Lumines: Arise Reviews

Lumines Arise is NOT Tetris Effect Connected, and once you make that distinction, you'll enjoy this one. The effects can be overwhelming, but turn the ones that affect you off, and connect to the ones that allow you to enjoy the game. See what I did there?

Lumines gets the Tetris Effect treatment, and it's incredible. Is anyone really surprised? Don't worry - the gameplay is enough to sustain you through the trippy synesthesia and then some.

Lumines Arise is sensational in every sense. It will wow you with its audio-visual cues and dance across your screen in a way that'll make you feel emotions. It feels almost otherworldly, and yet, it's one of the most calming and memorable experiences I've had with video games this year.

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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.

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.

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.

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

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.

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...

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.

Beautiful visuals and an excellent soundtrack collide in Lumines Arise, the latest entry in the long-running Lumines series. This block puzzle game is as timeless as Tetris, and as long as you can get your head around the strategies required here, it's going to keep you entertained for dozens upon dozens of hours.

Combining great gameplay that is easy to learn but challenging to master, with visuals that look great and music that always nails the tone, Lumines Arise suffers from only a few minor hiccups.

A sequel to one of my favourite puzzle games of all time is here and Lumines Arise is absolutely incredible stuff so let's form some squares.

Lumines Arise is a radiant revival that perfectly captures the rhythm and emotion the series is known for. The experience is simultaneously soothing and challenging, offering a unique game that both longtime fans and newcomers will appreciate. While the VR mode leaves a bit to be desired, Lumines Arise is an absolute joy that should be experienced without hesitation.

Lumines Arise is just as effective as Tetris Effect, block matching to a beat becomes a transcendent experience with a radically different ruleset. This is an excellent evolution of the PSP original that uses a wide game board and a musical wipe to create a constant sense of teetering on the edge, daring you to build big combos even when they take you close to wiping out. Lumines Arise's brilliant visuals and synesthetic grooves wonderfully fit this already musically minded puzzle ruleset.

Lumines: Arise stands as an interactive work of art and one that truly needs to be experienced. The integration of visuals, gameplay and sound is phenomenal, creating a wonderfully addictive puzzler that stands shoulder to shoulder with Enhance’s previous effort, Tetris Effect. It’s a stunning reminder of how games can move us, not just through challenge, but through the harmony of sight, sound, and touch.

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.

Enhance has been making games for many years, but the team cemented its place on the gaming map with its mixture of puzzle games and stirring musical accompaniment. Tetris Effect remains a generation-defining reinvention of a classic franchise and, with that success in its pocket, now Enhance has given the same treatment to Lumines. Lumines Arise follows much of the same formula that made Tetris Effect so memorable, making it both a captivating puzzle game and a sublime musical journey.

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

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