We've seen some weird and wonderful protagonists in video games over the years. From an egg (Dizzy) to a drop of water (Dewy's Adventure) and a piece of bread (the epic I am Bread), plenty of titles have proven that engaging gameplay can turn almost any inanimate object into a charismatic character.
And yet the latest game from Double Fine Productions still manages to surprise with a uniquely surreal and imaginative character design. Keeper is a third-person adventure in which you control a crumbling old lighthouse that's been turned sentient by a seabird spirit. Made over four years in Unreal Engine 5 (see our pick of the best game development software), it looks as surreal as it sounds with a mesmerising ethereal art style.
Double Fine Productions was bought by Xbox Game Studios back in 2019. Its last title was the 2021 platform game Psychonauts 2. Keeper is smaller and stranger, and very artistic. As the lighthouse keeper, you have to take the old building on mission to the centre of a mysterious island.
The environments range from dramatic cliffs to verdant meadows and villages inhabited by mechanical creatures, and the player's role moves between observer and participant. To interact with the world, you use the lighthouse's beam of light, which can be used to cause things to happen or to highlight places for Twig, the bird, to perch.
Josh West, editor in chief of our sister site GamesRadar+, was able to see 30 minutes of of Keeper at Gamescom 2025, and he was lit up by it, noting what while there are some light puzzles the game is very much about the dreamlike atmosphere.
Keeper will be released for Xbox Series X, Game Pass and PC on 17 October.
For more game art inspiration, see our guide to video game art styles and our interviews with some of the best indie devs. If you're looking at developing in Unreal Engine 5 yourself, see our pick of the best Unreal Engine 5 courses and our comparison of Unreal Engine vs Unity.
