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This adventure game lets you explore the world of the Marvel universe in LEGO form

This adventure game lets you explore the world of the Marvel universe in LEGO form

Vote: (30 votes)

Program license: Paid

Developer: TT Games Ltd

Version: 1.0

Works under: Windows

Vote:

Program license

(30 votes)

Paid

Developer

Version

TT Games Ltd

1.0

Works under:

Windows

Pros

  • A hilarious script with a tangible love for the Marvel universe
  • A diverse and enormous setting jam packed with activities

Cons

  • Repetitive gameplay that builds off over a decade of similar experiences
  • Characters are often interchangeable

Lego Marvel Superheroes 2 is a kids action-adventure game with puzzle elements that puts you in control of toy versions of dozens of popular Marvel characters. It's hard to argue that the Lego games don't have a formula. Over the course of over a decade, they've managed to churn out games on a regular basis, often multiple versions in multiple franchises in a single year. They can manage to pull it off because the formula works. While each game in the series may drag out the same combination of streamlined puzzle solving and simplified combat, they bring together a delightful sense of comedy and a clear love for the properties they work for. The Lego games are as much love letters to the franchises they cover as they are games themselves, and that holds true for the latest version of the Lego Marvel Superheroes sub-franchise. While it makes a few changes to the formula, it's largely business as usual.

Lego Marvel Superheroes 2's story is technically a sequel to the first game, but you don't need to understand what came before to really understand it. The narrative is more an excuse to stuff in as many inside jokes and physical gags as possible and let players recreate humorous versions of scenes they recognize from the comics and movies. In the newest game, they peel the curtain back more than before, giving players the biggest playground to run around in yet. By drawing from the Secret Wars story, the developers have managed to mash together a wide variety of locations and characters from throughout Marvel's different continuities and create a setting that's refreshingly diverse and distinct.

It works surprisingly well, in large part because it justifies a pretty basic premise that works for both comic books and video games. Shards of power have been captured by various villains in the hub city, and you have to get them back before you can face the big bad of Kang the Conqueror. In pursuit of this, you have to beat up a lot of bad guys with some button mashing, regularly swap out characters so that you can use their powers to overcome obstacles, and collect a seemingly endless amount of lego pieces that you can trade in to buy new characters or combine together to create puzzle solving tools. There's flying as well, and while it's not the first time the Lego series has pulled it off, it works well within the setting.

All of this is par for the course for a Lego game, but then it always is. It may be more of the same thing, but it's highly polished and stuffed with things to do. With hundreds of characters and a plethora of side quests and challenges, this is a game that can keep you occupied for a long time.

Pros

  • A hilarious script with a tangible love for the Marvel universe
  • A diverse and enormous setting jam packed with activities

Cons

  • Repetitive gameplay that builds off over a decade of similar experiences
  • Characters are often interchangeable