Guest House

How to fill your next lunchtime: Guest House.

I'm really falling for these Flash-based minis. Minimal interface, minimal design, point-and-click adventures, lasting an hour tops if you get stuck often enough, they're ideal little morsels. Especially when they're as serenely designed as this.

The Japanese game is the first of a series of three, under the umbrella title, Terminal House. Guest House, seemingly having no relation to its title, tasks you with leaving the room in which you begin, and that's it. But to do so you'll have to solve various puzzles, from searching out objects to use, to reasonably simple maths puzzles, exploring what at first appears to be a very blank location. There's a flaw: finding hidden areas - essential for completing the game - requires some rather aimless and random clicking, hoping you'll find the spot that lets you peak behind an unmarked corner. It's frustrating to be limited by this, and not particularly satisfying when you eventually click on the correct spot. A relief, but no sense of achievement. However, the calming music, gorgeous sound effects, and really remarkable animation, offer enough incentive to do so. It's peculiarly beautiful at moments.

A big thanks to reader Martin Edelius for pointing us toward this. And now onto the other two.