To celebrate the arrival in theaters of “The LEGO Batman Movie,” “LEGO Dimensions” has released a new gameplay trailer for the “LEGO Batman Movie” Story Pack. The story pack allows gamers to “play the complete movie and band together with Batgirl and Robin to fight off the Joker and his team of villains, in six all-new levels of Super Hero Fun!” RELATED: “LEGO Batman Movie” & “Knight Rider” head to LEGO Dimensions It also includes new Adventure World Battle Arenas in which players can challenge each other in four-player competitive split-screen action. They also have chance to build an all-new Bat-Computer gateway for their LEGO Toy Pad, through which players can send their characters into the game’s multiverse. Of course, LEGO Batman already has a tr,ilogy of video game titles to his name (although two of those boast a substantial number of guest stars from the wider DC Universe) as well as his own guest spot in the “LEGO Movie” game. But in the original LEGO Batman titles, the Brick Knight had no dialogue to deliver, and was more of the strong, silent type than the raving egomaniac we see in “The LEGO Batman Movie.”
RELATED: Interview: “LEGO Batman” Director Chris McKay In theaters now, “The LEGO Batman Movie” stars Will Arnett as Batman, Michael Cera as Robin, Zach Galifianakis as Joker, Ralph Fiennes as Alfred Pennyworth, Rosario Dawson as Batgirl, Mariah Carey as Mayor McCasskill, Jenny Slate as Harley Quinn and Billy Dee Williams as Two-Face.After spending the past three months racing through planets on speeder bikes, listening to Dinklage narrate, and grinding until my hands cramped up, I welcomed Lego Batman 3: Beyond Gotham with open arms. Gone were the frustrating days of collecting helium coils hidden behind boulders; on to the days of collecting studs just by simply taking two steps to my left or right. Lego Batman 3, with its fun adventure and easy gameplay was the exact change of gaming pace I needed. Except here’s the thing: Lego Batman 3 isn’t that easy. I have two confessions to make. First, I don’t have many Lego games under my belt. A Lego Batman: The Video game here, a Lego Star Wars: The Video Game there, and a half-finished Lego Harry Potter: Years 1–4 somewhere on the shelf.
It had been some time since I last played a Lego title, and what I realized 45 minutes into this game was that the series has become very challenging. I spent an embarrassing amount of time just on the first mission alone, overwhelmed by Batman’s multiple suits and having to know which one to use to solve different puzzles. A handful of the playable characters, including Batman, Robin and Cyborg, have the ability to switch into different suits, each specializing in unique abilities, including magnetize, illuminate and stealth. They can hold up to eight suits each, accessed through a menu wheel at any time during the game once the suits have been unlocked. To make things a bit more confusing, some characters have the same suit – for example, Robin, Cyborg and The Joker each have a Magnet Suit. I’m embarrassed to admit that an eigt year old could probably soar through this system faster than I did, but lucky for myself and other out-of-touch adults, there’s Bat-Mite, who sporadically appears in a pop up and provides a bit of hand-holding by giving hints and tips on which suits to use, and how to proceed.
My second confession: I don’t know much about the DC Comics universe, so the story of Batman and fellow superheroes fighting against Brainiac in space went over my head at times as it was very character-heavy. Having not grown up on comics outside of Archie and the gang, the cornucopia of over 150 characters in Lego Batman 3 was slightly lost on me. The developers must have understood that not all of its players would be hardcore DC fans, and so with some more hand-holding, they made sure that characters clearly mentioned each other’s names throughout the game, which clued me in so that I didn’t have to mentally instruct myself to switch over to “the green guy.” Had Lego videogames never evolved from their earlier versions of mumble talk, I would have no idea who anyone was (or what was happening). Playable characters include Harley Quinn, Green Arrow and The Flash, as well as not-so-known characters such as Polka-Dot Man and Condiment King. One fresh face you’ll see is Fierce Flame, a female character with Flash-like abilities and Batgirl-like looks.
She was the winning character in a contest where fans were asked to create an original DC hero. Even though I didn’t know much about the characters leading into the game, I had fun unlocking them and discovering their different abilities and personalities, especially during hilarious banter between them which had me chuckling to myself on numerous occasions. A special character mention, although not from the DC universe, was Conan O’Brien who was a familiar face I was happy to see in game. Gameplay itself is fascinating in that it successfully manages to be both repetitive and fun. A Lego game is a Lego game, but even though you get into a rinse-and-repeat system of watch clip/bust open every item/collect all of the studs, the puzzles are challenging enough to keep you on your toes constantly, never allowing you to sail through a level without putting in some thought and, in my case, lots of trial and error. The levels themselves are so unique in style and design that you don’t even notice the rinse-and-repeat, or even if you do, you’re excited to do it all over in a new space.
Whether it’s a revolving rocket, or a fast-paced, disco-pumping battle, Lego Batman 3 keeps every mission original, including Tron-like mini-levels, entered by equipping Robin’s Techno Suit and hacking into a computer. With the large roster of characters and over 40 missions to complete, Lego Batman 3: Beyond Gotham is a jam-packed and lengthy game. After my first 3-hour game session, I had only completed six per cent of the game. Lego Batman 3: Beyond Gotham Platform: PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, Xbox One, PS Vita, iOS, 3DS, Wii U, 3DS, Mac Release Date: November 11th, 2014 If you put in all of the hours, complete Story Mode and work your way through Free Play, but still crave more, there are already three DLC packs available for purchase: the Batman 75th Pack, The Dark Knight Pack, and the man of Steel Pack, which will unlock over 30 new characters. A Season Pass is also available, granting access to the above three DLC with three more to come. Despite my lack of knowledge of the DC Comics universe, and the repetitive nature of the game, Lego Batman 3: Beyond Gotham’s challenging puzzles kept me determined and hooked, the wild adventure provided hours of fun and left me wanting more every time I stopped playing.