2008 Woodie Awards
Lego heroes
'Lego Batman' game is light and entertaining
by Leah Christensen
Issue date: 10/9/08
Section: Gaming
Batman and Legos - it's an odd combination, but so is peanut butter and jelly and that turned out all right.
"Lego Batman: The Videogame" is a child's game, but that okay because the charming tone is irresistible. The game doesn't embrace the darker nature of the caped crusader seen in the recent Batman film, "The Dark Knight," but remains light and surprisingly engaging.
The premise is simple. The rogues within the Batman universe have escaped from Arkham Asylum and are wreaking havoc upon Gotham City. As Batman and Robin, it's the player's job to retrieve these colorful criminals and put them back behind bars.
This goofy, holy batarang, Adam West style of Batman works. The characters don't talk, but their animations tell the story, which is enough to keep the player engaged. Batman remains his stoic self, but his interactions with Robin and the various villains are comical. There's a sequence with Batman, Robin, Harley Quinn and an alligator that will send the player rolling.
The actual gameplay is a mix of easy and difficult. Though the combat is comprised of basic button smashing through hordes of goons, the puzzles are challenging and take a fair amount of thought to solve.
"Lego Batman" is set up with 30 separate levels to play through. The first 15 levels are for the hero storyline, which must be completed to unlock the other 15 villain levels. This depth creates a high replay value. A gamer will find himself playing through levels again and again to discover the parade of points and collectors items hidden throughout the game, which are used to purchased new characters, upgrades and other extras. Robin is cool, but Nightwing much cooler.
The game's graphics are sharp and polished. Many of the environments look like high-end Lego sets, creating a colorful world a gamer wants to explore. These graphics are some of the best the Lego series games have produced.
"Lego Batman" isn't a grand achievement, but the game knows what it is and doesn't strive to be anything more. This clear sense of identity creates smooth, solid gameplay that is addictive as it is fun.
Rating: 3 out of 5 stars.
Leah Christensen is a Reporter staff writer
"Lego Batman: The Videogame" is a child's game, but that okay because the charming tone is irresistible. The game doesn't embrace the darker nature of the caped crusader seen in the recent Batman film, "The Dark Knight," but remains light and surprisingly engaging.
The premise is simple. The rogues within the Batman universe have escaped from Arkham Asylum and are wreaking havoc upon Gotham City. As Batman and Robin, it's the player's job to retrieve these colorful criminals and put them back behind bars.
This goofy, holy batarang, Adam West style of Batman works. The characters don't talk, but their animations tell the story, which is enough to keep the player engaged. Batman remains his stoic self, but his interactions with Robin and the various villains are comical. There's a sequence with Batman, Robin, Harley Quinn and an alligator that will send the player rolling.
The actual gameplay is a mix of easy and difficult. Though the combat is comprised of basic button smashing through hordes of goons, the puzzles are challenging and take a fair amount of thought to solve.
"Lego Batman" is set up with 30 separate levels to play through. The first 15 levels are for the hero storyline, which must be completed to unlock the other 15 villain levels. This depth creates a high replay value. A gamer will find himself playing through levels again and again to discover the parade of points and collectors items hidden throughout the game, which are used to purchased new characters, upgrades and other extras. Robin is cool, but Nightwing much cooler.
The game's graphics are sharp and polished. Many of the environments look like high-end Lego sets, creating a colorful world a gamer wants to explore. These graphics are some of the best the Lego series games have produced.
"Lego Batman" isn't a grand achievement, but the game knows what it is and doesn't strive to be anything more. This clear sense of identity creates smooth, solid gameplay that is addictive as it is fun.
Rating: 3 out of 5 stars.
Leah Christensen is a Reporter staff writer
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