These days anything brandishing the LEGO namesake is extremely popular. For example, fairly recently, the LEGO movie took the mythos surrounding the building block-based alternate reality and intermingled it with a nicely plotted out hero story.  In short, the events of that movie are more or less played out in sequence inside the LEGO Movie videogame which bears its namesake.  Some might feel as though it’s a warranted title, something which extends the universe of the film, however, others might see it as a missed opportunity or as one big long rehash.  At any rate, be sure that you don’t actually pick up and play this game until you’ve actually seem the movie.

Visuals

All in all, the LEGO Movie videogame is a brilliant-looking title in terms of its graphics.  While it’s not necessarily anything new in terms of basic art style or direction, the sheer level of detail and the smoothness of the action more than make up for that.  Moreover, there is an incredible variety of environments spread throughout as well, each one being a recreation of various cultural tropes.  Most will be floored by the flashy array of colors which the game injects into their minds, but it is the wacky characters which make this title such a joy to play around with.

Gameplay

Overall, gameplay is simple yet varied, which makes for a very intuitive if not derived experience.  Nevertheless, everything you’ve ever enjoyed about any previous lego game is found inside this one to some extent.  As previously mentioned, this title is more or less just an interactive version of the movie, but there is still some room left for personal expression if you’re that type of gamer.  You do get to control various characters however, which is certainly fun.  Building is one of the primary focuses of this game and there are essentially two different types of who are capable of constructing things.  First off, there are the regular builders who pretty much can only follow the instructions found in each level to build more standard objects.  Then there are the master builders who are completely different and can create new things.   All in all, the main purpose of the LEGO Movie videogame is to have loads of fun, and the game itself is chock full of the sort of lighthearted gags and jokes that you see across most other LEGO titles.

Verdict

While it might not be anything particularly new or revolutionary, a lot of younger gamers might actually enjoy this title immensely.  The gameplay is basically straightforward and unthreatening and since the movie ties in with the videogame, there’s a bit of nostalgic value here as well.  Of course you really shouldn’t play the game before seeing the film as it will basically spoil everything for you in advance, but once you’re done it makes for an excellent interactive trip down memory lane, as they say.  Naturally, fans of any LEGO-infused game will also find plenty to like about this title as well.

Rating – 8.4