By way of context, please note that...due to a really, really severe sinus infection this week...I haven’t had an opportunity to dive too deeply into LEGO JURASSIC WORLD. However, I wanted to share a few initial thoughts with y’all as it’s a title we’ve been covering for some time here on AICN…and it finally released last Friday alongside the movie itself. As such, consider this more of an informal ‘first impressions’ write-up than a full-on review.
As we’ve noted previously, the title ‘LEGO JURASSIC WORLD’ is something of a misnomer. JURASSIC WORLD itself certainly factors heavily into this game, but this release actually works as more of a celebration of the franchise as a whole.
In short: this game is good. It’s very good. Based on what I’ve played thus far, this appears to rank very highly amongst the finest franchise-to-game adaptations ever developed by LEGO and TT Games. I’ve already seen some online chatter that this may be the best LEGO game ever made. I’d have to reserve judgement on this until I’ve played through the whole thing, but so far I can totally see why such a assertion is being made.
Clearly created by a team possessing vast respect for (and intricate knowledge of) its source material, LEGO JURASSIC WORLD manages to remain quite devoted to the overall narrative of the four films, while still feeling inventive, fresh, and promoting a consistent sense of exploration and wonder. There’s a feeling of having been down this road before - a feeling of nostalgic familiarity towards what’s happening on-screen both in terms of LEGO games in general, and a comfort with the source material. But, the game is presented so thoughtfully and so cleverly that it also feels remarkably new. Almost like a wonderful relationship with a significant other, which never gets old no matter how long we’ve been together…
Gameplay is surprisingly atmospheric, cinematic, and detailed. On two separate occasions my 8 year old son insisted this game was ‘scarier than the actual movies’ (one of these moments was the Raptormania sequence at the end of the first film). Some sequences are presented full-bore and are unexpectedly detailed, rich, and protracted - with LEGO heroes frantically racing towards the screen…the ‘camera’ pulling back to meet their velocity… as a giant LEGO dinosaur bears down from behind…snapping at them…at us…as the pursuit continues…as other dinos fall in to flee alongside our heroes. It’s madness. But it feels big, sometimes ‘bigger’ than the films themselves.
I can’t think of a single iconic sequence from the pictures which hasn’t been adapted for play herein - although a few preambles and set-ups are notably abridged or missing altogether (the game flows so smoothly that players familiar with the films may not even notice their absence or alteration until after the fact). LJW is so literal, for example, that… in order to retrieve food stuff needed to cure the sick Jurassic Park Triceratops (seen in the first film)…LEGO Ellie Sadler (Laura Dern’s character) must repeatedly dive into piles of dino shit to satisfy the mission. Not reach into the poop…dive into the poop. Gerry Harding - the vet in that sequence (played by Gerald R. Molen in the first movie) - won’t get near the piles, waving off their apparent stench. Although, he is charged with much more to do in this single game level than in the entirety of the progenitor picture itself.
Dinosaurs are playable - some are cute, some are Crankysauruses who are used to brawl other bitchy dinos. Later on, players can customize their own dinos (it wouldn’t be a JURASSICverse game without this option I suppose). It is also possible to unclock/play a bevy of supporting characters from the films, including opportunistic corporate saboteur douchebag Dennis Nedry (Wayne Knight), Robert Muldoon (the Games Keeper…or whatever he was…from the first film, he’s the “clever girl’ guy), John Hammond, Paul Kirby (LEGO William H. Macy!), Henry Wu (the Jurassic Park geneticist from the first film, who reprises his role in JURASSIC WORLD). And, yes, we get LEGO Jeff Goldblum.
Mr. DNA, the first film’s go-lucky animated character who explained the science of Jurassic Park to us, appears frequently as game guide, and can apparently be unlocked into playable mode as well. By the way, Mr. DNA is evident in the JURASSIC WORLD movie - you gotta look for him, though.
John Williams’ music is all over game - sounds like the real stuff to me. His under-appreciated theme from THE LOST WORLD…
…makes notable appearances and is used to great effect.
For the game’s adaptation of the first three movies, it sounds to me like a vast majority of t voice work utilizes actual dialogue clips from the films. My impression of the fourth film’s level is that it has been re-voiced - which is disappointing and jarring given the exhaustive dedication and recreation afforded by the game’s adaptations of the previous films.
A few game-unique moments launched by players in one ‘movie’ actually spill into other films’ levels - providing an unexpected sense of cross-game continuity, and further amplifying that ‘freshness’ I mention above.
Look for cameos by LEGO versions of other legendary Spielberg film characters - (5:48-6:04 if you wanna be spoiled).
By the way: if you’re playing the opening sequences of the first movie (Alan Grant’s dig site), check out the dude waiting impatiently outside the Port A Potty throughout all of the gameplay on that level. Then destroy said potty, and see what happens.
Meticulously conceived and affectionately realized, LEGO JURASSIC WORLD is insanely fun, roundly addictive, and ranks highly amongst the film-to-game adaptations LEGO has issued to date. It’s now available for PS3, PS4, XBOX 360, XBOX ONE, PS Vita, and Nintendo 3DS.
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Glen Oliver
“Merrick”
