LEGO Star Wars: The Video Game

The Good
For starters, it actually succeeds in making Episode I interesting, which is no small feat in itself. Lego Star Wars takes the best elements from Episodes I, II, and the upcoming III, and puts it into a fantastic game that anyone can enjoy.

What remains impressive about the title is how utterly fun it is. It focuses on the two elements that make Star Wars great: Space battles and lightsaber fights. And it actually has intelligent puzzles using a combo of the Force and building with Legos. There is a scene in Theed Palace that requires Obi-Wan, Qui-Gon, Anakin, Padme, R2-D2, and Panaka, and each one is used effectively throughout the level. The same can be said for all the areas. The game offers a lot of smart level design.

The shooting and racing elements are fun, and aren't sacrificed in quality for the adventure levels, which is so common for multi-genre games. There were elements in the Pod Race that I wished had made it to the old "Racer" game a few years back. The Clone Wars shooting elements, and the opening of Episode III are equally as well done, closely resembling classic arcade shooters or even StarFox.

The graphics are gorgeous. One look at the backgrounds in Episode III, and you'll believe that without question. The lighting effects from blaster fire and lightsaber blades are impressive, as are the animations of the characters. They act like they are supposed to, even if there are so many characters to choose from.

Among the graphics and music and gameplay, the amount of usefulness in the numerous characters is impressive. Everyone has a useful ability, from lightweights such as C-3PO and Jar Jar Binks, to Obi-Wan Kenobi and Jango Fett. It's fun racing through the game collecting characters to see what areas can be opened next with their abilities. This pushes up the replay value immensely without becoming tedious.

Even though the game is skewed to a slightly younger audience, it still provides some challenging moments without being frustrating. The game also adds a lot of humor to the story, but it doesn't detract. It's more of a loving homage than anything, as you build and destroy the levels with your abilities. There is a lot to do and find in this game, and a ton of secrets and replay value.

The Bad
The game does have its moments of annoying camera angles, which can result in running off a ledge or getting momentarily lost (they do provide a cursor when too far out of range).

The game also has the disadvantage of being out before Episode III, so there are a few plot spoilers in here, but in its early release, none of the new music from the film is included in those levels. The original Episode IV music is used, and as good as it remains, I would have liked to have heard the new music compliment the Episode III levels.

And while it looks deceptively innocent, there are a few levels where enemies will absolutely swarm you in certain areas. "Freeplay" makes it easier, but playing with the required story characters makes it pretty tough to find all of the hidden items.

The Bottom Line
It's been a while since I have played such a fun Star Wars game. Don't let the Lego license fool you: This is Star Wars gameplay at its finest, and captures the feel of the movies quite well, with a few humorous touches.

There is a lot to see and do, with multiple modes of gameplay, and a two-player mode. Finding and using all of the characters is a lot of fun, as well as useful, and building the mini-kits become and obsessive task. This game is basically dipping into the toy box to play with a lot of digital action figures and playsets, and it works on so many levels. It's fun and entertaining enough for kids, yet there's enough of a challenge for older gamers, and certainly more than enough for Star Wars fanatics. As far as movie to game conversions go, this one actually feels like the movies it's based on.

If Lucasarts and Traveller's Tales are smart, they're already working on a sequel to this, focusing on the original Trilogy.

More fun than a shaven Wookiee.