Lumines first released back in 2004, and now, 14 years later, the PSP classic gets some updates for the modern era.
Lumines Remastered
Resonair
Price: $15
Platforms: Xbox One (reviewed), PS4, PC, Switch
MonsterVine was provided with an Xbox One code for review.
Lumines Remastered is first and foremost a block stacking puzzle game. Players control blocks of four (in random configurations of two colors), in an attempt to match a minimum of four blocks of the same color. A line scrolls from left to right, and the matched blocks are only removed after the line has passed. It sounds simple in practice, but to make it far it is imperative to plan for the future.
While the puzzle aspect is the core gameplay, Lumines also is heavily integrated with music, with a different visual style for every song, calling these styles Skins. This is what really attracts me to Lumines. The Skins are a complete overhaul, which transition while still playing, never taking control away from the player. Everything changes: the music, the sound effects, the block colors and patterns and the level background. These 24 levels are all striking and unique, and offer an incentive to rise to the challenge to see them all; make no mistake, this is a challenge.
My biggest gripe with Lumines Remaster is I am not as good as I want to be. This could also be a strength as I continue to push myself on my quest to unlock each and every Skin, to hear the entire music catalog and experience all of the styles. I think simply by structuring the menu differently Lumines could have done a better job at introducing me to the mechanics. By changing the order of the modes offered (Challenge, Skin Edit, Time Attack, Puzzle, Mission, VS CPU and VS 2P) to put Mission, which is a series of 50 tasks which usually have the player clear the blocks in a certain number of moves. Teaching how to build larger changes, would have naturally made me learn to think differently and apply that knowledge into the core, Challenge mode.
New to Lumines Remastered is a feature that Lumines creator Tetsuya Mizuguchi (Lumines, REZ, Every Extend Extra Extreme…) has been known to have in : “Trance Vibration.” The thought behind this is to immerse players into a trance by connecting multiple extra controllers (which pulse to the sounds of the game) to the system, and placing them around various parts of your body. I hooked up my extra Xbox One controllers and placed them around me as I played, and I must admit it is a more sensational way to play. It is a bit inconvenient, and I don’t see myself trying it more than a few times, or to show friends, but it is a cool concept and I do recommend giving it a shot. The Xbox and Switch versions support 8 controllers (7 vibrators and 1 to play the game), while the PS4 only supports four because of the platforms bluetooth limitations. I did not get to test the Steam version, but I am told as a general guideline: “all connected rumble-enabled controllers (Bluetooth, USB or combination of both) should vibrate.”
The Final Word
Lumines Remastered does what it sets out to do, bring a classic puzzle game from nearly 15 years ago into a playable state on modern platforms. It’s a puzzle game which wonderfully blends music, visuals and rhythm that lures players into a trance while enjoying the fast paced challenging gameplay. The learning curve is steep, and its structure lacks a modern puzzle game’s pacing. The new vibration features are a welcome addition, but it is a shame that the VS 2P doesn’t have online support. Regardless, developer Resonair has done what they set out to achieve, and they did it with style.
– MonsterVine Review Score: 4 out of 5 – Good
