| Lego Batman | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Developer(s) | Traveller's Tales |
| Publisher(s) | Warner Bros. Interactive |
| Designer(s) | Jonathan Smith |
| Engine | Lego Star Wars II engine |
| Platform(s) | Microsoft Windows, Nintendo D.S., PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3, PlayStation Portable, Wii, and Xbox 360 |
| Release date | September 23, 2008 |
| Genre(s) | Action, adventure |
| Mode(s) | Single-player, multiplayer |
LEGO Batman: The Videogame is a videogame developed by Traveller's Tales. It was released on September 23rd, 2008 for the Nintendo D.S., Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 2, PlayStation Portable, Wii, and Xbox 360. It is similar to the LEGO Star Wars series, as it is videogame based on a licensed property and depicts environments, objects, and creatures made out of LEGO bricks. Warner Brothers handled the publishing, marketing, and financing aspects.
Gameplay
The core gameplay and storyline feels very similar to its LEGO Star Wars II: The Original Trilogy counterpart. Players are able to fight on land, sea, and the air using a number of powerful vehicles, including the Batmobile, Batboat, and Batplane. New moves featured in LEGO Indiana Jones: The Original Adventures were added, such as swimming underwater, as seen in a gameplay trailer. New abilities include picking up enemies, carrying enemies, and walking on tightropes over Gotham City. The characters are able to use many unique abilities: the Joker is able to attack enemies with his hand-buzzer, the Penguin is able to glide over gaps with his trick-umbrella, Catwoman can attack foes with a whip in a similar fashion to Indiana Jones, and Killer Croc can punch enemies with so much force that they fly off-screen. Batman starts in grey suit and can wear a rocket/gray suit, a sonic/blue suit, a bat bomb/grey suit and a shadow/black suit. Robin can wear a technology/red-yellow suit, a dive/red-blue suit, a magnetic/red-grey suit and a gravity suit. When players find those suits, they can buy them in the hubs and play as those in free play. Once a player completes a level, that level is unlocked in 'Freeplay Mode'. Freeplay mode allows the player to replay any level they've completed with any characters they've unlocked, unlike Story Mode, which only allows players to switch between the characters involved in that scene. This permits access to areas containing extras the player was unable to get before. The Xbox 360 and PlayStation 2 versions will offer 720p and 1080p displays.
Storyline
The videogame stars Batman and his sidekick, Robin, fighting villainy in Gotham City. The Dynamic Duo's foes have all escaped from Arkham Asylum and divided themselves into three groups, each led by a well-known villain. Various gameplay footage shows the Joker and Harley Quinn luring Commissioner Gordon to an abandoned amusement park where they take him captive to use in a trap for Batman. Others include Catwoman stealing a valuable diamond and the the Riddler outlining his plans with his group. There are 36 levels in the game (18 for the heroes and 18 for the villains), as well as some secret levels, including Wayne Manor in which Bruce Wayne is an unlockable character. Players may unlock villain levels as they progress through the game. The hub for the heroes (similar to those in Lego Star Wars: The Complete Saga and Lego Indiana Jones: The Original Adventures) will be the Batcave, where players can buy the characters and see the unlockables. Alternatively, the hub for the villains is Arkham Asylum, There are many different environments in the game, usually based on the villain's Crime style including Ice Cream Factory, the Botanical Gardens, the Sewers, and Gotham Streets.
Development
An early build for the PlayStation 2 console was shown at certain conferences by Traveller's Tales Publishing's Head of Production Jonathan Smith, with a small playable area sporting the exact same HUD as LEGO Star Wars II: The Original Trilogy. Developer Jonathan Smith stated that the company will be developing more LEGO games in the foreseeable future.
The villains' schemes
- The Riddler and his group (consisting of Clayface, Poison Ivy, Mr. Freeze, and Two-Face) plot to steal a key, a freeze-ray, and instantly-growing-tree-seeds so that they can rob Gotham Gold Reserves.
- The Penguin and his group (consisting of Catwoman, Bane, Killer Croc, and Man-Bat) plot to conquer Gotham City with penguin-helpers.
- The Joker and his group (consisting of Harley Quinn, Mad Hatter, and Scarecrow, and Killer Moth) plot to spread the Joker's laughing-gas all over Gotham City.