LEGO Builder's Journey (2019)

While my computer is finally starting to show its age, I appreciate the look and feel above of all else.

I can't shake the notion that Builders Journey is a highly polished toy commercial, masterfully blended into limited, story driven interactivity. Nearing the end, I fully expected a link to the Lego store before the credits rolled. There is sky high puzzle potential with an undercurrent of just wanting to get through it.

Only Lego could get away with this, so in that regard, I'm glad it's them instead of... Playmobile. -shudders-

I bought this one at 50% percent discount and I still feel ripped-off. They shouldn't sell mobile games like this one at full digital prices (20€ in this case). I don't think games should just be measured by how many hours of gameplay they provide, but in this case we have neither quality nor quantity.

The puzzles are super simplistic and boring, in 80% of the screens you just put a couple of blocks and make your character move on top of them from left to right, that's it. There are a few more elaborate ones, but they are not enough for a game that can easily be beaten in under two hours. Controls can be cumbersome at times as well, showing this wasn't initially designed for a controller but a touch screen. The way it tells its story through Lego blocks can be charming, but it's another example of the trite plot "child doesn't get enough quality time with their father because of his job".

Its positive aspect is its presentation, which is beautiful. A soothing soundtrack coupled with beautiful visuals. The ray tracing mode can look gorgeous at times, but they use FSR and this results in obnoxious ghosting at 30fps and even some glitchy pixels on the border of the screen at times. I recommend people to play a couple of screens on that mode and see if they can cope with the ghosting. Otherwise, just switch to the performance mode since it still looks great without the ray tracing.

On mobile, for 5 bucks or less, it could be worth it as a relaxing experience you can spend an afternoon with. On console, at its current price, this is outright theft IMO.

LEGO Builder's Journey is a short little adventure game with very light puzzle elements. Each little diorama is beautifully crafted and the game's mood is consistent and enjoyable. It's a surprisingly soft-spoken and contemplative experience for two gargantuan corporations to release in collaboration. It's also the first LEGO-branded game I've enjoyed enough to finish.

I am puzzled by some of the UX design choices here. Specifically:

• The lack of support for pinch and zoom.
• The abundance of 1×1 pieces. These are too small to comfortably and consistently select via touch.
• The inability to rotate a level for more than a couple of seconds. I frequently found myself racing the camera in order to place a block obscured by some other portion of the level.

These UX problems are significant because they often led me to believe I was on the wrong track, only to discover later that, yes, the solution really does require placement of a 1×1 piece on a tile that's partially obscured by scenery.

I still enjoyed this game and would recommend it if you like LEGO and bite-sized interactive narratives. It's easy to play intermittently in short bursts, which is nice. Just don't expect a fully polished experience.