Even Jaded LEGO Fans Should Try LEGO Batman 2
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An open world, voice acting and the Man of Steel make the Dark Knight's second attempt worth your attention.
by Greg Miller
MAY 21, 2012
LEGO games fly under the radar these days. When the Star Wars series first hit consoles, it seemed like LEGO was all anyone could talk about. But as franchise after franchise has been turned into little plastic blocks, buzz has considerably lessened. Perhaps IGN's original LEGO Batman review said it best...
"By now, Traveller's Tales should have a near-perfect game. It doesn't," reviewer Hilary Goldstein said. "LEGO Batman is good fun, but it's really just the same thing we've seen before."
But after playing the E3 build of LEGO Batman 2: DC Superheroes, there are enough "firsts" in the game to require the most jaded LEGO follower to have another look.
IT'S AN OPEN WORLD GOTHAM CITY
For years, we've had these LEGO games with episodic content. There's a hub world where you can mill about with unlocked characters, but the real action happens when you jump into a story segment. In LEGO Batman 2: DC Superheroes, the hub world is Gotham City -- an open world version of Gotham City.
Wayne Tower, Arkham City, GCPD -- these are all in Traveller's Gotham and available for you to cruise on over to. There are mini-games here, red bricks and random crimes to stop. Sure, the real game is polishing off the story quests, but you now have an open world to explore and live in as whichever hero you choose.
IT HAS VOICE ACTING
Maybe it's just me (an admitted DC Comics fanboy), but I didn't love the first LEGO Batman. I tried to -- I have Kon-El comics framed on my bedroom wall -- but it just didn't click. Why? Well, LEGO Batman was the first LEGO game to tell an original story. In the games before and most of the games since, the LEGO titles just tweaked tales we knew; they've shown us a scene from Indiana Jones and made it funny. So, giving us an original Batman story with no way to ground us, no way to feel connected, wasn't very exciting.
LEGO Batman 2's also kicking out an original yarn, but it's using voice acting for the first time. Each and every character will have the ability to tell you what they're doing and why. Why's the Joker stealing Bruce Wayne's man of the year award? Well, because he's crazy and that's what he does, but it's still nice to hear him laugh.
Traditionalist don't have to sweat, though. The cutscenes are still packed with nods, pratfalls, and nonsense. LEGO Batman 2 is not trying to be Batman: Arkham City. Two-Face is still just there to shoot up the place and be goofy, but this time you get an audio anchor.
IT'S PROBABLY GOING TO BE THE BEST [INSERT DC HERO NAME] GAME EVER
While Rocksteady's recent Batman work stands as a testament to how good DC Comics video games can be, Superman64 and Green Lantern: Rise of the Manhunters remind us how hard it is to give these characters digital life. LEGO Batman 2 should change that. The roster -- which is entirely playable as you unlock everyone -- includes Wonder Woman, Green Lantern, Flash, Lex Luthor, Harley Quinn and Killer Croc so far.
But of course, the biggest addition is Superman himself. The Man of Steel hasn't had a decent game since -- what? Superman: Shadow of Apokolips on PlayStation 2? The Death and Return of Superman on the Genesis? I've only seen Kal-El in action during the open world segments, but that's all I need to know Traveller's Tales is doing him justice. When he takes off (which he can do any time), the John Williams theme kicks in from the Christopher Reeve movies. When he changes course in the air, he drops one arm to his side and leads with his chest -- the boogie board mechanics Bryan Singer was so excited to incorporate in Superman Returns.
Supes is bright, his cape flutters in the wind, he has heat visions, and even he will need to team up with different heroes to solve puzzles in the game.
IT'S EPIC IN SCALE
LEGO games have always taken the little characters and put them into big situations, but LEGO Batman 2 really seems to be expanding the scope. Outside of the man of the year awards, Batman and Robin had to scale the convention center, and it only seemed to go up. By the time Magnetic Suit Robin had stomped his way to the top, the camera angle made it seem like the little guy was dozens of stories above a bustling Metropolis staring down on creation.
After that, the Dynamic Duo climbed in Robin's helicopter and chased the Joker across Gotham Harbor. With the camera anchored behind the 'copter and on rails, I just had to worry about blasting the Joker's boat and incoming projectiles, but it definitely wasn't the LEGO experience (assemble that, switch suits, punch that) I was expecting. This was fast-paced and exciting. Very nice.
IT'S STILL A LEGO GAME
And of course, under all these changes is still them game everyone loves. It's still a two-player cooperative adventure with drop-in/drop-out play, there are still goofy suits to slip on like Batman's Sensor Suit with x-ray vision, and the humor of adorable pistol-packing penguins and a dancing Riddler is present.
It just has mid-level saves this time.
http://www.ign.com/articles/2012/05/21/even-jaded-lego-fans-should-try-lego-batman-2
by Greg Miller
MAY 21, 2012
LEGO games fly under the radar these days. When the Star Wars series first hit consoles, it seemed like LEGO was all anyone could talk about. But as franchise after franchise has been turned into little plastic blocks, buzz has considerably lessened. Perhaps IGN's original LEGO Batman review said it best...
"By now, Traveller's Tales should have a near-perfect game. It doesn't," reviewer Hilary Goldstein said. "LEGO Batman is good fun, but it's really just the same thing we've seen before."
But after playing the E3 build of LEGO Batman 2: DC Superheroes, there are enough "firsts" in the game to require the most jaded LEGO follower to have another look.
IT'S AN OPEN WORLD GOTHAM CITY
For years, we've had these LEGO games with episodic content. There's a hub world where you can mill about with unlocked characters, but the real action happens when you jump into a story segment. In LEGO Batman 2: DC Superheroes, the hub world is Gotham City -- an open world version of Gotham City.
Wayne Tower, Arkham City, GCPD -- these are all in Traveller's Gotham and available for you to cruise on over to. There are mini-games here, red bricks and random crimes to stop. Sure, the real game is polishing off the story quests, but you now have an open world to explore and live in as whichever hero you choose.
IT HAS VOICE ACTING
Maybe it's just me (an admitted DC Comics fanboy), but I didn't love the first LEGO Batman. I tried to -- I have Kon-El comics framed on my bedroom wall -- but it just didn't click. Why? Well, LEGO Batman was the first LEGO game to tell an original story. In the games before and most of the games since, the LEGO titles just tweaked tales we knew; they've shown us a scene from Indiana Jones and made it funny. So, giving us an original Batman story with no way to ground us, no way to feel connected, wasn't very exciting.
LEGO Batman 2's also kicking out an original yarn, but it's using voice acting for the first time. Each and every character will have the ability to tell you what they're doing and why. Why's the Joker stealing Bruce Wayne's man of the year award? Well, because he's crazy and that's what he does, but it's still nice to hear him laugh.
Traditionalist don't have to sweat, though. The cutscenes are still packed with nods, pratfalls, and nonsense. LEGO Batman 2 is not trying to be Batman: Arkham City. Two-Face is still just there to shoot up the place and be goofy, but this time you get an audio anchor.
IT'S PROBABLY GOING TO BE THE BEST [INSERT DC HERO NAME] GAME EVER
While Rocksteady's recent Batman work stands as a testament to how good DC Comics video games can be, Superman64 and Green Lantern: Rise of the Manhunters remind us how hard it is to give these characters digital life. LEGO Batman 2 should change that. The roster -- which is entirely playable as you unlock everyone -- includes Wonder Woman, Green Lantern, Flash, Lex Luthor, Harley Quinn and Killer Croc so far.
But of course, the biggest addition is Superman himself. The Man of Steel hasn't had a decent game since -- what? Superman: Shadow of Apokolips on PlayStation 2? The Death and Return of Superman on the Genesis? I've only seen Kal-El in action during the open world segments, but that's all I need to know Traveller's Tales is doing him justice. When he takes off (which he can do any time), the John Williams theme kicks in from the Christopher Reeve movies. When he changes course in the air, he drops one arm to his side and leads with his chest -- the boogie board mechanics Bryan Singer was so excited to incorporate in Superman Returns.
Supes is bright, his cape flutters in the wind, he has heat visions, and even he will need to team up with different heroes to solve puzzles in the game.
IT'S EPIC IN SCALE
LEGO games have always taken the little characters and put them into big situations, but LEGO Batman 2 really seems to be expanding the scope. Outside of the man of the year awards, Batman and Robin had to scale the convention center, and it only seemed to go up. By the time Magnetic Suit Robin had stomped his way to the top, the camera angle made it seem like the little guy was dozens of stories above a bustling Metropolis staring down on creation.
After that, the Dynamic Duo climbed in Robin's helicopter and chased the Joker across Gotham Harbor. With the camera anchored behind the 'copter and on rails, I just had to worry about blasting the Joker's boat and incoming projectiles, but it definitely wasn't the LEGO experience (assemble that, switch suits, punch that) I was expecting. This was fast-paced and exciting. Very nice.
IT'S STILL A LEGO GAME
And of course, under all these changes is still them game everyone loves. It's still a two-player cooperative adventure with drop-in/drop-out play, there are still goofy suits to slip on like Batman's Sensor Suit with x-ray vision, and the humor of adorable pistol-packing penguins and a dancing Riddler is present.
It just has mid-level saves this time.
http://www.ign.com/articles/2012/05/21/even-jaded-lego-fans-should-try-lego-batman-2
Comments
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This one sounds ill but ive never played any of the LEGO games are they any good? I mean like worth a $10-$15 purchase good?
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...looks dope as Batman head I may check it out
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Nightwing, Bizarro and Zatanna Playable With Lego Batman 2 Pre-Order DLC
BY EVAN NARCISSE MAY 21, 2012 1:00 PM
With Superman, Wonder Woman and Green lantern joining the Dark Knight in Lego Batman 2, you're pretty much going to be able to assemble a miniature Justice League in the block-happy sequel. But since when it comes to hero team-ups, four measly characters is barely an appetizer. You'll be happy to know, then, that more characters will apparently be showing up in the game. But it's a little less exciting that find out that extra characters like Damian Wayne, Katana and others will be coming via retailer exclusive pre-orders.
BrickUltra—via a post on French site BrickHeroes that links to a German retailer listing for the game—notes that a villain-focused DLC character pack will offer purchasers the chance to play Bizarro, Gorilla Grodd, Black Manta, Captain Cold or Black Adam. The villain DLC can be currently seen on EB Games' Australian portal. Meanwhile, Nightwing, Katana, Damian Wayne, Shazam and Zatanna will make up a the contents of a heroes add-on. For the U.S., Amazon appears to be the outlet offering the Heroes pack but it's not yet announced where the bad-guy exclusive is going to wind up.
Here's hoping you don't have kids who are crazy for backwards-talking magicians and evil psychic gorillas, because if you do, it might mean you're getting two copies of the game from two places.
http://kotaku.com/5912016/nightwing-bizarro-and-zatanna-playable-with-lego-batman-2-pre+order-dlc/gallery/1 -
This one sounds ill but ive never played any of the LEGO games are they any good? I mean like worth a $10-$15 purchase good?
well worth 10 or 15 bucks.
I've never played a Lego game and not had fun with it.
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If anybody picks this up let me know if its worth getting
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lol u can be damian in this? that alone makes it worth copping
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that looks and sounds good enough to be a tv show. good thing they didnt keep it silent like the last one.
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IGN RATINGS FOR LEGO BATMAN 2: DC SUPER HEROES
8.5
Presentation
Entertaining story, new mid-level saves, and appropriate level of cute throughout. Map needs work.
8.5
Graphics
Slick, adorable plastic pieces. Pop-in can pop up.
8.5
Sound
Really well done voice work. Soundtrack is classic but repetitive.
8.5
Gameplay
Simple combat, but exploration and collecting shine.
9
Lasting Appeal
If you want to 100-percent the game, you're looking at more than 20 hours of content.
8.5
OVERALL
Great
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There is a demo for anyone who didn't know. I just stumbled across it. Definitely coppin it after playing it this morning.
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I played a Lego game a few years ago I think it was star wars it losses it appeal quickly, I moved on to Uncharted I think, Lego games are not for mature gamers they are to simple IMO, but my Niece and Nephew thoroughly enjoyed the game to the point I had to sell it because they wanted to come over and play it all day and argue with each other while playing co-op.
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Got it for my son he loves it. So much ? on the screen though lol ? was ? with my eyes.
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The exchanges between superman and batman are hilarious in the game
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SoOmSrrUsz8
