Planet of Lana II – Review

Planet Of Lana 2

It’s been almost 3 years since the first Planet of Lana released, and players got their first hands-on look at the vibrant world of Novo. On Novo, it’s been roughly 2 Earth years since Lana and Mui puzzled and platformed their way through the robot threat of the first game. The tribes of Novo have learned to work with the robots – not necessarily for the better – and Lana and Mui spend their time exploring ruins and helping the village in the changed world.

If you haven’t played the first game and don’t really know what I’m talking about, first off, you should, but also don’t worry. Planet of Lana II has a lovely opening cinematic to get you up to speed on the events of the first game, and the devs have stated that the story is mostly self-contained so newcomers and fans of the first game can enjoy this new chapter on Novo. The real question now is, will they? Let’s dive in and find out.

A Girl and Her Cat

Planet of Lana II is a 2D puzzle platformer where you control Lana and her small cat-like friend Mui. Lana’s skillset has been updated since the first game, with her now able to jump between walls, slide under obstacles and swim – opening up a whole host of new aspects to the puzzles you’ll find on your journey through Novo. Mui has some upgrades too – you can now direct her around so she can interact with things remotely, and she has an electronic pulse that can open secret chests, disable robots and take control of other small creatures in the world. All of these new mechanics, paired with the stealth and responsive platforming of the first game, make for a host of engaging puzzles and exciting escape sequences, with enough challenge to be satisfying but never so esoteric that I was left pondering over the solution for any frustrating length of time.

Hmm, I wonder what the solution could be?

Executing the solutions is where the real fun lies. Alongside these new abilities is a host of new dangers and roadblocks to overcome. One section is set almost primarily underwater, with the start of the level seeing you manage your oxygen as you transport Mui in a little seaweed sac to doors she can open, or dart about as a little fish hiding in a smokescreen from larger predators. I want to highlight that two of my biggest fears are drowning and being eaten by a gnashing of teeth hiding in deep water, so this section was very stressful for me. Waiting for a vicious electric shark creature to turn around as the controller buzzed due to lack of air was terrifying, as was the slow descent into the depths of a rickety ship afterwards.

Mechanically, the game is a joy to play. Lana’s movements and actions are smooth, while Mui will generally take the most reasonable path to her objective without just running straight into danger. She’ll also wait to jump on little flying robots or moving blocks once you’ve told her where to go, so you don’t need to worry about the timing of inputs too much. There were a few niggles here and there – Mui generally doesn’t put herself in danger, but it did happen a few times, and strangely, I found it quite difficult at times to get Lana to get out of bodies of water. They’re small niggles, though, and the game has enough checkpoints and fast enough loading that if they lead to a death or two, it’s probably not going to annoy you too much.

Art Novo

The original Planet of Lana is a beautiful game, all vibrant greens and gloomy shadows. In the sequel, Wishfully have a new lighting system and a host of new biomes to wander through, and my god, it’s absolutely stunning. Sometimes I forgot to take a lot of screenshots when I’m playing a game, but you could’ve tied my hands behind my back, and I’d have hit the screenshot button with my nose to capture some of the wonderful vistas on offer here.

The sunlight bouncing off the cerulean water in the village feels warm; the shadows deep under the world in the mines feel dank and heavy. You can tell they spent ages getting those greens right; the kind of saturated emerald that makes you want to reach through the screen and touch the moss-covered rocks skittering across the forest floors. As the start of the game says, there’s no real dialogue outside of the summary prologue – the story is up for the player’s interpretation, but the world-building does so much to connect you to the world. In the years since the robots have been integrated into the societies of Novo, so has their technology; jutting out from the ground in harsh, grey shapes cutting through soft, hand-painted landscapes. You don’t need dialogue to understand what’s wrong with this world. Just look at how sharply those robot edges cut against the soft watercolour backgrounds.

There’s a lot more for the new lighting engine to do in the sequel, too. The developers have stated that Planet of Lana II is roughly double the length of the first game, with my run hitting ~6hrs 30 for a full completion. During that time, you’ll trudge over snow-capped mountains, crawl through stagnant caves and sneak around cavernous metallic bases. Each has its own look and feel, with unique puzzles to overcome as you try to piece together your people’s history and that of Novo and its place in the cosmos.

Final Thoughts

I’ve only touched lightly on the story of the game in this review, and that’s intentional. One, as per the devs, it’s open to each player’s own interpretation, and two, it should be experienced in the context of the vivid world constructed by Wishfully rather than read in black and white via my own meagre prose. What I will say is that I thoroughly enjoyed slowly learning more about Novo, Mui and the events of the past that led up to the first and now this game and what this might mean for Lana and her people.

As I said in the intro to this review, you should absolutely play the first game; it’s fantastic, and you’ll definitely enjoy the sequel even more if you do. But, if you’re struggling to find the time for more than one game this weekend, you are absolutely not going to be disappointed by spending a few lazy afternoons running, climbing and swimming your way through Novo in Planet of Lana II. It’s a sequel that takes all the good things about its predecessor and builds upon them, adding new, well-thought-out mechanics and engaging additions to the gameplay, all housed within a breathtaking, captivating world.