Scattered Thoughts on LEGO Star Wars II

[krpalmer]

Although unequipped with a "video game console" of any description, I did get "LEGO Star Wars II: The Original Trilogy" to play on my computer for a Christmas present. After finishing all of the levels and playing through all three movies, I find myself thinking it's the next best thing to buying all of the Star Wars LEGO sets to actually have the plastic in your hands (although a good number of the "minifigures" were eventually included in some small, inexpensive sets)... although in some ways I find myself conscious of how the needs of the game reshape the story of the movies. The animated cutscenes play out in comedic pantomime (a scene shown in the trailer for the "Complete Saga" version of the game, where Darth Vader shows Luke a picture of Anakin and Padme, was in fact in this game first) and apparently can't be skipped no matter how many times you have to start the level over again, but more than that the way levels play out can seem different.

Picking up small, round LEGO pieces along the way to turn them in for extra characters and bonuses makes every level a sort of long obstacle course, and with every level built for the possibility of two people playing simultaneously, not just two but three crucial moments in the movies where Luke was facing things unassisted now give him a companion. Still, movies are movies and games are games, and after giving my brother the "Complete Saga" version for his video game console as a birthday present I got to try out the two-player mode there, which would seem to add the next level of entertainment.