Each mission unlocks events around the map, and you’ll be able to spend hours digging into the recipes, errands, and encounters around Middle-earth. The main story clocks in at about six hours, but there’s much more to do and see in the world once you’ve completed the main missions. More than once, I just found myself just attacking and jumping at random in the hopes that I would eventually figure out where I was. The sometimes inconsistent camera angles don’t help things much. The only real problem with the graphics is that the more realistic color palette and sheer density of some of the scenes can make it very difficult to see who you are or what you’re doing. The world is filled with fantastic creatures and monsters, and developer Traveller’s Tales has done a great job adapting the giant eagles, goblin kings, and dragons to the standard Lego models. The settings are very convincing, with loads of little details and plenty of suitably moody lighting. From the plate juggling in Bilbo’s kitchen to the golden toilets in Smaug’s hoard, there are also loads of humorous little touches that keep the charm going. When you see them literally start smashing Bilbo’s cupboards and Elrond’s tables, it just feels right. Honestly, there’s always been something a little disjointed about watching Cyclops wreck the X-Mansion or Luke Skywalker destroy Yoda’s house, but seeing the Dwarves go to town demolishing absolutely everything in Bag End or Rivendell makes perfect sense. The extended action sequences and sometimes slapstick humor of The Hobbit films make a good fit for a Lego game. But you’ll need to pay attention, as each dwarf has one unique ability, like Bombur’s ability to turn into a bouncing platform or Bofur’s mining power, that needs to be applied to the narrowly scripted environmental challenges.

It certainly doesn’t help that they all sort of look alike, and it can get a little confusing to tell the dwarves apart.

In comparison to the roster in last year’s Lego Marvel game, many of the characters in the Hobbit feel like, at best, minor variations of each other. Thankfully, the environmental challenges and enemies are sophisticated enough to keep the action engaging. A few different rhythm-based challenges, an item creation system tied to resource collection, and the “find the missing piece” mini-game from February’s Lego Movie game make The Hobbit more than just a button masher, although it is still mostly just that. Lego The Hobbit clings to the series’ standard combat and exploration, but, as usual, a handful of welcome twists make things a bit more interesting this time around.

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