And when we say no frills, it really means no frills. Even if it means mixing universes that have nothing to do (to create the famous multiverse), TT Games does not go there with the back of the spoon. Gandalf, Batman and Cool Tag find themselves forced to cross different worlds through a dimensional portal to find the companions who have been snatched up by mysterious rifts. And it is the very evil Lord Vortech, who brings together an army of bad guys in order to control and dominate the multiverse, who seems to be behind these disappearances...
FAITHFUL AND WTF AT ONCE
You will understand, we do not come here for the scenario but rather for the variety of universes offered. You will be able to visit fourteen worlds within the framework of the main scenario, to which must be added those that are unlockable by purchasing different expansions. You can consider these as side missions. There is therefore plenty to do, both in terms of tastes and playing time, especially since Warner will extend the list of worlds available later. The game levels are very faithful to the licenses to which they refer; a good impression reinforced by the very correct realization of the title of TT (even if it is obviously not the madness level requirement). And if the winks are numerous, we already detect a small pitfall in this encouraging picture: the mixing of licenses wrongly and through. So, yes, maybe it's an old fool's idea, yes, it's what the game is about, and yes, it can be relatively fun, with winks all over the place. But these facetious replies are aimed above all at accompanying parents rather than at young players, who will not have the keys to grasp these references. On the other hand, they will remember that they can beat Saruman on a Chinese dragon with the Batmobile... Not necessarily glop.ACCESSIBLE, FAILING TO BE ORIGINAL
The advantage of LEGO is that they didn't necessarily have to adapt gameplay for an inexperienced audience. Indeed, if you have already played a title stamped LEGO, you should know that they have long been intended for this type of audience. Consequence: the novelty is not necessarily there in terms of gameplay. LEGO Dimensions applies 95% of the same recipe as its predecessors. The handling is simplistic, the controls are few and you can always switch between your characters during the game. And as before, we spend most of our time farting things to collect LEGO currency, which can be spent on various improvements or renovations of worlds damaged by temporal faults. It is certainly adapted to the target audience, but if you are not one of them, you risk being bored as everything is guided. Moreover, the game also inherits the faults of its ancestors, and that is much more problematic. Legibility problems, irremovable and often misplaced camera, cruel lack of in-game indications: we sometimes get stuck for long minutes because of an interaction that is not visible enough or a badly put together puzzle... The game will use this large USB base, and its division into three areas, to pose small puzzles to the player
And speaking of puzzles, it's time to talk about the figurines and their interactions with the game, since obviously the constructability of the different elements has left false ideas in the air. First of all, know that LEGO Dimensions does not differ much from its competitors in terms of hardware: you always have a base to plug into your console by USB, and figurines to put on it to bring the characters represented into the game. However, thanks to the size of the LEGO heroes, you will be able to put up to seven minifigures simultaneously on the base, which is an interesting point. Indeed, the game will use this large USB base, and its division into three zones, to pose small puzzles to the player. For example, he will ask him to move a hero from one area of the base to another to get rid of an enchantment, or even to reproduce a colored scheme by painting the characters in-game and then moving them on the base. These are really good ideas, which really stand out from the competition and which establish a different relationship with miniatures. However, the puzzles are very often complicated for a young or novice audience, who will necessarily need a guide (they themselves should still rail against the lack of explanations...).
THE BAMBOO COUP IN THE WALLET
As for editing, let's be clear: there's no direct relationship between what you're editing and what actually appears in-game. It's the NFC chips that do all the work. The game therefore encourages you to assemble your figurines and elements thanks to instructions that appear on the television screen, but nothing is compulsory. We can very well play with the bases only, it is only cosmetic! At the same time, it would have been complicated to do otherwise and we will nevertheless underline the incentive for children to edit. But a problem still quickly points the tip of its huge nose: the price of this new range of video toys. To be honest with you, we knew the exorbitant prices charged by LEGO for its usual products, so we expected something expensive. In fact, it is very expensive. Too expensive. Count between 90 and 100 euros for the Starter Pack which contains in addition to the game, the USB base, four rikiki figurines and a not huge gate to mount just for fun. Count 25 to 30 euros for an extension that will contain at best two or three figurines and an in-game mission. Not only is this an impossible pace for most players and parents to follow, but many children might be disappointed to see so little content in each box...
