The Caped Crusader is one of pop culture’s most iconic figures, and he’s had numerous opportunities to shine in LEGO form. This isn’t just about the increasingly expensive LEGO sets found in toy stores, but also in movies and video games. Batman is a significant character in the two LEGO movies, starred in his own cinematic adventure, and now has four video games. The latest of these, The Caped Crusader’s Legacy, is more than just a simple adventure; it’s an exploration of the entire history of the iconic character created by Bill Finger and Bob Kane.
This game manages to combine iconic elements and scenes from Batman (1989), Batman Returns, Batman Forever, Batman & Robin, The Animated Series, Batman Begins, The Dark Knight, The Dark Knight Rises, and The Batman (2022), all with a generous dose of humor and self-referential jokes. This makes the title a must-have for fans of the character, but is it a good video game beyond that? Let’s find out in this review.
Much like previous titles in the series, this is an action-adventure game set in a semi-open world filled with hundreds of collectibles. What has changed significantly is the combat, which is now based on the fighting system from the Batman Arkham series. This allows players to leap from enemy to enemy with their attacks, counter when they attempt to strike, and use gadgets like Batarangs and the Batclaw. However, it’s considerably more simplified than Rocksteady’s games.
Many years ago, when I played Arkham Knight, I recall quickly tiring of its combat system due to its unnecessarily complex nature. Unfortunately, the simplified version found in LEGO Batman: The Caped Crusader’s Legacy also left me unsatisfied. The attacks and special moves feel insufficient to deal with large groups of enemies, making combat feel very repetitive, especially during the first half of the game. As you improve abilities and discover new characters—each with their own unique gadgets—you can add more variety to encounters. However, most of the time, I just wanted the fights to end so I could focus on what I was truly enjoying: exploration and collecting items.
The Gotham City in this title is a miniaturized version of the one seen in Arkham Knight. In every corner, you can find hidden collectibles, Riddles from… The Riddler (and Cluemaster), WayneTech boxes, and thousands upon thousands of LEGO pieces that serve as currency to upgrade the Batcave, purchase character costumes, and decorations. Exploring the open world and levels by simply smashing every possible object to gather more and more bricks is addictively satisfying, and I continued to do so even when I no longer needed them. It’s also a pleasure to pause and appreciate the detail of the objects, the beautiful recreation of LEGO brick textures, and the way raindrops stream down them. Visually, it’s an absolute beauty.
However, even with the allure of exploring and collecting everything possible, the semi-open world wasn’t entirely to my liking. I encountered the same issue I had in Arkham Knight: all the streets of Gotham City are too similar to each other. The LEGO recreation of the city’s most iconic buildings and locations is incredible, filled with humorous details faithful to the comics and films. But when gliding over the streets or speeding through them in the Batmobile or other vehicles, it’s almost impossible to tell where you are unless you check the interface or the map.
In addition to exploring the city itself, LEGO Batman: The Caped Crusader’s Legacy features more linear levels that must be completed to advance the story. Some of these are directly based on the films—such as the Joker’s parade from the end of the 1989 film or the circus invaded by Two-Face in Batman Forever—and they are very well designed with engaging puzzles and often cleverly hidden objects. It’s a shame that these puzzles are sometimes ruined by characters who won’t stop talking and try to give hints if you spend even a few seconds exploring before attempting to solve them.
One aspect that will disappoint many fans of the LEGO game series is the limited number of playable characters. We go from having literally hundreds of characters available in The Skywalker Saga to controlling only seven, who are also unlocked very gradually. The worst part is that some open-world puzzles require abilities from characters you won’t unlock for many hours, making exploration unsatisfying until you have them all.
Furthermore, during my hours with LEGO Batman: The Caped Crusader’s Legacy, I also encountered a notable number of technical issues: interface elements that refused to activate or deactivate, frame rate drops, indicators that remained on screen unnecessarily, delayed loading screens, getting stuck in map geometry, objects that suddenly appeared or disappeared, companions who didn’t stay where they should or got in the way, and other similar minor annoyances. It’s also worth mentioning that while the Latin Spanish dubbing is very good, the localization is far from perfect. Many jokes are lost in translation, and moments are simply poorly translated.
The camera could also become frustrating at times, causing difficulties when navigating between enemies in combat or maneuvering while gliding. I experienced all these issues in the pre-release version of the game, so with any luck, they will have been fixed in a patch by the time you read this.
I can’t deny that all these inconveniences slightly soured my experience with LEGO Batman: The Caped Crusader’s Legacy, but I endured them gladly just to enjoy all the aspects of the game that I did like. I’ve already mentioned how much I enjoyed exploring the levels, streets, and rooftops of Gotham City in search of collectibles and solving puzzles, but even that was secondary to simply enjoying the recreation of the Caped Crusader’s universe.
Batman (1989) was one of the first movies I saw in theaters in my life (yes, I’m old), and since then, I haven’t missed the premiere of any film starring this character, which I’ve watched countless times. Seeing the fun way it revives the best moments from those stories was a true delight, and discovering new jokes, references, and how it would represent more of these moments was what drove me forward the most. It’s definitely a game made for Batman fans who have seen the movies and know the comic book stories.
Those who don’t share the same love for the character won’t tolerate how frustrating and overwhelming it can sometimes be as well. The technical problems and repetitive combat are the main elements that prevented me from enjoying it as much as I wanted, but enduring them to discover which villains and situations awaited me was worth it.
Review conducted with a digital copy of LEGO Batman: The Caped Crusader’s Legacy for PlayStation 5 provided by Warner Bros. Games. This title is also available for PC, Xbox Series X|S, and Nintendo Switch 2.
This content was first published on GamerFocus.
