Customer Reviews

Lego Star Wars II: The Original Trilogy

5 star:		(60)
4 star:		(12)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I loved the original Lego Star Wars game. It was incredibly fun, very replayable and had a wicked sense of humor. Lego Star Wars II is just as fun, and covers Episodes IV-VI!

It's very rare to find a game that kids can play, adults can play, and everybody truly loves it. This is one of those games. I'm sure kids enjoy the game quite a lot - but pretty much every adult gamer I know loves this series as well. It's fun, it has classic scenes from the Star Wars movies done in a VERY funny style, and you can keep replaying it. You can play it with friends! You can unlock new episodes, new ships, new characters, you name it.

The first thing you notice when you enter the "Cantina" is that now you can MAKE NEW CHARACTERS!!! Yes, you can mix up Darth Vader's head, Princess Leia's torso and a stormtrooper's pants. You can mix pretty much any character you find in the game, and give them personalized names! Then you can bring 2 of your creations into the game with you on free play mode. Talk about fun!!

The game gets even better. Yes, you work through all the classic scenes - Luke buying the droids, the Death Star blowing up, and so on from the "first 3 movies" (in release order at least). The cut scenes are VERY funny. Being able to play along as the various characters is amazingly fun in story mode, and even better in "free play" when you can randomly switch between a variety of characters to find all the hidden items.

I love the stud finding system. You want more money? Just replay a mission a few times. You can get all sorts of fun "cheats" (not cheats, really, but fun add-ons), you can buy new characters to use, and much more. It really gives you incentive to keep playing.

Is a youngster in the house having trouble playing? Just have an adult pop into the game for a while to help out, then the adult can pop out again, to let the child keep playing! It is just brilliant. I love this game.

The graphics are superb, as last time, with little lego movements seeming just right. Their swaggers and sliders are incredibly funny. The sound, of course, is the real movie soundtrack and is superb. You couldn't ask for anything better.

Even the tiny touches are funny. If C-3PO starts getting hit, he loses an arm, then another arm, then a leg. You have him hopping along valiantly behind you, trying to remain with your team. Chewie rips off arms from stormtroopers.

Now of course, there are always a few things the game designers get wrong. While Chewie's arm-ripping is quite funny, it is REALLY annoying when he does it - very slowly - in the middle of a firefight when you wanted him to be blasting away. The characters automatically switch into close combat mode if they think someone is nearby, even if you really needed to fire away at someone with the blaster. Even more annoying, if you're blasting away at "destructables" (wall items, whatever) and your friend gets near you start bashing on him!

The camera is also really annoying. You get a *slight* amount of view control, but not much. When you are craning around trying to find a mini-kit on the screen and the camera keeps swooping wildly exactly where you do NOT want to look, it can get very frustrating.

Still, these are minor problems in a game that is so stellar. I highly, highly recommend this game for any gamer of any age. It's incredibly fun.

After the release of Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith in theaters we got Lego Star Wars; a game that was a lot of fun to play simply because it emulated the movies rather well with all the characters being made entirely from Legos. Lego Star Wars II: The Original Trilogy is even better for the simple fact of nostalgia. Any Star Wars fan will enjoy this.

You'll begin the game in the Cantina in Mos Eisley. This is the hub, and from there you can go into any of the three episodes and play through them. At the start you'll only be able to choose A New Hope, but after completing the first chapter, you can choose The Empire Strikes Back or Return of the Jedi. As you go through the three episodes you'll some of the most memorable moments of the movies acted out entirely with legos. These moments aren't only memorable, but they're given a hilarious charm. These moments are also from the actual original versions of the movies as well. In other words, Han Solo DOES shoot first.

The game is visually striking. Seeing your favorite characters from the original Star Wars films as legos is quite a treat. Not only do you get to have nostalgia with Star Wars, but with legos as well. Even better are the hilarious antics of most of the scenes. To benefit the nostalgia even more is how John Williams' classic score accompanies each and every level of the game. For a Star Wars fan this game is the ultimate nostalgia.

As you play through each of the classic episodes, you'll be in control of several characters. Not all at once, but you'll end up having to switch. At times you may only have two characters, at others there may be as many as seven in your party at once. Your characters, depending on who they are, also have their own unique skills they can use. Jedi for example, can double jump and use the force. Those who wield blasters have a grappling hook that allows them to ascend to accessible platforms. The droids can open up special doors for you. Other characters, like the Jawas and Ewoks will be able to go into vents and access areas the other characters can't. In all actuality, they're really no different than their counterparts in the original Lego Star Wars. Also like the original Lego Star Wars, you'll constantly have to switch between characters in order to get through each and every area. You'll have to switch to R2-D2 to open up a door, for example. More than one person can play at a time, which is also really cool. You can also beat up your allies if you wish, and they respawn instantly. The gameplay isn't completely the same, though, there have been some small tweaks made here and there.

The additions to the gameplay aren't huge, but they are welcome. As you progress through levels all your characters may be able to assemble certain materials together to form a droid to help them fight. In the original Lego Star Wars this ability was only given to the Jedi, but here everyone can do it. There are also moments when you'll have to dress up as a stormtrooper in order to gain access through certain doors. You'll also be given the chance at some point to dress up as a bounty hunter and you'll be able to use Thermal Detonators. Characters also have their own unique abilities. Chewie, for example, can rip a stormtroopers arms right out of his sockets. All of these are welcome additions, and that's not even all there is to the gameplay. From time to time you'll be in command of vehicles. Landspeeders, the Millennium Falcon, the X-Wing and more as you take on some of the more memorable moments from the film, like destroying the death star.

It will probably only take you five hours at the very least to complete the story mode of all three episodes. However, Lego Star Wars II is full of extras. Each time you dispatch an enemy, whether it be in story mode or not, you'll earn money. You can also destroy certain objects and obtain money. You can use the money you gain to purchase cheats and hidden characters. Each time you get a new character they'll walk around in the hub, and you can switch to them. "Purchasing" characters isn't the only way to get them. You could easily just use one in story mode and you've got him or her. You'll also get hidden characters if you've got save data from the original Lego Star Wars. Just unlocking all the characters takes a lot of time.

The importance of unlocking characters is so you can play through certain aspects of the free play mode. There are places that in story mode the default characters couldn't reach. These hidden characters might be able to reach it, though, and so you will find yourself playing through levels again. The good news is these levels are so much fun that playing through a second, third or even fourth time is no hassle at all.

Free mode also offers a way for you to customize what a character looks like. You could put Yoda's head on Luke Skywalker's body, for example. This is mostly just a lot of fun to mess around with. Some combinations are just all out crazy. You could, for example, put Chewbacca's head on Leia's body from when she's wearing the slave outfit in Return of the Jedi. This really doesn't do a whole lot for the gameplay as a whole, but it is quite fun to mess around with, and the combinations are endless.

The only real problem with this game that I can really think of is that there is little, if any, challenge at all. Each time you die you respawn right where you left off and you have infinite lives. There's really no such thing as a game over. If you die the only penalty is that you lose money. However, the sheer fun factor of the game is enough to do away with that, and still makes Lego Star Wars II a treat.

Lego Star Wars II surpasses the original in just about everyway. It's a Star Wars game for the classic trilogy done with instant perfection. If you love the original Star Wars movies, you'll definitely want this game.

On the positive side
+Based off the original theatrical versions and not the special editions
+Beautiful game
+Addictive gameplay
+Co-op mode
+Several extras and hidden characters
+Customizable characters
+Tons of replay value

On the negative side
-The story mode is quite short
-While not really much of a con for this game, it's got very little challenge

I bought this game after playing Lego Star Wars with my two grandsons. I loved playing that one, and this one, the sequel, is even better! Best of all, it is fun for everyone in the family to play. It is not too challenging for young gamers, yet it is very entertaining for us older gamers, too. I highly recommend this game!

My 9 year old and I have been playing with this non-stop since he got it for his birthday. I cannot recommend it highly enough. As a 40+ mom, gaves where you can keep playing even after your character dies (and dies and dies and dies...stop hitting me with your light saber!) is a huge plus.

Encourages lots of teamwork in 2-player mode, I hope they come out with a III for Wii by next Christmas!

Note: We play this one our Wii...I love that all our GC games can be played on the Wii so we only have to have one game system set up.

All I heard from my youngest son before Christmas was "I WANT Lego Star Wars II!" I wasn't sure what the big attraction was, but ordered it anyway. Wow! Was that gift the biggest hit of Christmas or what?! My 12 year old and 14 year old headed straight to the GameCube and played until we had to MAKE them come out and enjoy some of their other presents. This game allows for some creativity and humor which delights me, since most games are so violent and mindless (and we don't allow them in our house!) I would recommend Lego Star Wars II to other parents-- as I would any item with the Lego name attached! On behalf of my children, I will pass on this note: "Lego Star Wars II ROCKS!"

Those of you who purchased the first Lego Star Wars know that its a hilarious game, but only 6 levels per episode. That means you only get 18 levels cause they cover episodes 4,5,and 6. Yet there are TONS of extras that keep the gameplay fresh. Controls are pretty much the same as the original. Some characters use blasters, Jedi use lightsabers and the force. However, this time around the gunners far outnumber Yoda's crew.Also, due to the lack of main characters in the original trilogy, you'll see a lot of Han, Luke, and Leia. There is plenty of puzzle solving and hilarious cut scenes. All of the favorite scenes from the movies (Han shot first,lifting the X-wing,the Ewok song...)have been included. There's so many extras youll stay entertained for a long time. I highly rate this game for anyone who likes to build, and loves a good movie.

The Harry Potter Lego games looked good, but left much to be improved.
The first Lego Star Wars (ep. I-III), was a vast improvement, great and surprisingly accurate settings from the films, lots of characters to unlock and plenty of ways to play and replay the stories using different character skills. Star Wars Lego II has all that makes the first game good, but based on the original trilogy. Improvements include more extras and ways to play characters that you've pieced together yourself.
Both these games are great ways to introduce younger players to gaming and the SW Saga itself, it is easy to play and holds the interest of all ages. We had fun rewatching the movies after Lego game sessions.

Keep your eyes peeled for the BATMAN Lego games.

Lego Star Wars II is a bit better than Lego Star Wars I.

Each level comes with a few more challenges (such as collecting enough "studs" to achieve "True Jedi Status" in both the story mode and the free play mode). I play this game with my 7 year old son and he loves it. The game play is easy enough for him to do alone, but the levels are long enough and complex enough that he ususally needs my "help" to find his way through to the end of the level.

We have played the "story" part of the game for the Episode IV and half of Episode V so far. We have also played half of those levels in "freeplay" mode. We have not fully completed any level yet (we don't have a dark force user yet to access certain areas).

Cool things they have added compared to Lego Star Wars I:

- You get to drive vehicles (Speeders, AT-STs, etc) and ride animals during the levels as you are walking around.
- Characters punch instead of shooting when you are at close range to your enemies (this is tricky at first, but when you get used to it, it is a cool feature)
- You get to build things out of piles of legos
- There are bonus areas that are only accessable to certain types of characters (Bounty Hunters, Storm Troopers, etc) that make it more fun when you are in free play mode.
- Han Solo's character was really well done; he shoots sideways as he runs forward which makes getting through some areas a lot easier

Some things that I don't like (or haven't gotten used to yet):

- You can shoot/punch your partner by accident if you are standing too close together as you try to shoot the bad guys
- There is no clear "path" toward the finish on some levels which means you spend a lot of time "lost" trying to sort out what you should be doing
- There seems to be a bit more violence in this game that the first game (more smoke when you blow things up, Chewy will rip the arms off of bad guys when fighting hand to hand, etc.) One of the nice aspects to the first game was that although it was a shooting game, because it was legos, the bad guys would just fall to pieces and so it did not seem so violent. This game has gone a bit in the wrong direction in the violence department as far as I am concerned (but my son doesn't seem to care).

Basically, this game is more fun and should be more interesting for a longer time than the first game (we completely finished the first game in 3 months). It seems to be geared to a slightly older audience than the first game (more difficult "puzzle solving", more violence). But it is still easy enough for younger children. This game will require more parental involvement for really young players like my son, but it still a good game for the young ones.

This is what my 7 year old has to say about this game ...."I love it when I am Greedo". He's addicted to this game as is my 5 year old son. It's not easy but it keeps them occupied and challenged.

It's really a lot of fun! When you defeat an enemy, it bursts up into Lego pieces. You can get a little rat thingy for a pet (look in the extras bin in the store on the first level). Also in the extras bin, you can get a little Chewbacca crying "C3PO". I definitely recommend you buying this game. Once you play it longer, you'll like the game more. Kids that are 6 and like Legos will like Lego Star Wars. Even older kids will like it, too! Signed, Noah L. (As dictated to Mom)