There are no alien robots descending from the sky in Planet of Lana II: Children of the Leaf. Instead, the sequel opens on a somber note, beginning with the exploration of a crashed spaceship and the discovery of a more human-driven enemy. Protagonist Lana and her cat-like companion Mui no longer seem to be standing against an impossible threat. They are older, and the world around them feels a bit smaller. But this planet remains no less fantastical, still filled with unanswered questions. Planet of Lana II does not significantly expand on the mechanically simple, 2.5D puzzle-platformer formula of its predecessor, but it builds on the mystique of the original to deliver a wondrous and emotionally resonant story.
A Tale of Two Plots
Set two years after the events of the first game, Planet of Lana II finds Lana adapting to a changed world. Her people and the robots that once sought to collect the planet’s inhabitants now live side by side, with the former using the latter as tireless beasts of burden. But when the technologically advanced Dijinghala tribe from the north begins pushing south, their environmentally destructive practices threaten Lana’s community.
The story’s biggest issue is that it presents two problems within its first hour—and then follows the less interesting of the two for the first three hours of its five-hour runtime. The Dijinghala’s escalating incursions lead to the release of a deadly green gas from a crystal they have unearthed. The gas poisons Lana’s adoptive younger sister, prompting Lana to embark on a quest to gather three ingredients for a cure.
This setup is essentially a glorified fetch quest. While it takes Lana to incredible locations, her purpose for being there feels like a distraction. We spend little time with her sister, and there is little emotional investment in the journey. It feels as though the game is padding its runtime, stalling until it can reach the more compelling narrative thread.
That thread concerns the mystery of the Dijinghala. Who are they? What are the strange rocks they are mining, and why do they leak a poisonous, potentially radioactive gas? Who is the masked figure who seems to lead them like a cult leader? And does this tribe’s oddly advanced understanding of technology connect to the robots’ arrival in the previous game?
Planet of Lana II touches on these questions throughout its first half. Lana’s journey takes her to a tropical locale where the Dijinghala are using submarines to explore a crashed spaceship, as well as to an icy mountain and a lush forest where their mining operations are centered. But these hints only serve as reminders of a far more intriguing plotline, teasing you to press on in hopes of reaching the point where everything will be revealed.
The wait is well worth it. When the game transitions into its second half, the story delivers a series of revelations that build on one another, each feeling like a just reward for completing a tricky puzzle or a frantic platforming challenge. This culminates in an incredible finale that is both narratively rewarding and tantalizingly open-ended—the first thing I wanted to do after finishing was talk about the story with others and theorize about what it all meant.
A Story Told Without Words
Like its predecessor, Planet of Lana II tells its story almost entirely through a made-up language. As a player, you piece together what is happening based on tone, cadence, facial expressions, body language, and visual cues. The sole exception is the opening recap of the first game, which uses subtitles—a choice that dissipates some of the mystique of the original, but does offer confirmation on details the community has long debated. Once the recap ends, the game returns to its signature ambiguity.
This style of storytelling worked beautifully in the first game, and it works here—with one caveat. The “sick girl needs medicine” plot is simple enough to understand without translation, and there is little mystery to deduce. The Dijinghala storyline, by contrast, is far more complex and open to interpretation, making it far more compelling to explore and discuss. The stark contrast between the two plot threads highlights the unevenness of the first half.
Familiar Puzzles, Frustrating Water Sections
The game’s puzzles follow the same basic structure as the first entry. Lana can swim, push or pull heavy objects, and hack certain robots. Mui can fit into small spaces, reach high places, activate junction boxes, and control certain creatures. Both can push buttons. Lana has gained new parkour moves—wall jumping, sprinting, and sliding—while Mui handles largely the same as before.
Most puzzles require Lana and Mui to use their unique skills to help each other progress. Complexity is added through additional steps or tighter timing windows. The former can make certain sections feel longer than necessary, while the latter injects tension into already exciting narrative moments. There is a slight disconnect: Lana is now more acrobatic, yet she must still slow down to command Mui or stop entirely to control hacked robots or hypnotized creatures. Only in the final hour do puzzles require you to be nimble with Lana and precise with Mui simultaneously—and those are the game’s best puzzles. It is a shame it takes so long to reach them.
None of the puzzle types are particularly novel for fans of the genre (Inside, Little Nightmares, Somerville), but everything that is there largely works. If you are not accustomed to the “floaty” jumping physics common to these games, however, the more frantic platforming sections may prove frustrating.
The one major exception is the underwater puzzles. The first half of the game is bogged down by them, and like many of its contemporaries, Planet of Lana II does not get them right. Lana swims agonizingly slowly, leading to repeated deaths—failing to react quickly enough to an electric shark, or taking too long to solve a puzzle and drowning. The entirety of Chapter 3 is a long sequence of water puzzles, and it arrives when you are already impatient to return to the more compelling storyline.
Visual and Musical Identity
Each level of Planet of Lana II is brought to life through its visuals, music, and puzzle design. Unlike the first game, each area feels distinct, almost as if it has its own personality. The simple greens of the opening level reinforce familiar terrain, while the dark blues and purples of Chapter 3 darken the otherwise brightly colored game in its most restrictive chapter.
These visual and auditory identities are put to excellent use in the final hours, as Lana must traverse traps and riddles borrowed from all previous areas. The shifting landscapes and musical motifs clue the player into which strategies to employ, creating a cohesive and satisfying culmination of the journey.
The Verdict
There is a great deal to love about Planet of Lana II: Children of the Leaf. It is set in a beautiful world filled with vibrant color and superb music. It teases you with mysteries that feel genuinely rewarding to unravel. The storytelling, told largely without language, retains the evocative ambiguity that made the first game so memorable.
A good-but-not-great first half holds it back. The best platforming puzzles and the most compelling story revelations are saved for the dramatic finale, leaving the opening hours feeling uneven. If the ending is any indication, another entry in the series may be on the horizon. And if the latter half of Planet of Lana II points to the direction the gameplay is heading, that third game will be one to watch.
