Lighthouse - The Dark Being
A Sierra Adventure Game

A very dark, atmospheric, and immersive graphic adventure from Sierra's glory days! Originally released for Windows 95, installer included for XP/Vista/7 installation (and links to instructions for use.)

From Wikipedia:

"The Player starts the game in their new cottage on the Oregon coast. According to the Players diary, he/she (personal effects in the new cottage, such as a handbag, suggest a female protagonist, but the gender is never explicitly defined) is a struggling writer who has just moved in, and recently met eccentric next door neighbor, Dr. Jeremiah Krick and his daughter Amanda, who live in a nearby lighthouse. Glancing out of the window, he sees the lighthouse struck by lightning and, afterwards, begin to glow strangely. On the Player's answering machine, Dr. Krick has left a frantic message begging the player to come over to his house and watch Amanda.

Upon arriving at Dr. Krick's house, the player discovers the front door locked, darkness inside, and silence. After turning on the power and entering, the player finds Amanda in her crib, alone. Once the player has explored the house, a snap is heard, and Amanda begins crying. When the player enters her room, the "Dark Being", described in Dr. Krick's journal, takes Amanda, and jumps through a portal . . . 

As the player explores 6 different locations in the parallel world, the goal becomes clear. He must build an "Ionizing Cannon," whose 7 pieces are scattered between the different locations. Then, the player must use this cannon to capture the Dark Being, and save Dr. Krick and Amanda."

This was also one of the most difficult games of the genre ever created.  Sierra, in fact, released a patch (included in this torrent) which made some of the puzzles easier. This was one of my favorite games ever, and I'm glad to have found it again and to share it. An interesting observation, the alternate (or future?) universe which the player visits can be fairly described as "Steampunk", a style which had not been so dubbed and popularized at the time this was released. Much of the machinery in-game is clockwork and steam driven (for reasons which are clarified over the course of the game), although some of the gadgetry is partially alive! 

IMPORTANT -- this is a game to be played at night with the lights turned low!