Lego City Undercover

GTA-a-like sandbox is studded with plastic personality.

- Kirk McKeand

Here in videogame land, Lego is best known for its wacky takes on established universes. That’s why it’s more than a bit of a surprise that this – a prettied-up former Wii U exclusive that owes nothing to Hobbits, caped crusaders, metal men, or space wizards with laser swords – is actually the best game Traveller’s Tales has ever put out.

Other Lego games have a safety net: an embedded fan following. Lego City Undercover is instead based on Lego’s unbranded City line of toys, and forced to stand on its own. It nails it. This crime caper is still crammed full of grownup pop culture references – Columbo, Starsky & Hutch, Sherlock Holmes and even the Shawshank Redemption are riffed on. From a line of plastic bricks, Traveller’s Tales has created a fresh universe that’s as fun to exist within for adults as it is for kids. It’s GTA via CBBC.

CRIME STUD-Y