Lumines: Arise

Lumines Arise dethrones Tetris Effect as the PS5's best puzzle game. Read our review to find out why it is so great.

Enhance Games returns with arguably the best rhythm experience since Tetris Effect.

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Lumines Arise takes a block building classic, adds a splash of psychedelic firework paint and an absolute banger of a soundtrack, leaving us with a game destined to become an all-timer.

Tetris has Tetrominos. Lumines has blocks. Tetris tasks you with forming lines. Lumines tasks you with forming blocks. They’re two sides of the same block-dropping coin, and while Tetris is instantly recognisable as one of the most iconic, generation-defining games of all time, Lumines can stake a claim to its own equally important place in history.

After Tetris, but before Tetris Effect, there was Lumines. Creator Tetsuya Mizuguchi’s engrossing puzzle game was a launch title for Sony’s PSP handheld in 2004 and as the story goes, it was created when issues prevented Mizuguchi’s team from acquiring the Tetris license. It worked out, however, as the core mechanic of Lumines is fantastic. For me, Lumines is second only to Alexey Pajitnov’s enduring classic in terms of puzzle games, and Mizuguchi would eventually secure the license f...

Suffices to say, If you haven't played Lumines before you're in for an exquisite audio/visual treat loaded with memorable and impacting vibes. Arise's soundtrack doesn't quite reach the majesty of Electronic Symphony on the Vita as the tunes can be too soft and not as emphatic, but in every other way Arise is the best Lumines game yet, and aptly bursts with life just as fervently as its new gameplay mechanic.

A nightmare to navigate, but you wake up to the most beautiful clash of non-intrusive puzzle gameplay, and fully realised visual design; the game Lumines was always meant to be.

A revamp of Lumines which, in the spirit of Tetris Effect, amplifies its puzzling core with slick visuals, fun new mechanics, and one of the best soundtracks of the year.

From coconuts to black holes and watch parts, Lumines is back in fine voice.

The concept of Tetris Effect is iterated on with confidence, paired with a singular use of technology that seeks to evoke emotion at every turn.

Like Tetris Effect before it, Lumines Arise lives up to the franchise's legacy. It's slick, stylish, and as addictive as ever. Despite my complaints and critiques of the game, especially those level transitions that take you out of the rhythm you've established, I look forward to spending hundreds of hours with Lumines Arise over the next decade or so. There was nothing quite like Lumines back in the day, and even though there are similar titles available today in 2025, there's still only one Lumines. A must-own for any puzzle game fan.