Lamplit

Halloween comes to Lamplit. From October 20 to 31, the lamplight turns cold — violet dark and pumpkin flame — and every daily puzzle takes a darker turn, right through to the 31st. The season's daily puzzles are free, as every daily always is. NEW FOR THE SEASON • Séance. A flame appears beside the clue you're answering. Hold a séance and the spirits spell the whole answer out, letter by letter — but only once per puzzle, so save it for a clue that has truly stumped you. • Hints take on a ghostly touch: in October, the spirits slide each revealed letter into place. • Something will be waiting at the door on October 31. Solve that day's puzzle on the day to find out what. • A new Game Center achievement: hold three séances, and the spirits will remember you. TWO NEW PUZZLE PACKS • All Hallows' Eve — twenty puzzles drawn from folklore, ghosts, witchcraft and the long shadows of October. • Christmastide — twenty puzzles of carols, candlelight, nativity and the deep midwinter. Each has four double acrostics among its twenty. LATER THIS YEAR From December 14, the lamplight warms to gold against a deep winter dark, and the daily puzzles turn to the season through Christmas Day. New daily puzzles run all the way to New Year's Eve. IMPROVEMENTS • Lamplit now tells you when a season begins, what's changed, and how long it runs. • Dimmed text is easier to read, and now meets accessibility contrast standards on every background. • The first sound of a session plays without a stutter.