LEGO Star Wars II: The Original Trilogy (Xbox 360)

Graphics

For all the cute-Lego-style graphics LSW 2 actually has a lot going for it. The Lego-style graphics are excellent in design and the developers have implemented all the effects that we know and love. The environments and the characters are all well realised and you can see key items, spaceships, locations and other elements of the Star Wars universe have been brought to life with a loving hand.

These things aren’t just thrown together. The use of lighting, shadows and even a reflective shiny texturing (with bloom) effect to make the pieces look like plastic bring the game world to life with a bright palette and a definite eye for small details.

The level of eye candy is sufficient in the game to make it stand out from the crowd, with the PC and 360 versions looking the best.

Models

Everything is constructed from Lego and the design of the game in that respect is flawless. From the Lego Death Star to the Lego Millennium Falcon it’s all there and modelled perfectly. Even the characters have that Lego feel and they all have a distinct visual personality, right down to the rogue charmer Lando or the slick Han Solo, the design is excellent.

The vehicles, vessels and backgrounds are definitely a step above the first game and they are certainly more complex. Both in terms of the modelling and in terms of the way they can be built from separate pieces of Lego.

Animations

The game is packed with fun and quirky animations, from the characters to the vehicles, there’s always something going on. The way the controls have been tweaked ties into the animation engine and now when you tap the X button whilst under fire with someone like Han Solo, you are treated to a quick dodge and attack, do this several times and Han delivers a quick-fire riposte to any enemies that are shooting at him whilst stepping out of the way of the shots.

Every character can do something funny or useful; Bounty Hunters will often have a Thermal Detonator ability (animation) that lets them destroy certain things other characters cannot. Some characters interact with another as well; try hitting Leia with Lando to see what we mean.

Chewie has an amusing animation where he pops the arms off any enemy that you are in close combat with. Yep, that’s what happens if you upset a wookie.

AI

There’s a simple but effective AI behind the game. Your ally characters aren’t often that much use in a fight, but when it comes to solving puzzles and getting around the level with you, they’re pretty good – a lot of the time they’re actually better at navigation than we were.

When it comes to a Force based puzzle, the opposite character will actually attempt to assist you or use the power to levitate a block you’re standing on so you might gain some height and get at an elusive part of the level, be it a Mini-kit or a Power Brick for example.

With a button related puzzle then the AI will attempt to press the button, pull the lever or activate the puzzle with you. It’s simple but effective as I said previously, and that’s pretty much the extent of the AI in the game.

Physics

Simple physics make the game fun and enjoyable, there’s not much in the way of advanced physics and that’s about it.

Sound

I have no complaints about the sound in the game, nor should I. The developers have access to a wide variety of Star Wars sound effects thanks to Lucas’ extensive library built over the years. The ‘swoosh’ of a speeder bike, the whine of a Blastech DL-44 pistol and the roar of the Falcon’s engines are all here reproduced perfectly.

The spot audio effects are great and there are lots of nice little touches through the whole game like this, some of them you only get to hear if you wander around off the beaten track (which it’s possible to do in some levels).

Music

John Williams’ original score is utilised to great effect through the game, there’s not much can be said about that. The music still brings a lump to my throat every time I hear it and I’m transported back to the cinema when I first saw Star Wars IV: A New Hope, at its premiere.

Voice

There isn’t any spoken dialogue. The approach has always been fairly Sims like in that respect with vocalisations rather than anything concrete. There are some nice vocal touches though, such as the Emperor’s evil cackle when you’re running around in Free Play or the occasional whistle of R2-D2 as you explore.

A New Hope?

There’s not much that can be said about Lego Star Wars 2 beyond the fact that it’s a fun and engaging game, some people might find it a little too hard in places since the Adaptive Difficulty delivers an excellent level of challenge. Younger players might have a problem with some of the puzzles but it’s a family game with no blood and gore, a flawed drop-in and drop-out co-op mode could get irksome quickly as the other player has to drop-out regularly to allow the first to solve a puzzle or make a tricky jump.

If they can fix the co-op aspect of the game then it would definitely be worth a higher score, the fact that the camera is pretty much stuck in one direction with very little control over where it moves, the irksome way it drags the other character off the screen with you is a detriment to what I consider a great game.

I hope they continue to improve the franchise with more quality Lego Star Wars titles, and perhaps see a few other genres faithfully re-created in Lego.