Racing games, superhero titles, GTA-likes—Lego games have covered a lot. Oddly, however, a party game has been missing—until now. The magic of the famous Danish bricks means that imagination is the only limit to what can be created. Now, a party game that feels like it should fit together like a well-designed Lego kit is ready to hit living rooms. Will it handle being played with, or crumble to pieces? Read on as Cubed3 builds…erm, plays LEGO Party!
For fans of couch multiplayer gaming, a new party game is always welcome in one’s library. For those looking for a board game-like experience, the classic Mario Party franchise has long been the go-to. This is not due to it being the only option, but because it has set a golden standard that few other games have reached over the years.
This is quite understandable. Building a great digital party board game is daunting. Several key pieces are necessary: engaging mini-games, creative boards, and a balance between skill and chance. As an added challenge, it not only competes against other video games, it is also competing against analogue games. This leads to the standards being higher than one might initially expect.
As Lego Party draws a lot of inspiration and mechanics straight from the Mario Party, comparisons will be frequent. Key similarities include near identical spaces, golden bricks resembling Power Stars, and mini-games that will make anyone who has ever partied in the Mushroom Kingdom feel right at home. There is no shame in that; rather, the opposite. Drawing inspiration from a proven formula is a wise choice.
What makes Lego Party stand out from its competition is its presentation. It excels at bringing the Lego theme to life in every aspect. Nothing less was to be expected from the juggernaut franchise. Nonetheless, the board designs feel visually inspiring. Also, something important for fans of the Danish bricks is that it is theoretically possible to build them out of Lego.
This clever Lego theme seeps its way into many mini-games. For example, one challenge involves guessing which Lego model is being built as each piece is revealed one by one. It is a phenomenal design that gives Lego Party its own identity. Something it needs to reel in the attention of gamers looking for their next multiplayer romp.
Another charming aspect that makes Lego Party unique is its lively hosts, Ted Talker and Paige Turner. Their high energy truly brings a game show atmosphere to the living room. It’s hard not to be drawn into the engaging game show vibe they create, making Lego Party feel like more than a typical party game. The stakes are high; that golden “irreplicable” trophy is not something to get sentimental about.
Lego Party‘s true strength lies in these choices that make it feel like an adventure. It isn’t just the fluff, either. Many of the levels feature story elements that unfold during the party. The most significant event was the appearance of a massive alien boss. What makes it so memorable is how it fundamentally changes the way the game is played. In addition to removing various methods of gaining or stealing golden bricks, it also attacks the players each turn. It created a hectic cinematic battle where the stakes feel very high. Doubly so for those in lower positions.
Because of these features, Lego Party creates fun stories, at least on the first playthrough of each board. It also improves aspects found in Mario Party, such as the in-game economy. Mario Party has struggled to strike a balance between making items obtainable without rendering coins worthless. In comparison, Lego Party‘s economy feels like a masterstroke. It has achieved a perfect balance between the amount of currency (called studs) provided, the cost of items, and the cost of golden bricks.
The balanced economy ensures items never feel like a luxury, yet studs never feel pointless. This is due to the high price of golden bricks. This means that everyone can fully enjoy the board section and stock up on items without removing the importance of mini-games. It makes the game remarkably smooth and interactive, even for those who are falling behind. It never feels like entire aspects of the game are locked because one can’t get a win in a mini-game for all the bricks in Lego Land.
Some mini-games are vastly improved compared to their Mario Party counterparts, particularly in how they address gameplay issues. For example, Lego Party‘s version of Bumper Ball resolves the infamous stalemates in the Mario Party version. In Lego Party’s equivalent, bricks rain down on the field, causing the balls to grow larger and increasing their force. Bombs also continue to fall on the field, helping to push players off the battlefield.
Due to its presentation and clever refinements of core mechanics, Lego Party has a promising foundation to stand on. However, its strengths end at the surface-level presentation and design, as the actual gameplay fails to deliver upon this foundation.
There are some design choices that cause trouble in the mini-games. Most notably, the analogue stick is limited to digital inputs. It restricts the movement to only eight directions and a predetermined speed. In many mini-games, this is not an issue at all. However, there are mini-games where more precise controls would’ve been helpful.
One of the clearest offenders is a mini-game that features an obstacle course. At the end of this course, the players have to walk a thin path to avoid falling to their demise. It does not at all feel like it was designed with digital movement in mind, as the precision needed is far above what it provides. To be fair, this was likely a design choice to prevent mouse and keyboard players from suffering a huge disadvantage online. However, the “solution” feels like it just makes the game worse for everyone.
Mini-games often introduce unique controls. Variation helps to prevent repetition. However, it feels disjointed and confusing when there are no standard rules for most mini-games. The result is that the player has to learn a new game every round.
There are also some weird mini-games in the mix. The most out of place is an art trivia mini-game with Lego-fied art pieces. It feels out of place in a game designed for a young audience. More than a mini-game to enjoy, it feels like an insert to showcase some wacky Lego builds.
Next, we need to undress the boards from their initial flare. Behind the presentation, the boards are too short and simple. On some boards, returning to a space takes approximately 15 steps. On average, this is about four turns. This is without using items to speed it up. It makes them feel repetitive, as most boards usually have a clear best route to follow. While it works well in a few short games, it harms replayability and longer parties – problem not at all helped by the fact that there are only four boards.
What was meant as the saving grace for replayability is to sometimes let players build one of two Lego models to incorporate into the course. The cruel reality, sadly, is that it becomes a weak twist. This is because often these extensions are just a fancy introduction to a new event space.
The absolute strongest board is based on a theme park. It is amazing from a gameplay perspective, marrying its wonderful gameplay with its theme. It is also the board that best incorporates the building mechanic by offering three zones to be built. Each zone comes with its own small mini-games and a creative way to obtain free golden bricks. The issue is that this also happens to be the obligatory ”mini-games matter” board.
Here, it is quite easy for players with a lot of studs to gain golden bricks, to the point that there are rarely any leftover studs. While there are many board mechanics allowing players to gain golden bricks through clever board plays, they pale in comparison to what someone can gain by being good at mini-games. This is thanks to the fact that the golden block salesman is readily available on the board and never travels far, allowing many bricks to be purchased or, later on, even stolen per turn for those with a large number of studs.
Lego Party is also prone to crashing. Thankfully, the game’s auto-save system makes this just an inconvenience while offline. When playing online, however, it’s a completely different story. Here it can be quite frustrating to have the game crash in the middle of play.
Unfortunately, Lego Party breaks down to bricks outside of presentation and clever improvements to the economy. Poor controls, some lacklustre mini-games, and small boards harm what could have been a competitor to the party starters in the Mushroom Kingdom. Lego Party does many things right, but it stumbles right at the finish line. This is a huge loss. It has the ingredients to be an amazing party board game that is not exclusive to a Nintendo platform. Additionally, the Lego theme is a perfect match for this type of gameplay.
