I have been a long time fan of LEGO games from the very beginning and LEGO Dimensions truly shines above all of the others. I haven't had so much fun in a game like I have sending Batman down the yellow brick road and seeing him get confused with the scarecrow trying to find a brain with the scarecrow that tries to infect an entire city with fear. The humor in the game has stepped up quite a bit and helps make the admission worth the steep price. I'm also a big fan of building LEGOs and the starter pack has a lot of pieces to satisfy the need to build. The LEGO gate seems extremely innovative, I haven't played anything else like it such as Spyro Skylanders or Disney Infinity so I couldn't compare what it is like. Once the LEGO toys have been built and set on the gateway pad you turn on the game and any character or vehicle is instantly in the game. This includes any of the add-on packs purchased for the game. I purchased the Back to the Future pack along with the starter pack and was able to use Marty McFly instantly after putting him on the pad. I was not able to use the DeLorean or Hover board until I played through the Back to the Future add-on because that level has digital instructions on how to build those vehicles. Once I did I could go back to where I left off in the story and those vehicles could also be added right in to main story line. It's definitely a fun way to mix things up and keep things fresh. During gameplay there is a continuous need to swap character positions on the Gateway pad to either escape from a trap in-game or to teleport to different areas of the level. I was pleasantly surprised that this was part of the gameplay as it provides a use to actually having these real life LEGO toys. What is really nice about the vehicles such as the DeLorean and Batmobile is that when you upgrade them in-game it saves the upgrades and changes you make to the toy so that you can take it with you to a friends house who also has the game. This way you can trade and borrow toys between friends so that they can have a chance to play with them and unlock new areas, and as I said the upgrades you make to them will still be there. I would expect this to work between XBOX and Playstation since the toys are all the same but I do not know for sure. The downside to this game is the price as it is $100 just for the base game. Though you can play through the entire main game with everything it comes with and still have a stellar experience with lots of replay value, there are some areas that are locked until you purchase other sets. As I said, I purchased the Back to the Future pack along with the Starter pack which made a very expensive trip to Best Buy. The BTTF pack is a Level Pack that includes 1 character, 2 vehicles, and 1 gameplay level that allows you to play through the first movie. The level packs are $30. Team packs are $25: 2 characters, 2 vehicles. Fun packs are $15 with 1 character and 1 vehicle. I've heard the prices for LEGOs toy packs are more expensive than other games with toy packs but it really comes down to how much of a fan you are of these packs. Price doesn't matter to me when it comes to flying the DeLorean around Gotham City or Springfield because I love that franchise. You have to pick and choose what is worth the price to you. Kids of course will want them all so this game could be tough on parents to say no as much as it is for the kids who say why not? Overall its an extremely well done and fun experience with the Starter pack, I would recommend it to anyone who is a fan of LEGO or any of the properties in the game.