Best LEGO Games

Why it's here: The most content any LEGO game has ever handed you: all nine films, north of 300 characters, and 23 planets you fly between at will. It is the natural front door to the whole series. The mixed reviews are honest about the trade, missions run short and side tasks repeat, and longtime fans miss the tighter story levels of the older games. Start here anyway, because nothing else on the shelf is this generous.

Why it's here: The one to hand someone who has never touched a LEGO game. An original Marvel story rather than a film retread, a roster that runs from the Avengers out to Howard the Duck, and drop-in couch play that lets an adult and a seven-year-old share one screen. Reviewers rate it great and only knock the odd bug and a few long cutscenes. Years on, it still sets the template the others chase.

Why it's here: Four Jurassic films rebuilt in brick, and the part that lands with younger players is controlling the dinosaurs themselves, tearing across paddocks as a raptor or a T. rex. Reviews sit at great, carried by the charm and the movie beats. The recurring gripe is bugs, with the odd glitch and a fiddly moment when two players juggle abilities. For a family with dino fans it is the easiest recommendation here.

Why it's here: The sequel goes bigger: a sprawling roster with genuinely distinct powers and a time-hopping hub that jumps between eras. When it clicks it is classic LEGO Marvel. Reviews land mixed, though, split between players who love the scale and players worn down by bugs and repeated mission beats, plus lingering disappointment that the X-Men never show. Pick it up after the first game rather than instead of it.

Why it's here: Two full games in one box, Years 1 to 4 and 5 to 7, covering every film with the spell-casting and co-op that made the originals stick. As value on this list it is hard to beat. The mixed rating comes from the remaster itself, where players report crashes and glitches that turn 100 percent completion into a chore. Buy it for the sweep of the story and the couch play, not for a flawless technical run.

Why it's here: The LEGO game that borrows from Grand Theft Auto: one open city, a cop comedy with a real script, and no license to lean on, so the jokes and characters have to carry it, and they do. Reviewers rate it great and rank it among the best the series has made. The knocks are technical, occasional crashes and a camera that fights you in spots. If you want one LEGO world to roam, this is it.

Why it's here: The DC roster taken off-planet, chasing Brainiac across the Lantern Worlds with a cast that runs well past the Justice League. Co-op and the sheer character count are the draw, and reviews land at good on the strength of them. The split is the move from an open Gotham to a set of hubs, and some players count that as a loss. A solid pick for a DC household that wants breadth over a single city.

Why it's here: The MCU films rebuilt in brick, from the first Avengers through Ultron, with open hubs like Manhattan to roam between missions. The fun is standard-issue LEGO Marvel and mostly holds. Reviews are mixed for concrete reasons: crashes on modern consoles, story content tied to extra purchases, and a fair bit of repetition. Fans of the films will get the most out of it, so treat it as a deep cut rather than a starting point.

Why it's here: The one that lets you play the bad guy, building a custom villain and running with the Legion of Doom instead of the heroes. The character creator is deep and the voice cast, Mark Hamill's Joker included, is a real draw. Reviews sit mixed on bugs, soft locks and the sense that the formula is not evolving. For a player tired of saving the day, the villain angle is worth the rough edges.

Why it's here: Middle-earth in brick, covering the first two Hobbit films with the crafting and treasure-hunting that suit Tolkien well. When it plays, it is one of the better-looking entries of its era. The mixed rating has a clear cause: the third film was never added, so the story stops short, and glitches pile on top. Worth it for LEGO Tolkien fans who can live with a tale that ends before the last battle.

Why it's here: The sequel-trilogy opener in brick, and the entry that reworked blaster fights into cover-based shooting, a genuine change to how LEGO Star Wars plays. Co-op is the usual easy pleasure. Reviews come in mixed, weighed down by glitches, filler missions and content walled off behind extra purchases if you chase 100 percent. A good pick for a Star Wars household that has already worn out the Skywalker Saga and wants more.

Why it's here: The most combat-forward game here, leaning into ninja martial arts and a wave-based fighting mode that gives the brawling more weight than usual. Local multiplayer is the reason to own it. Reviews land mixed on frequent crashes, a thin retelling of the movie and a short main path. If your household already likes Ninjago it delivers, but as a general pick it sits behind the Marvel and Star Wars entries.

Why it's here: The game that set the whole series in motion back in 2006, adapting the original trilogy with the drop-in co-op and stud-collecting every LEGO game since has copied. It reaches PS5 and PS4 through PS Plus Premium's classics catalogue rather than a modern remaster, so expect its age to show in the controls and presentation. For anyone curious where this formula started, or after a hit of pure nostalgia, it is a short, cheap detour worth taking.

Why it's here: Both Incredibles films in brick, with the family's powers, Dash's speed and Violet's shields, driving the puzzles and the fights. It is bright, faithful and easy to pick up with a kid. The mixed rating is blunt about why: even by LEGO standards it is simple, and bugs turn up more than they should. A fine pick for a young Pixar fan, and a lightweight one for anyone hunting a real challenge.

Why it's here: The sandbox entry, closer to Minecraft than to the movie tie-ins: procedural worlds to explore, terrain tools and a giant brick library to build from. For a kid who wants to make rather than follow a story, it is the pick. Reviews sit mixed on bugs, a rough multiplayer mode and a sense that the content runs thin once the novelty fades. Buy it for the creative freedom, not for a polished quest.

Why it's here: Nothing else here plays like it: a wordless puzzle game about placing bricks, told through diorama scenes with a quiet emotional pull and no combat in sight. It is the one to play alone, late, with the volume up. Reviews land mixed, and fairly, because the controls resist you and the whole thing is over in a couple of hours. Come for a calm, handsome one-sitting experience, not for length or a fair price.