Lego Batman Video Game Fun for Parents and Kids
Available for Windows, XBOX 360, Nintendo Wii, DS, and Playstation
Oct 18, 2008
Following fast on the heels of the big screen release of the Dark Knight in July 2008, the Lego Batman Game, released Sept 23, 2008 for multiple gaming platforms. The Lego Batman game can be played on a Windows PC, XBOX 360, Nintendo Wii, Nintendo DS, or the Playstation.
This game is rated E for everyone (with a 10+ for cartoon violence, though children 6+ would have no problem with the controls).
Traveler's Tales Lego Games
Traveler's Tales made their mark when they released the first Lego franchise video game Lego Star Wars: the Video Game in 2005. Kids and parents alike loved the series that encompassed all six Star Wars feature films, where sets, characters and vehicles crumbled into Lego components as they are demolished.
Travelers' Tales tried to follow up on this success by releasing Lego Indiana Jones in 2007, but the games fell short. Players couldn't rely on the force, and the games were limited to how well Indie could wield his whip. The cute animations and personal idiosyncrasies were enhanced from the Star Wars game (female heroines cock a hip when standing, Indiana used his trademark roundhouse punch), but overall the game couldn't hold attention of parents or kids.
Somehow the characters needed to achieve superhuman feats. The stories needed to be complex and interesting, and there needed to be a reason to return to each level in free play mode again and again.
Lego Batman Batarangs on Target
Batman is the superhero famous for having countless "wonderful toys", so his video game avatar would need to have the same arsenal of tricks. The Batarang is a favorite tool for Lego Batman players knocking out multiple opponents with a single click. This is particularly fun in the Wii version of the game, as it allows players to use the Wii remote as a pointer to identify targets.
Heroes Batman, Batgirl, and Robin (as Robin or Nightwing) are able to switch suits, and with the wardrobe change, adopt various superpowers such as shattering glass, swimming underwater, withstanding high temperatures, flying, detonating bombs, and walking up metal walls with magnetic shoes (to name just a few).
Villans have super-strength, the ability to traverse toxic slime, and various other talents that are needed to solve puzzles and locate Easter eggs. Many of the Easter eggs require that the players return to the round in free play mode so they can take advantage of the talents provided by the cast members they unlock along the way.
Extra Rounds Play as Heroes and Villains
Another selling point of this game is that after unlocking a level as the Hero team, players can then unlock its counterpart as the Villainous team. While the extra game-play, and the ability to play through the scenes as both good guys and bad guys is appealing, there were some odd quirks to this scenario.
When Batman is called in to save the day, he is coming into the game after the actions and events undertaken by the Villains. In the game, players are basically asked to time-travel backwards in time to the events that led up to the appearance of the caped crusader. To a kid, this time travelling concept can be very confusing. Younger children often disconnect one level in the heroes' game from the counterpart levels in the villains' portions.
The resulting game includes 30 rounds of game play (versus the usual amount of 6 rounds per film for the Indiana Jones and Star Wars games.) Plus, collecting enough studs throughout each round to achieve "Superhero" or "Super-villain" status will unlock a bonus round where players race against the clock to collect extra studs to buy characters and unlock additional features.
Lego Games Great for Pairs of Players
In the Lego world, different characters have different specific skills. Female characters are the better jumpers, and can reach high ledges that others cannot. Batman has his suits and special tasks, while Robin has his own. The Joker uses his electric hand buzzer to jump-start engines and machinery. Poison Ivy makes plants grow that allow her to jump to hidden alcoves.
For this reason, the game is played by two characters at once. A single player can switch between the two characters - taking advantage of their skills as needed. Two players must work together. Cooperation and teamwork are emphasized, as well as problem-solving skills in the complex puzzles.
Lego Batman would be a great gift for the video game enthusiast on your list, whether a child, or just a kid at heart. Or better yet, get both to play the game together!
