Review: Lego Star Wars (PS2)

Game by Traveller's Tales, Giant, and LucasArts

May 11, 2005 -- Review by A.T. Hun

Lego. Star Wars. Put them together in one game and you should have video magic, right? For the most part, that's true. Lego Star Wars is fun and enjoyable for the whole family. Unfortunately, the game is all too short and the camera can be very annoying at points. Let's get into the gory details.

The Game Itself

Lego Star Wars lets you play through all three of the Star Wars "prequels," including the forthcoming Revenge of the Sith. You will visit familiar sites like Naboo and Kamino, all built in virtual Legos. I read that the team actually built the levels in Lego before computerizing them. Obviously if you play through Episode III, there will be major spoilers. Having said that, there was nothing revealed that I didn't already know. At points, the game takes liberties with the story to help it fit into the game world, which is just fine. There are also cutscenes based on scenes from the movies that have been given a light-hearted twist. For example when Obi-Wan installs the new hyperdrive on Queen Amidala's ship in Episode I, it doesn't work immediately. Obi-Wan gives it a quick smack with a wrench and it springs to life.

The Controls

One of the nicest things about the game is the simplicity of the controls. There are no bizzare R1-L1-square-triangle-X-L3 combos to be found. You control your character on the PS2 version with the left analogue control. X makes your character jump (if it can--some, like C3P0, can't). Square attacks. Triangle transfers your control to another character. Circle allows you to use a special ability such as the Force for Jedi to open new areas, grappling for blaster users to ascend upwards, and opening doors for droids. This makes the game easy even for children to pick up. It's also nice for us older folks who grow tired of pointless dexterity challenges.

The Graphics

Despite being made of blocky Legos, the graphics are quite nice. Shiny floors reflect nicely. Things blow up with a satisfying "boom." All the Jedi have different fighting styles which gives a unique twist. Yoda walks very slowly but spins around like a whirling dervish when he attacks. Qui-Gon has very graceful, majestic strokes of the blade. The team clearly knows the movies well and reproduced them faithfully.

The Sounds

While the quality of Star Wars games varies greatly, the sound is consistently excellent. Everything is immediately recognizable from John Williams' stirring score to the clash of sabers to Jango Fett's distinctive laser blast. It's all here and it's all good.

Co-Op Mode

The absolute best feature for my money is the game's drop-in/drop-out co-op mode. At any point, someone can grab the other controller, take over one of the other characters, and battle the forces of evil with you. After that, all they have to do is drop-out and the game continues seamlessly in single player. Very slick. It's a lot of fun to play with my kids, even though it introduces some weird camera problems (more on this later). My son and I were blasting through Episode I as Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon, respectively. He even referred to me as "My Master," as if we had stepped into the movies. For those of you who work for social services, he normally just calls me "Daddy."

The Good

It's Lego; it's Star Wars. I could end right there. But the simple controls and easy-to-use co-op make it a lot of fun. There is some replayability too. You can go back and play in Free Play mode. This allows you to use any of the characters you have unlocked to go back through the levels. Do you want Darth Maul and Darth Maul to battle Darth Maul at the end of Episode I? You can! Yes, it does get as confusing as it sounds. Some levels require you to use the abilities of other characters to continue. A Jedi might need to construct a bridge using the Force. Some things specifically require a dark force user. A blaster user might need to grapple to a higher level. Even Jar Jar is useful, since he jumps higher than any other character. Yes, you can hack him to bits with a lightsaber too.

Each episode has a vehicle level too, so it's not all character-based. Episode I has a podrace. It's a bit frustrating but it's fun. Episode II allows you to pilot a Republic attack gunship to blow up a Trade Federation starship in side-scroller fashion. Episode III puts you in the seat of a Jedi starfighter to blast through the epic space battle at the beginning of that movie. It keeps you on a rail, but you still have some freedom of movement. That's probably my favorite level in the game.

You can collect 10 kit pieces on each level to build a Lego ship for display outside Dexter's Diner (the hub for the game). You can achieve "True Jedi" status for each level by earning enough money--represented as Lego studs, naturally. If you get "True Jedi" status on every level, you unlock a special level with some very special characters. I'll leave you to discover that on your own. Let's just say that it's worth the effort.

The Bad

The camera. Excuse me while I retch. You can't control it, which makes some jumping puzzles either very difficult or painfully frustrating. If I hadn't paid $40 for my nice Logitech Cordless Action Controller, I would have flung it against the wall several times. The faults of the camera were tolerable until you get to a jumping puzzle towards the end of the "Ruin of the Jedi" level in Episode III. I'm deducting a full point from the game for that level alone. Yes, it's that frustrating. Granted, I have a very low tolerance for jumping puzzles, but combining one with an unusable camera angle is just plain crazy. I wonder if that level was even play-tested by someone who wasn't either a masochist or criminally insane. Another problem comes up in multiplayer. If one character dies and respawns a little ways back, the other character better hope that he's not standing on a ledge. In an effort to get both characters on screen, the camera will cause the one on the ledge will be nudged off to his doom. Maddening.

The other problem is that it's just too short. A moderately dedicated gamer could plow through the whole Story mode just by renting the game. Going back in Free Play mode to collect the kits and achieve "True Jedi" status adds some time, but I was able to complete it all in about a week's time of moderate playing.

The Conclusion

Don't let my grumblings about the camera keep you from buying this game. If you like Star Wars and played with Legos (and if you didn't, then I have to ask why you are visiting this website), this is a must-own. My kids are Star Wars and Lego fans, so they love it. It's a kid's game without being kiddie. I hope more companies would implement their version of co-op play. Enjoy it for what it is. Maybe if I grovel, they will make a sequel based on the original Trilogy.

My final score is 8 out of 10, deducting one point for the camera issues and another for its length.