The LEGO video games have returned to The Lord of the Rings franchise, this time tackling The Hobbit storyline.  This charming action-adventure game has some fantastic gameplay, great music. and destructible environments.

LEGO: The Hobbit is a 2014 LEGO parody, action-adventure game. It is developed by Traveler’s Tales and published by Warner Brothers Interactive Entertainment. It is available on all current gen consoles, handhelds, and PC.

The Hobbit has been LEGOlized.

I’ve never really played any of the LEGO games before, so when I managed to get a copy of LEGO: The Hobbit, I wasn’t exactly sure what to think. So I decided on jumping into this one with welcome arms, and I’m quite happy I did.

Dwarfs assemble!

THE GOOD: LEGO: The Hobbit has a lot going for it, great gameplay, fantastic writing, awesome humor, and more. Further proof that a licensed game be it just by name or a film tie-in can compete with any AAA once time and effort is put into it. The beautiful graphics despite the LEGO animation style is also charming and inviting for all ages to enjoy. The open world is also it’s own level of amazement.

LEGO: The Hobbit’s witty humor & charming art is one of the striving moments of the title.

In LEGO: The Hobbit there’s destructible environments a plenty, almost every and anything is breakable n the game. And it’s rather amusing to see these breakable items turn into pieces and pieces of LEGOs. Another cool thing about LEGO: The Hobbit is the vast amount of exploration and collectibles such as new characters and brick pieces. Free Play also allows players to explore the open world even further opening up new parts that couldn’t be during the campaign using characters such as the goblin, elves, and others who have unique abilities related to the world’s surroundings.

Spoilers ahoy for those who haven’t seen the two films.

I found LEGO: The Hobbit making light of some of the more darker moments of the films rather enjoyable, and some of the humor was actually funny. Gameplay as your standard action-adventure affair, nothing spectacular really, very basic but still pretty fun.

Gameplay is laxed, due to the aim at a younger audience, but that doesn’t take anything away from the fun factor.

THE BAD: Those who decide on picking this up, but haven’t seen either of the Hobbit films should actually watch the films first. This is a parody tie-in, so there’s going to be spoilers a plenty here. For more serious players the lack of challenge may be a bit of a turn off.

Collectibles, dozens & dozens of collectibles!

THE UGLY: There were some game breaking glitches that popped up every once and a while, but this was more of an annoyance than anything else.

Another video game win for the LEGO team.

OVERALL THOUGHTS:  While most would shy away from LEGO: The Hobbit, thinking it’s nothing more than another cheap film cash in, others who choose to not take it so seriously, or those who have had past experiences with LEGO titles will find it enjoyable. A vast amount of content, great writing, and a grand open world puts LEGO: The Hobbit into a league of it’s own from the LEGO video game franchise. The lack of difficulty and game breaking glitches become a problem here & there, but the overall enjoyment of this title will have gamers easily overlooking it’s minor flaws.