Review: Lumino City

Earlier, I commented on the 2014 development of the game. Time passed, and Lumino City was released. With that in mind, we decided to analyze I sink the game and, we can already say that, it is sensational. And when I say that, I don't mean that the game features revolutionary graphics, or runs at 1080p (60fps). No, what makes this Point-and-Click so fascinating are its scenery and landscapes, handmade, literally. Find out what I thought of the game!

THE State of Play, the studio responsible for the game, created a true interactive world from cardboard, felt, aluminum and a lot of hot glue. To give you an idea, all the work and dedication of the employees in the construction of the little town, Lumino City took three years to get ready. And the end result is simply amazing.

In Lumino City, we have an amazing house built from a camera, a cozy restaurant shaped like a milk bottle, amazing floating aquariums made of plastic, and so on – each scenario presented by the game is a new opportunity to experience yourself. admire with the creativity and talent of the developers. And it's not just the architecture that impresses: the cinematography used during transitions of scenery is a spectacle of its own, believe me if you can.

The game tells us the story of Lumi, a smart and headstrong little girl looking for your grandfather, kidnapped right at the beginning of the adventure. During his journey to the top of Lumino City, Lumi must solve a series of puzzles and riddles spread throughout his intricate constructions of papercraft, all while helping the townspeople. These supporting actors are, without a doubt, the best part of the whole story. Although the plot is simple, and the game never leaves the “I need to find my lost grandfather”, the residents of Lumino City make the adventure much more fun and interesting.

In the game, we still have a waiter in love with the protagonist, a man kicked out of his house for forgetting his wedding anniversary, a nice and clumsy mayor, and many other curious and funny characters. Every time you finish one of the game's segments and move on to the next one, I felt a slight lack of the other characters and when I realized that I wouldn't see certain people anymore - the game does a great job of building memorable characters.

Lumino City's interface is very minimalist, just what is expected of a Point-and-Click. Just click on a specific point on the screen and Lumi will move there. Touch the bag, and it can use one of its items to solve the most diverse puzzles scattered around. In general, I found the gameplay simple and intuitive, and although at certain times you get a little “lost” in some scenarios – being forced to even click on the screen to continue the adventure – this was not a major inconvenience, having occurred only three times during the whole game.

I cannot fail to mention the puzzles. The vast majority of these riddles are pretty fun, creative and, above all, quite challenging. To succeed in his adventure, Lumi will have to develop electrical circuits using lemons, learn to develop different photographs, master the use of the binary system (yes!) and even use a pinwheel to pass a message in Morse code module.

It is worth noting that these puzzles combine in an incredible way with the Lumino City style, using the same design and animation techniques employed throughout the rest of the game. On the other hand, I spent a few minutes stuck on some challenges, the simple fact that they were so fantastic and well put together prevented any kind of inconvenience on my part.

At first, Lumi receives a manual with approximately 1,000 pages, full of tips related to the puzzles. However, in its index there are a number of algebraic problems related to the challenge. Solve the problem, and thus discover which page to look for the solutions you want. This feature, in addition to preventing players from getting too frustrated with the game's hardest puzzles, the book features phenomenal art.

However, the aforementioned guide presents a fundamental flaw: its pages give the final answer to problems, delivered on a platter. In other words, there is no middle ground - if you just want a simple tip, without spoiling the final solution, this manual will let you down badly.

Still, there is another point that comes to disappoint a lot: the soundtrack. The music matches the game perfectly, changing tones almost imperceptibly as we venture through Lumino City. However, when you're stuck on the same puzzle for more than 20 minutes – the music, once relaxing, starts to get more and more irritating, stuck in a monotonous and tedious loop.

The detail here is that, in addition to not being able to solve a more complicated puzzle, in most cases, we have a recipe for great frustration. A lack of voice overs it's also a big shame, as that would have given even more life to the game's already sensational characters.

And you, what do you think of Lumino City? Comment! 🙂