Lego Jurassic World is another slight evolution for the series
But its playable dinosaurs are worth raptorus praise.
Based on a film series about resurrecting the past, Lego Jurassic World's familiar mechanics seem almost fitting. Developer TT Games' biannual Lego titles settled into a rhythm long ago, and its latest - due to release alongside Jurassic World in cinemas this June - is no exception.
Despite sharing the new film's title, this latest Lego adventure at least covers all of the films in the series (we're looking at you, Lego Hobbit). Adaptations of the classic Jurassic Park and its two sequels are included within the game as well as the forthcoming Jurassic World, with 20 levels spread evenly between the four films and more than 100 characters to unlock.
The first section we played saw us revisiting the Triceratops healing scene from Jurassic Park 1, where Laura Dern's paleobotanist Dr. Ellie Sattler diagnoses a sick dino by delving into its droppings. Solving the problem is a matter of scouring the environment for clues, then creating a cure. It's the same 'collect three items to create a recipe' formula seen in Lego Harry Potter's cauldron-filling potion puzzles.
If you're a long-term fan of the Lego series, other gameplay mechanics will also be familiar. Sam Neil's Alan Grant can follow dinosaur tracks (as Aragorn could follow trails in Lego Lord of the Rings). Other characters can dig for buried items, grow plants to form platforms, or brave dark environments - mechanics seen in many other Lego games. This is the Lego formula, and those who enjoy such puzzles will feel right at home. But those reading this to see if much has changed may already have their answer.
The next section we saw was the infamous "when you gotta go, you gotta go..." scene, which ends with Jurassic Park 1's unfortunate lawyer getting chomped by a T-Rex. Here, you have to work to free the first film's annoying children, before making your escape just as the Tyrannosaurus stomps down the bathroom. Lex, the girl who screams a lot, at least has an interesting power here - she can scream on cue and shatter glass, and also deafen those around her.
TT Games' trademark slapstick humour is in evidence here, as the scene is given a bit of a twist to soften one of the film's scarier moments (the lawyer is seen fending off the T-Rex with a toilet brush then, once eaten, happily using it to clean the dino's teeth from inside its jaws). There's also a neat twist in the famous cow-feeding scene, where the cow now dunks a human into the raptor cage, before winching the man up again to find that most of his clothes have been nibbled off.
One new feature that TT Games has included is the ability to now play as the dinosaurs themselves (well, sort of new - it seems based on the technology behind earlier controllable Lego bigfigs). Heal up Ellie's triceratops and it will follow you through the rest of that level, and you can control it yourself to charge through obstacles blocking your path. Leave it to its own devices when controlling another character and it will happily stomp around, breaking other items and unlocking studs for you to collect.
Like other characters, once unlocked the dinosaurs can also be customised, and TT Games has said that you will be able to play as the ancient reptiles in the game's expansive open-world. Which brings us to why it is still too early to write off Jurassic World as simply another Lego adventure. Recent Lego games have seen a shift from the simple level-by-level gameplay of earlier titles in the series to focus on a myriad of inventive side-quests and secrets hidden away in truly impressive open worlds.
After detailed recreations of Hogwarts, Middle-Earth and Lego Marvel's New York City, TT Games is now building both islands from the Jurassic Park films, Isla Nublar from the first and fourth movies, and Isla Sorna from the second and third. Recreations of all the areas from each film are promised, along with the ability to drive around in those classic park-branded cars. Both islands will be filled with other dinosaurs, too - enabling you to introduce your customised creatures and battle the local fauna or, when playing in co-op, take on a friend.
The Lego series is slowly evolving, each entry growing slightly but unmistakably descended from those that have gone before. For those that don't mind its slow progress and who will enjoy the Jurassic Park setting, this will likely be another enjoyable Lego experience. Beyond that, a great deal rests on how much of an attraction the game's open world turns out to be.