Taking cues from Lego Incredibles and Marvel Super Heroes 2, Lego DC Super Villains is another Lego game that makes minor improvements to the familiar, accessible, and fun Lego formula, even if it could use a couple touch-ups.
Lego DC Super Villains
Developer: TT Games
Price: $59.99
Platforms: PS4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, and PC
MonsterVine was provided with a PS4 copy for review
I view Lego games as the comfort food of gaming. They aren’t very complicated or difficult to get into, but they’re the perfect way to unwind after a long or stressful day. Lego DC Super Villains is no exception, as I found myself enjoying it most after a long day of commuting, school, work, and all those other pesky responsibilities. It’s not a revolutionary title, and it still has a couple hiccups, but Lego DC Super Villains is still plenty of good, easy fun.
As the name implies, Lego DC Super Villains is all about the bad guys that make DC so legendary in the comics industry. Loosely based on the Crisis on Two Earths storyline, Lego DC Super Villains kicks off when Earth-3’s Crime Syndicate switches Earths with the Justice League. Though the Crime Syndicate manages to fool Earth-1’s population into thinking they’re replacement heroes, Earth 1’s villains learn the truth about Crime Syndicate. In order to defeat the more dangerous Crime Syndicate and the mysterious figure behind them, the Earth-1 villains (led by Lex Luthor) have to save the Justice League from their otherworldly prison. It’s a lighter take on, in my opinion, one of DC’s best stories, but the idea of heroes and villains swapping places works well with the slapstick/physical humor that Lego games are known for.
While cultural icons like the Joker and Harley Quinn are obviously present and prevalent in the story, Lego DC Super Villains equally spreads its focus to quite a few lesser-known villains all throughout the story. Foes like Mirror Master, Killer Frost, and Livewire are all prominently featured at different parts of the story, adding some spice to the standard Joker/Luthor/Sinestro group that is so easy to use in crossover stories. I also like that you play as your own supervillain in the story, as you can get pretty creative with how silly/cool you look and how overpowered you are.
“It seems like the lack of side-content in Lego The Incredibles was simply a bump in the road, as Lego DC Super Villains is filled-to-the-brim with collectibles and side-missions, as it should be.“
The gameplay of Lego DC Super Villains is the same as that of recent Lego games, focusing on puzzles, light combat, and open-world exploration. Each level feels different and focuses on different characters/environments, but they all share the goofy but reverent tone that Lego adaptations are known for. Levels never go on too long, though having to go between multiple buildings and screen transitions just to buy Red Bricks and find certain collectibles/quests is a pain, especially with the somewhat burdensome load times.
It seems like the lack of side-content in Lego The Incredibles was simply a bump in the road, as Lego DC Super Villains is filled-to-the-brim with collectibles and side-missions, as it should be. There’s plenty to do across the two different open-world maps that Lego DC Super Villains boasts, and on that note, plenty of characters to unlock. The amount of minor unlockable characters is worth mentioning, as is the rather satisfactory number of characters whose popularity has risen from recent runs since the last Lego DC game. If you had told me that Tom King’s take on Mister Miracle would be in a Lego game with the Clock King and Red Hood and the Outlaws’s take on Bizarro, I’d have been shocked. Now, I’m just glad.
Lego DC Super Villains continues the trend of recent Lego games looking fantastic. I love that that each minifig and build looks as if it was made from real Lego. Each iconic character is made even more realistic through the game’s top-notch voicework. Legendary voice talent like Kevin Conroy, Mark Hamill, Tara Strong, and Michael Rosenbaum all voice the characters that they’re known for, and they do it perfectly. Also as a Reverse Flash fanboy, I was immensely excited to hear C. Thomas Howell return as the Flash’s greatest rival.
The Final Word
Lego DC Super Villains is fun, familiar, and full of stuff to do. If you love DC Comics, Lego games, or you just want an easy game to run around in after a long day, Lego DC Super Villains is certainly worth looking at. If you aren’t big on Lego games, it won’t change your mind, but it’s a lot of accessible fun for anyone interested.
MonsterVine Review Score: 4 out of 5 – Good
