Peppermint_M Posted December 14, 2015 Hello fellow LEGO gaming fans. I am here today to post a review of the new and exciting LEGO Dimensions! As I am still so last gen, this will be for the Xbox 360 version of the game, but gameplay isn't different across platforms when it comes to the exciting bits. I will readily admit, the only games I really play are the LEGO games and Disney Infinity, so Dimensions has given me the best of both worlds. I hope this is an informative review that will assist you in choosing to purchase this game for yourself as an AFOL or for your children as a parent. From the LEGO Shop website we have the usual excitement building blurb: When a mysterious and powerful vortex suddenly appears in various LEGO® worlds, different characters from DC Comics, The Lord of the Rings™ and THE LEGO MOVIE™ are swept away. In a bid to save their friends, Batman™, Gandalf™ and Wyldstyle™ bravely jump into the vortex, but soon find themselves fighting to save all of LEGO humanity. Let creativity be your guide to a building and gaming adventure—journey through unexpected worlds and team up with unlikely allies on a quest to defeat the evil LordVortech. Play with a range of characters from different worlds together in one LEGO video game, and help them use each other’s vehicles and gadgets in a way never before possible. Attach the minifigures to their LEGO Toy Tags and place them on the LEGO Toy Pad to bring them to life in the LEGO DIMENSIONS™ game. Activate each character’s special in-game abilities to solve puzzles and battle enemies, add the Batmobile for a boost of speed, and then rebuild it for upgraded abilities! When you’re ready for more, expand your collection with Level, Team and Fun Packs from the LEGO DIMENSIONS product line.Includes buildable Batman™, Wyldstyle™ and Gandalf™ minifigures and 3-in-1 Batmobile, each with a detachable LEGO® Toy Tag. Rebuild the 3-in-1 Batmobile into The Batblaster and Sonic Batray for extra in-game abilities. Also includes Batman’s Batarang, Wyldstyle´s relic scanner and Gandalf’s staff. Activate Batman’s special Grapple, Boomerang and Stealth abilities; Wyldstyle’s Relic Detector, Acrobat and Master Build abilities; and Gandalf’s Magic, Magical Shield and Illumination abilities to crack puzzles and overpower enemies. Place up to 7 LEGO® DIMENSIONS™ toys on the LEGO Toy Pad simultaneously and set out on exciting in-game adventures. Collect your favorite LEGO® DIMENSIONS™ characters and use them in-game together for a crazy mash-up multiverse. Visit LEGO.com/dimensions for more information on this exciting LEGO® building and video gaming experience. Xbox 360® game system with a minimum of 2GB available hard disk space and Internet connection required. Collect LEGO® DIMENSIONS™ Team, Level and Fun Packs to unlock additional content. LEGO® DIMENSIONS™ characters and vehicles are required to interact with the LEGO DIMENSIONS video game. LEGO® Toy Pad with Gateway measures over 6” (16cm) high, 7” (19cm) wide and 4” (11cm) deep. Batmobile measures over 1” (4cm) high, 2” (6cm) long and 1” (3cm) wide (alternative 3-in-1 vehicle builds vary in size). The price list is pretty much what you would expect for a video game with added peripheral items. UK £89.99 US $99.99 Europe €99,99 It is hard to really tell you if it is worth the cost. A price-pre-piece judgement isn't going to cut it when you're buying an Xbox 360 game, three of the chipped figure stands and the base that reads them. It is really not the best way to get the particular figures either. By all the usual AFOL standards, it is a bit of an enigma. So on to the reviews proper: A nice big game box, that you may see on the shelf in store. All the usual information one expects of a box for a game that is a little more than just the disc. The back is a bit more exciting, just look at all the logos of popular franchises and themes that are involved! Though the build picture does not capture the truth. The repetitive truth... The box top has that all important list of items to collect and enhance the game with. Ready to tell the kids all the other goodies they need to get and for you completists to check against. Inside the box there is everything you need to play the game. Reader, Dimension Gate Building Set, Game Disc, a little booklet that directs you to help and FAQ's and a larger sheet that is a double sided tick list of everything there is to collect currently. It is actually quite similar to a sheet included in Disney Infinity 2.0. That has all the collectable power discs pictured, so you know exactly what else you need to purchase The base, quite pleasingly, is not only compatible to LEGO from the two sets of four studs that are part of the structure. It measures 24 studs on the longest side and 18 on the shorter. As it matches with stud measures there is opportunity to construct all kinds of exciting surrounds Here is a picture. Portal The box is printed with more of the same artwork and another tick-box picture list of the exciting other sets to collect. Exciting, action packed artwork and a photo of the built model. As you can see, this is only for sale with the base game and not designed for re-sale. Yup. That is what you can collect and what's coming soon. It fills space and reminds you what to buy. Here we have the contents of the box. All the parts you need to build a portal and a teeny tiny Batmobile. The portal/gate set box has three numbered bags, the special modified plate that fits over the game-base, an instruction booklet and the DDS. Though it is only a tiny one and has survived intact here. Batman is not quite the same figure as his other appearances. While he has the 2015 minifig batsuit torso, the headgear is still the old version of the cowl with the chin bar. The capes for Gandalf and Batman are not the 2015 cape fabric either, but the old stuff we're used to. Wyldstyle is the same figure that appears in the Bad Cop Car Chase set. This time she also has the relic detector, a printed tile. Gandalf is the same figure from the Lord of the Rings LEGO sets, though bricklink cites the cape as a new part and therefore making a new figure. What sets these apart are the attractively printed game piece figure stands, or tags. They are thicker than a plate as they have to contain the chip that the game base reads. The printing is unique for each character, so you can easily take the figures away and still play or amuse yourself endlessly by putting the wrong figure on the base but the game still playing the correct character. Once more we also have an orange new-style brick tool. This looks like it will get a lot of use for the fiddly mini-build vehicles, save your fingernails! Bag 2 And now on to the gateway itself. Bag two has all the parts you need to build the gate. This has some wonderful printed shields with enigmatic symbols upon them. Plenty of azure, dark blue and transparent light blue. As you can probably tell from the many multiples of parts there is a lot of repeated building. A lot. The Build: It is a reasonable build process, a few neat techniques for a SNOT result. However it is very, very same-y. With the steps obviously created with children in mind there are a few pages taken in placing the "A" plates into a circle and a few of the steps are just placing 14 of the same part onto the build. Of course, a symmetrical repetitive design was going to need that sort of parts placement, so it isn't a fault really. Just monotonous and a little boring. The result is a pleasing gate design, however. As you can see, the dimension stones (The printed shields) are not in place on the portal. They hook onto the back! (I took the base away for this shot, no point in having all that cable in the way!) Mysteriously, the book ends with the advice that further building instructions will arrive in-game... This also explains why the shields are placed at the back of the portal to begin with, which seemed a little wasteful on first glance until my brother suggested that it was probably a game objective to collect and place the symbols on the gate. On to interesting parts! Lots and lots of lovely azure. The "A" plates are particularly great. By no means is this set an economical way to get the colour though. However, for now there are parts that are only in Dimensions: The afore mentioned printed relic detector tile. I'm a sucker for printed tiles, loved them since I was a child, and this is a rather clever one. This plate might have a lot of uses for a clever MOCist. While the design clearly intends it to sit over the central "stud" of the reader, there are at least four ideas I have for uses in at least as many different themes. Printed shields! Who can dislike printed shields? This time in transparent purple. Surely these mystery symbols will mean something? The game will explain all. I can see fans of SciFi, Techno-castle and EB's own Heroica the RPG desiring these lovely parts. There are a handful of basic parts appearing in new colours in this set too. Nothing super exciting or rare though, I can see them repeating in a myriad others if that isn't already the case. Build - 4/10. Placing 14 of the same part, three times, was frustrating for me and would certainly bore any children. Parts - 10/10. The shields and azure bumped the score high. Batmobile This was the contents of bag 3. I had to wait for the game to start building it. A lot of little parts to build a little model and a spare Batarang too. After completing some tasks in-game you require a vehicle. An instruction manual pops up on screen and off you build. Again, I would say they are simplified instructions and this time without the ability to quickly flick through a booklet. It is a cute little model though, a lot like a mini-kit you would collect in the Batman games. A clever use of small parts for big details. The new part used here is so far only in sets that are part of the Dimensions theme. A most wonderful new element for fans of vehicles. It is something I know that I have wanted for quite a while. All in all, I'd rate this little one a 9/10. Clever parts usage, a nice model to finish off with and a new part too. I would recommend that you have a tray or a nice surface to work with while playing though, the little parts for the little model are easier to corral when building. The Bat Blaster This is an upgrade you unlock and then purchase using studs and gold bricks. It will overwrite the toy tag information to make this an option when playing. Like in the other LEGO games when a character has multiple abilities, there is an option to change which Batmobile power/version you are using. Building only uses the exact same parts as the batmobile, so you needn't worry about the spare parts that came in Bag 3. It is a neat little build, taking about the expected number of steps on-screen. The design is... interesting. It looks like any one of the unusual Bat-vehicles out there that may have appeared in the gadget heavy 60s comics or the hundreds of random action figure tie-in toys that turn up (Neon talking street luge anyone?). It was well done considering it could only use the same parts that also form the Batmobile. The Sonic Batray When I heard the name I wasn't impressed. But this is pretty darn cool as far as random Bat-vehicles go, design wise anyway. The build is once again an on-screen booklet that takes far too long to page through (I'm impatient...). But the result is a Bat Ray that if it was in shades of black and really really dark grey, wouldn't look out of place in the Nolan-Verse Batman's motor pool. I would rate the builds an 8/10. The designers had a tough job turning one Batmobile into two other useful things that still looked "bat" enough. Th end result came out well. Parts 10/10 purely for how well everything is used and how the vehicle is depicted in such a small scale. Gameplay Much like any other LEGO game, you are a minifigure character in a world made of a mixture of LEGO built items you can break and regular graphics that you can't. I'm not going to share plot spoilers or cutscene information because they are half the fun of a game after all! I have been having a lot of fun playing through it though and always have a willing player two in the queue. You start off, of course, with the three included characters and the events that lead them to team up. An interesting (and slightly confusing) new dynamic is the use of the base. Unlike other games that use a reader like this, there is a lot more than just placing the figure you want and playing. The base lights up in a number of colours and this is used initially as a puzzle to start the game. There are also instances where you have to move the figure around the base to activate powers, warp around puzzles or escape traps. The sections light up in different colours to clue you in on where to go, but it makes for a lot of moving around! I'd advise that this can easily be a three player game if you've got a lot of extra hands hanging around to watch! Two player like any other LEGO game and an extra set of hands to move the figures around for you. As my brother theorised, part of the game is collecting the printed shields in game, to stick to the gate as you progress. This involves a modification of the Master Builder feature of past games. This time an instruction manual appears on screen and you use this to build the physical model. Another thing to mention are the vehicle tags. The batmobile did not have a printed tag. Instead, once you complete the building steps during gameplay there is an option to save the model to the tag. So, while you can take the figures away and play elsewhere, I'd advise leaving the vehicles on the stands or it will get confusing fast. Try and have a tray or some other surface with edges so you can fiddle about building the vehicle /taking it apart/ building the new vehicle. It stops parts getting lost. Though, the tag and game won't know if you haven't rebuilt the physical model, so you could just keep your favourite one together Characters: The characters included in the game are not new to the world of LEGO Gaming. All three have appeared in other games. As I can't capture my own gaming, here are the character videos from the official LEGO Dimensions youtube channel. Gandalf Batman Wyldstyle Gameplay Comments On Characters. Just like every game, you switch characters to complete certain tasks or work as a team when playing two player mode. All three can drive the batmobile when it is used in the game. There are regular witty comments from the three as you play and sound effects when they interact with the game environment. Just as in other games, there are places and spaces you can only access with certain character abilities. Unlike the other LEGO games, this means actually purchasing some extras for real, or "Hiring" a hero using collected studs. The Hiring feature allows the player to borrow a character ability for thirty seconds, long enough to use it to unlock and access a hidden area or space. So you can complete it all without spending your money. A thoughtful inclusion. Final Comments LEGO Dimensions is fun to play. It took a little bit of getting used to with all the new things to take into account. However the new gameplay features meshed well with the old and familiar once you knew what was expected. There is a little more moving around than I'd like when videogaming but AFOLs and kids alike could easily corral a minion to assist. The storyline is entertaining and the humour that we have come to expect is present in the plot and the dialogue sound-bites while playing. It genuinely meshes the different universes well in the plot and gives gamers a chance to play LEGO versions of media franchises that would otherwise have not existed. The building is interactive with the game, which really is new and it will be interesting to see how it pans out in the long run. I wonder how many gamers will take to the idea. While yes, we are getting a lot more of the same when it comes to the game itself, that is always entertaining and the new dynamic just edges it over the more recent LEGO games simply for the novelty. Finally I'd like to thank EB and TLG for this fantastic opportunity. I love LEGO and I love both figure based gameplay and the LEGO Games, reviewing Dimensions has been a real treat. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
WarSquirrel Posted December 15, 2015 Nice review! The portal looks like a nice build and the figures are a great bonus! I would love to get the game but its not on PC Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
KlodsBrik Posted December 15, 2015 Thanks for the review. I was and is still thinking of making yet another review of this great game at some point in January, when i have loads of time. Since ive already started to review some funpacks, i might as well follow up with the whole of what i have from the Dimensions theme with time. When i first started playing it, i did build alongside the game. However when i made my MOD for the Toypad extension , i only builded the accesories that i found to look the best for it. I indeed love the game and think that even though its expensive, the playfeatures and cool packs ( something for everyones taste ) does make it worth the cost. I find it interesting how different the boxart is for PS3 compared to the XBox. As least of what i remember it to be. Again thanks for the review, its surely one review that we need to have here on EB indeed. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Staslegomaster Posted December 15, 2015 It reminds of the classic Star Gates of 1995 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Jody Meyer Posted December 15, 2015 Santa is bringing our family one for our PS4 for Xmas Also the homer expansion kit and Scooby Doo set...just have to wait for the superman though... , great review. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Jeff2Space Posted December 15, 2015 We find that building using the on screen instructions is easier if one person builds and another holds onto the controller to flip the pages. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Peppermint_M Posted December 15, 2015 We find that building using the on screen instructions is easier if one person builds and another holds onto the controller to flip the pages. Even better, makes it much more a two player game! With all the steps the portal had, I am glad that there was a paper copy to work from in the first place though. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
LEGODalekbuster523 Posted December 15, 2015 Nice review, although I don't get the point of the orange piece you mentioned (I assume you mean this one: http://i.stack.imgur.com/Z4vMP.jpg ?). It was included in the Ecto-1 set too but I didn't find any purpose for using it. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
paul_delahaye Posted December 15, 2015 I might pick this up at some point, I just have concerns about the long term future of a game like this. I appreciate the likes of WOW have their regular followers, I'm just not sure people are going to spend £500 on a complete set, and then buy more and more figures over the next couple of years as they come out. I hope it's a success, but a little bit of me thinks it might be better not to get sucked into this one. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Peppermint_M Posted December 15, 2015 Nice review, although I don't get the point of the orange piece you mentioned (I assume you mean this one: http://i.stack.imgur.com/Z4vMP.jpg ?). It was included in the Ecto-1 set too but I didn't find any purpose for using it. This is the Brick Separator Tool. You can use it to separate plates and bricks, the little tricky parts that otherwise destroy fingernails (and credit cards!) With all the rebuilding of such small models as the vehicle sets, you will find it very helpful! I might pick this up at some point, I just have concerns about the long term future of a game like this. I appreciate the likes of WOW have their regular followers, I'm just not sure people are going to spend £500 on a complete set, and then buy more and more figures over the next couple of years as they come out. I hope it's a success, but a little bit of me thinks it might be better not to get sucked into this one. Skylanders has been going strong for some time now, and Disney Infinity is on its third iteration. It will be interesting to see how things go with Dimensions. Especially the licensed to LEGO theme ratio we'll get in future packs. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
rollermonkey Posted December 15, 2015 While the review is nice, this game, like Skylanders and Disney Infinity before it, represents the absolute WORST of what video games have become: A way to release an incomplete gaming experience, then nickel-and-dime the customer to death with horribly overpriced expansions. If someone bought my daughter this as a gift, I would know that person hated me. ...and it would get exchanged for almost anything else. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
KlodsBrik Posted December 16, 2015 While the review is nice, this game, like Skylanders and Disney Infinity before it, represents the absolute WORST of what video games have become: A way to release an incomplete gaming experience, then nickel-and-dime the customer to death with horribly overpriced expansions. If someone bought my daughter this as a gift, I would know that person hated me. ...and it would get exchanged for almost anything else. Hahaha ... Yeah, you have a point there. And thats also the only thing i dislike about LEGO Dimensions. I really didnt pay any attention to it till i heard of the Doctor Who packs for it. Unfortunately this is how the world works. Nothing is for free, if you want something you have to pay for it. At least we dont have to pay a monthly fee as with WOW. Not saying im a fan of this system as with infinity and skylanders, however im glad it actually has real LEGO as a content so its not only the game i pay for. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
LEGO Train 12 Volts Posted December 16, 2015 The new slopes in light bluish color are new! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
mediumsnowman Posted December 16, 2015 Nice review, thanks. I've tried to hold off on getting sucked into Dimensions. Unfortunately today I broke down and bought the BTTF level pack on sale at Target. I love the hoverboard and the mini DeLorean is just so cute. Now we'll have to see if the full game will enter the household... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Jeff2Space Posted December 16, 2015 Even better, makes it much more a two player game! With all the steps the portal had, I am glad that there was a paper copy to work from in the first place though. On our PS3, that paper copy came in handy, because I swear the updates to the system and to the game took at least a half an hour. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
LEGODalekbuster523 Posted December 16, 2015 This is the Brick Separator Tool. You can use it to separate plates and bricks, the little tricky parts that otherwise destroy fingernails (and credit cards!) With all the rebuilding of such small models as the vehicle sets, you will find it very helpful! Thanks, that makes sense. When I saw it in the Ghostbusters Ecto-1 set ages ago, I thought it was actually a LEGO piece part of the overall look and couldn't work out why it never came up in the instructions! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
