Hitting store shelves just after the release of the movie, Kingdom of the Crystal Skull comes LEGO Indiana Jones: The Original Adventures, which attempts to recreate the classic films in the now standard LEGO style that gamers have come to appreciate. This means lots of block busting, treasure hunting and cooperative adventuring with a robust collection of heroes and villains made playable as you progress through each of the three films' stories. This sounds like a winning combination, and for the most part it is, but there are enough quirks and lack of gameplay evolution that indicate that Harrison Ford is not the only one starting to show his age.

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The Original Adventures is a mostly faithful adaptation of Raiders of the Lost Ark, and The Last Crusade, with delightfully clever cut scenes tying the levels together. Concessions to the original story help players quickly get from one stage to the next, as well as to keep some of the more mature elements of the movies toned down for younger players. Nevertheless, there is plenty of great story telling here, all done without the "crutch" of dialogue. Levels, too, are expanded from what you'd find in the movies; this helps to lengthen the game, sometimes at the expense of making sense with the story, but it's all done tastefully in a tongue-in-cheek way that stays faithful to the canon while making it accessible to players of all ages.

Cooperative play also makes a return. Given the fact that the bulk of gameplay is comprised of either beat-em-up segments or puzzles that require two people to complete, playing alongside a friend is the way to go. If this isn't possible, the game will happily control your sidekick-of-the-moment for you. Just be prepared to witness the game absolutely butcher your partner. He or she will fall off ledges and get stuck in spike traps, but fear not, for as in the other LEGO games, there is no permanent death, so unless you become stumped by a challenging puzzle, you won't ever restart a level.

While the sidekick's and your enemies' intelligence isn't always up to snuff, the fact of the matter is the game gets repetitive very quickly. Aside from the occasional section of a level that has you driving a truck, motorcycle or riding in a mine cart, you will spend the bulk of your time smashing pots, pans, tables, chairs, vases, plants and anything else you can think of. Occasionally, the game will throw a handful of easily dispatched villains at you, but they often return after a few moments and repeat the onslaught. The levels are very linear, with the exception of a few secret nooks here and there, and don't lend themselves to exploration, so you're essentially just walking from room to room busting everything in sight.

LEGO Indiana Jones gets a lot of things right. Aside from some outdated textures, this is a sharp-looking game that lovingly recreates the Indiana Jones universe in classic LEGO style. The soundtrack, too, is gorgeous, seeing as it's another one of John Williams' renowned scores. But we can't help but notice that developer Traveller's Tales has not done much to upgrade the gameplay mechanics. Fans of Indiana Jones, which is just about everyone, will still enjoy this game for its charm and co-op fun, but we've come to expect a bit more polish and refinement out of a series on its third installment. Sort of like the new film, this one's good, but falls short of greatness.

Related Links

LEGO Indiana Jones Xbox 360 Game Guide

LEGO Indiana Jones PS3 Game Guide

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