Gail Simone's Blog, page 194

I've been following you for a while on twitter and now tumblr and after all this time I think I've finely got it figured out now. King Shark is some kind of marsupial, isn't he?

HE IS A SHARK DAMN YOU TO HELL.

I'm pretty sure the main reason people are avoiding them is the huge price. You could buy a 2DS for less money than Lego Dimensions.

Okay. Well, let’s look at that.

The average console game in the U.S. is priced at 59 dollars. Almost any Lego set of any size is 30-70 dollars. Almost any console game that comes with any sort of additional controller or accessory is going to add to the cost.

Lego Dimensons is, I think, $99 dollars. Most of the toys-to-life game starter sets seem to run $69-$79, so it is a bit more than that. But they ALL seem to dip down in price a few months after release and I’m sure Dimensions will, as well.

The thing is, the Toys To Life games DO have a different economic metric than other games, so being a gamer/COLLECTOR is a different thing than just buying a regular console game, certainly.

I will say that I’ve bought a ton of games at 60 bucks that I didn’t enjoy all that much. For a little bit more, I thought Lego Dimensions was a non-stop hoot. My whole family loved playing it. 

AND unlike other toys-to-life games, the toys in Dimensions actually ARE toys. You can play with the minifigs, and are encouraged to, and even more fun, each vehicle gets rebuilt a different way three times, which I have always found to be a ton of fun, and quite unlike any other game I’ve played. The gamepad that comes with the game is really impressive, it’s part of the game in a way I have not seen before and also plays a cool physical role in the story, getting modified as you progress. 

I’m not saying the games are cheap, they aren’t. But I’m not sure comparing them to a 2ds is entirely fair. Plus, the game is huge, there’s a ton of variety (there are very credible Portal II levels and racing levels and arcade levels) and lots of open worlds to explore. We loved it. I suspect we will be playing it for ages, long after I’ve finished a lot of other games.

I think comparing the cost of Lego (which are spendy!), it’s pretty reasonable. Others might disagree or it might not fit their budget. But I do like that you can play the entire story mode, which is huge, with just the starter set. 

Today, If You Buy One Comic...

…buy MONSTRESS, the amazing new book by Marjorie M. Liu.

It is absolutely gorgeous, a remarkable value and it’s written like FIRE ON LAVA.  Honestly, it’s one of my favorite new books in years. It’s absolutely stunning.

I got a sneak preview a while back and I haven’t been able to shut up about it. 

MONSTRESS. You want this!

Have you finished Lego Dimensions yet? Something spectacular happens during the credits which, coupled with a revelation in the final boss battle, makes the game 100% worthwhile.

The end credits made me laugh my butt off. 

The game is full of wit.  I keep saying this, but people avoiding Lego Dimensions and Disney Infinity 3.0 are missing out on two of the FUNNEST games in recent memory. I love me some grim dark games, too, but these two games really brought the sheer fun back to gaming.

So thanks to your constant talking about Lego Dimensions on Twitter, I'm buying my first EVER games console this week. Is there any additional level packs you would suggest I get straight away? Or what ones do you enjoy/ use the most?

HA! Oh, MAN, do I have a lot of suggestions. :)  First, you absolutely CAN play the entire story mode through, and a lot of bonus stuff, with just the starter set. 

If you are buying ONE single fun pack, I recommend the Evil Witch from the Wizard of Oz. Not only does she have a LOT of powers (including guided missiles and silver explosives), but she FLIES and opens up the Oz bonus land by herself AND she’s the only Oz figure so buying her is kind of a complete set there. 

Wonder Woman is a better character to play than Batman, she has his grappling hook AND super-strength, invulnerability and flight. Most of the rest of the fun packs are not nearly as versatile as these two…they will open up certain locked areas, but are not as useful in the continuing story mode, in my opinion.

From there, I would pick Team Packs or Level Packs that open up worlds as a priority.  Each different license from Simpsons to DC Earth has a special open ‘world,’ that you can only access with one of the characters from that world. But since you already have Batman, Wyldstyle and Gandalf, additional characters from those worlds are not absolutely necessary to open their respective worlds. 

Of the two, Level packs are a better deal than team packs, I think. They add not just the world, but also an additional bonus level. Of these, all of them are fun, but I had the most fun with the PORTAL II and SIMPSONS packs.

Lego recently added a feature that allows you to “hire a hero,” meaning you don’t HAVE to have a figure to open locked areas, you can exchange in-game currency (not real money) to do that. That’s a really cool move, so you can unlock stuff without buying every figure.

My advice is, save your studs at first, buy the red brick that doubles stud values as soon as possible

I really love this game. It’s witty, there’s a TON of varied gameplay, it’s a crossover mashup bonanza, and I have a blast every time I set down to play.  I got a sneak advance look and chance to play Bane, K-9, Harley, and a Cyberman and they were all a blast. 

Even without the extra characters, the game is long, has a lot of value, and unlike the other similar games, the toypad is very interactive and the toys themselves actually fun to play with and change around, something the game asks you to do for various rewards in the story.

LOTS of fun. My whole family loves it.

Good luck!

LegoDimensions

Lego Dimensions

postcardsfromspace:postcardsfromspace:In which I achieve a...

postcardsfromspace:

postcardsfromspace:

In which I achieve a state of perfect self-parody by coming out as trans via a critical essay and a Halloween costume. Jay in most contexts; Jay Rachel or J. Rachel for professional purposes; neutral pronouns for the time being; further updates as relevant. Cheers.

ICYMI.

Good luck, Jay! Rooting for you!

mirksilua:So it isn’t DONE done, but it’s Halloween...

mirksilua:

So it isn’t DONE done, but it’s Halloween ready.

Yay for scaring the public like only Ragdoll can.

Is this really The Gail Simone

I am the comics-writing Gail Simone, if that’s who you mean…

superheroesincolor:Amber Cardi as Chun Li for #Halloween[...

superheroesincolor:

Amber Cardi as Chun Li for #Halloween

[ Follow SuperheroesInColor on facebook / twitter / tumblr ]

Holy WOW!

Are you going to go go see The Peanuts Movie? I know you were excited about it.

YES.

I actually can’t wait. HUGE Schulz fan.