Lume (PC) (2011)

Overview: Lume is a short puzzle adventure game whose set is built entirely from paper and cardboard. It's sequel Lumino City (PC) (2014) is much longer (~6 hours).

---

20111124,5:

Gameplay Log:
: I played and got stuck at the kitchen cabinet.
: The game ran sluggishly on my laptop. I plan to move my Steam installation back to the main drive.
: I played through again on a different computer and was still stuck.
: I played through again today on my Mac and I could neither make heads nor tails of the clue in the library book.
: After falling asleep and waking up a little frustrated, I looked up the solution to the puzzle. It was a little ridiculous, but I suppose with enough patience it would have revealed itself. I suppose I'm also not used to these point and click games. There's certain indications of what you should focus on.
: When I learned that was the end of Lume: Part 1, I was a little sad. I definitely look forward to the rest of Lume.

The game's art design is absolutely wonderful. $3.49 well spent.

[20111125][20190707 Edit]

---

20121220:
Today I replayed the game. I remembered the solutions to many of the puzzles, but I had forgotten the solution to the musical door.

After I had stopped playing, I couldn't stop thinking about the puzzle. It just one of those puzzles that captures my attention. As such, after leaving the game, I turned it back on and tried exploring the house again. With either perseverance or good fortune, one of the items I found fixed the object that gives the hint to opening the musical door.

Upon finishing the game, I was not sure if the ending had changed since I last played, because today it felt different. In particular, the ending had a sense of closure. To clarify, before I felt the game left off on a cliffhanger. Today, it felt as if the character had more places to explore, but this chapter of her story was complete.

[20121220][20190707 Edit]

---

Summary:
The puzzles in this game, when seen for the first time, may be difficult. But it is such a short game that one should savor the time spent trying to figure out each and every puzzle (don't make the same mistake I did and look up any solutions). Of course, beyond the puzzles are the amazing paper and cardboard visuals.

[20121220][20190707 Edit]

---

Lume (PC) (2011)

Relevant Links:
Lume (State of Play Website)
Lume (PC) (MetaCritic.com)
Lume (Steam Store Page)

---

Trailer:

Zen Bound 2 (PC) (2010)

Zen Bound 2 (PC) (2010)

Relevant Links:
Zen Bound Website
Zen Bound (Wikipedia.org)
Zen Bound 2 (Steam Store Page)
Zen Bound 2 (PC) (MetaCritic.com)

---

Overview:
Zen Bound 2 is a meditative game where your goal is wrap a finite length of rope around a (wooden or stone) object and thereby covering it in paint.

Choose a Tree (= A Collection of Levels)

While an important goal for each level is to cover one-hundred percent of the object's surface, the eager player can also focus on reducing the length of rope used to do so. Note however that a player earns one flower for seventy percent (also the minimum to complete a level), two flowers for eighty percent, and three flowers for ninety-nine percent. Earn flowers to unlock more levels, but earn 100% of all levels for an achievement.

---

Recommendation:
Zen Bound 2 is a great game for touch devices, but is also enjoyable with a mouse (or keyboard).

Then again, impatient players may not enjoy Zen Bound to the fullest, because achieving 100% on a level can require planning and patience.

With that being said, I love the game's aesthetics and I'm glad that I own the game.

---

20111123:
Steam Achievments:
9:32am Getting the Hang of It
11:02am Anti Spike
11:06am Unwinder

---

20140929 Comment:
Prior to playing on 20140929, I had completed the following:
[1] 15/15 Tree of Introduction (Completed)

Choose a Level.

[2] 15/36 Tree of Vitality
[3] 06/36 Tree of Challenge

[20150214]

---

20140929:
After playing today, the following changes occurred:
[2] 22/36 Tree of Vitality
[4] 09/36 Tree of Nostalgia

---

20150214 Comment:
As of 20150214, I've played Zen Bound for two hours and last played it on 20140929.

---

20150214:
Today I completed the Tree of Vitality. I decided, however, not to focus on getting 100% on all it's levels.

Afterwards I also played a couple of levels from the Tree of Challenge, but I soon got bored and stopped.

After playing today, the following changes occurred:
[2] 30/36 Tree of Vitality (Completed)
[3] 14/36 Tree of Challenge

A nice level for unlocking the Pacifist Achievement.

---

20240430 Snapshot:
Steam Game Time: 3.7 hours (cumulative game time) / 3h 43m (Playnite)
Last Played: 20150214

---

20240430:
I revisited Zen Bound 2 today and it's a fun game with a lot of levels. Unfortunately, at this point in my life, I'm not keen on playing this game any further. I will, however, rate it 4.4 out of 5.

Rating: 4.4/5

Steam Game Time: 4.5 hours (cumulative game time) / 0.8 hours (session game time)

---