Tt Games is a master of bringing some fantastic LEGO games to systems. They were aces with Harry Potter, fun with Pirates of the Caribbean (more than most of the films) and have been spot on with the Batman and DC Universe. The latter there has Tt Games at the top of their respective game (pun intended).
With that said, how is LEGO Batman 3: Beyond Gotham? Well, it’s more of the same that you have come to love with LEGO Batman. You still have to go hunting for studs. You still try to earn gold bricks (250). You still go back and forth between heroes to solve puzzles and situations to progress. The core gameplay of LEGO Batman 3: Beyond Gotham hasn’t changed really. In other words, it’s all the same and that is absolutely fine by this reviewer. It’s still a game where I can pair with my son to go adventuring, but as an adult not get bored with the gameplay. On the flip-side to that, my son (six-years old) is locked into this game and plays it well enough not to get stuck or frustrated. Much like the past LEGO titles, LEGO Batman 3 achieves an even balance with the gameplay that caters to both adults and young gamers.
To get the LEGO franchise to work, you have to have that balance intact. Tt Games makes sure not to shake things up to disrupt that balance.
Of course, that doesn’t mean that Tt Games doesn’t try new things. For example, one of the first missions in the game has you going into space and trying to save a Justice League space station from destruction. The beginning of the mission has you in a Resogun side-scrolling shooter, where you have to bring down Joker’s weapons/vehicles, so that you can land safely and help save the station. Normally in a LEGO title, this sort of thing would be done on a continuous rail that only permitted the player to use crosshairs (no control of the ship) to bring down the baddies. This breaks that stagnant mold. This is the type of creative additive that Tt Games put into this game makes the gameplay a little bit better and less automatic. They have these sort of things scattered throughout LEGO Batman 3 and they work beautifully within the scope of the typical LEGO gameplay.
In short, Tt Games brings you some differences, but reassures you nothing has dramatically changed within the LEGO gaming universe to throw you (or kids) for a loop.
Essentially, you’re going to get some gameplay out of LEGO Batman 3: Beyond Gotham that is familiar (such as gathering and unlocking items, progressing with an interesting storyline, etc.) and at the same time see some things that change up the style in a positive way.
In the presentation department of this game, everything has been upgraded to make it look a little bit more refined for the current generation platforms. The actual models are a bit more edged and LEGO-esque, with little to no break up. The textures are a bit more refined to give it that extra special glimmer and shine. Speaking of which, one of the more impressive upgrades for the PlayStation 4 version of this game is the lighting. While it’s always been colorful and whatnot, the way it falls is appropriate and how it reacts to the characters onscreen is impressive. I’m not talking about a massive amount of improvement like what you would find between The Last of Us and the remastered version, but it’s impressive enough to be noticeable.
The environments are a bit more jazzed up in this game. For example, one of the first real stages that you play in the game is in the Batcave, which is deep and wide in its girth. There is a lot going on in this level including a wonderful looking (and sounding) waterfall in the background, as well as Adam West dangling over it. You get a lot levels where the girth is pretty impressive, though Tt Games doesn’t try to stray away too much from what players are used to seeing and playing. I like levels that have a lot of life in them, though, and you can tell that Tt Games used the current generation hardware to push the game a bit in that department. By the way, especially enjoy the outer space level — the fight on the outside of the station is pretty to see in motion.
On the audio side of things, the voice acting is fun. You get a great cast of actors enjoying the heck out of their roles in the game, including Troy Baker as Batman and Clancy Brown as Luthor. When you spring for professional actors, who are familiar with the roles, it adds a lot of value to the package. This folks give it their all and it shows. Also look out for Adam West, Kevin Smith and…Conan O’Brien. Cool, but sometimes odd cast of characters.
I do have a bit of a complaint about the music. I wish they would have licensed some of Han Zimmers’ stuff from Nolan’s Batman trilogy. I think that might have switched things up a bit from Danny Elfman’s original soundtrack from the 80s. I love Danny Elfman to death, but the music needs some variety, especially if you get the other DC characters involved. It does change a bit here and there, but mostly it’s an Elfman experience (and let me assure you that I love Elfman’s soundtrack from 1989 — it’s still the best in my opinion, but not when it’s constantly going).
Overall, the upgrade in presentation might not be as extreme as other holiday titles this season, but Tt Games brought some improvements where it needed to be improved without straying away from what type of game it has always made. I’m okay with that decision. We don’t need realistic LEGOs.
So is this game worth the money and fun? I fully believe it is. It maintains the core value and fun factor that the other games have brought in the past. I think that this game actually puts some aspects of past LEGO games onto an entirely new level with new ways to go from point A to point B (like the Resogun-esque gameplay). On top of this, the replay value of the game is pretty out there depending on your dedication to achieving unlockables. My son will play the heck out of this for hours upon hours trying to collect studs, unlock characters and do more. That is a sign of longevity with a title for me as a parent and that tells me that this game will be worth the dollar amount paid.
In short, it’s worth it because of the gameplay upgrades and the long adventure that comes with it.
