Lumione is an unforgiving precision platformer that will leave you feeling triumphant or utterly disappointed.  

Jump and launch your way through 170 levels of puzzle obstacles at lightning speed, or else come to terms with an ever-growing death total. Traverse the seafloor as Glimmer, an ocean fairy, on a quest to follow their dreams and find the Light to return to the dark abyss of the seabed. Lumione was released in October 2021 and is the first game developed by Glimmer Studio. Lumione offers a fast-paced platformer that will delight players who love timing their moves precisely.

Lumione definitely stresses challenge over narrative.

GRAPHICS & VISUALS 7/10

The colors and composition of each cutscene provide a beautiful treat for the player before launching into the next chaotic level.

Lumione follows the same graphical structure as most side-scrolling platformer games. The backgrounds repeat, and the platforms don’t change much visually. The environment only really changes to challenge the player, from moving platforms to shooting lasers. However, the non-intricate graphic details may be helpful to players as they navigate each level with the exactness required to continue. When I was playing, my focus wasn’t on the backgrounds but on getting Glimmer from place to place. There is rarely a moment to stop and take in the scenery as doing so might make you miss your jump.

A most significant part of the graphics is lighting because the player travels with Glimmer from the bottom of the ocean toward the surface. Glimmer’s progress to the top is marked by short cutscenes in which Glimmer interacts with NPCs and unlocks more of the story.

MUSIC & SOUND QUALITY 7/10

The soothing music makes for an excellent contrast to the brutal gameplay.

The music in Lumione is pleasant to listen to as you maneuver your way through the puzzles. When you die you hear a lovely little chime before you yell an expletive (my go-to word was “barnacles”). I’m impressed that Glimmer Studios composed all of their own music and sound effects. The characters in the game even make adorable sounds akin to Animal Crossing villagers. One of the NPCs I encountered also reminded me of the Ithorian aliens in Knights of the Old Republic.

GAMEPLAY 6/10

Lumione is unforgiving in its gameplay, and the player is offered little time to practice one of the game’s main mechanics called “fly” before launching into the first puzzle. This mechanic grows in strength with higher levels and requires the player to creatively use the environment to reach specific power-ups.

I love a good platformer, but Lumione left me questioning if I really did. I played the game for a straight hour, making it to level five with 300 deaths. Admittedly I am probably bad at the game because Carrot Helper on YouTube makes it look effortless. However, I wasn’t keen on returning to it due to the difficulty level and the lack of story to compel me forward. 

I recommend downloading the demo on Steam before purchasing to ensure this type of challenging puzzle interests you. Additionally, this game offers very little concerning accessibility. I think Lumione needs a difficulty slider at the very least or an optional extended tutorial that allows the player to learn the controls before the first challenging level. 

STORY & CHARACTERS 5/10

Lumione has a very loose premise story-wise. Basically, Glimmer is on a quest to find the Light to bring back to their home on the dark seafloor. Upon booting up the game for the first time, the player is met with a short exposition cutscene explaining why Glimmer is on their mission. There is a lack of backstory to motivate the player to continue forward. 

Glimmer meets a few NPC characters; however, the brief relationships Glimmer has with these characters become emotional pinpoints of the storyline. Due to the lack of time and exposition, it was hard for me as a player to have any emotional response to the situation. Mayhaps something was lost in translation, or I was too frustrated by the gameplay. Still, overall I couldn’t invest myself in these characters or what was happening on a narrative level.  

OVERALL 6.25/10

Lumione is designed for those searching for an intense platform challenge.

I don’t recommend this game to players searching for a cozy game or a platformer to simply pass the time. You will sink a lot of hours into it if you’re driven enough to solve the puzzle and beat the levels; however, this isn’t something like Mario Bros. 

I’m sure Lumione will cross my mind every now and again, prompting me to start the game to see if I can beat the level I am stuck on. It will probably be short-lived, but one thing I can say about Lumione’s difficulty is that it feels terrific when you do finally clear a level.

Lumione was released on Steam on October 12, 2021. 1.0.3 version was launched in November 2021 and is available now on Nintendo Switch and Microsoft Windows. The version of Lumione reviewed was the Nintendo Switch. The reviewer purchased the game at full retail price.