TT Games and Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment have done a fantastic job throughout their collaborations with The LEGO Group and DC Entertainment, and returned to working alongside one another on the newly-released LEGO DC Super-Villains.
Lex Luthor, Joker and Harley Quinn are amongst the familiar faces playable in the game
In a return to form, they've brought back all of the successful elements of LEGO gameplay we've seen in games such as this in the past, and are allowing players to step foot into the role of more villains from the DC roster than ever before.
Due to the size of the rogues gallery, there's a more impressive voice cast than we've perhaps ever seen before in a LEGO game; especially so if you're a comic book fan. Mark Hamill and Kevin Conroy reprise their roles as The Joker and Batman respectively, alongside the likes of John Barrowman as Malcolm Merlyn, Fred Tatasciore as Clayface, Doomsday and Killer Croc, and Michael Ironside as Darkseid.
Gina Torres plays Superwoman, with Brandon Routh as Shazam, Gilbert Gottfried as Mister Mxyzptlk, Mark Rolston as Deathstroke, Scott Porter as Aquaman, Julie Nathanson as Silver Banshee, Michael Rosenbaum as Flash, Tara Strong as Harley Quinn, C. Thomas Howell as Reverse-Flash, Cissy Jones as Lois Lane, Clancy Brown as Lex Luthor, Wally Wingert as Riddler, Tasila Valenza as Poison Ivy, Tom Kane as Commissioner Gordon, Lex Lang as Deathstorm, Travis Willingham as Superman, Eric Bauza as Mister Freeze and JB Blanc as Penguin and Ra's al Ghul.
It's a dizzying display of talent, and the voice work is utterly incredible. Pairing all of that with a soundtrack that includes references to scores of DC films gone by, and this is a true treat for the ears. But how does the gameplay and narrative stack up?
Players are given the unique option of designing their own DC super-villain right at the start of the game. The customisation available is a little overwhelming, but that's not a bad thing. It just means that if you really dig deeply into what's on offer, no two players will likely ever be playing with the same character.
We join proceedings in the midst of a prison break led by Lex Luthor, who has yet another dastardly plan that he hopes will rid the world of the Justice League. When the League do indeed go missing, Earth is left without protection, and so a new group of heroes from a parallel universe - the Justice Syndicate - step in to take the lead.
From here, the plot is packed full of twists and turns that wouldn't seem out of place in a fully-animated DC movie. Honestly, this is one of the best stories to come from the world of LEGO games, and it should be celebrated accordingly.
Throughout the hours spent inside this DC world, I encountered a couple of bugs which either caused the game to crash entirely or forced me to restart a level. It's little things like this which can really turn a player's attitude towards a title from one of admiration to bitterness.
If these were ironed out however, this would be a truly fantastic offering. With incentives to go back and play already-completed levels, and a whole host of side missions, this is a game that'll take some time to run dry. DC fans should give it a chance; they won't be disappointed.
LEGO DC Super-Villains is available now on Xbox One, PlayStation 4, PC, Nintendo Switch, Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3. A copy of the game on Xbox One was provided to Female First in exchange for an honest and fair review.