LEGO Star Wars: The Force Awakens Review

You could be forgiven for thinking that LEGO games have had their day, but LEGO Star Wars: The Force Awakens is quite possibly the shot in the arm the series needs. You'd also perhaps think that basing a LEGO game on a single film might mean the material gets stretched a little too thin, but LEGO's take on The Force Awakens is the most raucously funny, enjoyable and varied LEGO game we've played in some time. In short, it's joyful.

The beauty of LEGO Force Awakens is that you're constantly doing something different throughout its lengthy campaign, with the series' trademark puzzles freshened up a bit with new multi-builds that give you a choice of different objects to construct. It's a small thing, but something that injects much-needed variety into the well-worn LEGO formula. Characters also have a greater spread of abilities across the game's 200-odd roster, with wall-climbing, Force powers, hacking mini-games and more but the tip of the iceberg.

Poe Dameron retains his coolness in LEGO form.

As you'd expect, LEGO Star Wars: The Force Awakens follows the events of the movie, sprinkling in its own humorous bits along the way, as well as six 'New Adventures' that fill in a few gaps between the end of The Return of the Jedi and the beginning of the new film. It's in these bonus chapters, unlocked by collecting Gold Bricks, that TT Games lets its imagination off the leash a bit, taking you to previously unseen planets, telling new stories involving your favourite characters.

These include rathtar hunting on Twon Ketee with Han Solo and Chewbacca, or mounting a daring mission to rescue Admiral Ackbar as Poe Dameron with C-3PO and BB-8 in tow, or playing as Lor San Tekka on Jakku, protecting the piece of the map leading to Luke Skywalker with his accomplice, Athgar Heece, or assuming the role of Captain Phasma fighting the Resistance aboard a crumbling ship.

Each of these extra episodes you unlock are not only almost full-sized levels, but also add genuinely interesting new insights into The Force Awakens story, complete with additional dialogue from every one of the film's actors. TT Games hasn't cut a single corner with LEGO The Force Awakens, roping in Harrison Ford, Max Von Sydow, Daisy Ridley, John Boyega, Adam Driver, Carrie Fisher and others to record new lines, while upping the ante in terms of delivering on narrative.

As a result, LEGO Star Wars: The Force Awakens feels like a more satisfying whole, delivering the same kind of LEGO gameplay but with a somewhat fresher twist than usual. There's the vaunted cover shooter sections for one, which while not exactly the most incredible example of the genre, are nonetheless a fun diversion in their own right. You'll pilot TIE fighters, X-wings, Kylo Ren's command shuttle, the Millennium Falcon and a host of other craft in both on-rails and off-rails shooter sequences too, ensuring you're seldom doing the same thing for too long.

As with any LEGO game, you'll find yourself lapping up the hidden easter eggs and secrets, unlocking a multitude of Star Wars characters, a great deal of which are either variations or different coloured droids. However, all but the most demanding of Star Wars fans should be more than satisfied with The Force Awakens massive roster, which also includes more than a few iconic faces cherry-picked from the prequel trilogy and original trilogy, unlocked by tracking down Han Solo frozen in Carbonite Brick collectibles.

Rey and BB-8 embark on scavenger hunt.

If the game's 18 story-based levels don't manage to slake your thirst for all things LEGO Star Wars, then there are also several hub areas to explore, taking in locations like the Resistance Base on D'Qar, Jakku, Takodana, the Millennium Falcon, Starkiller Base and loads more. Each hub has its own set of mini-quests to complete, including checkpoint races, Bounty Hunter missions, Resistance and First Order objectives, as well as more Gold Bricks and other collectibles to unearth. There's certainly no shortage of stuff to do or things to discover, that's for sure.

Naturally, completing all of these activities will feed into attaining that all-important 100%, unlocking achievements as you go. Collecting every minikit, gaining 'True Jedi' on every level by collecting mountains of studs, completing every level, finding and unlocking every Red Brick, then performing some odds and ends in Free Play will net you the full 1000G, as usual. Standard LEGO fare, then. A good, solid list, but once again, it'll take you a while to complete it all.

One of the best LEGO games in some time, LEGO Star Wars: The Force Awakens adds just enough new stuff and variation to the equation, making it one of the most essential titles in the series to date. Featuring bags of charm, humour and personality alongside its blasters, lightsabers and Force powers, LEGO Star Wars: The Force Awakens proves once more that there's mileage yet in TT's LEGO series. Yes, yes; the Force is strong with this one. Groan.