Planet of Lana II Review - A Stunning Sequel That Hits Hard

ScrambledAshton
Mar 4
6 min read

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fQLCIapFnkg

In 2023, Wishfully Games released a beautifully crafted puzzle platformer titled Planet of Lana that told an intriguing sci-fi story across a gorgeous landscape, and three years later we are getting another beautiful sequel in the form of Planet of Lana II: Children of the Leaf, a continuation of Lana’s story in this lore-rich world. But with the first game being beloved by so many, there are high expectations to live up to for its sequel, so does Planet of Lana II reach the intergalactic highs of the first game, or has poor Lana crashed and burned?

I should caveat this review with the fact that I loved the first game, so Planet of Lana II would have had to do a lot to disappoint me, which I am pleased to say it did not…but that is getting ahead of myself, let’s dive into the particulars first.

In order to explain the story of this game, I fear I will need to cover a few key points of context from the first game, so if you happen to be absorbing this review having not played the first game, maybe sit through the few-hour runtime before continuing this review. But if you’re just needing a little refresher, the things you need to know are thus:

Lana’s planet, which we believe to be called Novo, was invaded by aggressive robots who hunted and trapped humans for research.
Lana met a little android cat called Mui who helped her communicate and hack into the robots.
Lana saves her sister and discovers a crashed spaceship with remnants of a lost society where humans and robots seemed to live in harmony.

And with that, we begin the tale of the second game, picking things up with Lana a few years after the conclusion of the first game. Both she and her sister Elo have grown up, now in a community of humans living in tandem with the tamed robots we met in the original. Of course, there are still dangers, but Lana’s curiosity is stronger than her worry, and thus she finds herself delving into the dangerous depths of the ship’s ruins with her younger adopted sister Anwar, who unfortunately becomes unwell. Thus, Lana must embark on a journey to gather three ingredients to save her life.

Over the course of the game’s roughly 5-hour runtime, we search for the ingredients and become very aware of an evil cult that is drilling for resources and destroying the planet, harming the environment and damaging the well-oiled ecosystem of the world. As we attempt to fight back against this malevolent enemy, Lana finds herself discovering more and more about the ruins of the past and the civilization who traveled on the ship. Things go wrong, Lana is put at risk, and the events that transpire are much darker than the original game.

I can’t say much more without spoiling the game, but what I will say is I found the story even more compelling than the first game, which is saying something. The rich lore that Wishfully has created within this world is truly special, and with every piece of information Lana found, every secret that was revealed, and every flashback we were gifted with, I found myself being drawn deeper into the story, desperate to find out what happened next.

That, I feel, is enough about the story. A great story with bad mechanics would still be a bad game, so let’s get into everything else.

Much like the first game, Lana 2 is a puzzle platformer, with a bit more emphasis on the puzzle side of that. The 2.5D side scroller has a plethora of different environmental puzzles to solve to progress through the story. There are a few similar puzzles from the first game; some require you to use Mui to take out cameras or androids or need you to run away from attacking robots or animals. However, we also have some new ways to solve puzzles, mainly in the form of Mui and Lana’s new ability to remotely take over drones, fish, and other little creatures in order to progress past various hazards or blockages.

These new puzzles are a welcome addition to the game, as well as the wide array of environments and locations we find ourselves traversing. Unlike the first game's journey, Lana’s second adventure sees us traveling all over the planet to different biomes and locations, all with their own styles, inhabitants, and challenges. An icy mountain forces you underground, dealing with shadowy creatures and fires; an underwater ruin has you dodging dangerous sea creatures and commandeering a submarine; industrial buildings need you and Mui to traverse different routes in order to get through the factories; and the jungle area challenges you to search for clues and play the right tunes.

Aside from their varying mechanical challenges, each area has a distinctly different look from the rest, with its own beautiful set of hand-drawn backgrounds, creatures, architecture, and general atmosphere, all of which are just a true visual delight. The world itself is so vibrant and perfectly juxtaposes the dark and mechanical forces that threaten to destroy this lovely planet.

Another truly vibrant part of Planet of Lana II is the sound design, the element of the game that I think is perhaps the most special. The first game was lauded for its music, composed by Takeshi Furukawa, even going on to be nominated for multiple awards, and the music in the sequel is even more beautiful. It pulls at your heartstrings in moments of sadness, adds wonder to the grand set pieces or discoveries, and sings you into each area in ways that perfectly complement the visual design. The music would not be out of place in a feature film or blockbuster AAA game, but luckily for us, it sits amongst a beautifully crafted world in this gorgeous indie, so we get to talk about it!

Alongside the music, one thing we experience more of in this game than the first is the humans of this world conversing and preaching in their native tongue. Throughout the game, all of the conversations are told in a made-up language, with no subtitles, leaving us as the audience to infer and interpret the meaning of words, phrases, or conversations from context clues or vocal inflections alone. The story is left for you to understand in your own unique way, and though you may find yourself piecing together certain words and phrases thanks to their consistent use or the aforementioned context clues, you’ll never truly know what is being said at any point, though the voice actors truly make up for that in their performances.

On that, I like to think this makes Planet of Lana II very accessible, as with there being no real language, your understanding of the game can be found without the need to hear what is going on, and with a few other accessibility settings making moving Mui around easier or more obvious, I’d hope most players could find ways to play through the story. Plus, the puzzles themselves never felt obtuse or made me feel as though I was lacking in the brain department, so I would hope even the most avid anti-puzzlers wouldn’t struggle to find out what happens to Lana and the planet of Novo.

The game also runs really well on both PC and Steam Deck, so I would hope it’ll run just as well on consoles, as the game itself is neither mechanically nor visually heavy on the ol’ CPU. Settings-wise, there isn’t much to say; there are a few visual and audio settings, but it’s relatively base level given the circumstances.

Overall, I think Planet of Lana II is a truly special experience and a well-deserved sequel to the original story. The world is even more fleshed out, Lana is a more driven and confident young woman, and the game looks and sounds absolutely gorgeous. I am crossing my fingers for a third game to drop at some point in the future and trust me when I say I will be there DAY 1, ready to explore even more! This is a game series everyone simply MUST play!

Pros

Beautiful visuals with hand‑drawn environments and varied biomes.

Outstanding music and sound design, emotionally rich and cinematic.

Compelling story with deeper lore and darker themes than the first game.

Creative puzzles with new mechanics like creature and drone possession.

Strong atmosphere blending nature, mystery, and sci‑fi elements.

Smooth performance on PC and Steam Deck with no major bugs.

Accessible design, with intuitive puzzles and helpful settings.

Cons

The story requires knowledge of the first game, making it less standalone.

Puzzles may feel simple for players wanting a deep challenge.

Gameplay leans more on puzzles than platforming, which may not suit everyone.