"That's no moon... It's the greatest DS game ever!"

Lego Star Wars is a series that took the well-known and beloved Star Wars franchise and replaced everything about it with the nuts and bolts of Legos. After having a few successful games in the series, this one was released as a compilation of all the ones ever released and came on multiple platforms, one of which was the Nintendo DS.

While the console versions may have had more characters and better graphics, if ever you wanted a terrific handheld experience, this game is it.

Story - 10/10

If you have ever watched a Star Wars movie and read the title crawl, then you know the storyline to about 1/6 of this game. If you have seen every Star Wars movie, then you know the entire plot of this game. Since it follows every movie in the series, you will follow Anakin's rise from a lowly pod-racer to one of the greatest Jedi ever known as well as take part in the destruction of the Death Star. The story is told through short, hilarious animations of vital scenes of the movies. As you progress through each level, you will uncover more of the ever-growing plot as well as meet familiar faces from the movies, each with their own special abilities and the like. If you enjoyed the Star Wars movies, you will enjoy this faithful adaptation.

Gameplay - 9/10

You begin in the Mos Eisley Cantina, which is the main area of the game. From here, you can access all of the 6 movies as well as a place for hints and a place to look at your spoils. After choosing a movie, you will select a particular scene from the movie, watch a cutscene, and then jump straight into the action as whatever characters are present in that part of the movie. Once you beat the scene, the next one unlocks and you can do this for every single movie.

During each scene, you collect Studs (the games currency) and run around as Lego Star Wars characters in an attempt to recreate the movie and explore all that each level has to offer. Along with Studs, you can also find special Kits and Bricks that can unlock special features outside of the episode. On your first run-through of the movies, it is only possible to play the linear story mode. However, after completing a level, you can return to it and play through it in Free Mode which allows you to play through it as any character you have unlocked so far. With well over 100 characters in the game, there are endless possibilities. Along with standard Free Mode, you can also further extend the fun by playing the game with a friend. If you link up with someone who also has the game, the two of you will be able to traverse any level in your arsenal as any character among your ranks. This co-op experience rivals that of any other game on the market today.

The Gameplay itself is fairly linear, and you will be able to get through most of the scenes without any trouble. What makes it so fun is the Lego feel to everything: you have to build switches and other critical items out of lego pieces, a character falls to pieces when they die, and you can interact with many of the Lego backgrounds.

Controls - 10/10

There isn't much to discuss here. The D-Pad moves you and you have a jumping, attacking, interacting, and character-switching button. Aside from a few Force-related touch screen gimmicks, you don't get to use much of the bottom screen. Some may see this as a relief, but if you were looking forward to any amazing touch controls, look elsewhere.

Difficulty - 9/10

When I say 9/10, I don't mean that it is the most frustrating game ever. What I mean is that this game has an enjoyable difficulty. The boss fights are creative and the levels are fun, but it is all at such a dumbed down difficulty that you can actually enjoy the Star Wars experience. Plus, with the freedom of infinite lives, you never have to stress during the higher action parts of the game. You will be able to coast through, enjoy your old Star Wars memories, and just have a great time playing an easy game.

Graphics - 7/10

In this category, the DS certainly tries. While in an episode or the cantina, it looks as close to the console graphics as it can: studs look nice and shiny, the character models are not flawed in any way, and everything just looks nice. For the cutscenes, however, there are a few problems. For starters, the title crawl before each scene looks awkward. The letters each have their own black background so it ruins the feel of the words flying through space. As for the actual cinematic cutscenes, the DS has dumbed down the graphics so much that it barely looks like a picture with one or two studs animated at a time. We've seen what the DS is capable of with opening scenes like in the Final Fantasy games, so why they couldn't put that much effort into the cutscenes is beyond me. At times they are nice, but for the most part you will be disappointed that you're watching what appears to be a thrown-together-at-the-last-minute hunk of garbage.

Music - 10/10

From the Cantina Song to the Imperial March, this game has just about every Stars Wars theme that you know and love. While the DS doesn't have the best quality of music ever, what it does have is full-fledged familiar songs. The quality is acceptable and you will barely notice any flaws it may have.

As for sound effects, they sound like they were taken right out of the movie: Lightsabers being swung around, Lasers getting shot, the whole slew of sounds is packed into this game. Along with these Star Wars sounds, you will also hear the ambience of Lego pieces falling, building, and running to pull you further into this gaming experience.

Replayability - 10/10

With the unlocking of Free Mode and two player co-op, you could literally play every movie multiple times. If you add in the extra task of collecting everything in the game, you could spend hours trying to locate all the hidden goodies in the game. Will you play it more than once? Very likely. The novelty of this games just doesn't seem to die.

If you ever get the need to start over and collect everything all over again from the beginning, you will be relieved to hear that the game comes with two save slots so that you won't have to sacrifice your first save for a start over.

Recommendation

BUY IT WITH ALL HASTE! It isn't a perfect game, but you'd be hard-pressed to find a game that even comes close to comparing with this one. If ever you need entertainment for a flight, long car trip, or a distraction from life, this game will fulfill it 100%.

Star Wars has come an incredibly long way since it's first theatrical release, but of every spin-off and game out there for the series, this one feels the most complete and you will not be able to find a game to rival this for many years to come.

Final Score - 9/10

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 08/22/08

Game Release: Lego Star Wars: The Complete Saga (US, 11/06/07)