LEGO Battles Ninjago for Nintendo DS Review

LEGO Battles Ninjago for the Nintendo DS is a classic RTS style game that utilizes the touch screen technology to its fullest potential. The game follows a group of ninjas on their quest to conquer the evil demon king. During the quest you have the ability to upgrade your characters and build small structures while exploring expansive levels. There are tons of levels in the game, offering you hours of game play of varying difficulty. The game also offers awesome replay ability, because even after you have beat the game the first time, you can go through it all again, but the second time around you can play from an enemies perspective. The game is also filled with tons of secret items and purchasable upgrades in the shops which give it great depth.

The graphics in LEGO Battles Ninjago are decent for a Nintendo DS game and the music is good too, and appropriate for the theme, but it can also get a little repetitive. The biggest down side to the game is actually the touch screen, it can sometimes be difficult to administer commands to your units because of some non responsiveness and a little lag. The A.I. is also not very intelligent. With the maps being so big you can easily get your units stuck running into walls if you’re not careful to guide them through the obstacles. Your units will also not always attack the enemies unless commanded to, even if they are destroying a building right in front of their very own LEGO faces.

Other then that the game is actually quite enjoyable, your units start off kind of overpowered which makes the beginning of the game a bit too easy, but the enemies eventually get up to snuff. Overall, LEGO Battles Ninjago requires a bit of strategy and careful game play to keep your units alive through all the fights, but it’s nothing that most typical players can’t handle.But perhaps the best part of the game are the awesome cut scenes that happen at the beginning and ending of most levels, showing off the capabilities of the DS graphics system.

LEGO Battles Ninjago is a great game to pick up for anyone who is a fan of the LEGO series, as well as anyone who likes real-time strategy games. While its synergy with the touch screen is a little lack luster, it still manages to be an innovative and fun way to use your DS. LEGO Battles Ninjago can be picked up for $28.99.