It used to be that you knew exactly what you were getting with a LEGO video game. Think goofball humour, a lot of smacky combat, and jumping around in the traditional action adventure mould, with the added ask of smashing up your surroundings for LEGO studs and impromptu building materials. To make a LEGO tie-in game, you simply took a franchise and draped its aesthetic over this familiar, family-friendly formula.

It feels, though, like things have evolved in recent times, with IP flavour featuring more strongly when it comes to licensed LEGO game releases. 2024’s LEGO Horizon Adventures was a boisterous revisiting of Horizon Zero Dawn’s and Horizon Forbidden West’s setting and mechanics, with upgradable weapons and robot opponents that have highlighted weak points. Now the same “source material first” approach has been applied to LEGO Batman: Legacy of the Dark Knight, developed by LEGO adaptation specialists Traveller’s Tales, and published by Warner Bros. Games.

Immediately it becomes apparent that the fourth LEGO Batman title isn’t a LEGO game with Batman; it’s actually a Batman game made with LEGO. It’s strange to say it, but LEGO Batman: Legacy of the Dark Knight may be the definitive game to feature Gotham City’s cowl-and-cape clad vigilante. While Legacy of the Dark Knight treats the Arkham game series as its gameplay foundation, it’s an incredible love letter to the DC Comics superhero as a whole – drawing on the full 87 years of Bat media, from page to screen.

Consisting of six revisitable chapters, the game tracks Batman’s career from angry, justice-seeking son who trains with the League of Shadows in a secret mountain retreat, to a veteran hero with a whole Bat Family and Rogues’ Gallery. While the story primarily draws on the eight Batman films released since 1989, pretty much everything Bats-related gets a look-in, including cartoons Batman: The Animated Series and Batman Beyond, plus the campy Adam West and Burt Ward 60s TV series. Hell, there’s even space made for Joaquin Phoenix’s spin-off Joker, Halle Berry’s notorious Catwoman, and the Snyderverse.

Batman comics aren’t overlooked either. Frank Miller’s seminal The Dark Knight Returns gets some surprise representational inclusions, the shocking Knightfall saga drives a later Act, and the latest smash-hit comic relaunch, Absolute Batman, receives a look-in, in the form of its over-the-top costume. It’s just one of the 100 outfits that players can collect for Batman and his six playable allies (Jim Gordon, Catwoman, Robin, Nightwing, Batgirl and Talia al Ghul) during the course of the game.

On that note, said allies need to be juggled in single player mode due to their useful unique abilities – like Gordon with his gummy foam spray, and (arguably the most fun) Catwoman, who, among other things, can summon cats to get into hard-to-reach spots. These figures also serve as fully playable characters for seamless drop-in couch co-op with family and friends.

It needs to be screamed from the rooftop of Wayne Enterprises, or the Gotham City Police Department, that if you’re an adult Batman fan put off by the assumption that Legacy of the Dark Knight is “just kids’ stuff,” you’re missing out. While it can safely be played with the elementary school crowd, the game is riddled (so to speak) with Easter eggs in keeping with the playful LEGO game tone.

In-game stores are named after comic creators who left a lasting mark on the character, while billboards reference secondary support characters, businesses and locations that have popped up in franchise history. You won’t encounter Clayface and Harley Quinn, out of interest, but Legacy of the Dark Knight still provides a spot for some of the most obscure Batman villains of yesteryear, along with an elevated role for Silver Age superfan Bat-Mite.

The game goes so far as to include dialogue and visual gags that pay homage to the filmographies of actors who’ve appeared in the Batman movies. No adolescent with get the joke (hopefully), but the business card scene from Christian Bale’s American Psycho is quoted, while the Penguin delivers Danny DeVito’s famous It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia line.

The cherry on top is that LEGO Batman: Legacy of the Dark Knight often features iconic music from other Batman properties. One particular highlight is a re-enactment of Joker’s art gallery takeover to Prince, as seen in Tim Burton’s first Batman.

There’s a lot of fun to be had from simply playing “spot the reference” but LEGO Batman: Legacy of the Dark Knight goes beyond that kind of superficial pleasure. Its storyline drops players into some of the most iconic locations from the franchise, including Amusement Mile, Arkham Asylum and Shrek’s Department Store – all of which are realised in intricate detail.

In-between missions, you’re encouraged to explore and engage with the game setting as you like. Perhaps you want to expand, equip and customise the Batcave, which is also your place to admire all your unlocked costumes and vehicles. Alternatively, head to an open-world Gotham City that feels more Grand Theft Auto than Batman: Arkham City thanks to the truly impressive vibrancy of life on its streets. Whether you choose to cruise around in one of the Batmobiles, or grapple and glide dramatically between buildings, you can tackle various challenges, or stop crimes ranging from muggings to attempted break-ins, with an intermittent high-speed pursuit or two. It’s also advisable to just pause on a vantage point and eavesdrop on citizens going about their lives.

Further adding to the clear “play your way” directive is the fact that the game has not one but two upgrade systems. The first is fuelled by story progression and covers combat and exploration capabilities across the board. The second demands collectible hunting, and lets players enhance the signature abilities and gear of each playable character. It’s a simplified version of the same skill tree seen in the Arkham titles, just as the game’s battles are a stripped down, but still satisfying, take on the button-combo systems from Rocksteady’s gaming forerunners.

Fights are a lot easier in LEGO Batman: Legacy of the Dark Knight than the Arkham games (and genuinely challenging LEGO Horizon), for the record, making the game more accessible for inexperienced players. With only the final two chapters ramping up the challenge, you can comfortably choose a higher difficulty level from the start. 

Swooping in with a premium price tag (R1,200 for the standard edition on console, up to R1,700 for the deluxe version), LEGO Batman: Legacy of the Dark Knight is good value for money. Finishing the six-chapter story should take players 15 to 20 hours, while completionists can expect to spend an estimated 40 to 50 hours ticking off every optional activity and finding every collectible strewn across Gotham.

Legacy of the Dark Knight’s only real drawbacks are a surprisingly buggy fourth chapter, especially in split-screen co-op, and an inherited stealth system that seems largely pointless due to the ease of pile-on brawls. The game also starts to feel a bit samey, until an adrenalin-charged car chase reenergises things, driving the story to the finish line in conjunction with fresh gameplay. In the end, as the game credits roll to Seal’s Kiss from a Rose, it’s impossible not to have a big smile on your face – no Joker laughing gas needed.

Officially launched on 22 May, LEGO Batman: Legacy of the Dark Knight is out now for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC via Steam and Epic Games Store. A Nintendo Switch 2 release is also on the cards for 18 September.


LEGO Batman: Legacy of the Dark Knight review

It’s not without bugs and bloat, but LEGO Batman: Legacy of the Dark Knight swiftly establishes itself as an easter egg-stuffed love letter to the DC Comics superhero, drawing on the franchise’s full history across the media spectrum. An all-ages joy, set against the backdrop of a truly impressive, living breathing Gotham, and a must experience for Batman fans.

 8.5
LEGO Batman: Legacy of the Dark Knight was reviewed on Xbox Series X