of heroism by the scholarly Lamplighters League has dwindled their ranks, leaving Pelham Locke, the grizzled survivor, to assemble the “best of the worst”: thieves, assassins, and outcasts like the icy femme fatale Ingrid, the misdirection master Lateef, and the gunslinging Eddie. Their globe-trotting quest—raiding tombs in Cairo, sabotaging factories in Berlin, infiltrating jungles in Shanghai—races against a doomsday clock, with each mission delaying the Court’s rituals.

The plot excels in episodic structure, mirroring 1930s adventure serials: short, high-tension heists punctuated by base interludes where agents banter around Locke’s table, revealing backstories via voiced vignettes. Themes of redemption and found family dominate; these scoundrels aren’t caped crusaders but flawed anti-heroes grappling with noir fatalism amid pulp exuberance. Ingrid’s “Killer Instinct” passive—gaining action points from kills—mirrors her ruthless precision, born from a betrayed spy’s life, while Celestine’s hypnotic poisons evoke her occult assassin’s tormented past. Dialogue crackles with wry wit: Lateef’s flirtatious quips mask his cultural displacement, and Eddie’s bravado hides war scars. Yet, the narrative falters in depth; the Court’s Scions feel archetypal (a mad scientist, a demon-summoner, a beast-master), and overarching lore—centuries of arcane strife—remains surface-level, delivered via expository cinematics rather than interactive discovery.

Thematically, it probes pulp’s undercurrents: colonialism’s shadows in global exploits, the occult’s Lovecraftian horror clashing with rational 1930s tech, and misfits’ “noir” coping mechanisms against “pulp” spectacle. Never campy, it avoids winking at stakes—agent permadeath hits hard, fostering attachment—but repetition dilutes tension, with side quests padding a 30-40 hour campaign. Jill Scharr’s narrative design shines in character arcs (e.g., Judith’s demolitionist rage evolving into loyalty), but the script’s clichés—mustache-twirling villains, quippy banter—prevent transcendence, making it a loving homage rather than a revolutionary tale.

Gameplay Mechanics & Systems

The Lamplighters League innovates on turn-based tactics (TBT) with a hybrid loop: real-time infiltration segues into TBT combat, framed by a lightweight meta-strategy layer. Missions span handcrafted maps (dockyards, deserts, urban sprawls), where players scout in real-time, using agent roles—Sneaks for stealth takedowns, Bruisers for charges, Saboteurs for disruptions—to thin herds before “going loud.” This phase adds tension via patrolling enemies and noise mechanics, allowing ambushes or skips, but lacks body-hiding, undermining immersion. Once alerted, combat shifts to TBT: a 3rd-person isometric view with free camera, gridless movement, and action-point economy.

Core loops emphasize synergy over grind. Ten agents (plus DLC Nocturne) feature unique kits: Ingrid chains melee kills for extra turns, Purnima snipes with precision, Fedir rages into berserk modes. No generic classes—each is bespoke, encouraging experimentation (e.g., pairing Celestine’s hypnosis with Jianyi’s sword dashes). Combat deconstructs via percentages for hits/crits, cover bonuses, and environmental interactions (flammable oil slicks, climbable vines). The Undrawn Hand system—a tarot-inspired deckbuilder—equips cards for passives (e.g., poison traps) or actives (e.g., daze chance), stackable but balanced by shared skill points and stress mechanics. Stress accumulates from missions, risking breakdowns (debuffs like critical injuries), necessitating rotation and recovery via expeditions or rest—mirroring XCOM‘s soldier management but streamlined, sans base-building bloat.

Progression ties to a global map: weekly missions advance the doomsday clock, with intel/supplies/Aether/Seric Steel looted for upgrades (gear slots: consumables, accessories, weapons). UI is intuitive—point-and-select with radial menus—but clunky: static camera limits overview, and recon mode chugs on large maps. Innovations shine in fluidity—fast turns prevent stagnation, synergies yield “eureka” moments (e.g., Eddie’s Bullseye guaranteeing shots)—but flaws abound: procedural enemy generation feels rote, maps repeat (10-12 variants cycled), and real-time feels underdeveloped (no sprint cooldowns, erratic AI). Permadeath adds bite, but autosaves encourage reloads, softening consequences. On Xbox/PC, launch bugs (crashes, input lag) persist, though patches improved stability. Overall, it’s accessible TBT—three difficulties suit newcomers—yet lacks XCOM‘s depth, prioritizing pulp pacing over crunch.

World-Building, Art & Sound

The game’s alternate 1930s pulses with pulpy authenticity, a globe-spanning tapestry of art deco opulence and eldritch dread. Settings evoke serial adventures: fog-shrouded London hideouts contrast sun-baked Egyptian tombs and neon-lit Shanghai alleys, with the Lamplighters’ base—a shadowy speakeasy—serving as a narrative hub. World-building thrives in details: the Banished Court’s factions embody thematic contrasts (Marteau’s mechanized fascism, von Hagen’s arcane rituals, Strum’s bestial hordes), their Scions as boss-like avatars of corruption. Procedural elements generate interactables (breakable walls, hidden keys), fostering exploration, while the doomsday clock injects urgency—delaying rituals reveals lore fragments, like ancient pacts or artifact hunts.

Visuals adopt a stylized, cel-shaded aesthetic via Unity and SpeedTree middleware, rendering hyper-stylized agents with 1930s flair: Ingrid’s sleek flapper silhouette, Lateef’s tailored suit hiding gadgets. Environments layer verticality (climbable ruins, multi-level factories), enhancing tactics, but pop-in and low-poly models betray budget limits. Atmosphere builds through film-grain cinematics and dynamic lighting—moonlit rituals cast ominous shadows—evoking Hellboy‘s noir pulp. Sound design elevates immersion: Wwise-powered effects deliver visceral feedback (gun cracks, melee thuds), while Jon Everist’s jazzy score—big-band swells into orchestral menace—mirrors the era’s swing-to-sinister pivot. Voiced dialogue (683 credits, including Stephanie Sheh) infuses personality, with accents underscoring diversity (global recruits reflect interwar multiculturalism). Collectively, these forge a kinetic, cinematic experience—nostalgic yet fresh—but technical hitches (frame drops in recon) occasionally shatter the spell, diluting atmospheric payoff.

Reception & Legacy

Upon release, The Lamplighters League garnered mixed reviews, aggregating 71% on MobyGames (20 critics) and 73 on Metacritic (PC), praised for character charm and hybrid mechanics but critiqued for bugs and repetition. Highs included But Why Tho?’s 90% (“a love letter to rogues”) and GLHF’s 90% (“best TBT of 2023”), lauding narrative verve and satisfying combos. Lows, like PC Gamer’s 62% (“over-ambitious and flawed”) and Eurogamer’s 60% (“woeful real-time stealth”), highlighted technical issues and grind. Xbox ports fared worse (67% aggregate), with Pure Xbox (60%) citing performance drags, though patches mitigated some woes. Player scores averaged 4/5 (MobyGames), with fans appreciating 30-50 hour campaigns but decrying save deletes and AI quirks.

Commercially, it disappointed: Paradox deemed it a “big disappointment,” citing weak sales despite 400,000 players via Game Pass day-one access. The $22.7M write-down reflected scope creep and marketing missteps, leading to Harebrained’s partial layoffs and 2024 independence. Reputation evolved positively post-patches—IndieGames (64%) called it a “bold but flawed experiment,” now a “hidden gem” for tactics enthusiasts. Influence lingers in indie tactics: its character-driven TBT inspired Tactical Breach Wizards (2024), while hybrid infiltration echoes Shadow Gambit (2023). As history unfolds, it marks a pivot for Harebrained toward authentic community engagement (e.g., Graft‘s early transparency), underscoring risks of publisher constraints. Not revolutionary like BattleTech, it endures as a niche cult classic, influencing pulp-infused strategies amid a post-XCOM boom.

Conclusion

The Lamplighters League captures the thrill of pulp escapism through its misfit ensemble, synergistic combat, and evocative 1930s occult war, blending real-time cunning with TBT precision in a campaign that rewards clever planning and character bonds. Yet, repetitive missions, underdeveloped stealth, and launch technicalities temper its shine, preventing it from eclipsing studio forebears or genre giants. As a historian, I see it as a poignant artifact of indie ambition clashing with corporate realities—Harebrained’s heartfelt tribute to adventure serials, flawed but fervent. Verdict: Worthwhile for tactics fans seeking stylish variety (7.5/10), especially on sale or post-patches; it secures a modest place in video game history as a bridge between pulp nostalgia and modern strategy, reminding us that even the “best of the worst” can illuminate forgotten corners of the genre.