Lumines

Lumines Description

The Game Boy had Tetris. The Game Gear, Columns. The Nintendo DS boasted Polarium at its launch. No self-respecting new handheld system leaves the house without an amazing new puzzle game for all to hail in wonder as the greatest thing ever. If you've read anything at all about the new PSP games system then you'll have heard of Lumines. The work of Q Entertainment and Bandai, it's to be released in this part of the world by good old Ubisoft. Some deep-seated human instinct allows us to derive enormous satisfaction from bringing order to a chaotic assortment of blocks. It is the manipulation of this mysterious instinct that gives so many puzzle video games their greatness, and Lumines is no different. In this case you are dealt square after square, each containing a permutation of four squares in two colours. Sort them right (you guessed it, like colours must be placed with like), and the troublesome blocks are magicked away. The real genius of Lumines, though, is the graphical and audio rewards when you do get it right. The game uses bursts of light and music that have been specially formulated in a laboratory to push the happy buttons in your brain. The result is waves of satisfaction and happiness washing over your body as you progress in the game. The music becomes more and more intense the longer you keep going. Work your way through 24 levels each with its own sound effects and music. Various gameplay modes are featured - predictably time attacks, and puzzle challenges. But this wouldn't be a proper PSP game without some wireless functionality and Lumines is equipped with a mulitplayer duel mode. Compete with another Luminicist and push them right off the screen in a shower of light and groovy music. And unlock new skins and avatars as you progress in game, to show off your prowess in multiplayer. Buying a PSP? You'd be a fool not to get Lumines with it.

A Simple Puzzler - Users are challenged to control a block until it lands on the ground, creating a square using blocks of the same colour. In order to delete the shape from the field, it must be larger than 2 squares by 2 squares. The larger the square you delete, the higher your score.

A Unique Puzzler - Any expanded square regions will be deleted when the Sequencing Bar passes by. A player's success is determined by how far you can expand the square regions in order to delete large boxes at once.

In Sync - Each key action generates sound effects. The flow of the Sequencing bar and the speed of the descending block are synchronized with the beat of the background music. Once a block is deleted, a music file is played. The more blocks destroyed in a sequence, the better the music.

Single Player Modes - Enjoy 24 stages of graphics and music in Challenge Mode, race the clock and beat the odds in Time Attack Mode, earn graphical skins and avatars as you battle CPU characters in Duel Mode and draw shapes with blocks in Puzzle Mode.

Multi-player Functionality - Through Wireless LAN technology, the user can compete with an opponent in the "VS." Mode

Multiple Game Stages - Four stages, each with its own musical theme and sound effects, offer increasing levels of difficulty tied to beats-per-minute.

Changeable Skins - Users can earn graphical skins as they clear various stages throughout the game. Skins can then be changed to the users liking, much like a media player.

Collectible Characters - Players can increase their collection of characters by beating CPU characters and clearing stages. They can show off their Lumines skills by using the characters they've earned as an avatar, giving themselves a unique identity.