This article should be brickified to fit within the style of Brickipedia. |
A video game is an electronic game that involves interaction with a user interface to generate visual feedback on a video device. Video games have been an important type of media in the 20th and 21st centuries.
Many video games have been created depicting LEGO over the years, released over a variety of video game consoles. LEGO video games now serve as a major part of The LEGO Group's financial plan, and have seen a rise in popularity in recent years. The most recent have been developed by TT Games, now regarded as the primary developers for such games.
History of LEGO video games[]
From 1991 to 1992, developer FairLight worked on a Commodore 64 platformer titled Linking Leroy Visits LEGOLAND, expecting the LEGO Group to approve it. If published, it would have been the first LEGO video game. Nonetheless, the LEGO Group never in any way endorsed the game or approved of the usage of the name and logo, and the project was ultimately cancelled.[1]
Before LEGO video games officially found a place on the PC, Sega worked with The LEGO Group to develop a game for the Sega Pico known as LEGO Fun to Build. Despite LEGO being a Danish toy company, this game was exclusively released in Japan in 1995 as a simple puzzle-solving game with some early building mechanics.
In 1996 LEGO Media was founded to oversee the development of LEGO video games.
LEGO Media Era[]
From the start of this era, LEGO video games were slated for computer development and a wider release. The first PC LEGO game was LEGO Island, in 1997, which was developed and published by Mindscape to great success. It was also the first LEGO video game to include voice acting. Additional titles were planned by Mindscape, including LEGO Adventurers and LEGO Sea Challenge, before the LEGO Group pulled its license from Mindscape.
The first game published by this new company would be LEGO Loco, developed by the British developer Intelligent Games in 1998. This game was followed on in the same year with LEGO Chess, which was developed by Krisalis Software and LEGO Creator, which was developed by Superscape. LEGO Media would also ask Superscape to prototype a LEGO Creator Star Wars concept to pitch to LucasArts this year, but the latter publisher ended up not being interested in the title.[2]
For an unknown span of time, at the earliest beginning in late 1997 and at latest ending in 1999, a TECHNIC video game was in development by an unknown developer but canceled.[3]
In 1999, 3 more games were released by LEGO Media. LEGO Friends was a music simulation game based on the Scala toy line developed by Ivanof and LEGO Rock Raiders was a real-time strategy game developed by Data Design Interactive based on the Rock Raiders theme. A sequel to LEGO Friends was also planned for 2000 but was cancelled for unknown reasons.
LEGO Racers, developed by High Voltage Software was significantly important to the LEGO Group for it was the first LEGO game that was released on consoles, most notionally the PlayStation and ended up being the only LEGO game released on the Nintendo 64.
2000 was the last year where the company was known as LEGO Media, with this included two educational games called LEGO My Style Kindergarten/LEGO My World: First Steps and LEGO My Style Preschool/Lego My World: School Skills; both of which were based on Duplo and were developed by Stormfront Studios, also being the only LEGO games compatible for the Macintosh. Other games were LEGOLAND, a theme park simulation game developed by Krisalis Software, LEGO Alpha Team, a puzzle game developed by Digital Domain, LEGO Stunt Rally, a stunt racing game developed by Intelligent Games and the PlayStation version of LEGO Rock Raiders, also developed by Data Design Interactive.
During late 2000, LEGO Media released their first handheld games, these being Game Boy Color ports of LEGO Alpha Team, LEGO Stunt Rally and LEGO Racers, all of which were developed by different companies than their PC counterparts. A PlayStation version of LEGO Stunt Rally was also in development at Asylum Entertainment but was canceled.
LEGO Software Era[]
After this, LEGO Media changed their name to LEGO Software, with the first game released under their new name being LEGO Creator Knight's Kingdom, with Superscape returning to develop this game.
In 2001, LEGO Software started releasing sequels to some of their games but however having different developers work on them. LEGO Island 2: The Brickster's Revenge was released in March of that year, being developed by Silicon Dreams instead of Mindscape, and was released on the PC, PlayStation and a Game Boy Color version, which was developed by Crawfish Interactive. This was the last LEGO game released for the PlayStation and Game Boy Color. Silicon Dreams eventually developed a Game Boy Advance version of LEGO Island 2 that was released in October 2001.
LEGO Racers 2, a sequel to LEGO Racers was released in October 2001 and much like with LEGO Island 2 this game didn't retain its original developer, with this game being developed by Attention to Detail instead of High Voltage Software (though they had previously developed Rocket Racers, an arcade adaption of LEGO Racers for LEGOLAND Windsor). As well as being released on PC, this was the first LEGO game released on any sixth generation platform, those being the PlayStation 2 and Game Boy Advance, which that version was developed by Pocket Studios.
Also in that year came the first game based on BIONICLE, simply titled LEGO BIONICLE, and was developed by Saffire Corporation. A PC version of the game was also developed by the same company, BIONICLE: The Legend of Mata Nui but was eventually cancelled.
The last game released in 2001 would be LEGO Creator: Harry Potter, once again being developed by Superscape and was the first ever LEGO video game based on a licensed property.
LEGO Interactive Era[]
In late 2001, LEGO signed a deal with Electronic Arts to co-publish their games from this point forward. Alongside this came another name change; LEGO Software became LEGO Interactive. In the original press release, it was said that "EA will co-publish and provide marketing support for more than 30 LEGO software titles on a minimum of four platforms over a three-year period", and "Current franchises include: LEGO Racers, Bionicle®, LEGO Island, Academy of Flight, LEGO Sports and Galidor: Defenders of the Outer Dimension".[4][5] While it was never officially mentioned again, Academy of Flight turned out to be a canceled console game by Eurocom based on a planned "centenary of flight" theme, and was described by its project manager as being "along the lines of a game like Blast Corps, using aerial vehicles to save people in peril", though it's unknown how much of it (if any) ever existed beyond the pitch.[6]
The first game released under this new partnership would be the Silicon Dreams-developed Soccer Mania, released in June 2002 for the PlayStation 2, PC and Game Boy Advance. Alongside Soccer Mania came Island Xtreme Stunts, a sequel to LEGO Island 2 developed by Silicon Dreams was released on the PlayStation 2, PC and Game Boy Advance, and Drome Racers, developed by Attention to Detail was released on the PlayStation 2 and PC.
Two Game Boy Advance games, BIONICLE: Matoran Adventures developed by Argonaut Games and Galidor: Defenders of the Outer Dimension developed by Tiertex Design Studios were released and on the PC came Creator: Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, but rather than having Superscape develop this title it was instead developed by Qube Software.
In late 2002 and early 2003, another soccer/football game was in development, this time at Blitz Games, but was cancelled.[7]
In 2003, LEGO signed a deal with THQ to publish all their future Game Boy Advance titles, with Electronic Arts continuing to publish on Consoles and PC. The first title being the Game Boy Advance version of Drome Racers. A Nintendo GameCube port of the game was also released and would be the last game developed by Attention to Detail before the company closed the same year, with the Xbox version being completed but left unreleased for reasons known even to its developers. Attention to Detail was also briefly working on a sequel to Drome Racers, Drome Racers 2 (also known internally as LEGO Racers 4), which would have featured an updated game engine that streamed the game world from the disc, allowing for a much larger and intricate play area than previous LEGO games. However, EA and LEGO weren't confident in the new technology, and canceled the project before it left pre-production.[8][9]
In September 2003, a console/PC version of Galidor: Defenders of the Outer Dimension was cancelled by its developer Asylum Entertainment, but the PC version eventually saw the light of day in various budget versions of LEGO games, published by companies like ValuSoft and Focus Multimedia.
The first movie-based LEGO game was also released in 2003, titled BIONICLE: The Game developed by Argonaut Games. The game loosely tied together the story arcs of 2001, 2002 and 2003, and served to promote the BIONICLE movie that was released alongside it and received middling to poor reviews. This was the last game published by LEGO Interactive before the company was closed down, with the founders going on to found Giant Interactive Entertainment.
Yet another cancelled game was LEGO Racers CC which was being developed by Bizarre Creations, appeared in some 2004 catalogs under the LEGO Interactive banner and was set for release that Christmas, but never heard of again.
Giant Interactive Entertainment Era[]
In 2004, LEGO Knights' Kingdom was released by THQ and was developed by Razorback Developments. BIONICLE: Maze of Shadows was also released in early 2005.
2005 is actually considered to be most important year for LEGO video games because of the revolutionary release of LEGO Star Wars: The Video Game developed by Traveller's Tales and was co-published with Eidos Interactive, Giant Interactive and LucasArts. The game was extremely well received and was the first LEGO video game to gain this level of appreciation. Traveller's Tales was now given control of all LEGO video games because of its success, the success to this led to Traveller's Tales acquiring Giant Interactive Entertainment, who they renamed as TT Games Publishing.
Modern Era[]
In 2006, BIONICLE Heroes (Published by Eidos) and LEGO Star Wars II: The Original Trilogy (published by Lucasarts) were both developed by Traveller's Tales. LEGO Star Wars II: The Original Trilogy gained much praise for its improvements upon its predecessor.
In 2007 LEGO Star Wars: The Complete Saga was released by LucasArts. was released. It did not gain as much praise as its two predecessors, and was known simply as a "bridge" between the two games with some extra content thrown in. The hub for this game is once again Mos Eisley. In this year Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment acquired Traveller's Tales, and so WB Games became the official publisher for LEGO games to come from this point forward.
In 2008, LEGO Indiana Jones: The Original Adventures (Published by LucasArts) and LEGO Batman: The Video Game (Published by Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment) were released.
In 2009, LEGO Battles was released by TT Fusion, a division of TT games and LEGO Rock Band, were both released. LEGO Indiana Jones 2: The Adventure Continues (hub is warehouse) was released also that year.
LEGO Space: The Videogame was a planned video game for Nintendo DS and was advertised on the first wave of Space Police 3 sets. However, LEGO has confirmed that the game was merged with LEGO Castle: The Video Game to become LEGO Battles.
LEGO Racers: The Video Game was advertised on 2009 Racers set boxes, but cancelled. It was being developed by Firebrand Games for Nintendo Wii and DS.
In 2010, LEGO Harry Potter: Years 1-4 (hub is Diagon Alley) was released by TT games and LEGO Universe, the first LEGO Massively Multiplayer Online Game, was released by NetDevil, but was discontinued on January 31st 2012.
LEGO Star Wars III: The Clone Wars (hub is a Venator Star Destroyer named the Resolute for the Republic or a Munificent-class star frigate for the Seperatists, making the game the second game with two hubs) was the fourth LEGO Star Wars game released by TT Games. It was released in March 2011.
On November 18th 2010, LEGO Pirates of the Caribbean: The Video Game (hub is Port Royal dock) was announced and was released in May 2011.
LEGO Battles: Ninjago, a new LEGO Battles Video game, was released April 2011. It was released only for the Nintendo DS System. LEGO Harry Potter: Years 5-7 was released on November 11 of that same year.
LEGO Batman 2: DC Super Heroes was released in Summer 2012 and LEGO The Lord of the Rings: The Video Game was released in November 2012. It was the first in the LEGO Batman series to have full voice acting as opposed to grunts, groans, screams, cries, and random, unintelligible gibberish.
LEGO City Undercover had been announced in 2011 in the instructions of the City Sets and the E3 announcement. It was released for Wii U in March 2013. A prequel, LEGO City Undercover: The Chase Begins, was released for 3DS in April 2013.
In 2013 a game called LEGO Legends of Chima: Laval’s Journey was released, and in fall 2013 LEGO Marvel Super Heroes: The Videogame was released. LEGO Batman 2 was re-released on the Wii U to coincide with LEGO Batman: The Movie - DC Super Heroes Unite.
In 2014, a video game based on The LEGO Movie called The LEGO Movie Video Game was released at about the same time as the film. LEGO The Hobbit: The Video Game was released in April 2014. LEGO Ninjago: Nindroids was announced for the 3DS and PlayStation Vita and was released in August of 2014. LEGO Batman 3: Beyond Gotham was also released on all next generation consoles in November of 2014.
In 2014, the second LEGO Massively Multiplayer Online Game was released, LEGO Minifigures Online.
In 2015 LEGO Jurassic World was released after it was teased during the end credits to LEGO Batman 3: Beyond Gotham and to coincide with the Jurassic World movie. Also, LEGO Worlds became available on Steam Early Access on June 1, an open-world building game similar to Minecraft. Later in the year, LEGO Dimensions was released. Unlike any other LEGO video game, Dimensions includes an electronic base that reads NFC chips included in separately sold packs with physical minifigures and brick-built vehicles, causing the characters and vehicles to appear in-game, similar to the game series Skylanders, Disney Infinity and Nintendo's amiibo. Unlike past games, Dimensions features characters, vehicles, levels and worlds from a wide variety of different themes, including themes that were never physically produced prior to the game's existence such as Portal and The Wizard of Oz. Following the discontinuation of Disney Infinity, LEGO Dimensions is the second largest but arguably most popular toys-to-life video game, with the Skylanders series being slightly larger. However, critics have praised LEGO Dimensions for having vastly larger amounts of content to the packs that you buy. However, additional content was later discontinued.
In 2016, LEGO Marvel's Avengers was released. Unlike the previous Marvel title, this game allows players to play through iconic moments in the two Avengers films, as well as Marvel's Captain America: The First Avenger, Marvel's Iron Man 3, Marvel's Thor: The Dark World and Marvel's Captain America: The Winter Soldier. LEGO Star Wars: The Force Awakens was released on June 28 and follows the events of the film along with exclusive content taking place between Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi and Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens.
In 2017, LEGO Worlds was officially released on Steam, Xbox One and PlayStation 4 on March 7 with the Nintendo Switch version released on September 5. On September 22, The LEGO Ninjago Movie Video Game was released to coincide with the film it is based on. On November 14, LEGO Marvel Super Heroes 2 was released for PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch. The Windows PC version was released the very next day, and the macOS version was released on August 2nd, 2018.
On June 15, 2018 LEGO The Incredibles came out in North America for Nintendo Switch, PC, Xbox One, and PlayStation 4. It released elsewhere on July 13, 2018. This is the first Pixar LEGO video game but the second Disney LEGO video game. On October 16, 2018 LEGO DC Super-Villains came out on Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC in North America, and October 19, 2018 everywhere else in the world.
In 2019 The LEGO Movie 2 Videogame came out on February 26, 18 days after the film's debut and was released for Nintendo Switch, PC, Xbox One, and PlayStation 4.
List of all LEGO video games[]
This article or section is incomplete. Please improve the article, or discuss the issue on the talk page. |
PC = Microsoft Windows |
PSP = PlayStation Portable |
resorting consoles by chronological release
Title | Release | PC | Mac | Mob | PS | N64 | GBC | PS2 | GBA | GC | Xbox | DS | PSP | 360 | Wii | PS3 | iOS | Android | 3DS | Vita | Wii U | PS4 | Xbox One | Switch | PS5 | Xbox X/S | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
LEGO Island | 1997 | Yes | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
LEGO Chess | 1998 | Yes | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
LEGO Loco | 1998 | Yes | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
LEGO Creator | 1998 | Yes | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
LEGO Friends | 1999 | Yes | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
LEGO Racers | 1999 | Yes | Yes[10] | Yes | Yes | Yes | |||||||||||||||||||||
LEGO Rock Raiders | 1999/2000 | Yes | Yes | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
LEGO Alpha Team | 2000 | Yes | Yes | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
LEGO Creator: Knights' Kingdom | 2000 | Yes | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
LEGO My Style Kindergarten | 2000 | Yes | Yes | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
LEGOLAND | 2000 | Yes | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
LEGO Stunt Rally | 2000 | Yes | Yes | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
LEGO My Style Preschool | 2000 | Yes | Yes | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
BIONICLE: Tales of the Tohunga | 2001 | Yes | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
LEGO Creator: Harry Potter | 2001 | Yes | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
LEGO Island 2: The Brickster's Revenge | 2001 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | ||||||||||||||||||||||
LEGO Racers 2 | 2001 | Yes | Yes | Yes | |||||||||||||||||||||||
Island Xtreme Stunts | 2002 | Yes | Yes | Yes | |||||||||||||||||||||||
BIONICLE: Matoran Adventures | 2002 | Yes | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
Galidor: Defenders of the Outer Dimension | 2002 | Yes | Yes | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Creator: Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets | 2002 | Yes | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
Soccer Mania/Football Mania | 2002 | Yes | Yes | Yes | |||||||||||||||||||||||
Drome Racers | 2002 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | ||||||||||||||||||||||
BIONICLE: The Game | 2003 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | ||||||||||||||||||||
LEGO Knights' Kingdom | 2004 | Yes | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
BIONICLE: Maze of Shadows | 2005 | Yes | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
LEGO Star Wars: The Video Game | 2005 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | ||||||||||||||||||||
LEGO Star Wars II: The Original Trilogy | 2006 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | ||||||||||||||||
BIONICLE Heroes | 2006 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | |||||||||||||||||||
LEGO Star Wars: The Complete Saga | 2007 | Yes[11] | Yes[12] | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | |||||||||||||||||||
LEGO Batman: The Videogame | 2008 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes[13] | ||||||||||||||||
LEGO Indiana Jones: The Original Adventures | 2008 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | ||||||||||||||||||
LEGO Indiana Jones 2: The Adventure Continues | 2009 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | |||||||||||||||||||
LEGO Battles | 2009 | Yes | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
LEGO Rock Band | 2009 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | ||||||||||||||||||||||
LEGO Harry Potter: Years 1-4 | 2010 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes[14] | Yes[15] | Yes[16] | ||||||||||||||
LEGO Universe | 2010 | Yes | Yes | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
LEGO Harry Potter: Years 5-7 | 2011 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes[17] | Yes[18] | Yes[19] | ||||||||||||||
LEGO Star Wars III: The Clone Wars | 2011 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | |||||||||||||||||||
LEGO Pirates of the Caribbean: The Video Game | 2011 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | ||||||||||||||||||
LEGO Battles: Ninjago | 2011 | Yes | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
LEGO Batman 2: DC Super Heroes | 2012 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | |||||||||||||||||
LEGO The Lord of the Rings: The Video Game | 2012 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | ||||||||||||||||||
LEGO City Undercover | 2013 | Yes[20] | Yes | Yes[21] | Yes[22] | Yes[23] | |||||||||||||||||||||
LEGO City Undercover: The Chase Begins | 2013 | Yes | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
LEGO Marvel Super Heroes | 2013 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | ||||||||||||||||
LEGO Friends | 2013 | Yes | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
The LEGO Movie Video Game | 2014 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | ||||||||||||||||
LEGO The Hobbit: The Video Game | 2014 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | |||||||||||||||||
LEGO Ninjago: Nindroids | 2014 | Yes | Yes | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
LEGO Batman 3: Beyond Gotham | 2014 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | ||||||||||||||||
LEGO Jurassic World | 2015 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes[24] | |||||||||||||||
LEGO Worlds | 2015 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | ||||||||||||||||||||||
LEGO Dimensions | 2015 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | |||||||||||||||||||||
LEGO Marvel's Avengers | 2016 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | |||||||||||||||||
LEGO Star Wars: The Force Awakens | 2016 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | ||||||||||||||||
LEGO Marvel Super Heroes 2 | 2017 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | |||||||||||||||||||||
The LEGO Ninjago Movie Video Game | 2017 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | ||||||||||||||||||||||
LEGO The Incredibles | 2018 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | ||||||||||||||||||||||
LEGO DC Super-Villains | 2018 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | ||||||||||||||||||||||
The LEGO Movie 2 Videogame | 2019 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | ||||||||||||||||||||||
LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga | 2022 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
The PC is the platform with the most games, with a count of 41 LEGO video games published. The Xbox 360 is the second, with a count of 23 LEGO video games.
See also[]
- ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=825ipI76Ubc
- ↑ https://web.archive.org/web/20191027025232/http://www.halchemy.co.uk/oddmags/realtime_lego1a.shtml
- ↑ https://www.rockraidersunited.com/topic/4102-lego-interactive-producer-located/?do=findComment&comment=85183
- ↑ https://worthplaying.com/article/2001/12/11/news/1509/
- ↑ http://web.archive.org/web/20180802181812/https://worthplaying.com/article/2001/12/11/news/1509/
- ↑ https://www.rockraidersunited.com/topic/8487-information-about-academy-of-flight/
- ↑ https://www.rockraidersunited.com/topic/8265-the-cancelled-lego-footballsoccer-games/
- ↑ https://www.rockraidersunited.com/topic/5194-canceled-lego-racers-4/
- ↑ https://www.rockraidersunited.com/topic/8386-information-from-one-of-the-designers-of-drome-racers/
- ↑ Released in 2007
- ↑ Released in 2009
- ↑ Released in 2010/2011
- ↑ Released as LEGO Batman: Gotham City Games
- ↑ Released in 2018
- ↑ Released in 2018
- ↑ Released in 2018
- ↑ Released in 2018
- ↑ Released in 2018
- ↑ Released in 2018
- ↑ Released in 2017
- ↑ Released in 2017
- ↑ Released in 2017
- ↑ Released in 2017
- ↑ Released in 2019