Geekatana Game Review: LEGO Marvel Superheroes

Being both a LEGO fan and a comics fan I have played a number of comic related LEGO games and I've had wanted to do a review of one for such a while now. Namely cause I don't know which one I'll do first but I just said to the heck of it all and started with the first one that popped into my mind and that is LEGO Marvel Superheroes.

This game spawned a sequel and probably a spin off. I'm not sure myself since the both the spin off and the sequel both connect to this one differently. But I guess that would be a topic for another review. So buckle up cause this can get confusing. Also possible minor spoilers.

The story of LEGO Marvel Superheroes is about Silver Surfer being mysteriously knocked out of the sky when he came to close to earth's atmosphere and his cosmic board shattering across the LEGO Marvel Universe in brick fashion. So Nick Fury gathers heroes from across the Marvel-verse to retrieve these "cosmic bricks" before villains like Loki and Magneto can get their hands on them.

Plot wise the game is obviously a retelling of that famous Fantastic Four story with a little bit for Marvel Avengers Alliance thrown into the mix. But how you get from point a to point B is where this game changes as this game has a ton of replay value from unlocking the characters and exploring the world alone.

Just think of this game as GTA, meets Marvel meets LEGO as it's a vastly open world in between game chapters where you can explore, do mini games, do puzzles and search for items and character cards to unlock more characters. And since this game was done back in 2013 it has little to no licensing issues. This are some of the very few first games where you can play both an X-men character and an Avengers character.

Being a LEGO game the violence is toned down for kids as your character explodes when its heart bar reaches zero and you re-spawn again with nothing but a small part of your LEGO bricks you collected being the price you pay for it which hardly happens since this is super easy. You can also play two player coop and it doubles the fun than just playing it on single player.

The great part about it is the story and the funny dialogue between characters during the span of the game itself and collecting all the hidden characters scattered throughout the game. There's also mini games that unlocks vehicles. My favorite characters would be spider-man for all his funny dialogue and the Hulk for his ability to smash first ask questions never. But for exploration purposes its generally Ironman for his flight capabilities.

Game tip: Get the Go-kart by defeating Maria Hill in a race on the SHIELD Carrier. Easily the best land vehicle in the game.

The story takes you to well known marvel places like the Savage lands, Asgard, the Avengers Tower and the Baxter Building among other places. The first stage boss alone is already as massive and grand as a final boss battle in most video games. You have got to see it to believe it. This game has lots to offer for both kids and adults alike.

The weaker parts would be the hero customization and some of the puzzles are downright not for kids and require nimble hands. Also some of the mini games require you to exploit the games flaws in order to win. One such is using the Go-kart in mostly all of the racing mini games. You will know what I mean when you play it. Also flying is a bit clunky and hard specially when you are using a plane making winning a lot of the air races more on luck than actual skills but that's a minor complain for a game this good.

If you got an annoying little sibling who likes to get into your game time you can just pop up the second controller of the game and let the little bugger rampage the city as the Hulk while you take control of player one and go off on its own doing hero side missions. It's a win, win scenario if you ask me.

Overall LEGO Marvel Superheroes is a really good game that refines what already works for LEGO games in general. It does have some flaws but it's not so bad that can't be overcome by practice and some experimentation. This game is extremely fun and addictive. It's an easy recommendation for any LEGO or Marvel fans. Whether you're a hardcore or casual gamer you should definitely give this game a chance.