LEGO Games can Draw Families Together

If you don’t own a Nintendo system – and the if you don’t and have a family, you should! – there are not a lot of titles that appeal to families. They are either to violent and graphic, or they are limited in what can be done locally. LEGO games continue to push against the current generation norm. Would it be hard for Travelers Tales to dump local multiplayer in favour of online multiplayer? Of course, but they haven’t, and that means a lot to my family.

LEGO games have not always been major hits. In fact, I’ve played many that have been duds. However, they get significant playtime because I can sit down and go through them with my son. I love LEGO, he loves LEGO, and it is something we can do together. Surprisingly, he doesn’t care what we are playing. He was playing LEGO Pirates of the Caribbean before he saw the movies, LEGO Lord of the Rings before he knew what a Hobbit even was, and at the young age of six, he isn’t watching any Marvel movies anytime soon, but that hasn’t stopped us from playing the newest title when it finally came.

This is something I think Traveler’s Tales really strives to commit to their titles. Family, friendly video games are so few and far between, there is a definite benefit – an economic one mostly – to producing something that can be played locally in the home. With so many things to collect and build, it’s hard to see LEGO games stopping anytime soon, and that is fine with me. My next most anticipated title for my young family? LEGO Star Wars based on The Force Awakens. My son won’t have a clue what is going on, but will enjoy it with his dad none-the-less.