Right now, gaming is having a moment with LEGO Batman: Legacy of the Dark Knight and 007: First Light, which both just came out. 2026 is shaping up to be another really good gaming year, and these two are a big part of it. There’s just one problem. People are being weirdly dismissive of Legacy of the Dark Knight because it’s a LEGO game.

Who Cares if Legacy of the Dark Knight is a LEGO Game?

There’s a conversation floating around now that comes up every single time a big game comes out. “Is this worth $70?” people inevitably ask. That question isn’t without merit. That’s expensive, and a lot of AAA games are lazily done and probably not worth that much. With indie games on the rise that cost a lot less and are generally a lot better, it’s a worthy inquiry.

For LEGO Batman: Legacy of the Dark Knight, the answer is usually something along the lines of, “Yeah, it’s a good game, it’s a lot of fun, but it’s still just a LEGO game.” The implication is that a LEGO game simply can’t be worth what other games are worth. It feels so much like an extension of the idea that animation is somehow inferior to live-action. LEGO games are childlike and whimsical, so they can’t be worth as much as a serious, realistic title.

This is patently ridiculous, but let’s get one thing out of the way first. No game is really worth $70. These are the same level of games that were $60 years ago, and even that was more than they were genuinely worth. It’s just the market and the cost of doing business today. That price isn’t going to drop, so a better question is whether or not a game is worth that cost in comparison to other games.

With Legacy of the Dark Knight, the answer is a resounding yes. Sure, $70 is steep, but it’s one of the best games of the year. It’s not the AAA slop that often comes from big studios. It’s well-done, and it doesn’t have the hallmarks of cheap, lazy video games today. It doesn’t matter if the graphics are brick-based and the characters are minifigures.

It’s been compared to an Arkham game with LEGO graphics, which is pretty accurate. So it’s essentially a new Arkham game. If the game were made by Rocksteady, was a little less silly and had realistic graphics, people would be calling it the Game of the Year. It’s silly to discount a game because of its chosen art style.

The game should be judged on its own merits. It is a little whimsical and silly because it’s a LEGO game, but that works really well here. It’s why The Lego Batman Movie is so beloved. It understands Batman really well, and it proves that he doesn’t have to be dark, brooding, and self-serious all the time. That is extremely true here. Batman can be silly sometimes. It’s utterly ridiculous that a man dresses up like a bat to beat up criminals anyway, so why not have a little fun with it?

Conclusion

LEGO Batman: Legacy of the Dark Knight may not end up winning Game of the Year, but it is still one of the best games of 2026. Don’t let the LEGO tag force you to miss out on a fantastic game. It may not be worth $70, which nothing is, but that’s not because it has a little fun and turns everything into bricks. It’s a wonderful romp through Gotham and through the history of Batman, and it’s worth your time for that alone.