I knew I was in for a good time with Lego Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga when I began the Prequel Trilogy portion and saw Qui Gon Jinn and Obi Wan’s ship get stopped at a traffic gate floating in space. After a quick video conference with the Trade Federation, which saw them hastily try and hide their evil plans labelled “evil plans”, Qui Gon and Obi Wan breeze through the gate, accidentally knocking a hapless battle droid, sending it floating off into space.
The Skywalker Saga pushes its charm, with practically every cutscene featuring some visual gag or punchline at the film series’ expense. Kylo Ren is pumping iron and flexing as Rey contacts him in that infamous scene from The Last Jedi. Ben Kenobi pops some popcorn before watching Leia’s message to him in A New Hope. At the beginning of Revenge of the Sith, Lego Count Dooku makes a cheeky plastic pop noise as Anakin scissors his head off.
This ribald sense of humour reminds me of has been working its strange magic ever since 2005, and the series’ keen sense of humour has often been able to elevate what might otherwise just be a soulless melding of two brands. seeks to be the definitive entry, covering all the ground of previous games in the series, as well as including The Last Jedi and The Rise of Skywalker in Lego form for the first time. The result is a grab-bag of different gameplay styles all lent just enough depth to make them work, held together by that through-line of humour and charm.
