I still remember the first Planet of Lana game since it came out in 2023. It has 2D art inspired by Ghibli films, a story in a made-up language, and music that builds up and touches the heart. To me, these things are still among the prettiest in all games today. But I always thought the team at Wishfully was only touching the top of what they could do with Planet of Lana. They could go deeper into the land of Novo and all its little parts.

A few years on, Planet of Lana 2: Children of the Leaf aims to do just that. This new game grows the story from the first one, plus its ways to play and the whole world. Wishfully just said it comes out on March 5th. A try-out version will hit Steam, Xbox, and PlayStation starting February 11th. To go with that news, I talked to Wishfully’s creative director and co-head Adam Stjärnljus.

“In the first Planet of Lana, we planned just one game on its own,” Stjärnljus told me when I visited the studio last month. But he said the team did not want to end there. “There was so much more to share about Lana and Mui’s tale, and the past of the folks and planet Novo. So it felt right to keep going to answer our own questions.”

This interest led the studio to start Children of the Leaf, set for release later this year. Lana is older now than in the first game. She moves faster and with more grace. Her cute buddy Mui, like a mix of monkey, cat, and dog, has better powers. He can take over machines and put some animals in the world under a spell to control them.

“We worked to make every part of the game better. Lana moves smoother and quicker to your commands. The teamwork between Lana and Mui grows a lot, for sneakier spots and larger brain teasers,” Stjärnljus explains. “We added more strange animals you can fully guide.” The point is to give more ways to look around. Stjärnljus says it fits Mui to get stronger skills, and it helps their partnership with Lana too.

Mui’s new skills plus Lana’s better jumping and running are big for the harder brain teasers and sneaky parts in Planet of Lana 2. I learned that in a try-out where I played the first four hours. More than once, I had to think hard to get past a robot guard high on a cold mountain fort, or through a maze under water.

Let us talk about the under-water parts first. This is a fresh area for Planet of Lana 2. Early in the game, I had to get healing seaweed to help a sick young girl. But the seaweed sat under water near Lana’s village of Tailo, watched by a mean black sea monster that sparked with power. Good thing I could use Mui to guide small fish through water paths. After Lana moved rocks out of the way, I led the big water hunter off the plant.

Then, taking Lana again, I shut a water gate from above to trap the monster. It took good timing and care, since the beast would go back to guard the seaweed if I was slow. This showed the better teamwork Stjärnljus mentioned.

“A jumping game limits how you explore by nature,” he says. “You go left, right, up, or down. That’s all. So going down into water full of new animals, ways to play, and hidden spots felt natural.

“Plus,” he adds, “Mui hates water a lot, so we got excited to use that limit in play and story.”

Right, Mui and water do not mix! I forgot but got reminded when moving him over a big water area. First I tried Lana’s whistle to call him, but no luck. Then I told Mui to stay, scout, or hit switches like in the first game, but he would not. I recalled his water fear, so I swam with Lana to find a way to carry him across. That’s when I saw Lana can run out of air and drown. Lucky for bigger water spots, there are air bubbles to breathe.

After the blue waters, Lana and Mui hit a new place: a snowy mountain with strong winds and freezing cold. Jumping played a bigger role here, as they climbed rocks and hid behind stones from wind gusts that could knock them off.

Safe in a cave from the storm, I found another animal Mui could guide: a white fluffy ball thing. It sticks to walls and leaves burnable dust behind. Roll it into fire to light the dust trail, burn webs blocking the way, or pull back wall spikes for a safe path.

Timing mattered again, as the spikes come back out. Sometimes two or more, so I had to plan the dust path smart. Light too soon or late, and no time to reach the next spot before spikes block it.

It might seem easy on paper, but doing it took real thought and skill. I loved the test. When I solved the cave, I felt really good, more than in the first game. I liked the original Planet of Lana, but it did not make me think hard enough. Here, my brain got a good workout, like a run and stretch.

In another spot I tried, there was a big machine building and a mine below. To make it tense, robot patrols, guards, and cameras watched. Mui helped a lot, messing up cameras so Lana could sneak by. With more cameras, Lana hid in snow piles, waiting for safe times to dash.

Those robot patrols too. Sometimes Lana and Mui moved light beams, since machines hate light. That pinned them in place for safe passing. Other times, time your run and slide from a scout robot. Simple in words, but my heart pounded when Lana just escaped.

I left my time with Planet of Lana 2 feeling good about it. It is the sort of game to relax with after a long day, playing an hour each night. Novo world stays lovely, with Lana’s peaceful fishing village bright against dark gray factory zones. The music by Takeshi Furukawa pulls at feelings like before. When strings rise on a mountain climb, your spirit lifts, and the sounds feel like part of the story as much as the land.

Everything in Planet of Lana 2 got better. Sure, it can test you, but it has lots of feeling and heart. Family, friends, and bonds matter a lot. That works even with little talk and fake words.

“We love limits! They make us focus on what counts,” Stjärnljus says about players caring for Lana and Mui without knowing their words. “In both games, we use all ways to show feelings simply, so nothing gets lost.”

Stjärnljus lists music, moves, voices, and poses as ways to add feeling to basic characters. You see it early, when Lana and her niece roll on grass playing, the girl clapping happy. That kindness runs through, from fun in a wrecked ship to Lana’s worry when the niece gets sick. And yes, Lana can pet Mui.

“We love watching new players stop just moving Lana and start checking on Mui. Soon they feel bad if they leave him behind,” Stjärnljus says.

I can say yes, I felt bad once or twice forgetting Mui. One time a machine hit him after I thought we were safe. The game sent me back to try again with him. I shocked him by mistake once too, but let’s not dwell.

Planet of Lana 2 is bigger and longer than the quick five-hour first game, with new teasers and animals to guide. Stjärnljus says it is about twice as long, so 8 to 10 hours. The games connect, but you do not need the first to like this one. If you did like Planet of Lana, this follow-up should fit perfect.

Wishfully aimed to build and better their first ideas from Planet of Lana. From what I played, they did it. The world grew, foes got smarter, teasers tougher. Like I hoped, they dug deeper past the surface and found something richer.