Candleman is a running and jumping game. You play as a tiny candle in the dark lighting its way through a dark and foreboding environment. It's unusual because your candle only last for 10 seconds, after which it's dark and really hard to navigate so you must find other candles to light and extend your range so you can collect objects and navigate obstacles to the end.

Candleman's main gameplay is to navigate the ship and lighthouse which, because of your diminutive size and the fact it is almost completely dark, is full of danger. You use light to both see your way through the dark rooms, and to light non-sentient candles. If you run out of light force you fail the level and must start again. Also, you can easily fall and have to start again if you try to navigate areas in the dark. Sometimes there are lights in the room, other times it is pitch dark or the lights only appear fleetingly.

The game has a beautiful aesthetic that uses light in interesting ways to make a dynamic play environment. Some may find the simple story and relatively straightforward levels to be a negative, but for younger or new gamers this fits really well. Maybe not suitable for those afraid of the dark, but a good first step for children expressing an interest in playing Horror games, but are not yet old enough to do so.