LEGO Indiana Jones: The Original Adventures (PSP)

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The game also still uses the mechanic that when you die or break something, colored studs fly all over the place. It wouldn't be a problem if they all landed relatively close together, but they instead shoot every which way, making it impossible to catch 'em all. It adds a bit of challenge, I suppose, but if I wanted to spend half my life running around like an idiot, I'd do drugs.

LEGO Indiana Jones also has some cinematic inaccuracies that might annoy purists. While no one begrudges the developers for cutting out some of the grosser aspects from The Temple of Doom, or for not including an adorable plastic Hitler, I'm not sure why they also cut any references to the Nazis in "Raiders" and "Crusade," replacing them with, well, Nazi-looking guys in grey shirts.

Then there's the issue of character. While there are dozens from the films, all playable, who else would you really want to play as other than Indy? Sure, Marion had a good right hook, but Short Round was crap in a fight and Marcus was a clumsy intellectual, not a brawler. Not surprisingly, some of the characters are a bit more macho here than they were in the movies -- that whiner Willie has somehow become as spunky as Marion (when she's not screaming) -- but you'll still find yourself playing as Indy whenever you can.

Then there's the issue of just how juvenile this can be, which is very. Despite the fact that no self-respecting parent would ever let their kid watch "The Temple of Doom," this game is decidedly earmarked for the very small. While older fans of the films (present company included) will find the whole thing adorable, and the cut scenes hysterical, there isn't much in the way of challenge here for veteran joystick jockeys. None of the bad guys are especially threatening, and none of the puzzles are especially tough.

Ultimately, LEGO Indiana Jones is no contender for Game of the Year (though it could be in the running for Best Movie-Inspired Game of the Year, Funniest Game of the Year, and Best Use of a Whip in a Non-B.D.S.M. Game). It doesn't push the action genre -- or videogames as a whole -- in any new or interesting directions, but it is just tons of fun. In fact, it's kind of like these movies I saw when I was younger, about this guy, he wore a hat, and he went around looking for ancient artifacts...

This review was based on a retail copy of the game provided by the publisher.