On paper, "LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga" might not seem like a game some might expect me to play. I have a passable enjoyment of some "LEGO" games, but don't play them frequently enough to say I'm a "fan." Also, while I've reviewed several games in the "Star Wars" franchise before, I've made clear many times over that I'm not too into the series. But after watching several gameplay showings of this game throughout 2021, it was becoming too hard to pass up on. This looked like a wonderful little evolution of the "LEGO" formula, and I was interested to see how it would pan out. As it is, I'm not sure it was the wholesale evolution that I was expecting, but I can say I had a pretty sold time with it.
"LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga" deserves a lot of credit for the sheer wealth of content that it has. The fact that Traveller's Tales was able to fit nine films worth of "Star Wars" into one game (plus some additional characters and content from anthology films like "Rogue One" and "Solo," as well as "The Mandalorian") while telling each film's story in a largely unabridged way is commendable. As someone that doesn't follow "Star Wars," it was a nice way to get a condensed viewing of each film's story done in a way that respects the lineage of the franchise and its characters (with sharp touches of humor here and there). Visually, it's pretty great to look at, too; it's still got that "LEGO" charm to it, but with some wonderfully designed backdrops that make it very inventive in its style. The gameplay also carries much of that same "LEGO" charm, but with a few nice changes to the formula. The camera is now changed to an over-the-shoulder third-person style, akin to what you may see in many modern action games, and combat is now more combo-oriented. It's a nice addition that feels smart and manages to bring "LEGO" a bit more in line with a lot of the modern third-person games released today. Having also played through the entire game in co-op, it remains just as fun of a two-player experience as previous games in the "LEGO" pantheon.
I will say, though, that while I was expecting the change to the over-the-shoulder style to be a major shake-up for the game, it didn't really feel like too huge of an evolution to me. While the combo system does create some new layers, I don't think it totally pushes past the "another 'LEGO' game" feeling for me. For many, that won't be a big problem, and it doesn't break the game for me entirely, but I just think it's worth noting. I also wasn't too fond of some of the open hub worlds; they often felt rather repetitive, and the fact that objectives would be limited to just walking between checkpoints dulled the experience at points. Oh, and there are some technical issues that I think make the game feel a bit unpolished at points: the camera can be frustrating to deal with, and I'll also say that this might be the buggiest 'LEGO' game I've played yet. I was surprised by how many times the game bugged out while playing through it, and it did mar the experience a bit. Every time a major bug or oddity happened, all I could think was "ah yes, so this is what crunch creates" (by the way, game developers and publishers, stop with that crunch nonsense, please).
Overall, my time with "LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga" was solidly spent, even if it didn't quite shoot as high as I may have expected. While it may have been touted as the "most ambitious" Lego game yet, I don't know if it totally gets there, and there are moments where the game shows some cracks in its armor. Still, I think the game does a lot of things right, and the sheer depth of content, combined with the attention to detail and appreciation of the source material, make it worthwhile in the end. Kids will obviously love it, but I think older audiences will get some good out of it thanks to the improved combat. And if you're a big "Star Wars" fan, this is a definite must-play.
Final rating: 7 out of 10 "Good"