LEGO Batman 2: DC Super Heroes

Common Sense Media says

Vast world, fun superhero characters that finally talk!

Age(i)

2
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Quality(i)

 

Learning(i)

(i)
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LEGO Batman 2: DC Super Heroes gallery

What parents need to know

Positive messages

Teamwork is an essential part of all the LEGO video games, but it may never have been a more crucial gameplay element than it is here. So many sections of the story require multi-character cooperation. This is a superhero action game, though, so be prepared for lots of fighting (not always the best message).

Positive role models

The superheroes are, well, heroes -- of the classic kind, too. These are the kind of colorful heroes that represent truth, justice, and the American way. There's never a call for help that they won't answer. Even Batman, who is the darkest and broodiest of the bunch, never comes anywhere near the tortured intensity of the character's movie portrayals.

Ease of play

The controls are easy to pick up and intuitive to use, though camera angles can sometimes make things more difficult than they need to be, mostly due to the split-screen effect during multiplayer sessions. It's great that characters don't need to stick together the entire time, but thanks to the vast size of the game world, characters can sometimes end up so far from one another that it's problematic.

Violence

There's plenty of comic-book combat to go around, including some major brawls with loads of bad guys to beat up. The action is all incredibly cartoony, though, as all the punches, kicks, heat-ray blasts, boomerang throws, etc. come from stubby little LEGO mini-figures. Characters break up into their component LEGO parts when defeated. Gunfire and explosions also come into play during vehicle-based levels.

Sex
Not applicable
Language
Not applicable
Consumerism

The game is not subtle about its ties to both the LEGO toy line and the DC Comics superhero franchises.

Drinking, drugs, & smoking
Not applicable
Privacy & safety
Not applicable

Parents Need to Know

Parents need to know that while LEGO Batman 2: DC Super Heroes offers its fair share of cartoony violence and fighting, it also promotes cooperation and incorporates plenty of puzzles into the action, working out kids' brains along with their thumbs. The characters are all portrayed as blocky LEGO figures, which minimizes the impact of the violence, but certainly doesn't negate it. Still, the superheroes here are of the colorful boy-scout variety (Superman even chides Batman for making a mess while stopping crime).

What kids can learn

Skills

Thinking & Reasoning

  • analyzing evidence
  • problem solving
  • strategy

Collaboration

  • cooperation
  • meeting challenges together
  • teamwork

Engagement, Approach, Support

Engagement

Learning Approach

Support

What kids can learn

Skills

Thinking & Reasoning

  • analyzing evidence
  • problem solving
  • strategy

Collaboration

  • cooperation
  • meeting challenges together
  • teamwork

Kids can learn how to cooperate with a partner, taking turns and waiting for a teammate to complete his or her part of the puzzle. Even when not playing with another person, kids needs to figure out which character has the best skills to perform a certain task. Players will constantly find themselves facing obstacles that require unique solutions to overcome. LEGO Batman 2 provides a rich playground where kids can observe their environment, see what tools are available to them, and deduce the best way to proceed.

This Learning Rating review was written by Christopher Healy

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Kids say

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What's it about?

In LEGO BATMAN 2: DC SUPER HEROES, the evil Joker and Lex Luthor team up in a plot to destroy all the LEGO brick buildings of Gotham City. Batman and Robin enlist the aid of their high-flying pal Superman (and eventually the entire Justice League, including Wonder Woman, Flash, Green Lantern, and more) to save the day. LEGO Gotham City, which can be explored freely in between story chapters, is a vast open game world filled with hidden challenges and bonus treasures. In addition to all the hero and villain characters that can be controlled by players, there are also loads of vehicles (land, sea, and air) that can be used for both exploration and combat.

Is it any good?

QUALITY
 

Lego Batman 2: DC Super Heroes offers something no LEGO game has offered before -- the ability to save your game in the middle of a level. Since some of these story levels can take up to forty minutes to play through, those save points are a huge relief (though it would be nice if they didn't disappear as soon as you used them once). It's also fun to finally hear the LEGO mini-figures speak, which allows for great comic interplay between the heroes in cinematic sequences. And the vast open world means there's so much more to do beyond the main plot. Aside from some potential dizzying when the split-screen kicks in, this is another great co-op experience from LEGO.

Families can talk about...

  • Families can talk about the fighting in the game. Does portraying the characters as LEGO toys make the violence more palatable? Is the hand-to-hand combat different from the fighting where weapons are involved?

  • Parents can also talk to kids about tie-in marketing. Does playing a LEGO video game make children want to buy LEGO toys? Or vice versa?

  • Friends, siblings, and even parents can play cooperatively as a team. What is hard about working with a partner in a video game? What's nice about it?

Game details

Platforms:Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, PlayStation Vita, Nintendo Wii, Nintendo 3DS, Nintendo DS, Windows
Price:$39.99–49.99
Available online?Not available online
Developer:Warner Bros. Games
Release date:June 19, 2012
Genre:Action/Adventure
ESRB rating:E10+ for Cartoon Violence (Nintendo 3DS, Nintendo DS, Nintendo Wii, PlayStation 3, PlayStation Vita, Windows, Xbox 360)

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This review of LEGO Batman 2: DC Super Heroes was written by

Christopher Healy

About our rating system

  • ON: Content is age-appropriate for kids this age.
  • PAUSE: Know your child; some content may not be right for some kids.
  • OFF: Not age-appropriate for kids this age.
  • NOT FOR KIDS: Not appropriate for kids of any age.

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Quality

Our star rating assesses the media's overall quality.

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Learning ratings

  • Best: Really engaging, great learning approach.
  • Very Good: Engaging, good learning approach.
  • Good: Pretty engaging, good learning approach.
  • Fair: Somewhat engaging, okay learning approach.
  • Not for Learning: Not recommended for learning.
  • Not for Kids: Not age-appropriate for kids; not recommended for learning.

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Teen, 16 years old Written byMOVIESGAMESGALORE July 22, 2012
AGE
8
QUALITY
 
LEARNING

"Holly Bataman!"

Some lego cartoon violence like new slow-mo moves but nothing too bad. Some light language like "idiot" and related words nothing explicit. Some mild lego humor but nothing crude. One of the best lego games yet with great voice acting and cool super heroes. Even though lacks the level customizer from Lego Indiana Jones 2 and Harry Potter Years 1-4 it is still the best lego game yet.

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Parent of a 1, 3, 6, and 10 year old Written bycodybear36 July 20, 2012
AGE
5
QUALITY
 

great game

my nephew who is 5 years old cant stop talking about this game. when i go over my 2 sons who are 10 and 16 play it with them. i watch them play it and it is appropriate for 5 and up

What other families should know
Great messages
Great role models
Too much violence
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Teen, 15 years old Written byrebma97 June 22, 2012
AGE
7
QUALITY
 

Good, fun game

It's pretty fun! The powers (or abilities, in Batman's case) are cool, and even though I thought it'd be weird to hear the legos talk, it's actually fine. But I don't like how the levels are harder, and I wish they kept builder (you could build your own level there). Overall good game.
Violence: Lots of fighting (kicking, punching, guns) but they characters are legos and just break when they die.
Sex: Some of the female outfits (like Wonder Woman's) could be considered inappropriate, but Legos can't look too suggestive.
Language: "Idiot" and the like.

What other families should know
Great messages
Great role models
Too much violence
Too much consumerism
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