LEGO Brawls has been an Apple Arcade exclusive since 2019, but now the game is available on consoles and PC. What was essentially a mobile freebie that you could enjoy if you were a subscriber to that service now costs a whopping forty bucks. That’s a pretty steep increase, certainly justified by the extra content and extra shine on the major platforms, right?
Well, the short answer is NO. LEGO Brawls for iOS and LEGO Brawls for PlayStation 4/5, Xbox or Switch are essentially the same game, except for the difference in resolution and framerate. It’s a basic port that works significantly worse on Nintendo Switch than on iPhone. That’s right, the game falters when playing online on Switch, which was not the case on the damn MOBILE PHONE. And that is unfortunately not the worst.
Extremely simple clone
LEGO Brawls is a barebones clone of Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, probably the best party fighting game out there. With a single attack button and the ability to jump and deploy power-ups, the gameplay is beyond simplistic. In theory, this could appeal to a younger audience; in practice, even toddlers will quickly get bored here. The battles are frenetic, but that’s a euphemism for button punching, a uniquely useful strategy in LEGO Brawls. In addition to mindlessly crushing the button, you can also jump and deploy various randomly generated power-ups. From wooden horses to flying saucers, which vary according to the theme of the competition (Ninjago, Western, etc.).
There are several match types, all designed for eight players, human or AI (in local mode). Free for Brawl is a basic mode that you can play online and locally (4 players). Online modes range from the simple checkpoint and item collection to brawl royale and free-for-brawl. Matchmaking is automatic and painless, but your choice in the match selection is limited to voting for the next card. You can participate in online competitions that are limited to your default platform ecosystem, but the default operandi mode is cross-play. Multiplayer is ranked by default, with your competition (bronze, silver…) depending on your fighting skills.
Button-mashing Beatdown
The main problem with the battles is the lack of much content other than jumping into the crowd and spamming the attack button. Regardless of the game mode, that’s the only viable “strategy”. You can also pick up and use power-ups, but it’s best to use them right away, as you can die in a split second. On-screen cacophony is the ever-present drawback. Explosions, spawns, environmental effects and a plethora of other blips and blops create a blinding fog of war that envelops the action. You can reasonably expect to lose sight of your avatar 30% of the time.
LEGO Brawls offers several match layouts taken directly from their thematic portfolio. Ninjago, Jurassic World, Pirate, Western, Vidiyo, The Hidden Side, Space, Castle and Alien Conquest have different visual styles and few unique power-ups. There is much less diversity in content. Most zones work similarly without providing substantial gameplay differences beyond a unique environmental hazard (e.g. castle-themed lava).
Your own unique monstrosity
The cornerstone of your in-game identity are LEGO Minifigure avatars, which you can customize infinitely by mixing the parts of figures you’ve unlocked. There are two hundred minifigures, unlockable through the battle pass-like system. Some minifigures follow a different principle. Unlocking “heroes” is linked to mastering the previous figure, that is, playing with them until you reach the progress lines. It’s a little confusing and unnecessarily veiled, but if you persevere, you’ll get it all in the end. LEGO claims that there are 77 trillion possible combinations of heads, torsos, legs, arms, weapons, etc. You can easily create a cute monster that is completely unique.
All that mixing and matching is purely cosmetic as parts don’t affect combat performance at all. That’s really disappointing. Implemented fairly, the mix and match performance system could have been great, providing the layer of metal that would single-handedly elevate the game from mediocrity. Imagine if you could configure your avatar with raptor legs, making it faster but less durable than an armored knight. They could at least have provided basic presets for the younger crowd, unaccustomed to complex customization. Say, unlockable Ninjago figurines can have temporary stealth, countered by the deployable scout parrot that comes with the pirate captain. Thinking out loud here, but you get the point.
Forty greens is too high a price
All things considered, forty dollars is too much considering the simplicity and limited modes on offer here. LEGO Brawls has an addictive unlocking and customization mechanism, but that’s probably its only redeeming quality. There are a lot of great LEGO games out there, but unfortunately LEGO Brawls goes way beyond that. We highly recommend LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga if you’re looking for a long-lasting quality LEGO fix. It may not have competitive brawling, but the power of LEGO is much stronger with it.
Highlights
- Infinite possibility to mix LEGO figure parts.
- Nice for a few hours.
lows
- Banally simple gameplay.
- Pretty high price for something that is essentially an Apple Arcade game.
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