Lego City Undercover
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

''Lego City Undercover'' is a 2013
action-adventure game An action-adventure game is a video game hybrid genre that combines core elements from both the action game and adventure game genres. Definition An action adventure game can be defined as a game with a mix of elements from an action ...
developed by
TT Fusion TT Games Limited is a British holding company and a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Games. The company was established in 2005 through the merger of video game developer, developer Traveller's Tales and Video game publisher, publisher Giant Interact ...
and published by
Nintendo is a Japanese Multinational corporation, multinational video game company headquartered in Kyoto. It develops, publishes, and releases both video games and video game consoles. The history of Nintendo began when craftsman Fusajiro Yamauchi ...
for the
Wii U The Wii U ( ) is a home video game console developed by Nintendo as the successor to the Wii. Released in late 2012, it is the first eighth-generation video game console and competed with Microsoft's Xbox One and Sony's PlayStation 4. The W ...
. It was re-released for the
Nintendo Switch The is a video game console developed by Nintendo and released worldwide in most regions on March 3, 2017. Released in the middle of the Eighth generation of video game consoles, eighth generation of home consoles, the Switch succeeded the ...
,
PlayStation 4 The PlayStation 4 (PS4) is a home video game console developed by Sony Interactive Entertainment. Announced as the successor to the PlayStation 3 in February 2013, it was launched on November 15, 2013, in North America, November 29, 2013, in ...
,
Windows Windows is a Product lining, product line of Proprietary software, proprietary graphical user interface, graphical operating systems developed and marketed by Microsoft. It is grouped into families and subfamilies that cater to particular sec ...
, and
Xbox One The Xbox One is a home video game console developed by Microsoft. Announced in May 2013, it is the successor to Xbox 360 and the third console in the Xbox#Consoles, Xbox series. It was first released in North America, parts of Europe, Austra ...
by
Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment Warner Bros. Games (formerly Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment) is an American video game publisher based in Burbank, California. The publisher was founded as a division of Warner Bros. on January 14, 2004, as well as the WB Games brand. ...
in 2017. Based on the City-themed toyline by
Lego Lego (, ; ; stylised as LEGO) is a line of plastic construction toys manufactured by the Lego Group, a privately held company based in Billund, Denmark. Lego consists of variously coloured interlocking plastic bricks made of acrylonitri ...
, the narrative follows police officer Chase McCain as he returns to Lego City and pursues escaped crime boss Rex Fury. Gameplay features McCain both exploring the open world hub of Lego City, and completing self-contained levels featuring puzzles and combat. After satisfactory technical advancements and the completion of other ''Lego'' video games featuring existing IPs, the first prototypes for ''Lego City Undercover'' were produced in 2010, with development beginning in 2011 after Nintendo approached parent company TT Games about developing for the Wii U. At the time production began, it was to be the first Lego video game featuring voice acting, and it was the first in the TT Games Lego series not to rely on a movie or comic license. The script, written by Graham Goring, made extensive use of parody and references to various media. The Lego City hub was based on multiple real locations. Nintendo was generally hands-off with the development process but would receive updates and suggest changes. The game was originally announced at E3 2011 as ''Lego City Stories'' for Wii U and
Nintendo 3DS The is a foldable dual-screen handheld game console produced by Nintendo. Announced in March 2010 as the successor to the Nintendo DS, the console was released originally on February 26, 2011 and went through various revisions in its lifetime, ...
. Additional info was shown at
E3 2012 The Electronic Entertainment Expo 2012 (E3 2012) was the 18th E3 held. The event took place at the Los Angeles Convention Center in Los Angeles, California. It began on June 5, 2012, and ended on June 7, 2012, with 45,700 total attendees. It was ...
, where the game was also officially renamed to ''Lego City Undercover''. The 3DS version became a standalone prequel, titled '' Lego City Undercover: The Chase Begins''. ''Lego City Undercover'' was released in most regions in March 2013, with Japan following in July. The remastered version, which included local two-player multiplayer, was announced in 2016 and released in April 2017. The game received generally positive reviews from critics, who praised the story, humour, and evolved gameplay formula, but criticized the lack of co-op options and varying technical issues, such as long loading times. The original Wii U version sold over 1.15 million copies worldwide .


Gameplay

''Lego City Undercover'' is
action-adventure An action-adventure game is a video game genre, video game hybrid genre that combines core elements from both the action game and adventure game genres. Definition An action adventure game can be defined as a game with a mix of elements f ...
game in which the player controls undercover cop Chase McCain, who is tasked with detaining the criminal Rex Fury. Chase can perform various moves such as swinging across poles and performing wall jumps. The game is set in Lego City, which serves as an
overworld An overworld or a hub world is, in a broad sense, an area within a video game that interconnects all its levels or locations. They are mostly common in role-playing games, though this does not exclude other video game genres, such as some pla ...
that contains levels set in different environments split up in 20 districts. Each level has a set of linear objectives that must be completed to reach the end, which can involve solving puzzles, building and breaking Lego bricks, and platforming challenges. Chase engages in combat with criminals that require button combinations to fight them. As the game progresses, Chase learns new abilities in the form of "disguises" that replicate occupations and personas; the abilities from the disguises are used in levels and exploring previously inaccessible content and areas in the overworld. For example, the miner disguise can smash through boulders with its pickaxe and grabs a dynamite out of the dynamite machine, and the criminal disguise can break through doors with a crowbar and can crack safes open. Besides disguises, the player can also create customized characters or play as other characters once they are unlocked (though they will still talk and behave like Chase). In the overworld, puzzles and collectibles are also hidden, such as timed challenges and car chases. The player is allowed to use any vehicle in the environment to reach their location, including boats, helicopters, and the vehicles of other citizens. Lego studs serve as the game's currency, and can be found in the environment or by solving puzzles. Studs can be used to purchase new vehicles that can be summoned and used at the player's discretion. A rarer form of currency, Lego bricks, often require more difficult platforming or puzzle-solving to collect. Lego bricks are used to complete "superbuilds", which vary in use when completed, such as a structure to summon vehicles or stunt ramps. The
Wii U GamePad The Wii U GamePad is the standard game controller for Nintendo's Wii U home video game console. Incorporating features from tablet computers, the GamePad has traditional input methods (such as buttons, dual analog sticks, and a D-pad), touchscre ...
is used to further progress with multiple features, including scanning for Lego brick locations, taking photo evidence, and listening to private conversations. When these features are not being used, the GamePad displays a map of the environment. The 2017 re-release of the game added local multiplayer.


Plot

Police officer Chase McCain returns to Lego City after being exiled two years prior. He learns from Mayor Gleeson that notorious criminal Rex Fury, who Chase helped to arrest, had recently escaped from prison. Chase is joined by dim-witted rookie Frank Honey and assisted by police technician Ellie Phillips in pursuing Rex. However, his return is not welcome news for Natalia Kowalski, Chase's ex-girlfriend, who was forced into
witness protection Witness protection is security provided to a threatened person providing testimonial evidence to the justice system, including defendants and other clients, before, during, and after trials, usually by police. While witnesses may only require p ...
program after he inadvertently revealed her as the witness in Rex's trial, nor Marion Dunby, the city's new Chief of Police, who had Chase sent away because of this mistake. After dealing with a number of minor cases, Chase manages to gather clues that lead him to encountering Rex at Bluebell Mine, but is defeated before he can arrest him. Dunby sends Chase undercover within a limousine company owned by Chan Chuang, head of a crime gang. He works as a driver for billionaire Forrest Blackwell, gains acceptance with Chan's business partner, Vinnie Pappalardo, and steals a Moon buggy for Chan. Chan captures Natalia while investigating his connection to her father's disappearance; Chase rescues her, causing her to accept his help in finding her father, but angering Dunby when Chan goes into hiding. After rescuing Natalia from a group of mysterious men and partially reconciling with her, Chase later discovers that Vinnie is working for Rex himself. When Vinnie learns he won't be paid for his work and is ordered to steal more items for his buyer, he instructs Chase to steal from Blackwell. After breaking into his mansion but failing to secure any valuables due to being pursued by Blackwell's security forces, Chase returns to Vinnie's ice cream parlor, only to find it overrun by Rex's thugs and Vinnie locked in a freezer in retaliation for going against Rex's orders. Chase manages to save Vinnie from Rex's thugs and, after interrogating the thugs' leader, takes their place to learn what Rex is planning. Managing to infiltrate Rex's hideout, Chase overhears Natalia's father, lunar scientist Henrik Kowalski, being interrogated by Rex. He discovers that Blackwell himself organized the crime wave and had managed to kidnap Natalia to coerce her father to work on his plans. Rescuing Kowalski, Chase calls Ellie with what he has learned, whereupon she informs him that Blackwell recently was in the news with promises he had plans that would change Lego City forever. Proceeding to Blackwell's mansion, he searches it to find evidence of Blackwell's crimes and locate Natalia. Chase soon discovers that Blackwell originally had plans to build an apartment complex and shopping mall in Bluebell but was stopped by Lego City from building due to a rare and endangered squirrel species in the park. Humiliated and enraged at being denied, Blackwell began a new plan to build a colony on the Moon and converted his high-rise Blackwell Tower into a rocket, which Chase discovers will burn Lego City when it's launched. Chase quickly has Henrik and several members of the police department build a force field to prevent the rocket's engines from destroying the city. Learning that Blackwell still had Natalia with him, Chase chases him via a space shuttle. Blackwell leaves both Chase and Rex behind, destroying the shuttle. Chase defeats Rex in a final battle, whereupon Blackwell sends both into free fall towards Earth. Skydiving towards Natalia's prison within the rocket's command module, Chase rescues her by triggering the module's parachute. Once back in the city, Gleeson congratulates him for saving Lego City, while Dunby offers Chase the honor of overseeing Rex's arrest. However, Chase turns it down, claiming Natalia is more important to him now, and they rekindle their relationship and leave to start a new life together.


Development

The development team at
TT Fusion TT Games Limited is a British holding company and a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Games. The company was established in 2005 through the merger of video game developer, developer Traveller's Tales and Video game publisher, publisher Giant Interact ...
had been wanting to create a video game based on the
Lego City Lego City (stylized as ''LEGO City'') is a theme under which Lego building sets are released based on city life, with the models depicting city and emergency services (such as police and fire), airport, train, construction, and civilian service ...
theme for some time, as did the Lego franchise, but the available technology and the fact that most staff were working on existing IPs limited their ability to create such a game. Prototyping for what would become ''Lego City Undercover'' began in 2010, and lasted roughly twelve months. In 2011,
Nintendo is a Japanese Multinational corporation, multinational video game company headquartered in Kyoto. It develops, publishes, and releases both video games and video game consoles. The history of Nintendo began when craftsman Fusajiro Yamauchi ...
approached the company and showed them the Wii U hardware, asking whether they would like to develop a game for it. Having already had good experiences with Nintendo with successful ports of their previous titles and liking the platform's specs, the team agreed to work with Nintendo. Developing a game not tied to a movie license gave the team a degree of freedom previously unavailable, while also presenting difficulties with multiple aspects including the story, gameplay and general mechanics of the game. Due to the high compatibility between the team's concept and its prospective hardware, ports to other consoles were not seriously considered, until a few years after the game was released. They were also able to integrate the GamePad functions into the game, making part of ''Undercover''s world. Nintendo generally left the team to develop the game as they pleased, though they received regular updates on the project and would notify them if they saw anything as a problem. Development was split between TT Fusion studio and the Traveller's Tales Knutsford headquarters. As they did not have a solid idea of what the game would be, the team began with creating a small environment with drivable vehicles and Lego buildings. Various ideas for gameplay were considered, one of which was a city builder similar to the ''
SimCity ''SimCity'' is an open-ended city-building video game franchise originally designed by Will Wright. The first game in the series, '' SimCity'', was published by Maxis in 1989 and was followed by several sequels and many other spin-off ''S ...
'' series, and a fixed camera angle was also quickly abandoned. One of the early gameplay challenges was the combat, which needed to fit into the story context of the lead character being a policeman. Instead of a simple brawling style, the team designed the battle system to allow for defensive gameplay and not involve an equivalent to lethal take-downs. While many critics made comparisons between ''Lego City Undercover'' and the ''
Grand Theft Auto ''Grand Theft Auto'' (''GTA'') is an action-adventure video game series created by David Jones and Mike Dailly. Later titles were developed under the oversight of brothers Dan and Sam Houser, Leslie Benzies and Aaron Garbut. It is prima ...
'' series, Goring insisted that the series never played a role of inspiration in the game's development, and the elements instead came from exploring new ideas for a ''Lego'' video game and ways of using the Wii U GamePad. Pre-existing open-world video games were never used as inspiration for their overall darker tone. According to lead designer Lee Barber, the goal of the game was to accomplish the opposite, which featured open-world gameplay and exploration but had a positive and upbeat style, which was instructed by the Lego City franchise itself. To follow this pattern, criminals and the crimes committed weren't serious ones, and the undercover disguise was implemented so Chase could commit criminal acts but for a morally justified reason.


Setting and writing

While designing the setting, the team used elements from multiple locations, including
New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...
,
San Francisco San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...
and
London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...
. The game makes reference to various real-world locations and structures, such as
Times Square Times Square is a major commercial intersection, tourist destination, entertainment hub, and Neighborhoods in New York City, neighborhood in the Midtown Manhattan section of New York City. It is formed by the junction of Broadway (Manhattan), ...
, the
Statue of Liberty The Statue of Liberty (''Liberty Enlightening the World''; ) is a colossal neoclassical sculpture on Liberty Island in New York Harbor, within New York City. The copper-clad statue, a gift to the United States from the people of French Thir ...
, the
Golden Gate Bridge The Golden Gate Bridge is a suspension bridge spanning the Golden Gate, the strait connecting San Francisco Bay and the Pacific Ocean in California, United States. The structure links San Francisco—the northern tip of the San Francisco Peni ...
, and
Alcatraz Federal Penitentiary United States Penitentiary, Alcatraz Island, also known simply as Alcatraz (, ''"the gannet"'') or the Rock, was a maximum security federal prison on Alcatraz Island, 1.25 miles (2.01 km) off the coast of San Francisco, California, United S ...
. The space station on Apollo Island is also heavily inspired by the
John F. Kennedy Space Center The John F. Kennedy Space Center (KSC, originally known as the NASA Launch Operations Center), located on Merritt Island, Florida, is one of the NASA, National Aeronautics and Space Administration's (NASA) ten NASA facilities#List of field c ...
in
Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...
. As the game was being developed for a Nintendo console, the team included multiple Nintendo-themed
Easter eggs Easter eggs, also called Paschal eggs, are eggs that are Egg decorating, decorated for the Christian holiday of Easter, which celebrates the resurrection of Jesus. As such, Easter eggs are commonly used during the season of Eastertide (Easter ...
for players to find. The team had to create a new game engine as previous ones were not able to cope with the scale of the environments. The newly made engine was created from scratch, and was made to handle memory, object and vehicle physics, and traffic systems. Executive producer Loz Doyle considered this to be the most difficult part of the development process, as they continuously kept hitting the memory limit of the console. The team wanted the main character to have depth as they knew both children and adults would play the game. ''Undercover'' features full voice acting, which at the time development started was a first for the series, although due to development time, others featuring voice acting were developed and released ahead of it. The team collaborated with voice casting and recording company Side UK. A large voice casting session was held, and several established comedians were requested to come in as the team wanted good delivery for the funny sections of the script. By the time the script writer, former stand-up comedian Graham Goring, was brought on board, a rough outline of the story had been created. His main role was to fill in the gaps and put in as much humor as possible. Goring was given a lot of freedom when it came to the parodies, although the team were regularly consulted on the suitability of the material and a script editor was assigned to check his work. Drawing on his former profession, Goring included a large amount of one-liners and humor intended for both children and adults. Following the template of ''
The Simpsons ''The Simpsons'' is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening and developed by Groening, James L. Brooks and Sam Simon for the Fox Broadcasting Company. It is a Satire (film and television), satirical depiction of American life ...
'', the game contains a high number of family-friendly parodies, referencing movies such as ''
The Shawshank Redemption ''The Shawshank Redemption'' is a 1994 American Prison film, prison Drama (film and television), drama film written and directed by Frank Darabont, based on the 1982 Stephen King novella ''Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption''. The film t ...
'' and ''
The Matrix ''The Matrix'' is a 1999 science fiction film, science fiction action film written and directed by the Wachowskis. It is the first installment in the The Matrix (franchise), ''Matrix'' film series, starring Keanu Reeves, Laurence Fishburne, Ca ...
'', and TV series such as ''
Starsky & Hutch ''Starsky & Hutch'' is an American action television series, which consisted of a 72-minute pilot movie (originally aired as a '' Movie of the Week'' entry) and 92 episodes of 50 minutes each. The show was created by William Blinn (inspired ...
''. The game's story took a while to write, as the team wanted to give it depth.
Easter eggs Easter eggs, also called Paschal eggs, are eggs that are Egg decorating, decorated for the Christian holiday of Easter, which celebrates the resurrection of Jesus. As such, Easter eggs are commonly used during the season of Eastertide (Easter ...
and references to the ''
Super Mario (also known as and is a platform game series created by Nintendo starring their mascot, Mario. It is the central series of the greater Mario (franchise), ''Mario'' franchise. At least one ''Super Mario'' game has been released for every ma ...
'' series were included in the game.


Announcement and release

''Lego City Undercover'' was announced during
Nintendo is a Japanese Multinational corporation, multinational video game company headquartered in Kyoto. It develops, publishes, and releases both video games and video game consoles. The history of Nintendo began when craftsman Fusajiro Yamauchi ...
's press conference at E3 2011 on 7 June 2011 under the tentative title ''Lego City Stories''. At Nintendo's press conference at
E3 2012 The Electronic Entertainment Expo 2012 (E3 2012) was the 18th E3 held. The event took place at the Los Angeles Convention Center in Los Angeles, California. It began on June 5, 2012, and ended on June 7, 2012, with 45,700 total attendees. It was ...
on 5 June, the game was revealed to have had a name change to ''Lego City Undercover''. The game's debut trailer was shown during that event, revealing game footage. During the
Nintendo Direct Nintendo Direct is a series of online presentations or live shows produced by Nintendo, where information regarding the company's upcoming content or franchises is presented, such as information about games and consoles. The presentations began ...
held on 13 September 2012, some new trailers detailing the story were shown, along with the announcement that a Chase McCain
minifigure A Lego minifigure, often simply referred to as a Lego figure or a minifig, is a small plastic articulated figurine made of special Lego bricks produced by Danish building toy manufacturer The Lego Group. They were first produced in 1978 and ha ...
would come with the game as a pre-order bonus on North America and Australia while stocks last, and be included in the first copies of the game on Europe. A police high speed chase toy was also released and includes a code for additional in-game content. Nintendo also published the game in Japan on 25 July 2013. At the time of the game's release the Wii U was lacking in major releases, making ''Lego City Undercover'' the first major release from Nintendo in 2013; Doyle was very proud of the final product, and declared it to be the best ''Lego'' video game as well as the best Wii U game at the time of its release. On 22 November 2016,
Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment Warner Bros. Games (formerly Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment) is an American video game publisher based in Burbank, California. The publisher was founded as a division of Warner Bros. on January 14, 2004, as well as the WB Games brand. ...
announced that a remaster would be released for
Nintendo Switch The is a video game console developed by Nintendo and released worldwide in most regions on March 3, 2017. Released in the middle of the Eighth generation of video game consoles, eighth generation of home consoles, the Switch succeeded the ...
,
PlayStation 4 The PlayStation 4 (PS4) is a home video game console developed by Sony Interactive Entertainment. Announced as the successor to the PlayStation 3 in February 2013, it was launched on November 15, 2013, in North America, November 29, 2013, in ...
,
Windows Windows is a Product lining, product line of Proprietary software, proprietary graphical user interface, graphical operating systems developed and marketed by Microsoft. It is grouped into families and subfamilies that cater to particular sec ...
, and
Xbox One The Xbox One is a home video game console developed by Microsoft. Announced in May 2013, it is the successor to Xbox 360 and the third console in the Xbox#Consoles, Xbox series. It was first released in North America, parts of Europe, Austra ...
in April 2017, which introduced split-screen cooperative support. The Mario Easter eggs from the original game were mostly kept intact in the Nintendo Switch version, with the exception of the
Mario Mario (; ) is a Character (arts), character created by the Japanese game designer Shigeru Miyamoto. He is the star of the ''Mario (franchise), Mario'' franchise, a recurring character in the ''Donkey Kong'' franchise, and the mascot of the Ja ...
Hat being replaced by a generic helicopter. On 22 December 2020, the Wii U version of ''Lego City Undercover'' and its 3DS
prequel A prequel is a literary, dramatic or cinematic work whose story precedes that of a previous work, by focusing on events that occur before the original narrative. A prequel is a work that forms part of a backstory to the preceding work. The term ...
were removed from the
Nintendo eShop The is a digital distribution service for the Nintendo Switch and the Nintendo Switch 2, and formerly available via the Nintendo Network for the Wii U and Nintendo 3DS. Launched in June 2011 on the Nintendo 3DS, the Nintendo eShop served ...
. In January 2024, the game was added to the PlayStation Plus game catalog for PlayStation Plus members, following a trial for Premium members.


Reception


Critical reception

The Wii U version of the game received a score of 80/100 on the
review aggregator A review aggregator is a system that collects reviews and ratings of products and services, such as films, books, video games, music, software, hardware, or cars. This system then stores the reviews to be used for supporting a website where user ...
website
Metacritic Metacritic is an American website that aggregates reviews of films, television shows, music albums, video games, and formerly books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted average). Metacritic was created ...
, indicating "generally favorable reviews". When re-released to other consoles and PC, all new versions received a score ranging from 77 to 80 on the site.


Wii U version

Many critics compare the game and its mechanics positively to that of the ''
Grand Theft Auto ''Grand Theft Auto'' (''GTA'') is an action-adventure video game series created by David Jones and Mike Dailly. Later titles were developed under the oversight of brothers Dan and Sam Houser, Leslie Benzies and Aaron Garbut. It is prima ...
'' series, albeit in a more family-friendly and playful manner. Another common positive was the use of popular culture references that also helped broaden the appeal to a larger audience, including references to ''
The Shawshank Redemption ''The Shawshank Redemption'' is a 1994 American Prison film, prison Drama (film and television), drama film written and directed by Frank Darabont, based on the 1982 Stephen King novella ''Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption''. The film t ...
'', '' Goodfellas'', and the ''
Mario Mario (; ) is a Character (arts), character created by the Japanese game designer Shigeru Miyamoto. He is the star of the ''Mario (franchise), Mario'' franchise, a recurring character in the ''Donkey Kong'' franchise, and the mascot of the Ja ...
'' franchise among others. In a negative review by ''
Edge Edge or EDGE may refer to: Technology Computing * Edge computing, a network load-balancing system * Edge device, an entry point to a computer network * Adobe Edge, a graphical development application * Microsoft Edge, a web browser developed by ...
'', the staff believed that ''Lego City Undercover'' lacked originality with its repetitive urban and city environments with disassociated references to popular culture, although they felt it was slightly justified without its use of pre-existing source material. Gameplay generally received mixed opinions. Many critics found the combat mechanics to be lackluster, but positively received its physical wit. Critics enjoyed the implication of disguises as a gameplay mechanic, with George noting how it helped give variety to the ''Lego'' series' repetitive formula, but some negatively received how the game often required constantly swapping between them with minimal variance. Carsillo called the Wii U GamePad and its use in the game "an ingenious little plot device", and Cork admitted he "completely fell for the gimmick". However, ''Edge'' and Oertel felt that the GamePad was used too minimally and therefore not meaningful, with Bischoff calling its use "forced." Carsillo cited several technical issues as the main fault of the game, such as slow loading times, poor frame rate, and bad camera control. ''Destructoid'' believed the general gameplay of ''Lego City Undercover'' was disappointing as it retained a similar format found in other ''Lego'' games, but did not consider the gameplay itself to be a negative. George and ''
Polygon In geometry, a polygon () is a plane figure made up of line segments connected to form a closed polygonal chain. The segments of a closed polygonal chain are called its '' edges'' or ''sides''. The points where two edges meet are the polygon ...
''s Justin McElroy expressed similar negative feelings about the game's loading time and frame rate. Vehicles were received positively, but some cited poor handling. ''
Electronic Gaming Monthly ''Electronic Gaming Monthly'' (''EGM'') is a monthly American video game magazine. It offers video game news, coverage of industry events, interviews with gaming figures, editorial content and product reviews. History The magazine was fou ...
''s Ray Carsillo considered the game's original theme to be a positive, as it stood out against other ''Lego'' games and had the potential for widespread appeal, and ''
Eurogamer ''Eurogamer'' is a British video game journalism website launched in 1999 alongside parent company Gamer Network. In 2008, it started in the formerly eponymous trade fair EGX (Eurogamer Expo until 2013) organised by its parent company. Fr ...
'' reviewer Tom Bramwell believed this was accomplished effectively. ''
GameSpot ''GameSpot'' is an American video gaming website that provides news, reviews, previews, downloads, and other information on video games. The site was launched on May 1, 1996, created by Pete Deemer, Vince Broady, and Jon Epstein. In addition ...
''s Kevin VanOrd also noted positively how the game's wit extended beyond references to other media, including its own slew of written and visual gags. Richard George of ''
IGN ''IGN'' is an American video gaming and entertainment media website operated by IGN Entertainment Inc., a subsidiary of Ziff Davis, Inc. The company's headquarters is located in San Francisco's SoMa district and is headed by its former e ...
'' appreciated how the story had a "strong sense of progression throughout the game". The characters and voice acting were received positively, and George noted how the character's and their relationships with each other matched a police drama with family-friendly slapstick and caricatures. Writing for ''
GameRevolution Mandatory (formerly CraveOnline Media) is a lifestyle website based in Los Angeles with sales offices in New York City, Chicago and San Francisco. The site is owned by media company Evolve Media, LLC. Mandatory focuses its contents into the male ...
'', Daniel Bischoff enjoyed the comedic writing and it helped him remember the experience beyond its gameplay. ''
The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...
'' positively compared the games writing style and cutscenes to the works of
Zucker, Abrahams and Zucker Zucker, Abrahams and Zucker (abbreviated to ZAZ) was an American comedy filmmaking trio consisting of Jim Abrahams and brothers David and Jerry Zucker who specialised in writing slapstick comedy films during the 1980s. Members of the team have ...
, pointing out its continuous use of cliches, sketches, and gags. James Sterling of ''
Destructoid ''Destructoid'' is a website that was founded as a video game-focused blog in March 2006 by Yanier Gonzalez, a Cuban-American cartoonist and author. Enthusiast Gaming acquired the website in 2017 and sold it to Gamurs Group in 2022. Histor ...
'' considered the environment to be dynamic, which many other critics considered to be the reason why the overworld was fun to continuously explore and drive around. Jeff Cork, writing for ''
Game Informer ''Game Informer'' (''GI'' is an American monthly Video game journalism, video game magazine featuring articles, news, strategy, and reviews of video games and video game console, game consoles. It debuted in August 1991, when the video game reta ...
'', enjoyed the level of detail in the environment and found it enjoyable driving through it without an objective. '' 4Players'' reviewer Mathias Oertel cited the worldbuilding as a reason that made ''Lego City Undercover'' "irresistible". ''Destructoid'' called the overworld a "sprawling world of color and distraction". Critics noted how objects in the distance would pop into view abruptly, and ''Edge'' felt that while it was not a major flaw, they felt disappointed that the "first major exclusive in 2013" for the Wii U does not run smoothly. Sterling saw the collectibles as a reason to remain invested in the game after completing the story, but Oertel contrarily referred to the overworld secrets as "irrelevant". Bischoff appreciated that the collectibles felt like an addition rather a necessity, unlike previous games.


Other versions

Critics praised the addition of cooperative multiplayer to the other versions, although ''
GameStar ''GameStar'' is a monthly-released PC gaming magazine in Germany. It is the best-selling German-language magazine focused on PC gaming and it also hosts the largest video gaming-related portal in the German-speaking internet. ''GameStar.de'' i ...
''s Tobias Veltin cited the lack of online play as a negative. ''IGN'' reviewer Tristan Oglivie derided the multiplayer for the lack of new content beyond second-player support; Liam Croft of ''
Push Square Gamer Network Limited (formerly Eurogamer Network Limited) is a British digital media company based in London. Founded in 1999 by Rupert and Nick Loman, it owns brands—primarily editorial websites—relating to video game journalism and oth ...
'' expressed similar opinions but appreciated the feature being included. Oertel rated all new versions positively, but gave a lower score to the Nintendo Switch version, citing noticeable frame drops that weren't as present in the Wii U version. Oglivie and ''
Pocket Gamer ''Pocket Gamer'' is a video game website and former print magazine that focuses on mobile, portable and handheld games. It was launched in 2005 by Steel Media Limited. The publication covers portable and mobile gaming formats, including iPhone, ...
''s Emily Sowden also noted the frame rate decrease of the Nintendo Switch when being used as a portable, but Oglvie praised the higher frame rate of the other versions. Veltin awarded the PC version the website's "Gold Award" for having a high score, praising the game's presentation, design, and story, but criticized the lack of mouse support. Reviewing the PS4 version, Sam Spyrison of ''Hardcore Gamer'' declared the game to be high quality and an improvement over past ''Lego'' titles, but believed that the game lacked gameplay that an older audience would find appealing. Oglivie considered the removal of the Wii U GamePad unimpactful, noting its absence to be more convenient but overall less enjoyable.


Sales

According to NPD figures, the game sold more than 100,000 units in the United States in its debut month, debuting outside the top 10 and tying with '' Monster Hunter 3 Ultimate''. In the UK, the game debuted at number 12 in the all-formats chart, and debuted at number 8 in the individual-format chart and at number 1 in the Wii U chart. In Japan, the game sold more than 18,000 copies during its first week, entering all the charts at number 9. By 31 December 2022, the Wii U version had sold 1.15 million units worldwide.


References


External links

* {{Authority control 2013 video games City Undercover
Undercover A cover in foreign, military or police human intelligence or counterintelligence is the ostensible identity and role or position in an infiltrated organization assumed by a covert agent during a covert operation. Official cover In espionage, a ...
Nintendo games Nintendo Network games Nintendo Switch games Open-world video games Split-screen multiplayer games Organized crime video games PlayStation 4 games Traveller's Tales games Video games about police officers Video games developed in the United Kingdom Warner Bros. video games Wii U eShop games Wii U games Windows games Xbox One games 3D platformers Video games set in 2013 Video games set on fictional islands Pack-in video games Multiplayer and single-player video games