So, guess what? After a mere 15-year-long stare-off with LEGO Batman in my game library, I finally cracked. Armed with my trusty Steam Deck, I jumped into the fray last night. And holy bricks, Batman! This game is a riot! It’s like every beat ‘em up game ever and then some, thrown in a LEGO blender and served up with a smile.

I mean, this game…it just…it tickles, you know? In the best possible way. It’s got these mechanics that are just so stinkin’ fun, they’ve had me grinning like a Cheshire cat on a catnip bender.

As for the whole look and feel of the thing, who knew kitschy Batman was what I needed in my life? This ain’t no broody, emo Batman - this is Batman with a wink and a nudge. And it’s a breath of fresh, campy air! You know, sometimes Batman just needs to lighten up, and this game… oh boy, it grabs “serious” by the cape and gives it a good old wedgie.

What puts the cherry on top are the special suits that bestow you with fun-tastic abilities, the whole LEGO-building problem-solving dealio, and the ability to poke around and uncover secrets like some kind of plastic brick Indiana Jones.

Despite being a 2008 game, this baby can run on basically any ol’ toaster you’ve got lying around. Got a Pentium 3 slogging along at 1.5 Ghz? Perfect. 256 MB of RAM? A meager 128 MB of VRAM? Excellent. Still clinging onto Windows XP? Even better! It’ll work just fine.

Bottom line? LEGO Batman is worth more than a gander - it’s a romp and a half. You come for the joystick-waggling arcade action, but you stay for the glorious cheesiness of campy Batman. Now go, save Gotham, one brick at a time!