LEGO has found quite a bit of success in the world of video games, and its vast array of licensed movie adaptations is the company's biggest draw. From Star Wars to Indiana Jones to Marvel and DC, LEGO has taken a slew of iconic pop-culture franchises and turned them into large-scale, family-friendly action-adventure games. But every so often, a non-licensed LEGO game will rear its head, like LEGO City Undercover.
While LEGO's extensive back catalog of beloved licensed platformers will always be the most fondly remembered LEGO video games, a handful of non-licensed titles have struck a chord with fans over the years. These titles range from the ambitious proto-open-world 1997 game LEGO Island, to the Mario Kart-inspired LEGO Racers series. LEGO City Undercover is one such game, boasting an original story and setting, along with a handful of unique gameplay mechanics. It may not be the most beloved LEGO entry, but LEGO City Undercover deserves a spiritual successor, now more so than ever.
A LEGO City Undercover Spiritual Successor Could Be Great
LEGO City Undercover Broke New Ground for LEGO Games
Originally released as a Wii U exclusive in 2013, LEGO City Undercover was the first big-budget LEGO game in a while that didn't base itself around a license like Star Wars, Marvel, or DC. Instead, LEGO City Undercover features an original story and an original setting, both of which are based on the titular real-world LEGO set theme. In LEGO City Undercover, players take control of an undercover cop named Chase McCain who's on the hunt for the criminal mastermind Rex Fury.
After a brief introductory cutscene and mission, players are thrust into a pretty vast open-world. Much like other open-world LEGO games, players will be splitting their time participating in linear story missions and exploring the large open-world hub of LEGO City, which contains 20 individual districts. Various collectibles, side quests, and challenges are dotted around LEGO City's open-world, each one pushing the player incrementally closer to that desired 100% mark.
Long-time fans of LEGO's more recent video game offerings will be all too familiar with LEGO City Undercover's open-world formula, but it's important to note that this was by far the most ambitious game developer TT Games had put out to this point, coming less than a year after LEGO Batman 2, the first major LEGO game to include a fully open-world. What makes LEGO City Undercover even more impressive is just how varied and engaging its missions and open-world content are, considering that there's no big license to prop them up.
LEGO City Undercover Could Pave a New Path Forward for LEGO Games
After years of troubled development, LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga finally released in April 2022, and it was met with a decent reception on launch. Today's most ambitious LEGO game, LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga merged all nine mainline Star Wars movies together, and offered over 20 fully explorable hub planets, each one packed with a ton of side content. The perception around LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga has soured somewhat in the two years since launch, with many believing the game to be a tad too bloated with half-baked side content. But for a property like Star Wars, many fans expect the biggest experience possible.
This is where a LEGO City Undercover spiritual successor could pave a new way forward. With licensed properties like Star Wars, expectations are always going to be sky-high from the moment the project is first announced. But with non-licensed, original themes, LEGO could easily end up surpassing expectations by producing less but more refined content.
Lego City Undercover
- Released
- March 18, 2013
WHERE TO PLAY
Join the Chase! In LEGO CITY Undercover, play as Chase McCain, a police officer who's been tasked with going undercover to hunt down the notorious — and recently escaped — criminal Rex Fury and putting an end to his city-wide crime wave.
With two player co-op, friends can explore the sprawling open-world metropolis that is LEGO City, with more than 20 unique districts to investigate, car thieves to bust, hilarious movie references to discover, vehicles to drive, and hundreds of collectibles. LEGO CITY Undercover brings together witty, original storytelling with signature LEGO humor to create a fun-filled experience for players of all ages to enjoy.
- ESRB
- E10+ For Everyone 10+ // Cartoon Violence, Crude Humor
- Developer(s)
- TT Games, TT Fusion
- Publisher(s)
- Nintendo, TT Games, Warner Bros. Interactive
- Engine
- Nu2
- Platform(s)
- Nintendo Switch, Nintendo Wii U, PC, PlayStation 4
- Genre(s)
- Action, Platformer, Fighting
- How Long To Beat
- 16 hours
- PS Plus Availability
- Extra & Premium
