Welcome to Modojo, Join the Party!Welcome to Modojo, Join the Party!
submitted by Chris Buffa
posted March 20, 2005
Could this deceptively simple looking title be the must-have PSP game of the launch? We delve into the experience that is Lumines.
Read the Modojo Review
submitted by GamerGeorgeposted January 29, 2007
1 of 1 recommend this reviewLumines for the PSP is the latest title from Q Entertainment founder, Tetsuya Mizuguchi, who you may remember as the producer of famous and respected games such as Rez, Space Channel 5, and Sega Rally.
Lumines is his latest project and it's a puzzle game that's similar to the legendary puzzle Tetris, but it also adds its own mix to the formula and the result is a surprisingly highly addictive and highly fun game.
In Lumines, you control a small 2x2 block. Unlike in Tetris where you try to clear an entire row of blocks, in Lumines you have a small grid where you place blocks and eliminate them by matching them up by color. This opens up the possibility of huge scores by by matching up a ton of blocks of the same color. However, if you stack the blocks up so high without eliminating them, you lose.
Another different between Lumines and Tetris is that Lumines consistently has music blasting in the background along with some special effects, similar to those you'd find in a music video or when you're playing music on Windows Media Player and you make it show off some visualizations. Needless to say, this sometimes can affect your rhythm; e.g., it can help you by launching you into a hot streak where you getting rid of every block in sight, or it can disturb your rhythm in terms of you making one little mistake which severely hurts your chances of advancing.
Still, the music in this game is mindblowingly good. The soundtrack doesn't sound compressed or nothing, nor should it be since we're not dealing with cartridges with the PSP. It sounds as if you were playing a music CD.
In terms of graphics, Lumines looks OK. This is a puzzle game, and you don't expect it to have graphics that rival those of, say, Half-Life 2 or Doom III, but the graphics that are there really aren't that bad.
Lumines has a ton of replay value. There are a lot of different skins to unlock, either through Challenge Mode, vs. CPU mode, Puzzle Mode, or by time-based consequences. Also, you'll spend a crapload of time trying to continuously top your high score.
Lumines for the PSP is another genius game from Tetsuya Mizuguchi. It almost perfectly blends the puzzle genre with music. It's too bad that there won't be downloadable skins and music tracks for this game, because that would kick ass. Still, if you have a PSP and are itching to get your hands on an innovative little title, grab $40 out of your wallet, go to your local game store, and pick up a copy of Lumines.
submitted by ScottAGposted September 5, 20061 of 1 recommend this reviewWhat a sweet freakin idea. Take a super kick ass gameplay style like Tetris, add some bitchin' music and cool visual effects, and the results kick ass! Who'd have thought that one of the best reasons to own a PSP would be a puzzle game?
