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Tetsuya Mizuguchi's Q Entertainment is probably my favorite small development house in today's gaming world. I love the work they do (and the work Mizuguchi has previously done at SEGA, such as Rez), and I loved the original Lumines for PSP, so naturally I wanted to love Lumines Live!. Unfortunately, this love was not to be.
Perhaps the biggest and most obvious problem with Lumines Live! is its pricing. Outrageously priced compared to other XBLA titles, it will run you over $20 for what could be considered the "full package" at this point. However, a "full package" here differs from what Microsoft might call it. The download that is marketed as the full version, or the Base Pack, on the Live Arcade only includes a handful of skins, allowing a full run through of the game in under an hour. To fully get your money's worth, you'll have to also buy the Advanced Pack, containing what seems to be double the content of the Base Pack.
In the end, it looks like you'll be spending more money on Lumines Live! than on the upcoming PSP Lumines II.
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In the end, it looks like you'll be spending more money on Lumines Live! than on the upcoming PSP Lumines II. With the Puzzle vs. CPU, and Artist Packs all on the way, it looks like Q enthusiasts could end up spending upwards of $50 when all is said and done. The smack to the face is that this will all probably end up offering less content than the previous Lumines titles combined. Sure, Live! offers online play and deleting blocks in HD is nothing short of stunning, but it just doesn't seem to add up to be a logical purchase for anyone who is strapped for cash.
Live! has the same gameplay as its PSP counterpart, except in HD and with full surround sound. Playing Lumines on my 32-inch Samsung HD display was utterly satisfying, but while everything does look great and run smoothly, it seems like Q could have thrown in more crazy visual effects if it weren't for Microsoft's 50 MB XBLA size limit for software. Then again, maybe that's why we all got shafted with the multi-package setup. Another problem is the lack of the super catchy licensed tunes of the original from Eri Nobuchika and Mondo Grosso. It's just sad not to have that fleeting moment of reaching the final stage to the tune of the two's classic "Lights," and it feels unnatural without "Shinin''" at the beginning.
As you'd expect, Q's latest is is a pretty slick package, with a more intuitive and sexy interface than every other XBLA title. The title offers some extremely laggy online play. It varies slightly depending on who you may be playing at any given time, but you might just end up quitting early the majority of the time-- it's just that bad.
While the 360 edition is sure to satisfy Lumines and Mizuguchi buffs like myself, it's sure to disappoint the casual consumer in terms of both value and content. I can only recommend this to avid puzzle fanatics and those with a little extra cash that have already played the few truly excellent titles on the Xbox Live Arcade. Its failure is the fault of both Q and Microsoft; Q made the decision to break it up into chunks, and MS, with its 50 MB XBLA download limit, probably had a hand in necessitating this. Something should also be said of Microsoft's willingness to support such a ridiculous pricing structure; with this precedent, who knows what the future holds for games on the Live Arcade.
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