Welcome, explorers, to the birthplace of humankind. Take care that it does not also become your grave.
Genre: Metroidvania puzzle platformer (less Super Metroid, more Maze of Galious)
Release Date:
Consoles: March 17, 2020 (US); March 20, 2020 (EU)
PC: July 30, 2018
Developer: NIGORO
Publisher: Playism (PC) & NISA (Console)
Platforms: PS4, Switch, XBOX One, and PC
Websites:
https://la-mulana.com
https://nisamerica.com/games/la-mulana
Price:
La-Mulana 1 (digital): $15
La-Mulana 2 (digital): $25
Hidden Treasures Edition (physical): $60
La-Mulana 1 and 2 are available for purchase on the digital storefronts on the aforementioned consoles (as individual purchases), but there is also a physical, special edition that includes both games called the Hidden Treasures Edition. This special edition is available for all consoles, though stock is limited. Note that the Hidden Treasures Edition is the only way to get physical copies of these two games on XBOX/PS4/NSW in the west.
FIRST AND FOREMOST: MARK YOUR SPOILERS, AND BE SPECIFIC ABOUT WHICH GAME AND AREA YOU ARE DISCUSSING WITHIN YOUR SPOILER TAGS
What is La-Mulana?
La-Mulana is a cult-classic metroidvania series that is as beloved as it is feared. In broad strokes, the game is an Indiana Jones-inspired ruins exploration game with old school gameplay. It began as an MSX-homage freeware game over a decade ago, and was later remade and released on WiiWare, PC, and Vita. Put another way, La-Mulana is a brutally difficult archaeology-themed puzzle platforming metroidvania exploration series. "Metroidvania" is a bit of a misnomer here, because while the games share some similarities to Super Metroid or Symphony of the Night, they are more directly inspired by the classic MSX title, Knightmare II: The Maze of Galious. La-Mulana borrows both its focus on exploration and its unusual jumping system from Maze of Galious, which features inflexible upward movement but free-moving downward movement.
La-Mulana's trademark features are its arcane and cryptic puzzles combined with its tight and challenging platforming and combat. Getting stumped is a common occurrence, and frequent backtracking is absolutely necessary. LM requires you to learn its many areas like the back of your hand in order to succeed. In order to progress you all but need to take notes on conspicuous rooms and cryptic hints written on tablets scattered throughout the many areas of the game. Each area of the game is modeled after a different real-world civilization and features architecture, enemies, and lore that draw from their respective cultures. In true metroidvania fashion, over the course of the game you will uncover all manner of weapons, subweapons, new abilities, apps for your cutting edge laptop computer, and key items that are essential to solving puzzles, beating enemies, and progressing through the game. However, the most important tool to your survival will be your wits and your reflexes.
What's new in La-Mulana 2?
Let me first give some story background on La-Mulana 1 in order to answer this question. In the first game, you play asIndiana Jones Lemeza Kosugi, a brilliant Japanese-American archaeologist who is constantly one-upped by his even more brilliant archaeologist father, Shawn Kosugi. One day, Lemeza receives a letter stating that his father has discovered the legendary ruins of La-Mulana, rumored to be the birthplace of civilization, and Lemeza immediately sets off after him. Over the course of the game, Lemeza uncovers the secrets of the ruins, and in the interim between the two games, one of the main NPCs turns the ruins into a tourist trap in order to cash in on the attention Lemeza's pursuits draw to the ruins. In La-Mulana 2, you explore the neighboring ruins of Eg-Lana, which are just as mysterious and perhaps even more dangerous than the ruins of La-Mulana. Furthermore, this time you play as Lemeza's daughter, Lumisa Kosugi.
Also, La-Mulana 2 runs on Unity unlike La-Mulana 1, and thus features many 3D assets which give the game a familiar but slightly more advanced look. La-Mulana 2 also features beautifully detailed in-game NPC portraits for the first time.
Do I need to play them in order?
You won't be completely lost starting with LM2, but you will miss out on a richer understanding of the world and the ways in which LM2 develops on LM1. LM1 is a brilliant game and a masterclass in stage and world design. LM1 is absolutely worth playing if you like the sound of old-school challenging combat and exploration married with obscure and arcane puzzles. Few metroidvanias have ever come close to the sprawling, intimidating world of La-Mulana, and the sense of discovery and accomplishment when you beat a tough boss or solve a puzzle that stumped you for days is unlike anything else.
What are the puzzles like?
The puzzles in La-Mulana are quite varied. Some are small and easily solved (though not many), while others are the sort of mind-bending puzzles found in The Witness or Fez that lead to startling revelations about how whole world works in some fundamental way. Many puzzles require you to interpret some background or environmental cues and objects that hint at puzzles. There are synthesis puzzles that require you to piece together lots of information from different places, apply some intuitive reasoning, and come up with a solution to a puzzle. There are also the more typical metroidvania "puzzles" that just involve seeing a route that clearly requires a new ability and then remembering to come back when you get the new ability, but those scenarios are kinda few and far between in La-Mulana -- half the time you get a new item and don't know what the hell to do with it! And other times the puzzles are more Zelda-like where it's just a matter of interpreting riddles and cryptic NPC hints, exploring and placing weights on dais (essentially replacing the lock and key system lots of puzzle-y games use), and figuring out how the different pieces of each area interact with each other. If you have played Maze of Galious (if you haven't, you really should -- NIGORO actually worked on a PC remake!), you'll have an idea of what to expect in La-Mulana, which just turns things up to 11.
Screenshots (spoiler warning for some areas and bosses!)
Manual
Yep, La-Mulana has these. You can find the manual for the first game on this page, which is recommended reading for newcomers:
https://la-mulana.com/en/specials/download/
This is the new manual for LM2. It doesn't cover anything series vets don't know, but it's worth reading for newcomers.
https://la-mulana.com/en/manual/l2/pc/index.php
Rockin' tunes
La-Mulana is also well known for its killer soundtracks.
Fearless Challenger (LM1)
https://youtu.be/1X_sTyAIfjs
Grand History (LM1)
https://youtu.be/a7UulnIcuC0
Previous Adventure (LM2)
https://youtu.be/BEQSeA_QlKk
Important note to Kickstarter/playism backers still awaiting their rewards
It's possible that reward production and shipment has been slowed due to COVID-19, so we need to be patient. That said, I think we can expect our rewards before too long.
My old OT from the PC release two years ago:
https://www.resetera.com/threads/la...rely-curry-favor-with-new-curry-flavor.58500/
Good luck and godspeed, fellow explorers. Don't forget to pause and refuel every now and then. And don't forget to read your emails.
Genre: Metroidvania puzzle platformer (less Super Metroid, more Maze of Galious)
Release Date:
Consoles: March 17, 2020 (US); March 20, 2020 (EU)
PC: July 30, 2018
Developer: NIGORO
Publisher: Playism (PC) & NISA (Console)
Platforms: PS4, Switch, XBOX One, and PC
Websites:
https://la-mulana.com
https://nisamerica.com/games/la-mulana
Price:
La-Mulana 1 (digital): $15
La-Mulana 2 (digital): $25
Hidden Treasures Edition (physical): $60
La-Mulana 1 and 2 are available for purchase on the digital storefronts on the aforementioned consoles (as individual purchases), but there is also a physical, special edition that includes both games called the Hidden Treasures Edition. This special edition is available for all consoles, though stock is limited. Note that the Hidden Treasures Edition is the only way to get physical copies of these two games on XBOX/PS4/NSW in the west.
FIRST AND FOREMOST: MARK YOUR SPOILERS, AND BE SPECIFIC ABOUT WHICH GAME AND AREA YOU ARE DISCUSSING WITHIN YOUR SPOILER TAGS
What is La-Mulana?
La-Mulana is a cult-classic metroidvania series that is as beloved as it is feared. In broad strokes, the game is an Indiana Jones-inspired ruins exploration game with old school gameplay. It began as an MSX-homage freeware game over a decade ago, and was later remade and released on WiiWare, PC, and Vita. Put another way, La-Mulana is a brutally difficult archaeology-themed puzzle platforming metroidvania exploration series. "Metroidvania" is a bit of a misnomer here, because while the games share some similarities to Super Metroid or Symphony of the Night, they are more directly inspired by the classic MSX title, Knightmare II: The Maze of Galious. La-Mulana borrows both its focus on exploration and its unusual jumping system from Maze of Galious, which features inflexible upward movement but free-moving downward movement.
La-Mulana's trademark features are its arcane and cryptic puzzles combined with its tight and challenging platforming and combat. Getting stumped is a common occurrence, and frequent backtracking is absolutely necessary. LM requires you to learn its many areas like the back of your hand in order to succeed. In order to progress you all but need to take notes on conspicuous rooms and cryptic hints written on tablets scattered throughout the many areas of the game. Each area of the game is modeled after a different real-world civilization and features architecture, enemies, and lore that draw from their respective cultures. In true metroidvania fashion, over the course of the game you will uncover all manner of weapons, subweapons, new abilities, apps for your cutting edge laptop computer, and key items that are essential to solving puzzles, beating enemies, and progressing through the game. However, the most important tool to your survival will be your wits and your reflexes.
What's new in La-Mulana 2?
Let me first give some story background on La-Mulana 1 in order to answer this question. In the first game, you play as
Also, La-Mulana 2 runs on Unity unlike La-Mulana 1, and thus features many 3D assets which give the game a familiar but slightly more advanced look. La-Mulana 2 also features beautifully detailed in-game NPC portraits for the first time.
Do I need to play them in order?
You won't be completely lost starting with LM2, but you will miss out on a richer understanding of the world and the ways in which LM2 develops on LM1. LM1 is a brilliant game and a masterclass in stage and world design. LM1 is absolutely worth playing if you like the sound of old-school challenging combat and exploration married with obscure and arcane puzzles. Few metroidvanias have ever come close to the sprawling, intimidating world of La-Mulana, and the sense of discovery and accomplishment when you beat a tough boss or solve a puzzle that stumped you for days is unlike anything else.
What are the puzzles like?
The puzzles in La-Mulana are quite varied. Some are small and easily solved (though not many), while others are the sort of mind-bending puzzles found in The Witness or Fez that lead to startling revelations about how whole world works in some fundamental way. Many puzzles require you to interpret some background or environmental cues and objects that hint at puzzles. There are synthesis puzzles that require you to piece together lots of information from different places, apply some intuitive reasoning, and come up with a solution to a puzzle. There are also the more typical metroidvania "puzzles" that just involve seeing a route that clearly requires a new ability and then remembering to come back when you get the new ability, but those scenarios are kinda few and far between in La-Mulana -- half the time you get a new item and don't know what the hell to do with it! And other times the puzzles are more Zelda-like where it's just a matter of interpreting riddles and cryptic NPC hints, exploring and placing weights on dais (essentially replacing the lock and key system lots of puzzle-y games use), and figuring out how the different pieces of each area interact with each other. If you have played Maze of Galious (if you haven't, you really should -- NIGORO actually worked on a PC remake!), you'll have an idea of what to expect in La-Mulana, which just turns things up to 11.
Screenshots (spoiler warning for some areas and bosses!)
LM1:
LM1:
LM2:
LM2:
LM1:
LM2:
LM2:
Manual
Yep, La-Mulana has these. You can find the manual for the first game on this page, which is recommended reading for newcomers:
https://la-mulana.com/en/specials/download/
This is the new manual for LM2. It doesn't cover anything series vets don't know, but it's worth reading for newcomers.
https://la-mulana.com/en/manual/l2/pc/index.php
Rockin' tunes
La-Mulana is also well known for its killer soundtracks.
Fearless Challenger (LM1)
https://youtu.be/1X_sTyAIfjs
Grand History (LM1)
https://youtu.be/a7UulnIcuC0
Previous Adventure (LM2)
https://youtu.be/BEQSeA_QlKk
Important note to Kickstarter/playism backers still awaiting their rewards
It's possible that reward production and shipment has been slowed due to COVID-19, so we need to be patient. That said, I think we can expect our rewards before too long.
My old OT from the PC release two years ago:
https://www.resetera.com/threads/la...rely-curry-favor-with-new-curry-flavor.58500/
Good luck and godspeed, fellow explorers. Don't forget to pause and refuel every now and then. And don't forget to read your emails.
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