LEGO Star Wars

Lego. Never got into it myself. Sure, as a two year old it seemed like a viable alternative to baby food, but building stuff with it? I don't think so. After all that work making stuff, what did it do? Nothing! It just sits there! Move, lego horsey, move!

Eidos figured out what I knew decades ago, and have produced a game where your lego moves. And just to add a little sauce, it's a Star Wars themed lego game to boot.

You may be sitting there saying "err, isn't lego for little kids and guys who don't wash enough?" And you'd be right, kind of. But like the best kid games, this one is just as enjoyable to mess around with. Yes, it's not exactly the most difficult game on the market, but damn, it looks good, sounds good, and most of all, it plays great.

The Star Wars involvement doesn't merely rely on using Star Wars themed lego, no sir. What you get here is scenes recreated from episodes I-III. And there's a full roster of players to control - both good and evil - with individual abilities. So even though you may thrash the game senseless, you will be able to go through with different characters.

So what is it that you actually do in Lego Star Wars? It's largely in the mould of so many 3D platform/adventure style games, but there's minimal exploration involved. You get some vehicle riding, and some fantastic Lego-cinematic showdowns between pivotal characters.

Fringe benefits? There's a bunch of cool Star Wars vehicles to mess with, a funky two player co-op mode where another gamer can join and/or leave at any time. There's even the ability to use the Force to rock the blocks off your little friends. Well, enemies.

Strange comparison, but Lego Star Wars brings to mind the movie Team America. The action is so engrossing that you forget about the context it's presented in. Just as in Team America you catch yourself forgetting that it's puppets presenting the action, in Lego Star Wars there's times that you get so caught up that you don't realise that this is, well, Lego! If you're comfortable in your gamerdom to give games like Jak and Daxter or Ratchet and Clank a run, there's definitely a room on your shelf for this beauty. And the bonus: it works just as well for the kids.