Planet of Lana Review: Surreal Artistic Vision
Wishfully Studio's debut title, Planet of Lana, shows immense promise with its hand-painted art style that pops off the screen at any given moment, musical tracks that imbue the somber yet adventurous nature akin to both Star Wars and Marvel, and puzzles that feel well catered and simple for players of all kinds. While Planet of Lana's art and ambiance are arguably unmatched, its solid suspenseful enemy encounters and clever puzzles lack a certain special factor that would make this journey reach the heights it potentially could have. Nonetheless, Planet of Lana is an adventure worth your time, filled with elements reminiscent of folks like Playdead, Ghibli, and Team Ico elements.
Beauty Ever Growing
Immediately upon launching Planet of Lana, players are greeted with a fantastic wallpaper-esque menu screen and a cinematic in-engine opening showcasing the game's smooth and simple mechanics, but most importantly, the game's genuinely time-stopping hand-painted landscapes and artistic vision. On top of the game's art, the sound design and tunes also share the same time-stopping flare. Videos and screenshots were taken for everything imaginable during my time with Planet of Lana, and that aspect alone is worth the small price of admission.
An invasion event takes place in the introductory sequence that I can only describe as a daunting yet effective showcase. This initial sequence sets the tone and utilizes every shining creative element the game offers. As the game continues, these artistic elements only improve the longer you play.
The Heart Grows Ever Fonder
After the introductory invasion event, Lana and their small companion creature, Mui, must survive their robotic invaders and rescue Lana's people by uncovering the secrets of the old world and the mysterious and dangerous present. Without ever muttering anything intelligible other than names, Lana and Mui will encounter situations or items we, as players, can identify as innocent or human that evoke a surreal emotion amid tragedy. Another sense of this innocence that ruminates from the game's nature comes from Mui themselves. They are just trying to get by with Lana but do so while showing real fear and perseverance. Be ready to get attached to Mui even though it is never forced upon you. Your care for Mui comes naturally with their behavior and journey alongside them.
The balance of heartfelt and suspenseful moments is genuinely superb. Even though the game plays as a relaxed yet somber experience, how different types of puzzles or situations are thrown at you is well-paced and organized, so players never start to feel tired of any one element. This balance continues right up to the ending, which they absolutely nail. Cliches could be present without spoiling anything, but they are so well earned that I found them perfect at the moment and even after as I pondered it.
Growth Through Adventure
While the gameplay doesn't compare to the artistic elements in Planet of Lana, it is still solid and well-developed. I've always loved that when a developer knows something the player will most likely try and implement player-friendly solutions for them. These moments are present all over Planet of Lana in terms of multiple ways to perform specific actions, quick respawns, and encouraging exploration with collectibles. The collectibles are called shrines and are labeled 1-10, which also helps with progression, as it assisted me in knowing how close to the end I was.
Players can jog, jump, crouch, and grab objects. Lana and Mui eventually gain the ability to control creatures and alien tech as they progress. The added mechanics gained come naturally and at a reasonable rate for players to catch on and learn. Oh, and yes, you can pet Mui.
Sprinting is never implemented, but I never felt that I needed there to be one. Usually, the objective is either a platforming puzzle, avoiding a creature or alien captor focused around timing, both, or what I will coin as the puzzle set pieces which are the more elaborate puzzles focused on racking your brain a bit more than platforming. The prior puzzles, while challenging enough, never felt too convoluted and were ultimately a few tries away from completing them.
Some Growth with Puzzles
Additionally, like the puzzles being reasonably simple, when encountering enemies, failures or deaths feel like the player's fault thanks to the game's overall performance and mechanics working as advertised. Lana and Mui are weak and aim to avoid their captors, not combat them. There is no combat in Planet of Lana, meaning every attack from an enemy is a one-hit KO.
Planet of Lana delivers a solid experience regarding its encounters and puzzles, but I can't help but feel the game relies on its presentation in terms of its art and soundtrack. It falls short when comparing gameplay to other facets of the game, but that's not to say it's bad. Yet, the puzzles or moment-to-moment gameplay sometimes feel generic or lack an overall special factor. While the attempt to fill any gap in this supposed special factor came in the form of the puzzle set pieces and short-lived QTE segments, it still left me wanting just a bit more.
Breakdown
Game: Planet of Lana
Developer: Wishfully, Thunderful
Availability: Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S (Gamepass), PC
Reviewed on Xbox Series S
Pros:
+ Sound design rivals the heights of Star Wars and Marvel
+ Surreal landscapes and hand-painted art style
+ Well-catered and smooth experience
+ It wrapped up well in the ending and story without muttering actual words
Cons:
- Missing that IT factor in moment-to-moment gameplay
Final Thoughts
Planet of Lana offers puzzles and enemy encounters that are good, but they just aren't special. Everything else in Planet of Lana is. Planet of Lana is the type of video game that earns a studio the attention it deserves. Planet of Lana has some of my favorite art, favorite musical tracks, and favorite overall experiences I've had in video games this year. If you want an enjoyable experience, buy Planet of Lana. If you want a beautiful experience, buy Planet of Lana. If you want a relaxing puzzle experience, buy Planet of Lana.
Reviewed by Austin Ernst