LEGO Batman: DC Super Heroes Review

The Caped Crusader is back in brick form for a new adventure, this time on iOS. As someone who’s had an on-again off-again relationship with LEGO games in the past I was curious to see how a mobile release might hold up. Turns out it holds up very well. Like, ridiculously well. In fact, LEGO Batman: DC Super Heroes is hands-down the best LEGO game I’ve ever played. Yes, including ones on consoles.

All the wacky villains that should be stuck in Arkham have gotten loose. Again. Now they’re terrorizing Gotham. Again. And this time Joker has managed to team up with Lex Luthor. The two are such a handful that Batman has to enlist the help of other heroes, including Wonder Woman, Cyborg, and a whole lot more. There’s a conventional virtual stick and buttons setup and a surprisingly intuitive touch interface to pick from. No matter their preference, players will be bashing everything in sight to collect studs (the world’s currency), reconfiguring piles of bricks into new contraptions, finding tons of secrets, and doing just about everything else they could expect to find in a big screen LEGO game.

DC Super Heroes is a great-looking game, no question. It’s also been a real treat to find that so much of what I’ve loved about other LEGO games, namely all the exploration and extras, have all made it into this tinier iteration. However, what I really love about all of this is how well the formula works in a mobile environment. The main reason I never stuck with the console iterations is because the levels tended to feel too drawn out. Here they feel like the perfect length; just long enough to have fun searching every nook and cranny for hidden items but short enough not to overstay their welcome.

As much as I love DC Super Heroes, it’s not without a fault or two. The AI partners have a tendency to get in the way constantly, whether it’s during a fight or while trying to interact with something. The controls (both of them) are also a little finicky at times. The virtual stick is way too small and tucked away in the corner, while the touch controls lead to several retries when it comes to activating switches or bopping henchmen. Of course the beautiful thing about DC Super Heroes (and most LEGO games for that matter) is that it’s very forgiving so these issues are only mildly bothersome at worst.

I cannot stress enough just how much fun I’ve been having with LEGO Batman: DC Super Heroes. It’s the LEGO game I’ve apparently always wanted: perfectly sized levels, tons of hidden stuff, and even more unlockables (80 playable characters!). It’s time to pick up some wonderful toys.