LEGO Worlds is the latest LEGO sandbox game developed by British studio Traveller’s Tales, and this time, has made its way to the Nintendo Switch. It strays away from its predecessors, however, by focusing on the mechanics of creation rather than the story. Widely heralded as a new competitor to Minecraft, LEGO Worlds allows players to construct impressive structures brick by brick, or instead use predefined ones if they so desire to save time.
There’s a constant supply of stimulation to keep you intrigued, as you roam around smashing and collecting precious items while chatting with various, colorful characters along the way. The Discovery Tool is something essential that you acquire early on that lets you scan and acquire numerous outfits, critters, and vehicles to utilize them for your own personal builds in the future. The environment and terrain can also be altered using the Landscape Tool, which allows you to add or remove blocks. The Copy Tool is useful in that it can save quite a bit of time to go on more adventures by allowing you to scan and save large structures. Instead of building something brick by brick, you can copy and paste what you’ve saved. And finally, the Paint Tool supplements your buildings with dashes of color to make them more unique and visually appealing.
During your adventures, you will encounter a wide range of unusual creatures, from seagulls to even dinosaurs. Animals such as sharks are able to be ridden, amusingly both on the land as well as in the water, to transport you to certain destinations. You can even have fellow creatures you’ve collected attack others if you find yourself in a defenseless situation.
While the base game itself is very enjoyable, less than positive things can be said about its transition to the Nintendo Switch console. The camera can sometimes be very frustrating: when you are trying to construct something or move something, you more than not end up fighting against the angle that the camera chooses to make out what is actually happening. Furthermore, during my playing experience the game would occasionally freeze, which I found out to be the case for several other people as well. The pop-in of some background structures was also not great, which slightly hindered the immersive, enchanting experience I was looking for.
Despite my misgivings about some of the technical aspects, LEGO Worlds is a solid sandbox title on the Nintendo Switch that presents you the joy of being able to build whatever you want, wherever you go. LEGO Worlds supports co-op play, and exploring odd environments with wacky characters with a friend makes for some quality playing sessions. Teaming up with someone else to create something makes for an altogether unique, yet extremely satisfying experience.
“Classic Space Pack” is a DLC that is included with the physical version of the game, as well as being separately purchasable in the Nintendo eShop. It offers an abundance of content that entails traveling to outer space and playing around with a variety of space-themed structures. In addition, there is an exclusive Moon biome that is fascinating and unique to explore. There is also the inclusion of characters from previous LEGO entities like the LEGO Movie so look forward to that!
LEGO Worlds offers a ton of content at a reasonable price: it’s such a large game that you won’t stop discovering things to do. Despite some of the technical headaches I faced, I found that being able to build whatever I want on the go with the Switch felt both empowering and entertaining. If you are looking for a mindlessly addictive sandbox or exploration game in the mold of Minecraft, then this is the game for you. It is the definitive LEGO toy box that will no doubt transport you back to your childhood.
7/10
Check Out the LEGO Worlds Nintendo Switch Launch Trailer:
LEGO Worlds is available for the Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and STEAM.
Nintendo Switch Review
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Overall Score - 7/107/10
Freelance reviewer and critic. I am currently attending Columbia University majoring in Computer Science and East Asian Studies, but I try to play video games as much as I can in my spare time. I'm passionate about games that are atmosphere-heavy and are able to transport me to another world.
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