All the franchise favorites are here, from cinematic staples the Joker, the Riddler and Catwoman all the way to more obscure figures like Man-Bat. As someone who’s only familiar with the movies, I was pleased with the selections of baddies available to wreak havoc with.

Of course, this version of the caped crusader is all fun and games – about as different in tone from this summer’s excellent but insanely dark flick The Dark Knight as night and day. The aesthetic is straight out of Tim Burton’s Batman , with a fresh coat of LEGO paint. Even the musical score is ripped right out of the earlier film. As such, parents can be assured that the game is appropriate for the kiddies. The violence is completely cartoonish, as baddies burst into cute little piles of blocks upon expiring. The cut scenes are Saturday morning slapstick all the way – and will make kids and adults alike giggle. And while it’s a great game for pint-sized players, grown up fans will find plenty to like as well.

Since the title is definitely family-friendly, the developer was wise to include an “adaptive difficulty” setting that keeps frustration levels to an absolute minimum. Since the action is frantic, with tons of enemy figures firing away at any given moment (including times when you’re still figuring out the rather simple puzzles) and the boss fights are plentiful, the adaptive difficulty keeps the penalty for dying pretty low. Players only lose a few studs for a cheap death, allowing you to get right back to the action. Lord knows how many TVs will be saved from Wii-mote flinging disaster thanks to this feature.

If there’s a downside to the game, it’s the “been there, done that” vibe. If you’ve played a recent title in the series, you’ve pretty much played this before. Batman does mix things up with the villains and the power-up system, but it’s still a simple brawler-platformer at heart. And like the other games, there are still some control glitches at times – sometimes Batman punches Robin when you wanted him to start working on the goon right behind him. As fun as punching Robin can be, this is a major frustration.

Annoyances aside, LEGO Batman is arguably the best of the LEGO games. It’s certainly not revolutionary, but it represents a very smart, very fun evolution on a proven formula. Plus, you get to kick the Riddler’s butt and make out with a purring Catwoman – what more do you want out of a Batman game?

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