The LEGO videogame franchise is vast and has covered a multitude of licenses and platforms. I have played a few of these games over the years, including the latest one which is directly tied with the new Lego Movie, simply named, Lego Movie 2. Having seen the movie in theaters already, and being a casual fan of Lego and the videogames therein, I was curious to see how TT Fusion did with this new release.
Released at $40 and targeted primarily for a younger audience, with local co-op support included, The Lego Movie 2 Videogame (TLM2V) is probably right about what you expect it to be, but there are some key differences to previous Lego games. Most Lego games, despite their difference in licensed universe (Hobbit, Star Wars, Indiana Jones, etc), play similar to one another. A lot of the gameplay loop is reused, and, that’s not to knock those experiences, it’s just what we’ve come to know, expect, and frankly still really enjoy, especially in co-op. Players are transported into these Lego-ified universes (or Lego’s own worlds, like the City franchise) and there are many studs/bricks to collect, things to build, simple puzzles to solve, humor to experience, characters and skills to unlock, collectibles to obtain, and replay value.
A lot of these same gameplay elements remain in TLM2V, but there is more clearly a shift to an open world design than distinct missions. This promotes some freedom and exploration, maybe more so than previous designs, but on the other hand I couldn’t help but feel like the gameplay lost a lot of its oomph and enthusiasm by making this shift. I thought there were a lot of times when this openness worked against the game’s momentum and fun factor. So even though there is never a question as to what it is the player needs to do to advance the story along, there is a lot of repetition and staleness that I think, for many players, will lead to boredom. I appreciated the freedom to a point and being able to visit various sites from the movie (climbing all the way to the top of the toppled Statue of Liberty was neat), I just thought the experience sacrificed most of its charm and direction by not being more focused.
While roaming about, certain NPCs will have indicators on their head offering side quests and story missions. Often, you’ll need to get a new build plan and certain bricks to complete said build to advance, but these are readily made available, really almost too easily, even for the younger audience the game is geared towards. Building these is straight-forward once you have the parts and plans, and any character can do so, there is no longer any real difference (other than cosmetic) between the different playable characters. Regarding the characters, and their interactions with the NPCs, there are a lot of times when the game feels altogether too quiet, or just devoid of ‘life,’ going back to the staleness point aforementioned. By this I just mean that there is a lot of silence or just lack of enthusiasm and energy in the game world. I’m not a Lego movie or videogame super fan by any means, but this seemed strangely at odds with the typical pacing and energy level I was expecting and had become accustomed to. It’s not necessarily a bad thing for all players, but I found it out of place and in no small part due to the open, free-roaming design of TLM2V that sets it apart from other Lego games I had played.
Most of what I have had to say about TLM2V has not been awesome as Emmett would say, but for the most part I still enjoyed my time with the game, especially when playing co-op. Keeping in mind the target audience and the price point of $40, the Lego Movie 2 Videogame presents a game worth considering for fans of the movie, Lego, or casual, family-friendly play.
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