| Mail |

You might also like: WoW Insider, Massively, and more

More Sites You Might Like

Activist group finds LEGO Batman 'oppressive,' 'destructive' to kids

by Jason Dobson on Jan 23rd 2009 8:30AM

It's difficult to imagine a property as insidious as Lego Batman. Go ahead, try. Labeling the game a "symbol of commercialized childhood," an activist group calling itself the Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood has called out TT Games' cubic take on the Dark Knight. Wait, is this a joke? A riddle? A two-faced lie?

The game was included among a handful of other toys as a finalist for the organization's inaugural TOADY (Toys Oppressive And Destructive to Young Children) Award. Other playthings, including Hasbro's poop-happy Baby Alive and a Barbie tarted up as a Dallas Cowboy cheerleader, are also up for the dubious honor. But how many of these were also included in Happy Meals, one of the chief complaints of the Boston-based group? Only you can put the Caped Crusader over the top by voting for the "winner". Won't someone please think of the children?

Source

Tags: activists, lego, lego-batman, legobatman, travellers-tales, tt-games, wtf

Reader Comments (78)

The only insidious thing about Batman is his penchant for picking up stray boys, bringing them back to his house and dressing them in lyrca.

Dick, Jason, Tim. These are names of young boys lost to the insatiable urges of Mr. Wayne. We should remember them.

;)

We also mustn't forget the 4th Robin. She was killed too just like Jason! Oh wait a minute, they're both back from the dead due to retcons? Never mind then.

I know we're very sensitive when anybody attacks our games, but they kind of have a point when it comes to games for kids. They are often mindless and repetitive. That's why reviewers hate them. It's always bothered me that there is no real creative side to the Lego games. Creation was reduced to holding down a button.

The closest game out there to an actual lego building experience is Banjo Kazooie Nuts & Bolts. That is a damn fun game.

Okay I check the other nominees...that was stupid.

Today, there are kids with drug abusing parents, going to bed hungry, and living in violent neighborhoods, homes, and schools. Obviously, a video game about LEGOs are far worse than any of this.

They have a really, really good point.

However, the real problem is parents. Parents shouldn't train their children to be consumers, shouldn't flop them down in front of a TV or a console, and shouldn't be so damned lazy.

My childhood consisted of Thundercats, Transformers, Silverhawk, Voltron, He-Man, and others. All these cartoons existed to promote their toys yet I am a well adjusted and productive member of society. How did that happen?

Thundercats HO!!

HO!

A some people look at gamers funny *rolls eyes*

I vote for the Barbie. I hate Barbies :D

Hopefully, the New Economy that emerges from the collapse can't support idiot time wasting groups like this. Seriously. Find something to do. That is productive and provides a good or service.

Well that Barbie is hawt.What? Don't I'm the only one who thought that?

The Escalator looks quite badass maybe parents are afraid that toy will turn their kids into gangsta rappers or that it will show their kids that there are people more succesful than their parents who didn't had to work as much.

The virtual bike looks awesome as well.

All I know is I've been playing the hell out lego batman ds on the train lately.

Parents just don't understand!

I voted for the escalade too, only because I can't figure out why it even exists.

Widespread legalization of pot would keep these hippies quiet. We all know that's what they're really after, but they have to rail against other things to legitimize themselves rather than just look like the lazy, stinking hippies that they are.

What are you smoking to come up with that theory?

Silence, Shmil! His theory is sound. ;)

I don't get how these toys are competing for entirely different reasons. Can't they make a cathegory or sumpthin?

While I don't agree 100% with the campaign I do see their point. Any toy that takes away a child's ability to do imaginative play is not good in the long run.

Lego Batman is just an example of how you can take something like Lego (their beef is NOT with the themed sets, they're just not big fans of them)and reduce it to building via button mashing. Ok as a supplement to real Lego sets but bad as a substitute, like most of the things on the list.

It's a sound argument, I just don't agree with taking the hard line approach. Still it's good someone taking up the cause.

With an acronym name like TOADY - gtfo.

Discrepancy alert:
(about the Escalade)
Who needs to pedal? Now your three-year-old can drive their own icon of excess at speeds up to five miles per hour!

(about the stationary bike)
Why ride a tricycle outside when you can stay inside and pedal in front of a screen?

Hey, I wonder if an early draft included a complain about bycicles. "Why walk when a bycicle eases your load.

Put a "t" at the end of "complain" there.

TOADY? How can they just ignore the last word of their organization's name because it's not convenient for their acronym of choice? Surely the long standing tradition of giving groups extremely complicated and flowery names so that the letters form a cool acronym will not stand for this kind of outright chicanery.

Currently Lego is not so creative as it used to be before...you will find more themed packs or sets in stores.
Anyway, Lego Batman (and other lego games) are good ones. And I've bought and played them.

What's wrong with the damn bike?

I have a personal dislike of the themed lego packs.

When I was a boy we just had lots of box shapes and we had to spend hours putting them together to make a space ship... now every pack has so many custom parts that it takes about 3 minutes to assemble the ship.

I don't blame this game for that though... i blame george lucas.

Previous 50 Comments

Breaking News

Activist group finds LEGO Batman 'oppressive,' 'destructive' to kids

Reader Comments (78)

Posted: Jan 23rd 2009 9:53AM (Unverified) said

Posted: Jan 23rd 2009 8:24PM hvnlysoldr said

Posted: Jan 23rd 2009 9:58AM Snake Robot Podium said

Posted: Jan 23rd 2009 4:01PM servo said

Posted: Jan 23rd 2009 10:01AM (Unverified) said

Posted: Jan 23rd 2009 10:01AM ducttapeBigSexy said

Posted: Jan 23rd 2009 10:06AM (Unverified) said

Posted: Jan 23rd 2009 10:13AM (Unverified) said

Posted: Jan 24th 2009 10:53AM original fred said

Posted: Jan 23rd 2009 10:29AM (Unverified) said

Posted: Jan 23rd 2009 11:06AM Strangera said

Posted: Jan 23rd 2009 11:06AM ScottG13 said

Posted: Jan 23rd 2009 11:14AM (Unverified) said

Posted: Jan 23rd 2009 11:43AM (Unverified) said

Posted: Jan 23rd 2009 11:59AM (Unverified) said

Posted: Jan 23rd 2009 12:00PM Veko said

Posted: Jan 23rd 2009 12:02PM (Unverified) said

Posted: Jan 23rd 2009 12:38PM Shmil said

Posted: Jan 23rd 2009 1:10PM xGeneral DEATHxDEETH82 said

Posted: Jan 23rd 2009 1:38PM Batzarro The worlds WOrst Detect said

Posted: Jan 23rd 2009 2:25PM (Unverified) said

Posted: Jan 23rd 2009 2:48PM (Unverified) said

Posted: Jan 23rd 2009 4:43PM Batzarro The worlds WOrst Detect said

Posted: Jan 23rd 2009 4:46PM Batzarro The worlds WOrst Detect said

Posted: Jan 23rd 2009 8:53PM (Unverified) said

Posted: Jan 24th 2009 4:55AM xboxsonic said

Posted: Jan 24th 2009 8:09AM Ethan said

Posted: Jan 24th 2009 8:40AM (Unverified) said

Info

Description

MSRP

Release Date

Genre

Developer

Publisher

Rating

Breaking News

WB conjures up Harry Potter for Kinect this fall

Featured Stories

Weekly Webcomic Wrapup is a stranger in a strange land

Silver Lining: I Am Alive's unfeeling world

Game Of Thrones and the paradoxes of adaptation

Engadget

TUAW

Massively

WoW