Lego Star Wars Episode I Preview

You might have a couple of misconceptions the first time you hear the name "Lego Star Wars." For one, it's based entirely on the prequel films--no Luke, Leia, or Han to be found here. For another, you won't just be building things out of blocks; you'll be blasting and slashing your way through level after level of George Lucas' fantasy universe as rendered in Lego. Lastly, and most importantly, this game isn't just for kids. Check your attitude at the door, you jaded Gen-X cynic--we've played through the Episode I portion of Lego Star Wars and are here to tell you that if this game doesn't bring a smile to your face, you don't know how to have fun anymore.

Ever wanted to hack Jar Jar Binks to pieces ad nauseam? Now's your chance.

If you're reading this page--in fact, if you're even into video games at all--odds are you've seen Episode I: The Phantom Menace at least once. But if the cloying antics of a certain floppy-eared gungan have clouded your memory, here's a refresher: Jedi knights Obi-Wan Kenobi and Qui-Gon Jinn have to protect Queen Amidala amid a violent trade dispute on her homeworld of Naboo. Along the way they encounter Anakin Skywalker, also known as The Boy Who Would Be Darth Vader, and bring him into Jedi training after a climactic battle with the bad guys. Lego Star Wars distills this story down to the most exciting parts, represented by a sequence of action levels that will take you from Naboo to Tatooine and back, all the way up to the climactic fight with Darth Maul.

Actually, the game will let you play an equal number of action levels from all three episodes: The Phantom Menace, Attack of the Clones, and the upcoming Revenge of the Sith. We like to play in order, though, so we've plowed our way through The Phantom Menace in its entirety, which is spread out over levels ranging from the Trade Federation's capital ship to the royal palace grounds of Theed and even the podracing course on Tatooine. Unfortunately, we didn't see a Lego-built Jabba the Hutt, but nevertheless, the force of Episode I is strong in this one.

The mechanics of Lego Star Wars couldn't be simpler. You run your goofy little Lego version of Obi-Wan, Padme, R2-D2, or whoever around Star Wars worlds built entirely from Lego blocks. You have a basic attack and a special power (both dependent on the character) and a jump move. Fight all the enemies that get in your way as you solve light puzzles and make your way to the end of the level. You'll always be joined by at least one AI-controlled friend, and you can switch to other characters at any time at the press of a button. We're going to peg the learning curve at somewhere around 60 seconds, give or take.

Play as everyone from Darth Maul to the gonk droid by unlocking dozens of secret characters.

We got to play as a ton of characters in the Episode I section of Lego Star Wars. In addition to the expected characters like Obi-Wan, Qui-Gon, Amidala, and Anakin, we used R2-D2, Captain Panaka, that insufferable Binks, and even the TC-14 protocol droid. All of the characters have a different special power--the Jedi can use the Force to manipulate objects, Amidala and Panaka can use a grappling hook to reach new heights, and Anakin can duck into tiny chutes to appear at new places in each level. When you finish a level, you'll unlock whichever new characters you got to play with in that level. What's more, you can use the money that you've picked up throughout the game to go back to the shop in the hub level and purchase even more characters, including some of the bad guys you've been fighting against.