Lego: Marvel Super Heroes – PlayStation 3 Reviews

Yes,it’s more smashing objects, completing missions, smashing objects, unlocking characters, smashing objects, collecting studs (for the curious, this time you get "True Believer" because of course you do), and smashing even more objects. It’s a formula that works, and if this game lacks any sense of real innovation (though there are actually times when it benefits you to have the Hulk turn into Bruce Banner), it makes up for that with a good sense of fun.

In the game, our heroes deal with Doctor Doom and Loki, who have teamed up to recover Cosmic Bricks left by the Silver Surfer. Within the first mission and cut scenes thereafter, you see not only those three characters, but also Sandman, the Abomination, the Hulk, Spider-Man, Iron Man, Maria Hill, Agent Coulson, Nick Fury, Captain America and Mister Fantastic.

The game is good clean fun, and suitable for ages six and up, roughly. The violence is far less than what you’d get with the average kids cartoon, and the puzzles may baffle the youngest players, but the older ones will do just fine.

I’m overall extremely pleased with this game. TT continues to prove that they really "get" the various franchises they work with and that they understand what makes Lego so much fun.

I’m a few hours into the game, and so far my six-year-old nephew and I are loving it! Normally, he hates playing any game by himself and nags me to play with him. For the first time, he played it without me. I honestly gawked at him and told him to wait for me, since I also wanted to play it. He didn’t wait.

The graphics look absolutely gorgeous and this game has all the charm and personality like the other Lego titles. It’s very child-friendly and has mild, cartoonish violence. You play a plethora of super heroes all in one game. My inner-child is over the moon! You start off with the Hulk and Iron Man and then you’re later joined by Spidey. I thoroughly enjoyed making the ground shake with my massive thumps and throwing cars and massive objects into the air while playing as The Hulk. It was also fun transforming into Bruce Banner and then transforming into the Hulk (whenever you wish) while pressing the Triangle Button. My nephew had a blast flying through the air as Iron Man and checking out his powers.

You’re introduced to a new set of super heroes with each upcoming mission. Each Super Hero has a unique power, so even though there is button mashing, you get to explore and use that power. Captain America can put out and walk through fire, while Mister Fantastic Four could glide and turn into objects (much like The Green Lantern in Batman 2) and the Black Widow could turn invisible. My nephew kept on hogging Spidey because his abilities are and I quote, “awesome.” Each Super Hero works with another in order to perform puzzles and bypass certain obstacles. Each mission ends with a boss fight( a villainous, iconic character – which was fun). The variety of super heroes with their unique powers will keep even the most restless person engaged. I haven’t even gotten around to collecting the bricks yet, and I’m already having a blast! Like Gotham City, the New York hub looks beautiful and massive. There is a lot of detail put into it. You get a mini-map with a holographic guide (which can also be enlarged).

Unfortunately, just like every other Lego title I’ve played, there are some glitches in this game where you can get stuck and have to quit the game and start over. (So far it’s only happened to me just once.) But other than that, if you have enjoyed previous Lego titles, then buy this! This is among the best Lego games I’ve ever played (and I’ve played every single title)!

I also hate having to play the game, especially when it glitches. And it does glitch. Very badly at least once per session. Sometimes two or three times and that’s when I have to shut off the system and walk away. The game tends to lock up when transitioning between scenes and nothing less than a hard restart will fix it.

Another problem I’ve had is with losing characters in spots that I can’t retrieve them from. The only way to get them out of it is to switch to another character and hope you don’t need the stuck one to do anything. Usually once you’re far enough away they will magically appear next to you, but I’ve had to restart a level a few times because it doesn’t work. It’s a less noticeable problem in free play than it is in story mode.

The game also suffers from lopsided training. You’re walked through how a few character’s actions will help you progress with the game. Coulson points out some things for you and onscreen tips appear. Problem is, it doesn’t actually end. You keep getting the same tips on an endless repeat as if you haven’t already learned them, and when you start unlocking other characters they don’t get the same treatment. You just have to experiment with them to find out how to use them, and that’s fine but it’d be nice if I could play through a level and not be reminded every five seconds that only web slingers can pull certain objects down. Maybe an option to turn the tips off? Just a thought here.

The triangle button is overloaded as well on some characters. The ones who have two forms like Hulk, Venom, and Spiderman (these are the ones it’s most obvious to me on) use the triangle button to transform. The problem is that button is also use to bring up the character selection screen in freeplay and is used to switch between partners. I’ve been stuck in a loop with Venom and Hulk trying to get the selection screen up and failing too often for my pride to let this problem slide. One or more of these actions could have easily been put on another button.

And, finally, skipping scenes! There needs to be more of it. Especially after you’ve played through in story mode and are revisiting levels to get the minikits or to save Stan. I don’t need to go through the story again and again and again! Allow me the option to skip it, please. I know it’s possible. The option comes up every once in a while, and I just wish it’d be available more. As it is, I have a book next to me when I play for something else to do while I wait to play.

It’s a lot of complaints for a game that I do love to play, but these are problems that prevent me from giving the game a higher rating. I could go on about the bulky controls for vehicles and the absolute lack of explanation on how to buy characters once you’ve unlocked them. Or the lack of explanation on many things really. Or about the lack of a key in the map that lets you know what all those symbols really mean. I could, but those are all kinda minor compared to the other problems. It’s a great, fun game. I just wish it weren’t so annoying to play sometimes.