Game: LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga
Genre: Action, Adventure
System: Nintendo Switch (also on Steam (Windows), Playstation 4&5, Xbox One & Series)
Developers | Publishers: WB Games | TT Games
Age Rating: US E10+ | EU 7+
Price: US $59.99 | UK £49.99 | EU € 59,99
Release Date: April 5th, 2022
No review code was used, I purchased the game myself.
After announcing LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga was in development in 2019, TT Games have been working hard as the game has now been released on Nintendo Switch. The new Lego title brings every film together into one massive collection for fans of any age. It could be one of the best LEGO games to date, even if you aren’t a Star Wars fan.
Star Wars
You get to play through all nine Star Wars saga films in the game. For those readers that don’t know, the films are as follows. A New Hope, The Empire Strikes Back, Return of the Jedi, The Phantom Menace, Attack of the Clones, Return of the Sith, The Force Awakens, The Last Jedi, and The Rise of Skywalker.
When you start the game, the choice is yours on which trilogy you want to start with. Then, after finishing each episode, you unlock its sequel. I started with A New Hope as it was the original Star Wars film which I remember going to the cinema to see when it was released way back in 1977.
Hello Old Friends
When you have chosen your starting trilogy, the game begins with a tutorial, with tutorial reminders recurring throughout the game to keep you on the right track. I liked that the game drew my attention not long after starting to play to the accessibility options.
For example, you can adjust the size of the text, have subtitles on or off, and adjust the aim and camera sensitivity. There’s also a mumble mode that replaces actors voice acting with grunts, similar to the older Lego games.
Once the opening titles played, I knew I was in for a grand time. All the characters from all nine films appear in a montage, with the legendary Star Wars theme music blasting into my headphones. Oh yes, it’s time to wield a lightsaber and chop a few hundred LEGO enemies into pieces!
Semi-open World
The main action takes place in a semi-open world, where you can freely walk around planets. Such as the planets of Naboo, Exegol and Tatooine, or you can fly between them while engaging in galactic space fights. Before long, you’ll be breaking down objects to build new LEGO creations.
In addition, you’ll also play some mini-games to open locked doors, hunting down collectables such as data cards, Minikits, kyber bricks, switching characters on the hoof, and generally having a ball. Once you complete an episode, it opens as Free Play. Where you can revisit any area and use all the characters you have unlocked. There are vehicles and animals that you can ride around as well.
Improvements
In most cases, quite a few things in all the other LEGO games have been improved and changed for the better. For example, fighting has had a major overhaul. You can no longer continuously press the attack button to kill all your enemies.
Instead, enemies can block and counter your moves, and you have to do the same. Additionally, stringing together various attack combos lets you dish out more damage, making the battles easier to get through. It all switches the combat up and makes it so much more enjoyable without it being more difficult and still keeps the gameplay child friendly.
Skill Tree
As you play LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga, you’ll notice that the developers have taken some inspiration from other games and added a skill tree for each of its nine different character classes. One of the new skills includes force-wielding characters being able to use Jedi Mind tricks to possess enemies for a limited time; that is a lot of fun!
The skill tree doesn’t provide any major game-changing abilities. Still, they give you a good reason to collect the studs scattered about, as you gain extra health and increase sprint speed. Skills also improve class abilities, such as the amount of time a Jedi mind trick works. In addition, unlocking these skills gives players more incentive to explore in the open-world Free Play mode and do the side missions that would otherwise feel like unnecessary add ons.
Visuals and Controls
Visually the game looks good for the most part, though it can suffer from framerate problems, especially during busy times on the screen. However, I haven’t had my Switch crash while playing the game, and I haven’t encountered any game-breaking bugs.
Thanks to John Williams, each film’s original soundtrack is in LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga, and it sounds amazing. In addition, voice acting in the game is fully implemented, and some of the original actors are featured, providing another layer of realism to the game.
The camera perspective has changed too. In LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga, the camera is behind the character you control rather than the camera being from above. That means you’re closer to the action for better immersion and generally easier gameplay. It also works well for aiming mechanics for blasters, and the perspective helps with taking out targets and enemies.
Conclusion
LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga is a blast to play. I’ve had an enjoyable time with the game as I giggled at some of the clever sight gags that the LEGO series of games is well known for. While the game isn’t perfect due to the framerate, it is a brilliant romp through the Star Wars universe.
Final Verdict: I Like It A Lot 