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[Wario64]

http://www.1up.com/do/reviewPage?cId=3138819&did=1

"Of course, it's easy to throw around terms like "art," "convergence" and "synaesthetic experience," but the true test of a game is something much more mundane: Is it fun? Lumines hit our offices with an addictive fury matched only in recent memory by Burnout 3 and Katamari Damacy. High scores became the key to bragging rights; editors on several occasions had to forcibly pry their subordinates away from the game to get them back to work. Yet Lumines also works on a level beyond catchy gameplay. Q Entertainment has used the Tetris template to duplicate a lightning-in-a-bottle feeling equal in brilliance and addictiveness to the puzzle classic. While not the most immediately impressive PSP launch title, its depth and addictiveness make it likely to be the most enduring. Once the initial excitement of seeing PS2-calibre visuals on the go wears thin, Lumines will likely still be driving players to shoot for new scores and unlock that last elusive skin. "




Gonna be a long week...

 

[Suikoguy]

Wow...

I really don't have much else to say.. other then i'll be buying it

 

[jenov4]

SWEET! This is going to be the first PSP game I buy. And perhaps Wipeout afterwards.

 

[Guy LeDouche]

Fantastic. I don't have the scrap to buy it now, but I will asap.

 

[Amir0x]

Sweet jesus.

 

[Speevy]

No one knows how to score these PSP games yet.


"Uh...this game rocks... Do I give a 10, or an 8?"

 

[Amir0x]

I wonder if it'll really have such longevity. I wonder if it's just PSP-buzz.

 

[fugimax]

Lumines is a great game and deserves a 9.5...hopefully they gave the score because they felt the same, not because it was for PSP and not DS.

 

[Jonnyram]

I wonder if it'll really have such longevity. I wonder if it's just PSP-buzz.

It has longevity, trust me. If you're the kind of person who listens to a good album months after they've bought it, you'll get a lot of play out of Lumines.

 

[Belfast]

I wonder if it'll really have such longevity. I wonder if it's just PSP-buzz.

I dunno, but I played it a lot during the week I got to. Finally, I'll be able to put my Japanese copy to good use again in a little over a week.

 

[JackFrost2012]

BELIEVE THE HYPE

 

[Amir0x]

It has longevity, trust me. If you're the kind of person who listens to a good album months after they've bought it, you'll get a lot of play out of Lumines.

Well, it sounds neat. I'm definitely going to get it, it's on my pre-order list.

 

[acklame]

BELIEVE THE HYPE

I would if you give me $40.

 

[Lord Error]

Lumines most definitely deserves a 9+ score. Not on a "I'll give it this much because it's on a handheld" scale, but on a scale compared to console offerings in the music and/or puzzle genre.

It's pretty much the best thing PSP has going on for it, in my opinion. As the review says, the game just embodies everything this handheld is about.

 

[BuddyC]

I wonder if it'll really have such longevity. I wonder if it's just PSP-buzz.

I've said it before, but I'm still playing Lumines two months later. And that's saying an awful lot, my average attention span for a game hovers around one or two days.

 

[captmcblack]

As the review says, the game just embodies everything this handheld is about.

...what is the PSP about? It plays games and various media.

I must've missed a memo or something. :\

 

[The End]

I'm basically buying a PSP for this. "New Ridge Racer" and "New WipEout" are just gravy, really.

 

[krypt0nian]

Oh hell yes!


Time to drag it out again!

 

[kaching]

No one knows how to score these PSP games yet.


"Uh...this game rocks... Do I give a 10, or an 8?"

Ironically, of all the games you try to apply this logic to, you pick Lumines, a game most of these game journos have had a chance to play for the last 3 months. One of the rare times when a game review can actually factor in lasting appeal in a credible fashion.

 

[krypt0nian]

No one knows how to score these PSP games yet.


"Uh...this game rocks... Do I give a 10, or an 8?"

Yes because Lumines is such crap. :lol

This whole PSP launch will be so painful for you.

 

[Amir0x]

Yes because Lumines is such crap. :lol

This whole PSP launch will be so painful for you.

krypt0nian, I remember the days when we argued about things because you were a N-Fan. What happened, man? You switched camps on me during the night!? If PSP is a disappointment I'm placing blame squarely on you.

 

[Ironclad]

Great score. Damn, This week + few days are going to long as hell.

 

[krypt0nian]

krypt0nian, I remember the days when we argued about things because you were a N-Fan. What happened, man? You switched camps on me during the night!? If PSP is a disappointment I'm placing blame squarely on you.

Simply put....the DS was my last Nintendo-loving straw. They have failed me time and time again. I'm done with allegiance to any one company/developer.

I needed a kick in the teeth to show me the way. Its too bad the boots the to head prior to that did nothing to alleviate the problem.

I still have a good place in my heart for Nintendo games but I don't trust them as far as I can spit anymore.

OK not simply put...

 

[Amir0x]

Simply put....the DS was my last Nintendo-loving straw. They have failed me time and time again. I'm done with allegiance to any one company/developer.

I needed a kick in the teeth to show me the way. Its too bad the boots the to head prior to that did nothing to alleviate the problem.

I still have a good place in my heart for Nintendo games but I don't trust them as far as I can spit anymore.

OK not simply put...

Well, I like to be beat to death before I give up allegiance.

Heh.

Anyway, all I'm sayin' is... PSP better be awesome! It's easy to order a head-hit!

 

[Shard]

Well, at least we now know that Lumines is indeed awesome, so that is something.

 

[Sho Nuff]

It's all hype!

Hype is the only reason Lumines is my most-played PSP game!

DON'T BELIEVE IT!

 

[Soul4ger]

It's all hype!

Hype is the only reason Lumines is my most-played PSP game!

DON'T BELIEVE IT!

You know... I could say there's another reason. But I'll withhold it, simply to allow the Lumines discussion to continue.

 

[aoi tsuki]

Music aside, i've put myself on a self-imposed media blackout. It's too easy to read numerous reviews, watch movies, look at screens, etc. and get so much info on a game that it takes away much of the impact of actually playing it.

And yes, it's going to be a long week.

 

[Shard]

It's all hype!

Hype is the only reason Lumines is my most-played PSP game!

DON'T BELIEVE IT!

I am not sure I believe that.

 

[RuGalz]

This is the only game I picked up for my Japanese PSP since I didn't think I'd need any other game. And I was right... I'm still debating if I should pick up US versions of other games cuz it's hard to take the Lumines disc out of the machine.

 

[Speevy]

Yes because Lumines is such crap.

This whole PSP launch will be so painful for you.

What? No, that's not what I said at all.


Gamespot gave the game a 9.0, IGN gave it an 8.6, and now it gets a 9.5.

I picked this specifically because it's difficult to determine what makes a truly great puzzle game.

But in general, if you look at system launches, it gets even trickier to separate the good games from the great ones. What is Luigi's Mansion now? At launch, some reviewers certainly didn't know what to make of it. Especially in the case of the PSP, you're caught in a haze of awesomeness that only comes with owning a brand new system. You overrate some games, as happened to Luigi's Mansion. And some people didn't know what to make of Halo, so they slightly underrated it. It's a natural launch occurrence.

Now, please don't make assumptions about my replies to a given thread.

 

[Speevy]

Ironically, of all the games you try to apply this logic to, you pick Lumines, a game most of these game journos have had a chance to play for the last 3 months. One of the rare times when a game review can actually factor in lasting appeal in a credible fashion.

Wha? It's true. Reviewers usually don't get it right with new consoles.

Imagine having the task of giving fair scores to a Nintendo 64-caliber dual-screened handheld and a PS2-caliber handheld. I certainly wouldn't want the task. I'm sure Lumines is a great game. I'd certainly want it over most of the PSP's other games, because it's completely original, and nothing is more important to me than originality in game design.

 

[Pedigree Chum]

Lumines is great and deserves all the praise its getting. Its still just as addictive 2 months later. The best part about the game is when you get into the 'zone', its fucking brilliant, huge chains after huge chains gets you so hyped (music going nuts helps too). Shit, uhh, I'll be back *fires up Lumines*

Edit: This is coming from someone who wasn't enourmed by Rez. It was a cool game in what it was shooting for gamplay x music, but it was lacking in the former IMO. Lumines' Puzzle x Music fusion is MUCH better, the gameplay is there, and the interaction is there too. Awesome concept with Rez, but mastered with Lumines.

 

[Pedigree Chum]

Well, I like to be beat to death before I give up allegiance.

Heh.

Anyway, all I'm sayin' is... PSP better be awesome! It's easy to order a head-hit!

My allegiance died with the Gamecube (N64 was pretty good). This gen for Nintendo has been pretty dissapointing on a whole. I'm definitely in Sony's camp now and for the forceeable future.

 

[Amir0x]

My allegiance died with the Gamecube (N64 was pretty good). This gen for Nintendo has been pretty dissapointing on a whole. I'm definitely in Sony's camp now and for the forceeable future.

I'm livin' off the fat o' the lan'. You give me a good game, I'll be your friend.

That said, I really don't think Nintendo was disappointing. I mean, putting aside DS (as it hasn't had enough time to firmly establish anything about Nintendo), the Gamecube has had many awesome games - and most of those came from Nintendo themselves. It's true they're not exactly competing for marketshare or the best third party support, but they certainly have entertained me.

 

[kaching]

Wha? It's true. Reviewers usually don't get it right with new consoles.

And that applies here how? Among the three reviews you've cited, there's a swing of .9 points. You might want to take a stroll over to gamerankings.com to peruse the average ratings swing for games both early and late in a consoles life cycle. You might be surprised. Any game that ends up with less than a 1 point (on a 10pt scale) of swing across all its ratings like this is a rare thing, regardless of when it appears in a consoles lifecycle. In all likelihood, as more reviews are posted for Lumines, the delta between highest and lowest rating will grow larger, just like it is for games like Halo 2, GTA: San Andreas and Resident Evil 4, all of which have a swing of at least 2.0/20% across all the scores each received.

 

[chespace]

My allegiance died with the Gamecube (N64 was pretty good). This gen for Nintendo has been pretty dissapointing on a whole. I'm definitely in Sony's camp now and for the forceeable future.

Play games, not hardware manufacturers.

 

[Amir0x]

Play games, not hardware manufacturers.

Obviously you haven't played Sony. That's a great hardware manufacturer. Gets a bit hard around level 10, but the challenge is worth it.

 

[Speevy]

And that applies here how? Among the three reviews you've cited, there's a swing of .9 points. You might want to take a stroll over to gamerankings.com to peruse the average ratings swing for games both early and late in a consoles life cycle. You might be surprised. Any game that ends up with less than a 1 point (on a 10pt scale) of swing across all its ratings like this is a rare thing, regardless of when it appears in a consoles lifecycle.

That doesn't change the fact that the PSP presents a special challenge for reviewers - since it essentially brings the PS2 experience to handheld form.

Do you review a great game on the PSP the same way you review Advance Wars?

How are graphics to be treated? Content limitations? Is a few modes of a sports game enough, or can the developer easily put the whole console version on there? The standards have hardly been established yet.

Like I said, it must be challenging for a reviewer to assess what makes a good game on new hardware. But with the PSP, the platform becomes a completely different animal.

 

[Sho Nuff]

Play games, not hardware manufacturers.

You forget this is GAF, sir

 

[Pedigree Chum]

Play games, not hardware manufacturers.

Well I do have an Xbox and plan on getting a Xenon in the future. I'm basing my decision to ignore the Gamecube on the software available, it sucks too cause Nintendo was one of my favorite devs ever, still are in a way since their GBA stuff is awesome.

And it's not like I didn't give the GC a chance, hell I bought it twice...both times I was dissapointed and sold it.

 

[chespace]

That doesn't change the fact that the PSP presents a special challenge for reviewers - since it essentially brings the PS2 experience to handheld form.

Do you review a great game on the PSP the same way you review Advance Wars?

How are graphics to be treated? Content limitations? Is a few modes of a sports game enough, or can the developer easily put the whole console version on there? The standards have hardly been established yet.

Like I said, it must be challenging for a reviewer to assess what makes a good game on new hardware. But with the PSP, the platform becomes a completely different animal.

I suggest you read 1UP's Dynasty Warriors review to see a game with a piss poor score.

 

[Stinkles]

Aaahfuck. In a cruel irony, tailor-made for GAF, I just traded my Lumines for some fuck's Dynasty Warriors for a week, while said fuck goes to Japan. He better bring me back Minna.


Also, best thing about Lumines period, is playing it in different styles, depending on your mood - play aggressive and smash open new skins, or chillax, maybe under a clawfoot tub, dreamy hard-style.

 

[kaching]

Do you review a great game on the PSP the same way you review Advance Wars?

You mean based on their respective merits or lack thereof? Yes, by golly, I surely hope you do.

How are graphics to be treated? Content limitations? Is a few modes of a sports game enough, or can the developer easily put the whole console version on there? The standards have hardly been established yet.

It's not as if each game on a new piece of hardware is observed in a total vaccuum, Speevy. There is a launch library of other games to refer to in order to get a good sense of what's possible. And if a game is clearly trying to emulate a game experience from another platform but failing in some palpable fashion, that's going to be evident. It doesn't take the PSP to engender such a situation, it happens all the time.

 

[Socreges]

God damnit

Now do I return the mp3 player I bought today to get a PSP at launch.... :\ .... I just hate having to pay extra for a memory stick.

 

[Juice]

Aren't the 1UP guys the ones with blogs? Blogs where they go so far as to say they hate the DS? I don't know about you, but any publication that lets its reviewers go so far as to say they "hate" an entire platform of game development on their own servers really isn't going to be trusted when that platform's competitor is launched. At least not in my book.

Sure I'll trust their PSP reviews. But first I'll take them along with a grain of salt, which I'll hold in my hand and then SHOVE IN MY FUCKING EYE.

 

[Hero]

Lumines is the only game I want for PSP. I need it badly, I've listened to LiGHTs so much recently.

1up.com blogs are dumb. Except for Che's. It'd help if the site would appear for me.

 

[Sho Nuff]

Aren't the 1UP guys the ones with blogs? Blogs where they go so far as to say they hate the DS? I don't know about you, but any publication that lets its reviewers go so far as to say they "hate" an entire platform of game development on their own servers really isn't going to be trusted when that platform's competitor is launched. At least not in my book.

Sure I'll trust their PSP reviews. But first I'll take them along with a grain of salt, which I'll hold in my hand and then SHOVE IN MY FUCKING EYE.

How dare these people have personal opinions!

 

[Juice]

How dare these people have personal opinions!

I'm not saying they're entitled to their own opinions, but their reviews should at least have the aire of being platform independent.

If Lumines was released on DS in the same capacity (I know, I know, the screen isn't nearly as beautiful, but just hypothetically here), would the 1UP guys have given it a 9.6?

I really feel like a professional reviewer puts his personal opinions aside when he's writing a review of a product. What I'm getting at here is that there is no way they can justify giving Lumines a higher score than they know it deserves because they want to make the PSP launch lineup look as attractive as possible.

I think the PSP has a fine launch lineup as is, without their inevitable ass kissing. I just don't find it professional that they throw their personal opinions around so liberally. At least, how can we be expected to compare their review scores cross platforms at all?

Can someone please elaborate the details on how this can go on and the 1UP people still be legitimate journalists in all this?

 

[SolidSnakex]

If Lumines was released on DS in the same capacity (I know, I know, the screen isn't nearly as beautiful, but just hypothetically here), would the 1UP guys have given it a 9.6?

Don't forget the music which plays a big role in peoples liking of this game.