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LEGO Batman 2: DC Super Heroes game review

They take on the biggest movies, comic books and even Harry Potter. The LEGO series of games is beloved among kids, teens and adults alike. Yet they don’t break new ground in terms of gameplay.

Or do they?

You’ll definitely want to check out LEGO Batman 2: DC Super Heroes.

LEGO BATMAN 2: DC SUPER HEROES
(WBIE for PS3, Wii, Xbox 360, 3DS, DS, Vita, PC)
Rated E10+ for Everyone 10 and Older


Gameplay: 9.0
Graphics: 9.0
Sound: 8.5
Replay Value: 9.5
Overall Score: 9.0

Pros: Big open world game; lots of action; beautiful Gotham City artwork.

Cons: Controls can be sticky; no online play; could be funnier.

WHAT IT’S ABOUT

The first LEGO Batman was a gem. Your task was to save Gotham City from the baddies who escaped Arkham Asylum. Plus, you could play as the hero or the villain. And the environments were beautiful. Yet as good as it was, the play was like many of the other LEGO games.

In LEGO Batman 2, Batman and Robin form a powerful union with the Justice League of America. They really have to get all the muscle together: The Joker and Lex Luthor have joined forces to cause all kinds of trouble. And Lex has the mother of all weapons, one that’s powered by deadly kryptonite.

That story in itself has the potential to be a plot with a lot of action, a real roller-coaster ride. But there are two important gameplay elements in LEGO Batman 2, something big and new. The first is called an open world.

OPEN WORLD

Having an open world means you can go anywhere you want to go in a game. The only other open world game made for kids that I can think of is the very cool Toy Story 3 game.

So it’s really great that LEGO Batman 2 is as ginormous as it is. And it doesn’t just give you more game to play, which makes it worth the price of admission. Even more important, this open world lets you feel you’re inside of the game. It lets your imagination fly to new heights.

Actually, the game starts out the way you’d expect for a LEGO game to start: with action-packed levels that have a beginning and end. The action sequences are generally awesome. You’ll do everything from fighting baddies on the very high top of a movie theater to racing after The Joker and shooting at his speedboat from the air.

But once you defeat the cackling Joker at the entrance to a strange amusement park, the world begins to open up. At the same time, you’ll get a map that gives you missions, tasks that help you move forward in the game.

You’ll get into the Batmobile and zip over to the Batcave and Arkham Asylum. And what a thrill it is to rev up the legendary supercar and speed along the backroads. Later, as Superman, you can fly from area to area. You can see the grandness that is Gotham and its menacing nature, too.

GRAPHICS, CHALLENGES AND VOICES

That’s because the graphics and artwork are nearly perfectly imagined. LEGO Batman 2 is dark, a little weird and sometimes slightly creepy. It feels like Batman: Arkham City with LEGO characters and more slapstick comedy to make you laugh.

And this is the longest LEGO game I’ve ever seen. You can spend a good part of your summer playing, if you want to finish everything.

The puzzles can be difficult. Check all around your nearby environment for clues. Then make sure you have the right superhero suit to get to the next puzzle. For instance, Robin has a magnetic suit that lets him walk up walls that have a blue neon color. There are dozens of such suits to find and use.

And the other big news? The blocky little characters actually speak for the first time. You’ll hear fewer giggles, coos, screams and those “hmmms” you get when someone wants to think. These aren’t completely replaced, but you’ll now hear actual dialog.

The lack of talking in the LEGO games was cool for a while. It actually made the game developers work harder to get the story across. But it got old. After all, it’s been seven years since Star Wars, the first LEGO offering in the series.

Now, the challenge is for the dialog to enhance the gameplay. It doesn’t always work, but often, the script is funny.

LEGO’S BRAVE NEW WORLD

There are just a couple of problems in the game. I sometimes had to fuss with the controls to change my control of Batman to Robin and back again. And once, when I got on a small vehicle, it got stuck near a fence and moved as slow as a tortoise.

But overall, this is a brave new world for the LEGO series. To go anywhere you want to — when you want to — is a big deal. It makes me really anticipate another open world game that’s in the pipeline, LEGO City Undercover. For now, though, this Batman game is one of the year’s best kid-friendly games, hands down.

66 Comments on LEGO Batman 2: DC Super Heroes game review

  1. dude that is awesome // September 17, 2012 at 5:52 pm // Reply

    it is a great game!! I LOVE IT SO MUCH!!! I completed lego batman2 in one day.can you guys give me any cheat codes??? PLEASE!!!

  2. the nintendo ds people are is trying to do their best on making it better

  3. this is one of my favorite games

  4. this game is …. AWSOME

  5. beat story. this game rocks!

  6. any codes we could use?i have 32 million studs but nothing but vehicles and red bricks to use them on

  7. MOST AWESOME GAME EVER!!!!!!!!nothing can compare.period.

  8. LEGO Batman 2 is awesome!I completed the game 3 days ago.Supergirl rocks!!!

  9. fish man 80 // August 21, 2012 at 2:32 pm // Reply

    this game is awesome i’m playing it right now! hawkman is very cool

  10. what is the upgradedsuperman looke like?

  11. i want

  12. LEGO BATMAN ROCKS!

  13. ds virsion stinks

  14. i meant man bat can break glass

  15. i got it 2 weeks ago and beat story. it’s awesome and i half about two thirds of the characters, half the mini kits, half the goldbricks, and a few red bricks. ra’s al ghul doesn’t really do much but he still rocks. and all of the characters that could glide in lego batman 1 except penguin can now fly. and man can break glass too.

  16. i beat booper // August 1, 2012 at 11:18 am // Reply

    this game rocks you should play it when u get the chance!

  17. i beat it also its fun

  18. how do you start playing this game?

  19. BatmanRocks // July 28, 2012 at 10:43 am // Reply

    I really want this game for my birthday!

  20. Sonic stricer // July 24, 2012 at 1:32 pm // Reply

    Just got it and beated story mode allready

  21. Looks like a really nice game!

  22. I Don’t have the game but I herd it’s fun

  23. I got the demo and it was amazing and I haven’t seen A lego game this cool since star wars 3!

  24. 250 in-game silver coins!

  25. Do you have any cheat codes? Thanks.

  26. im almost finished with the whole game

  27. magicfreak // July 8, 2012 at 12:08 pm // Reply

    I think it is weird that in the game,Gotham is made of all these LEGO figures carved out of stone and screaming in silent agony, holding up the city. Kinda creepy, huh?

  28. Just a hint if you ever get stuck in a glitch, maybe in a fence or other object, you can use Mr.Freeze to get the charcter out. Just hit him with freeze blast and he is lifted and the ice breaks

  29. i’m going to be getting that game sometime

  30. LEGO Universer // July 5, 2012 at 10:26 am // Reply

    best…..LEGO…..game…..EVER!

  31. sounds better than the other lego games. am I the only one who thinks lego batman 1 was EXTREMELY boring?

  32. ladies man // July 2, 2012 at 7:08 pm // Reply

    is their more story mode after you beat lex and the joker

  33. my brother got this game on the ps vita, i beat it in 5 days. The part that sucks is that you only get to play with more than batman robin and super man on the last 2 levels. but when you play with more is the last battle and justice league but you dont get to choose that’s not very good. 🙁 ;(

  34. nslkghstho // July 1, 2012 at 5:03 pm // Reply

    i bete it

  35. MARVEL Fan // July 1, 2012 at 3:33 pm // Reply

    To be honest I like marvel way better than DC, although the first LEGO batman game is way better than other LEGO games.

  36. MARVEL Fan // July 1, 2012 at 3:17 pm // Reply

    To be honest I prefer Marvel over DC, although the first lego batman game is way better than the other lego games.

    • sva MASTER // July 5, 2012 at 6:59 pm // Reply

      yeah, they should do a marvel game. it’s not fair to marvel fans that they did a DC line and a marvel line but only a DC game. I’m betting the marvel game will come out next year or 2014.

  37. game crave // July 1, 2012 at 1:15 pm // Reply

    I want it which is better wii or PC??

  38. team5ds234 // June 27, 2012 at 8:35 pm // Reply

    i just got the game and i cant pass the maze its soo hard

  39. I love that you can that you can play with the justice league and green lantern.

  40. Dude awesome // June 26, 2012 at 2:42 pm // Reply

    I got the game the day it came out and have already beat the whole game. 100.0%!!!! It is an awesome game!!!!!!!!!!

  41. awesome game! its open world

  42. I am looking forward to getting it. sounds like a great game. I like open world games.

  43. sva MASTER // June 25, 2012 at 12:33 pm // Reply

    I beat the story mode and have general zod, captain boomerang, and brainiac. this game rocks!!!!

  44. darth awesome // June 24, 2012 at 2:37 pm // Reply

    I am so asking for this on my B-day

  45. Boys Life 224 // June 24, 2012 at 8:27 am // Reply

    This game look awesome

  46. Got this game day it came out. I’m half way through the story but still have tons of colectibles. Describe how I am every timae I play it 2 words ” I’m speechless.

  47. Eagle Claw 98 // June 23, 2012 at 4:36 pm // Reply

    Sounds fun. Can’t wait to get it

  48. greenhornet // June 23, 2012 at 4:24 pm // Reply

    im so happy thy put open world on this. the last lego game i played was pirates of the carribean an that got boring once you beat it. i will definatel get this in my psvita.

    -troop 59

  49. I like super heroes.

  50. mad doctor // June 21, 2012 at 2:57 pm // Reply

    Getting this game.(First to post!)

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