Challenge

LEGO Rock Band is built for kids, and fittingly the songs are easier on average than the main Rock Band series.  A new difficulty has been added, called “Super Easy,” which displays the Easy chart but only requires the player to strum on time to hit the note.   For the more talented players, there are still some songs in the game that are challenging, such as Hendrix's “Fire” and Europe's “The Final Countdown.”  LRB sets its difficulty to a great level for younger kids, while still keeping longtime Expert players entertained with challenging songs.

Graphics

Sure, there's only so much you can do when almost everything is supposed to be made of Legos.  However I do still think that LEGO Rock Band comes up a little short in this department.  The images feel not as sharp and clear as they could be at many points.  Another aesthetic that is not so desirable in LRB is the size of hammer-on and pull-off notes.  It seems like they have gone back to the size they were at in the original Rock Band.  They were hard to decipher now and still hard to decipher now, one would think Harmonix would keep them the same as Rock Band 2, in which they are noticeably easier to distinguish.   When I was playing through the game I noticed myself just strumming all notes to avoid missing.  This took a lot away from the fun and more interactive experience you get with HOPOs.  It really seems that Harmonix did not put much effort into making this game look good, aside from all the few interesting Lego-based venues.

Replay value

Just as replayable as any rhythm game, see my Guitar Hero 5 review for an explanation of this.  LRB may have slightly less replay value than Rock Band 2 for example, due to the restrictions on DLC.  LRB has a DLC filter that only allows tracks that Harmonix deems as “family friendly” to be played in the game.  Unfortunately this ends up filtering out some of the platform's most interesting songs, such as all but one song from the Hendrix album “Axis: Bold as Love”, as well as the entire Rock Band Network, and nearly all of the 400+ metal songs that have been released, many of which are considered the most enjoyable and challenging tracks in the game.  Nevertheless, LRB maintains the same sense of competition against yourself to improve scores and pass harder songs, so we still have a good amount of value in this department.

Narrative

Unlike all other non-band-centric rhythm games before it, LEGO Rock Band actually provides a mildly entertaining story.  Although it really doesn't fit a linear path, and honestly, doesn't really make much sense; the LRB story still provides a few good laughs in between songs.  The story is geared towards elementary school aged kids but it is still amusing to myself as a college student.  All the scenes center around your band, comprised of all Lego figures with Lego instruments.  I think so far, my favorite scene had to be the event song at the second venue, “Bill Ditt Construction,” depicting the Lego construction set and Lego workers like you might have played with as a kid.  After you play two songs at the venue, a cutscene shows up and depicts the Lego foreman unable to tear down a building for a project despite many humorous efforts.  The scene then cuts to your band, showing the guitarist requesting that his guitar be louder.  The guitarist then plays a power chord, and to the foreman's delight, parts of the building start collapsing, from YOUR ROCK!!!  You proceed to fittingly play The Hives' “Tick Tick Boom” in a venue showing the building being torn down by your playing.  Very fun, put a smile on my face for sure.

Ease of Controls

Just like any Guitar Hero/Rock Band game, the controls are pretty much as easy as can be.  See a color, press the button and strum.  Not too hard.  Again, see my Guitar Hero 5 review for a more in-depth discussion.  I do have to subtract a few points for this being a Rock Band game though, because the Rock Band peripherals are still noticeably inferior to Guitar Hero peripherals.  Hopefully you have a Guitar Hero 5 guitar lying around, you'll be able to play LRB with that, just like any other GH/RB peripheral made in the last 3 years.  Unfortunately the default Rock Band guitars and drums still fall a bit short of their Guitar Hero counterparts.

Social Playability

No.  Online.  Play.  (Sad face.)  I would assume this is another measure to protect the kiddies from the evils of the unknown in the form of anonymous online contact.  You would think they could institute something in the cam that automatically disabled microphones and messaging, or something to that effect...oh well.  Hardcore players who would want to duke it out online are more likely to export the songs and play them online in Rock Band 2 anyway.  Anyway, LEGO Rock Band certainly maintains the great potential for get-togethers that all GH and RB games have, maybe even more so in this one with the short yet entertaining story mode.  Band play works very well and is quite enjoyable, just like in the main Rock Band series.

Overall

Wow, things were really all over the place here.  LEGO Rock Band has some areas that they hit just perfectly, and some where they greatly disappointed.  Overall, I do think Harmonix accomplishes what Neversoft failed at with Band Hero, making a rhythm game very interesting and accessible to its ages 8-13ish audience.

OVERALL GRADE:  B+

Replay value

Just as replayable as any rhythm game, see my Guitar Hero 5 review for an explanation of this.  LRB may have slightly less replay value for older children than Rock Band 2 for example, due to the restrictions on DLC.  LRB has a DLC filter that only allows tracks that Harmonix deems as “family friendly” to be played in the game.  Nevertheless, LRB maintains the same sense of competition against yourself to improve scores and pass harder songs, so we still have a good amount of value in this department.

Social Playability

This will be great for parties and get-togethers!  Excellent for family events too; the song filter will assure that little nephew Tommy won't get scared by Uncle Bill picking a Metallica song about execution.  The entertaining story line also makes it good to progress through with friends as a band, a couple of my friends have little groups at school that they play through the game with.  Lots and lots of potential here, for all ages!

Objectionable Content

While the song filter does effectively weed out some songs that clearly wouldn't be fit for kids (see: Hammer Smashed Face by Cannibal Corpse), it also weeds out LOTS of songs that I really can't see any reason why (see Tom Petty's American Girl...whaaaaat?).  If you are looking for a good rhythm game for your kids but don't want to worry about scary metal songs or sexual lyrics, Lego is perfect.

Addictiveness

Once again, see my Guitar Hero 5 for more info on addictiveness of this sort of game.  I feel like LRB would be slightly less addicting than most other games of the genre, due to multi-song setlists being generally shorter, and the high frequency of major events, giving the player good stopping points.

Academic Perspective

One thing I find very interesting in Lego Rock Band is the presence of a “short mode,” that can be turned on to cut down long songs to keep the interest of younger children.  If researchers wanted to experiment on the attention span of gamers at various ages, LRB would certainly be a good resource.  As a personal hypothesis, I don't think just cutting a minute or two out of a song makes a difference in whether a kid keeps his attention for a game going.  If he is enjoying the songs and having a fun time he will stay interested, if not he'll quit.  A study certainly could be conducted to explore this, the results could show insightful results that could be applicable to other games as well.