It’s finally happened. Someone has finally found a way to break the kung-fu grip that Activision’s Skylanders franchise has on my household. Once upon a time I thought that just perhaps, Disney Infinity might be the game to do it but it never lived up to the hype. Now we’re preparing for the September drop of WB Interactive’s LEGO Dimensions and if ever a franchise could take down a Portal Master it’s almost certainly LEGO. Sure, I might be making an attempt at being the Nostradamus of the videogame world by predicting the future but unless WB screws up big time you can consider this one signed, sealed and delivered.
Now either with or without the clever little announcement trailer with Joel McHale I would be in hook, line and sinker for this franchise. I, like many others, grew up on LEGO and have passed one of my favorite addictions onto my children. I’ll admit that I played some Skylanders with my kids but it never sucked me in quite like LEGO. In my household LEGO is the go-to toy. It’s the never fail birthday present. It’s the ‘we just want you to be good’ bribery toy. It’s the toy that takes up most of the real estate underneath the Christmas tree and the toy that keeps the whole family at the table building on Boxing Day. Now you’re telling me I’m going to be able to buy buildable sets and characters that are fully interchangeable and playable in a videogame? SHUT UP AND TAKE MY MONEY WARNER BROTHERS!
Just taking a quick look at the starter pack you’ll get the buildable Gateway and three mini-figure characters including Batman, the LEGO Movie’s Wyldstyle and everyone’s favourite wizard Gandalf from The Lord of the Rings. Oh, and a mini Batmobile which is totally fantastic. That’s not bad to get going with but it’s the collectible Level, Team and Fun Packs that are really going to get me, I mean my kids, excited. Just a taste of what’s coming for the latter half of 2015 and into 2016 are the Back to the Future Level Pack with a LEGO Marty McFly minifigure, a LEGO Ninjago Team Pack with Kai and Cole minifigures, three Ninjago Fun Packs with Jay, Nya and Zane minifigures, two DC Comics Fun Packs with Wonder Woman and Cyborg minifigures, three The Lord of the Rings Fun Packs with LEGO Gollum, LEGO Gimli and LEGO Legolas minifigures, four The LEGO Movie Fun packs with Emmet, Bad Cop, Benny and Unikitty characters, and a The Wizard of Oz Fun Pack with a LEGO Wicked Witch of the West minifigure.
GUYS, THAT IS A CRAP TON OF AWESOME.
The toys-to-life genre is the undisputed money-making king when it comes to videogames. Sure AAA juggernauts like CoD, Halo, Uncharted etc all bring in huge sales but not the same residuals as Skylanders. Not only does the game ding you nearly $100 right out of the gate but good luck avoiding buying extra characters and level sets. I tried to hold out. I tried and I failed miserably. Once a week you’d find me pathetically staring at a wall full of brightly painted toys trying to decide which to buy. By switching out Skylanders with LEGO toys I’m screwed. You’re talking to the guy who didn’t bat an eye at paying $400 for the LEGO S.H.I.E.L.D. Helicarrier. Hell, I teared up walking out of the store because I was so happy.
“You’re telling me I’m going to be able to buy buildable LEGO sets and characters that are fully interchangeable and playable in a videogame? SHUT UP AND TAKE MY MONEY WARNER BROTHERS!”
Admittedly the Skylanders franchise has lost some if its appeal to me with Trap Team as it became less playable and flat out more expensive. They toys themselves and the Traptanium Traps added up to a significant dent in the wallet without providing enough value for your dollar. Despite still loving the design of the characters it all started to feel a bit stale and regurgitated. Not only that there was essentially a giant paywall that brick by brick just got taller and taller and taller… leaving me more and more broke and highly unsatisfied in the process.  If WB can be smart enough to bring great value for their add-on packs and not build that paywall up too high they have a sure-fire hit on the horizon.
We don’t know a lot about LEGO Dimensions at this point but by capitalizing on the LEGO brand not only as a game (to which LEGO has already done exceedingly well at) but as an interactive and buildable toys-to-life franchise it seems clear to me that we’ll have a new king of the hill by the end of 2015. The options and franchises available to LEGO is enough to sustain new packs and levels for a long time to come… although I did notice the distinct lack of the Star Wars and Marvel franchises. I’d imagine that Disney is holding them back but unless Disney Infinity really takes a turn for the better I’m sure that WB Interactive smells the blood in the water for Mickey and friends.
Sometimes it’s nice to feel like a kid again and thoughts of leading Marty McFly through a DC Comics or Lord of the Rings adventure are almost too much for me to handle. The bridge between physical and digital LEGO has finally been built and I can’t wait to see what it has in store (and neither can my kids, who I’ll totally buy this for… not me… I swear).