I actually really enjoyed LEGO Movie 2 Videogame. It helped that at the time I was getting burned out from traditional TT's LEGO Videogame formula. Instead this is more of a sandbox exploration type of game, which was a nice refresher. Even if said exploration is simplistic and easy, it was still really enjoyable with a variety of worlds to explore. Do keep in mind that I didn't play LEGO Worlds so I can't compare, but if anything this game does make me a little more interested in that, so there's a silver lining.
Graphically, this is probably the best looking LEGO game I’ve ever played. Now, I should mention that I didn’t play more of recent LEGO games. The most recent release I have in my library as of writing this review is LEGO Ninjago Movie Videogame (fake LEGO videogame fan me!), and that game looked really good too. The reflections from LEGO pieces and glowing effects look nice, and I like lens flare effect that comes out of opened chest. There are a few imperfections with the lighting engine, like distant objects sometimes freaking out. I also noticed in Classic Bricksburg that the shadows cast by the buildings would disappear at certain camera angles. But generally speaking, this game looks terrific. The music is only so-so, the music from the movie itself is pretty decent and some tracks are memorable and catchy, but I wouldn't call the soundtrack memorable as a whole.
Of course this game is far from perfect. The common criticism for this game is its story which is pretty lackluster, being narrated by Wyldstyle which only loosely follows the film's plot, with filler content throughout, which is definitely disappointing compared to the previous LEGO efforts. There's quite a bit of filler up until the end which moves way too quickly. First you obtain batman's grapple gun, which is an interesting item that would allow for some cool platforming or exploration... only to get discarded shortly after with an ability of flight, it's a shame it didn't get more use before that. In that regard this game definitely feels very rushed and restrained by the budget.
Another point of contention is relics. They're actually not as bad as I thought. Not-so-funny story is that I wanted to download the free DLC which adds new worlds to explore after I 100%ed the game, but I dowloaded it before that anyway, and I thought I couldn't obtain certain items from the relics, so I kept grinding them... then of course I realized that those where DLC items that you could obtain from said DLC. Don't be like me please. You can open relics for rewards such as red items (equvalent of red bricks from previous games) and characters and such that don't actually contribute towards 100% with unique abilities or anything like that. Personally it doesn't bother me as much. I dunno, I don't really care for that kinda stuff, but it does actually devalue the relics and the items you get since they're pretty much the same thing (except for red items of course). Not only that but the drop is random, which I don't approve of, and it makes them unsatisfying to collect since they are fairly common to find.
Also personal minor negative that I couldn't think of where to fit is the intro cinematic that shows up every time you boot up the game in unskippable, which is very odd and certainly not a good decision.
I do want to talk about aforementioned free DLC called "Galactic Adventures" which adds more worlds to explore. Honestly, I thought the DLC was pretty good. It actually felt like a bit of a return to form for Travellers Tales, they are fun little levels with good cutscenes and they actually expand the lore of the game and the movie quite a bit. they still feature narration but at least it's not Wyldstyle this time. My favorite is a Disharmony City level with somewhat gritty atmosphere which is pretty unique. And more importantly, this DLC is free! I can highly recommend it.
I can understand why some gamers were unsatisfyed with this game, be it lackluster story, dumbed down exploration, unsatisfying rewards and everything in between, however I cannot for the life of me call this a bad game. Average? Maybe. Is it the worst TT's LEGO game? Perhaps. But it just so happened that I played this game with an open mind, and while it's not like previous LEGO games, while it would've been cool to have it be like the first LEGO Movie Videogame, I don't mind its different exploration-based gameplay, it's BECAUSE it's different I enjoyed it more than I would have and probably should have. If it was like any standard LEGO game before I would've probably still enjoyed it, but it wouldn't have been anything special. But it is different, which is why it was memorable, which is why it was a nice change of pace. Which is why I really enjoyed The LEGO Movie 2 Videogame.
Graphically, this is probably the best looking LEGO game I’ve ever played. Now, I should mention that I didn’t play more of recent LEGO games. The most recent release I have in my library as of writing this review is LEGO Ninjago Movie Videogame (fake LEGO videogame fan me!), and that game looked really good too. The reflections from LEGO pieces and glowing effects look nice, and I like lens flare effect that comes out of opened chest. There are a few imperfections with the lighting engine, like distant objects sometimes freaking out. I also noticed in Classic Bricksburg that the shadows cast by the buildings would disappear at certain camera angles. But generally speaking, this game looks terrific. The music is only so-so, the music from the movie itself is pretty decent and some tracks are memorable and catchy, but I wouldn't call the soundtrack memorable as a whole.
Of course this game is far from perfect. The common criticism for this game is its story which is pretty lackluster, being narrated by Wyldstyle which only loosely follows the film's plot, with filler content throughout, which is definitely disappointing compared to the previous LEGO efforts. There's quite a bit of filler up until the end which moves way too quickly. First you obtain batman's grapple gun, which is an interesting item that would allow for some cool platforming or exploration... only to get discarded shortly after with an ability of flight, it's a shame it didn't get more use before that. In that regard this game definitely feels very rushed and restrained by the budget.
Another point of contention is relics. They're actually not as bad as I thought. Not-so-funny story is that I wanted to download the free DLC which adds new worlds to explore after I 100%ed the game, but I dowloaded it before that anyway, and I thought I couldn't obtain certain items from the relics, so I kept grinding them... then of course I realized that those where DLC items that you could obtain from said DLC. Don't be like me please. You can open relics for rewards such as red items (equvalent of red bricks from previous games) and characters and such that don't actually contribute towards 100% with unique abilities or anything like that. Personally it doesn't bother me as much. I dunno, I don't really care for that kinda stuff, but it does actually devalue the relics and the items you get since they're pretty much the same thing (except for red items of course). Not only that but the drop is random, which I don't approve of, and it makes them unsatisfying to collect since they are fairly common to find.
Also personal minor negative that I couldn't think of where to fit is the intro cinematic that shows up every time you boot up the game in unskippable, which is very odd and certainly not a good decision.
I do want to talk about aforementioned free DLC called "Galactic Adventures" which adds more worlds to explore. Honestly, I thought the DLC was pretty good. It actually felt like a bit of a return to form for Travellers Tales, they are fun little levels with good cutscenes and they actually expand the lore of the game and the movie quite a bit. they still feature narration but at least it's not Wyldstyle this time. My favorite is a Disharmony City level with somewhat gritty atmosphere which is pretty unique. And more importantly, this DLC is free! I can highly recommend it.
I can understand why some gamers were unsatisfyed with this game, be it lackluster story, dumbed down exploration, unsatisfying rewards and everything in between, however I cannot for the life of me call this a bad game. Average? Maybe. Is it the worst TT's LEGO game? Perhaps. But it just so happened that I played this game with an open mind, and while it's not like previous LEGO games, while it would've been cool to have it be like the first LEGO Movie Videogame, I don't mind its different exploration-based gameplay, it's BECAUSE it's different I enjoyed it more than I would have and probably should have. If it was like any standard LEGO game before I would've probably still enjoyed it, but it wouldn't have been anything special. But it is different, which is why it was memorable, which is why it was a nice change of pace. Which is why I really enjoyed The LEGO Movie 2 Videogame.