Screenshots :.
Lumines
PSP
Matt
04-06-2007
"A decent spin off from that oh-so-original Tetris?"
"What's red and white and played all over?"
"Once again pitting your wits against a variety of shapes"
My track record with puzzle games is incredibly mixed. Initial experiments with Tetris and Columns proved relatively successful and I quite happily managed to amass what I thought were pretty handy scores during some epically long gaming sessions. Things started to fall apart around about when a chum bought Dr. Robotnik over to my house one afternoon for some multiplayer fun and proceeded to hand out a beating to end all beatings, something from which my love of puzzling struggled to recover. Yes, I’m that bad a loser.
It was therefore with mixed feelings that I greeted the arrival of Lumines on my kitchen table. Having studiously ignored various new incarnations of Tetris and the presence of Bejeweled in my Xbox 360 arcade, I wasn’t exactly brimming with enthusiasm at the prospect of indulging in some tactical block rotating on my PSP. But!
But, but, but. You see, Lumines is a different kettle of fish. It just isn’t like standard puzzle games. Sure, you have to turn coloured blocks and arrange them into patterns to wipe them from your screen, but its heart is instinctive and melodic. Music plays a vital importance in the game, and your appreciation of the different tunes and the timing of them will play a crucial part in your success.
I’ll attempt to explain as simply as possible. In Lumines, as in Tetris, you get a grid area that blocks fall down into. Unlike Tetris, Lumines blocks are all constructed of 2 x 2 smaller square blocks, with each smaller block being one of two colours. The trick is line the blocks up so you get 2 x 2 squares of all the same colour, at which point a line which constantly scrolls across the screen will wipe them off and add points to your total.
This is where the music bit comes in. As you get better at the game and start racking up the scores, the background colour, block colours and music will change. The music’s tempo dictates how quickly the scrolling line goes across, so you’ll have to take that into account whilst compiling your 2 x 2 blocks. With quicker swipes, arranging only a small number of blocks will be possible, whereas when slower tunes are playing it is much more possible to stack up plenty of blocks to get higher combination bonuses.
It all sounds pretty simple and in truth it is. They key to Lumines is that musical element and the way it instantly draws the player in, putting them in a trance-like state. Whole game sessions can literally fly past whilst buried deep within an epic Lumines challenge, with the addictive nature of the thing urging you to try to get just that little bit further so you can get to the next background and song.
It comes as no surprise to thus find out that the game was developed under the eyes of none other than Tetsuya Mizuguchi of Rez fame. Although offering a completely different gameplay experience to that of the much-loved Dreamcast/PS2 shooter, Lumines certainly bares strong resemblances in the way it comes across as a slightly ethereal experience that relies on a selection vivid sounds and visuals.
In terms of modes, Lumines offers five: Challenge, Time-Attack, Puzzle, Versus and Versus CPU. Challenge mode sees the player playing through a constant loop of a number of backgrounds and tunes whilst piling up as high a score as they can, whilst Time Attack gives you a set amount of time in which you have to clear as many blocks as you possibly can. Puzzle mode offers a selection of preset images that the player has to copy by arranging blocks in a certain pattern, whilst the two versus modes see the player playing against human and computer opponents.
The multiplayer is, as with the single play mode, hugely addictive and great fun. A large line is set in the middle of the screen with each player having their own half of grid either side, the aim being to clear as many blocks as you can to shove the line more toward your opponent to deprive them of space. Matches between two skilled players can end up lasting an eternity, providing huge slices of tension.
Which brings us to summing Lumines up. Despite my initial concerns and the general lack of interest that I felt for the game before slotting it into my PSP, I have to admit that I am really, genuinely surprised. Much more than just a simple, addictive puzzler, the game is a sensory experience that will keep you hooked in for hours on end. It might not pack in the bells and whistles that a few of the more publicised PSP launch titles do, but anyone wanting a truly addictive handheld experience need look no further.
It was therefore with mixed feelings that I greeted the arrival of Lumines on my kitchen table. Having studiously ignored various new incarnations of Tetris and the presence of Bejeweled in my Xbox 360 arcade, I wasn’t exactly brimming with enthusiasm at the prospect of indulging in some tactical block rotating on my PSP. But!
But, but, but. You see, Lumines is a different kettle of fish. It just isn’t like standard puzzle games. Sure, you have to turn coloured blocks and arrange them into patterns to wipe them from your screen, but its heart is instinctive and melodic. Music plays a vital importance in the game, and your appreciation of the different tunes and the timing of them will play a crucial part in your success.
I’ll attempt to explain as simply as possible. In Lumines, as in Tetris, you get a grid area that blocks fall down into. Unlike Tetris, Lumines blocks are all constructed of 2 x 2 smaller square blocks, with each smaller block being one of two colours. The trick is line the blocks up so you get 2 x 2 squares of all the same colour, at which point a line which constantly scrolls across the screen will wipe them off and add points to your total.
This is where the music bit comes in. As you get better at the game and start racking up the scores, the background colour, block colours and music will change. The music’s tempo dictates how quickly the scrolling line goes across, so you’ll have to take that into account whilst compiling your 2 x 2 blocks. With quicker swipes, arranging only a small number of blocks will be possible, whereas when slower tunes are playing it is much more possible to stack up plenty of blocks to get higher combination bonuses.
It all sounds pretty simple and in truth it is. They key to Lumines is that musical element and the way it instantly draws the player in, putting them in a trance-like state. Whole game sessions can literally fly past whilst buried deep within an epic Lumines challenge, with the addictive nature of the thing urging you to try to get just that little bit further so you can get to the next background and song.
It comes as no surprise to thus find out that the game was developed under the eyes of none other than Tetsuya Mizuguchi of Rez fame. Although offering a completely different gameplay experience to that of the much-loved Dreamcast/PS2 shooter, Lumines certainly bares strong resemblances in the way it comes across as a slightly ethereal experience that relies on a selection vivid sounds and visuals.
In terms of modes, Lumines offers five: Challenge, Time-Attack, Puzzle, Versus and Versus CPU. Challenge mode sees the player playing through a constant loop of a number of backgrounds and tunes whilst piling up as high a score as they can, whilst Time Attack gives you a set amount of time in which you have to clear as many blocks as you possibly can. Puzzle mode offers a selection of preset images that the player has to copy by arranging blocks in a certain pattern, whilst the two versus modes see the player playing against human and computer opponents.
The multiplayer is, as with the single play mode, hugely addictive and great fun. A large line is set in the middle of the screen with each player having their own half of grid either side, the aim being to clear as many blocks as you can to shove the line more toward your opponent to deprive them of space. Matches between two skilled players can end up lasting an eternity, providing huge slices of tension.
Which brings us to summing Lumines up. Despite my initial concerns and the general lack of interest that I felt for the game before slotting it into my PSP, I have to admit that I am really, genuinely surprised. Much more than just a simple, addictive puzzler, the game is a sensory experience that will keep you hooked in for hours on end. It might not pack in the bells and whistles that a few of the more publicised PSP launch titles do, but anyone wanting a truly addictive handheld experience need look no further.
8/10