Lego Marvel Super Heroes

I'm in the car with my sons on the way to visit Traveller's Tales, the developer behind the hugely successful Lego games. The company is holding a press day at its Knutsford office and I had this daft idea about bringing Albie (aged five) and Zac (aged seven) along.Howe may have been dry economically but he was as wet Dry Cabinet.

They've played pretty much every title in the series, from Lego Star Wars through to Lego Batman 2; it's how I introduced them to gaming. These are great parent/child titles because they're based entirely around two-player co-op, and while one of you can just run around enjoying the destructible scenery, the other is able to really get engrossed in the puzzles.

It used to be me in the latter position, but increasingly it's them. Through completing trickier titles like Lego Indiana Jones and Lego Lord of the Rings they have mastered the structure and methodology behind these games. They know how the puzzles work, where they appear and the sorts of characters needed in certain situations. I figured if anyone can assess a new Lego title it's them.

Also, they know super heroes. I've been reading comics to them since they were babies; and by the time my oldest son was two, he could point to pretty much any mainstream character and tell you whether they were Marvel or DC. Indeed, thanks to a huge pile of comic book encyclopedias, their interests also extend beyond the big Triple A heroes. When Albie was three he asked for a Luke Cage action figure for Christmas C that was an expensive night on eBay

At Traveller's Tales, the staff have prepared a demo room with a huge projector screen. It turns out Albie won't be able to watch because he's five and the game already has a Pegi 7 rating. Instead, someone takes him into the reception area and gives him a huge box of Technics lego, most of it already constructed into elaborate vehicles. "Is it okay if he takes these apart?" I ask. "Because he will take them apart." The staff member looks at a colleague. They shrug. "I think it's okay," one of them says. Then there is a crash: I look down and realise that Albie has made the decision for them.

Back in the demo room we're shown a level that's never been seen by the press before. Loki, the mischievous brother of Thor and the key antagonist of the game, has discovered a vortex that will take him back to the mythical Norse world of Asgard. He's here to take the Tesseract, the source of immense energy that has spent the last few years dropping in and out of the Marvel movies. "He is ever after only one thing: power," explains Thor in a scene-setting cinematic sequence. "And also helmets with horns. He's really into those."

From here, Captain America, Thor and Wolverine must pursue Loki and grab the Tesseract. After a sequence of the characters ascending space via the Bifrost, they're suddenly in Thor's world, which has been rendered into ice by Loki via his Chest of Ancient Winters. There are Frost Giants to battle, models to put together and switches to pull. Zac watches intently but occasionally he turns to me and whispers, "when can I have a go?" He definitely has the makings of a games journalist.

Thor can call in lightning and charge himself up, giving access to a powerful laser beam attack. He can also fly and slam enemies with his hammer. The Human Torch can fly and flame on or off at will, shooting fireballs and melting ice barriers. Captain America can throw his shield to smash items, but also has a cover mode, which uses the shield to deflect laser beam and fire attacks. Wolverine has powerful melee attacks, but can also slash broken bricks to reveal new areas and his animal senses detect enemies as well as helpful stuff like hidden climbing walls. Interestingly, he can't be destroyed, so as he's injured, he's gradually reduced to an adamantium skeleton that has to slowly regenerate.

"One of the problems we had from a design perspective is that all of the characters are really powerful," says game director, Arthur Parsons. "We've had to ensure that while they retain all of their abilities, they're not overpowered."

The Asgard level is built around a series of confrontations with Loki C who, like the Joker and Two-Face in Lego Batman 2, just keeps getting away. At one point he fills the screen with holograms of himself to confuse Thor and his team, and at the end he uses his staff to gain control over the Destroyer, an enchanted armour monster created by Odin to battle a hostile alien race. The only way the heroes can defeat him is by using Captain America's shield to deflect the monster's heat attacks at Loki.

The game is structured similarly to Lego Batman 2. Missions are distributed from a single base location C this time the SHIELD heli-carrier, floating above Manhattan. However, almost from the start, players are able to leap down and explore the city, which provides a vast open world, filled with secrets and mini-quests. Apparently, these free-play tasks are all narrated by DeadPool who delights in breaking the fourth wall and talking directly to the gamer, usually mocking them in the process.

This will also be the location of some key campaign set pieces. Zac and I get to play a mission set at Grand Central station, with Spider-Man and the Hulk teaming up to bust their way into the iconic building where Sandman is holed up and causing havoc.

There's a lot of pulverising vehicles on the way in, with Hulk picking up abandoned cars and lobbing them aside. Later, when we meet lead animator, Andy Dolan, Albie tries out his selection of Hulk questions. "Can Hulk smash?" he says. And Dolan shows him how the green giant can jump into the air and slam his fists down on the ground causing major earth tremors. Hulk can also clap his hands together sending out a sonic boom to fell enemies. "Can he throw a car when there is someone in it?" asks Albie, warming to the theme. Yes he can. In the free-roaming NYC sections, he can throw a cab and then watch as the annoyed driver clambers out. Hulk can also transform back into Bruce Banner, giving access to more confined areas.

As with the Asgard level, this sequence also has its own mid-stage monster battle C this time, the Abomination. The development team thought it was important to feature the key Marvel showdowns, so Hulk v Abomination was always going to happen. But much of the fun is in the unlikely pairings.

"We wanted partnerships that won't necessarily be expected," says Parsons. "So in the Grand Central level, we have two of the Avengers operating with Spider-Man. The second level of the game is a team up between Captain America and Mr Fantastic C throughout the campaign we keep this 'party of heroes' concept."

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Created on Dec 31st 1969 18:00. Viewed 0 times.

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