Lego The Incredibles

TT Games and its Lego titles have fraternised with a number of big names and licenses already, from the swashbuckling Pirates of the Caribbean to the far, far away galaxies of Star Wars, but this summer they're back with another game - Lego The Incredibles - which marks the studios first partnership with animation giant Pixar. We were recently invited by publisher Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment to see the fruits of this partnership ourselves in London, and considering the weight of both Lego and The Incredibles, we were eager to get a taste of what's in store, which is exactly what we did when we tried two levels in the adventure.

In terms of content, it's important to bear in mind that the game includes both the original film that we all know and love, as well as the sequel releasing this year, with TT Games having access to a ton of assets and content from the upcoming film in order to prepare. This doesn't mean a scene-by-scene reproduction, as existing Lego game fans can no doubt imagine, but instead, a certain amount of poetic license is taken with the plot, throwing in extra scenes, puzzles, and scenarios where appropriate, all of which was developed alongside Pixar.

One level we played, for instance, saw Elastigirl, Violet, and Dash all end up on this island looking to save Mr Incredible, while another put us in the shoes of the family father himself alongside his wife. Structurally the whole game should be familiar to those who have played Lego games in the past, as you go through set levels which are broken apart by cutscenes, with a hub world thrown in for good measure. We didn't get to explore the hub world during our preview session, but as game director Pete Gomer said in the interview you can find at the bottom of this article, it should give us plenty of extra stuff to do.

The Pixar identity carries over rather nicely as well, including the Lego-fied Pixar logo and the fully-voiced cast, all of which help make the transition from animation to blocks a smooth one. Sure, characters like Mr Incredible look a little odd considering they're not 'technically' Lego minifigures, but the addition of extra polish and details like Pixar Easter eggs (yes, they're there, and we've seen them) more than make up for that.

In the levels we played we spent our time-solving light puzzles and engaging in block-based combat (again, stuff that's second-nature to Lego fans), all of which utilise the unique powers of each character. Elastigirl's stretching ability lets her grab a ledge to act as a bridge or worm her way through vents, for example, while Violet's forcefield lets her block lasers and swim underwater. What's more is that these powers can and will be used alongside each other throughout, like Dash getting in Violet's shield orb so that the sibling pair can run along the water while protected by the shield.

Attacks are equally varied depending on who you're fighting with, as Dash's speed allows him to dart between enemies, but he's not that strong and can't take on the heftiest foes, while Mr Incredible obviously has a bit more muscle about him, and so can take down most enemies with either his flailing punches or slam attack. Also, after enough attacking you get the option for a super attack, activated by holding square (we played on PS4) and then tapping the same button again to unleash the respective character's special. Mr Incredible's has a giant ground-slam, for example, while Elastigirl can twist around before proceeding to smack every destructible thing or enemy on-screen.

In terms of all the extras you'd expect in a Lego game, there's plenty here too from the looks of it, including a meter that assesses how many studs you've collected by destroying everything in the environment, as well as hidden areas with extra stuff to find, build, and interact with. We didn't see anything like Minikits from our brief foray into the world, but we can imagine if they're absent then some other collectible will be in there for completionists to obsess over.

All in all, we went into Lego The Incredibles expecting something similar to what we've seen before in other Lego games, only this time with a classic Pixar skin, and it didn't disappoint. All the characters we expected were there (with more to come in the full version), their powers are varied and unique, and the worlds are just as colourful and packed with goodies as ever. With the hub world and more still unseen, we'll have to wait to get the full taste of the game, but this little bite has left us hungry to dive in again.

Lego The Incredibles is hitting different territories at different times, with launch plans set to allign with the cinematic release of the movie. For example, US-based gamers can get their hands on it from June 15, while European players will have to wait until July 13. If you'd like to know more about the latest Lego game by TT Games you can watch our recent interview with Pete Gomer below, or head here for more thoughts from the TT team.