The Lantern of the Laughless Saint, a Morrowind-inspired RPG weirdfest out this week in early access, has immediately seduced me with dialogue camera hijinks

I've found myself staring into the eyes of a man with a face resembling wet clay as I wake up on a beach. The dialogue camera of The Lantern of the Laughless Saint captures my startled expression, zooming in on my bald head, mustache, and eyes that are too close together. The character Bob, my creation, wants to escape this strange encounter.

The madman eventually leaves, but the peculiar camera remains. As Bob interacts with townsfolk in the starting town of Magdal's Rest, none of them activate the unsettling dialogue camera. However, a merchant named Pichess triggers it, focusing on his ear as he gives Bob a quest to retrieve lost items from a cursed road nearby. The reward includes a key to a shack where Bob can take refuge from the camera ambushes and strategize his exploration of the island.

The game's tone feels reminiscent of Morrowind's Shivering Isles expansion, with a quirky community of oddball inhabitants. While the mechanics are more aligned with Morrowind, the island's eccentric atmosphere aligns with Sheogorath's realm. NerveLabs' creation is a promising early access game that I'll be keeping an eye on as updates are planned every one or two weeks, with a full release expected in less than a year.