Warner to finance and publish LEGO Batman due in '08
by Christopher Grant 
{ Mar 27th 2007 at 11:29AM }
There's not much here we didn't know six months ago when CVG revealed that Traveler's Tales, the developers behind the popular LEGO Star Wars games, would be tackling the Dark Knight next ... well, not physically tackling him per se. He is Batman after all. But today, Variety reports that Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment will be financing, publishing, and handling North American distribution of the block-centric game based on their classic, caped-crusading, crime fighter.WBIE is increasingly handling the publishing duties for games based on their properties: the 300 PSP game, the now-stalled Dirty Harry project, and now LEGO Batman, due in 2008 on "multiple consoles."
[Via Game Stooge]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Jack of No Trades @ Mar 27th 2007 11:32AM
This will be a "KILLER APP"
Flit @ Mar 27th 2007 11:38AM
These lego games are great. If they can find a way to keep them fresh, the'll have a cash cow.
aquazone @ Mar 27th 2007 12:26PM
this is crazy. i'm going to start calling this site kotaku 2. everything on kaotaku shows up here within a couple hours. wtfudge?
Dolla Dolla @ Mar 27th 2007 11:49AM
Other franchises they should secure:
Lego LOTR
Lego Matrix
Lego Harry Potter (maybe)
Ken @ Mar 27th 2007 11:49AM
I think I'll start it..
Superman > Batman.
Batman's super power is money. Lame.
sheppy @ Mar 27th 2007 11:51AM
You can too tackle Batman. Everyone does it. Likely, you'll have to fight on a catwalk. If an explosion goes off, you have your "in" immediately. If not, try some form of gas or a bullet to get the cape up. Now prepare for the batarang to knock whatever is in your hand out of it but if you're smart, you've been moving forward the entire time. Once you get close enough, tackle his ass. Beware if he can get onto his back easily otherwise you just go tumbling off onto some conveniently placed breakable shit.
Tackling Batman is easy. Hell, even Mad Hatter did it. Beating him... well, that's a whole other story.
sheppy @ Mar 27th 2007 11:53AM
"Superman > Batman."
Invincible Superheroes Suck. Plus, supes? You're talking the biggest fucking boyscout on the planet. I forget who it was but once a famous comic writer turned down a stint on Superman. His reasoning?
"I could write the best damn Superman story on the planet and at the end of the day, it's still JUST a Superman story."
Dolla Dolla @ Mar 27th 2007 11:55AM
Actually, Batman's "Super Power" is his intelligence. He uses his resources to get what he needs. And, I'm certain you've heard about Batman Vs Superman, and said results ;)
Dolla Dolla @ Mar 27th 2007 11:56AM
The best Superman story is simple.
The Death of Superman.
JodyAnthony @ Mar 27th 2007 11:57AM
the difference is, superman has his super powers to rely on whereas batman is just a human that can kick a lot of ass. Supermans weakness is kryptonite. noone can relate to that. Batmans weakness is everything that any normal human is weak against. As normal humans, everyone can relate to that.
Intentless @ Mar 27th 2007 11:59AM
Batman's finances are a strength but he uses it for the benefit of mankind. Also he is incredibly determined and skilled at what he does.
Jack of No Trades @ Mar 27th 2007 12:01PM
Spawn> Spiderman > Batman > Superman
Intentless @ Mar 27th 2007 12:09PM
Spawn up to about issue 120 was great... I kinda lost intrest after that... But have 1-140 in mint...
Jonah Falcon @ Mar 27th 2007 12:14PM
If it's based on the movies, the middle portion is going to REALLLY SUCK. (laugh)
dark @ Mar 27th 2007 12:23PM
I'm sick of all this lego crap poping up, even though I haven't played any of the games. I don't understand why you guys like it.
dark @ Mar 27th 2007 12:23PM
and one more thing. Superman sucks.
JodyAnthony @ Mar 27th 2007 12:25PM
"I don't understand why you guys like it."
because the games are fun?
and as a nintendo fanboy I like them because they show everyone that a 'kiddie' looking game can actually be fun, and looks aren't everything.
dark @ Mar 27th 2007 12:30PM
but but but but but... they're legos. I'm not saying that its kiddies.
Admiral @ Mar 27th 2007 12:39PM
Pound for pound, the Lego Star Wars games are definitely near the top of the list for pure fun factor. I can't wait for what they do with the Batman franchise.
They have a whole slew of Batman-themed Lego movies on the Lego website...check 'em out.
sheppy @ Mar 27th 2007 12:58PM
"Spawn> Spiderman > Batman > Superman"
Suddenly, everything makes sense.
Basic Spawn plot outline...
Step 1: Spawn is drunk with hobo pals
Step 2: Spawn whines about what he's lost
Step 3: Cue villian... comes in, beats Spawns ass within an inch of his unlife.
Step 4, Variant A: Spawn uses a shitton of power, defeats villian, proceed to Step 6.
Step 4, Variant B: Before Spawn can use power, villina either cancels it out or escapes with something precious to Spawn.
Step 5: Spawn hunts down villian and wins, hurray, woot, honk!
Step 6: Spawn laments on his past and todays events with hobo buddies.
Special Variant Plot Issues A: Basic plot giving an outlining of Spawns past while having him hunt down or interact with a spectacularly uninteresting character/s.
Special Variant Plot Issues B: Rather than trying to figure out what Cybernetic Monkey Demon Angel Wolf Scribble Spawn faces this month, focus on a various Spawn in history or future and see what Cybernetic Monkey Demon Angel Wolf Scribble he had to contend with.
Jonah Falcon @ Mar 27th 2007 1:00PM
Yooahnaaa gonnaazendmeee to da cooooolaaaah!
Ken @ Mar 27th 2007 1:16PM
Lol sorry guys... I don't really like super heroes all too much, I just know how pissed off some people get when you type Superman > Batman.
In a fight, superman will win. Hands down.
*snickers*
farmok @ Mar 27th 2007 2:40PM
I have to say that this is great news. Lego Starwars was awsome (one of the best, if not the best star wars game), so I look forward to what they can do with Batman. I just look foward to having the Joker and Batman team up on levels. That will be so funny.
I would also like to see them try superman, especially after that last travesty. I think they should actually do a JLA game instead of a supes game.
Oh, and superman and batman are both great characters and realy are there to balance each other. Think good cop/bad cop.
Dirk Dorkelson @ Mar 27th 2007 1:34PM
Hopefully they'll do a better job QA testing this one than they did for Lego Star Wars II on the 360. I had to play Return of the Jedi super story five or six times before I finally got it to not freeze on me while trying to cross the river in Endor. Dumbasses. And they still haven't patched the game even though you have to finish super story to get the 100% complete achievement.
(Luckily, I knew ahead of time to turn off rumble for the Death Star II level, so I didn't have to deal with the game freezing at that part of the super story.)
Dirk Dorkelson @ Mar 27th 2007 1:38PM
"this is crazy. i'm going to start calling this site kotaku 2. everything on kaotaku shows up here within a couple hours. wtfudge?"
Uh, the article's from Variety.com. It's not as if Kotaku breaks the stories and then Joystiq just reposts them as its own. So what if two video game blogs link to the same articles?
Also, there are plenty of articles that show up on Joystiq or the fanboy sites first, then show up on Kotaku. Big whoop.
ThePete @ Mar 27th 2007 1:41PM
I love the idea of a Lego Batman game JUST so long as they can take care of two things:
1) Do *actual* QA game testing before releasing it to us--both the PS2 and DS versions of Lego SW II (and the PS2 version of LSW I) have their share of obvious bugs. The DS version especially.
2) DON'T FARM OUT ANY VERSION TO AMAZE!! Man, that DS version Amaze did of LSW II sucks beyond suckage. It's still fun to play because it's Lego, but it's pretty annoying to not be able to find a minikit or finish a level for no apparent reason.
Oh yeah, and anyone who says Superman is a boring or sucky character has no (or limited) imagination. Doesn't anyone remember when he got all schizophrenic after killing the last Kryptonians without judge or jury? Man, that was great story telling. With great power comes great neuroseseseses. What about the Elseworlds story where he becomes president and turns down the offer of being a Green Lantern because that's just too much power for a single man? How about the time he spent wandering the cosmos because he was too scared to come back to Earth and go crazy again?
Batman is cool, don't get me wrong but to sell Supes short is to sell short the first real superhero. In fact, without Supes, there never would have even BEEN Batman since Batman was a competitor's attempt to mimmic Action Comics/Superman's success. The reason people don't dig Supes more is because writers don't have enough of an imagination to tell good stories with him. It's "JUST" a Superman story only if the writer "JUST" doesn't really try.
/fanboy rant
sheppy @ Mar 27th 2007 2:26PM
The best two Superman stories were when he died and Superman Doomsday: Hunter Prey. Let me explain before you jump my shit.
In the quest to stop Doomsdays first appearance, there was a general sense of fear in Superman. Every attempt made to stop the beast was shattered through. Each last stand left broken bodies and friends in his wake. And each time they went at it, Superman was broken and defeated. Something they NEVER showed about Superman before that time. For once in his long, long history, they actually made him vulnerable. The expressions reflected on his face showed storytelling like Superman had never seen before. And when it was all over, his broken body was pulled from the wreckage by Lois, trying desperately to explain the aftermath of what was supposedly impossible. Greatly done, and it took killing the bastard to achieve it.
Hunter Prey did a good job of forcing Superman to deal with the ghosts of his past to figure out why he couldn't shake the feeling of dread. It also did a good job explaining why Doomsday targeted Superman, what Doomsday is, and how even Darkseid was powerless before the beast. Watching Doomsday tear apart Darkseid was great. Having Superman learn that, though he killed Doomsday once before, by Doomsdays very nature, he could never achieve it again. Doomsday had evolved past him. Granted, what they did with the character beyond this series was just as unforgivable as DCs crimes against Bane, leaving him Ra Shal Gol's bitch, and revealing Bane is actually Bruce Waynes long lost brother.
Most other Superman stories equate to finding the trouble and hitting it enough times. Superman is the Dragonball Z of American Comics. They were SOOOO out of ideas at one point they not only made him electric, but split into red and blue.
And please, Elseworlds? Using Elseworlds as viability to the character is a weak arguement at best. Because Elseworlds provides the writer a blank slate and ability to drastically change the character himself beyond the source material. If the strength of a character is only shown by a drastic redesign, then it's a weak character. Period. But if the redesign can stand perfectly within the shadow of the original character, then THAT is a strong character.
As it stands, the only thing that shakes Superman is what happens if he's not around. That's not a compelling character but rather a nuerotic and weak one.
jimmcq @ Mar 27th 2007 4:46PM
There is a new site dedicated to Lego Batman at http://Brick-Knight.com
Gozan @ Mar 27th 2007 3:36PM
Skimmed through and for a moment there thought they were making Lego Dirty Harry. THAT would have been sweet.
Flit @ Mar 27th 2007 4:08PM
superdickery.com
end story.
Batman did pretty damn well against superman in the frank miller dark night series, and he was an old man too.
Oh, and another thing, Superman 64. They should make a Lego version of that game. That would be sweet. Flying through rings is so much fun.
JodyAnthony @ Mar 27th 2007 4:12PM
"Oh, and another thing, Superman 64. They should make a Lego version of that game. That would be sweet. Flying through rings is so much fun."
Plus the lego version would have 10 times better graphics.
dontlikeitmodit @ Mar 27th 2007 7:55PM
I'll be stoked for this game if it follows the Batman Begins theme(aka DarkKnight), not the cheese TV show or those sissy movies made 15 years ago.
Jonah Falcon @ Mar 27th 2007 8:25PM
Best Superman Story: the 2 part "Whatever Happened to The Man of Steel?"
Joe @ May 5th 2007 6:43PM
In response #26, I agree totally. It really made superman real. I cant wait now to see the new Superman Doomsday DVD coming out. Here is a teaser video clip I found.
http://www.warnervideo.com/supermandoomsdaydvd/
Totlally Awesome looking. Can't wait...