Parents' Guide to

LEGO Batman: The Videogame

By Marc Saltzman, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 8+

A fun -- albeit predictable -- cartoon adventure.

Game Xbox 360 , PlayStation 3 , PSP , Nintendo Wii , Nintendo DS , Windows , PlayStation 2 2008
LEGO Batman: The Videogame Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

What you will—and won't—find in this game.

Community Reviews

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age 6+

Based on 14 parent reviews

dodger23
dodger23 Parent of 5, 7 and 7-year-old
June 21, 2012
age 6+

Great except for one caveat...

It's easy to play, has fun levels and my 5-year-old loves it. The violence is all Lego-busting, so I'm so much concerned with that, though some might take pause due to its effects on their children. The one downside is that it seems half of the gameplay is reserved for playing as villains and beating up/defeating "good guys" (policemen, etc.). Not the best idea for my son to pretend to beat up authority figures.

This title has:

Great messages
Too much violence
Easy to play/use
1 person found this helpful.
bellaMOM
bellaMOM Parent of 7-year-old
September 12, 2009
age 6+

Fun for kids

Kids, boys especially seem to like this game. Although they do destroy other players it is just lego blocks breaking apart and they always come back to life. As far as games go that involve "shooting" the lego ones seem the best since it is a toy kids are familiar with and they understand how they are just toys, they come apart and go back together. There are parts where my 7 year old gets "stuck" and frustrated at times and prefers to play with an adult. I noticed that the info above says it is $59.99 though, we got it at a major store for $19.99 - so I would not pay more than that for it.
1 person found this helpful.
See all 14 parent reviews

What’s It About?

Following the critically acclaimed and commercially successful LEGO Star Wars and LEGO Indiana Jones video games come – surprise, surprise -- an all-new LEGO adventure, now starring the Caped Crusader. As with its family-friendly predecessors, LEGO BATMAN: THE VIDEOGAME from Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment fuses the beloved children's building toy with familiar superheroes and villains.

Played from a third-person perspective, gamers control a LEGO version of Batman and Robin, in an original storyline that has the dynamic duo taking on Gotham City's most notorious criminal masterminds -- including The Joker, Catwoman, The Penguin, The Riddler, Scarecrow, Two-Face, and Poison Ivy – after they've all escaped from Arkham Asylum. Players will also be able to play as the villains, with specific missions designed just for them. Ripped right out of the classic television show, locations range from underground sewers to rooftops to Gotham's busy streets – and players can unlock familiar vehicles such as the Batmobile, Batwing, and Batboat.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say (14 ):
Kids say (54 ):

While fun, and the graphics are kitschy and colorful, Lego Batman: The Videogame plays nearly identical to the other LEGO games (also designed by the UK's Traveller's Tales). Sure, there are new characters, environments, missions, and gadgets (Batman's Demolition suit, for instance) but essentially it's the same core gameplay: fight enemies, collect LEGO studs and bricks, build new items, unlock new playable characters, and do all this with a friend jumping in and out to play with you in coop mode. That said, fans of Batman and past LEGO games might not want the developer to "toy" with the formula too much, but it certainly feels like it's simply a new coat of paint on an older game mechanic.

The Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and PC versions of the game look about on par with one another, offering up to 720p/1080p high-definition graphics (on compatible televisions or monitors), while the PlayStation 2, PlayStation Portable (PSP) and Nintendo Wii versions look a bit grainier than the high-def versions. The Wii version also lets you use motion controls to play the game with the Wii Remote. The Nintendo DS version, on the other hand, is a completely different game altogether (also created by Traveller's Tales).

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about whether it's time to refresh the LEGO game mechanic or should Traveller's Tales keep cranking out the same game but tied to new movie, TV show, or comic book franchises? Did you play as a villain? How did that make you feel?

Game Details

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