For those LEGO fan families who can’t find time or have the funds to travel to any of the LEGOLAND theme parks around the world, they’re lucky if they happen to live close enough to a smaller-scale alternative, the LEGOLAND Discovery Center. There’re more of them than the theme parks. At present, there are around 19 individual LEGOLAND Discovery Centers operating in major LEGO markets around the world. The lion’s share of these attractions, usually found in malls and shopping centers, is in the US. And they’ll be joined by another one soon, with the new LEGO Discovery Center Columbus, Ohio due to open September.
There’s still some finishing work to be done at the Easton Town Center where the new LEGOLAND Discovery Center Columbus will open. But officials in charge of the attraction have deemed the site ready enough to conduct a hard-hat tour for the public’s benefit.
If somebody’s been to another LEGOLAND Discovery Center then they know what’s in store with this one: a 4-D cinema for LEGO animated movies, cafeteria and retail store for LEGO products, a Miniland containing Ohio landmarks (built by resident Master Builder Maxx Davidson), LEGO and Duplo play areas, party rooms and LEGO building classes too.
The main draws for the LEGOLAND Discovery Center Columbus are two rides: Kingdom Quest which is a 2-3 minute ride to rescue a LEGO princess; and then there’s Merlin’s Apprentice which takes the concept of bicycles for an unexpected spin.
LDC Ohio will open for the public in a grand ceremony on September 28 at 10 in the morning. However, annual pass holders can drop in over there as early as September 21, seven days earlier. For more info on those passes, and the Discovery Center as a whole, you can visit their official website.
College Football season is starting all over again in the US as this week draws to a close. That makes it a great time perhaps for LEGO builders to be inspired in making some new football-related MOCs in celebration. Granted, there have been MOC builds of football stadiums before, but this one’s a real eye-catcher. Builder Jared Jacobs, aka @goldyeller on Twitter, has recreated a significant moment in college football from five years ago in 2013 during the Iron Bowl match between longtime rivals the Auburn Tigers and the Alabama Crimson Tide. Followers of ACFB would remember this momentous play as the Kick Six event.
As a recap, on that November 30 Auburn-Alabama clash, with 1 second left and scores tied 28 all, the Crimson Tide decided to go for a 57-yard field goal for the lead and the win. It was short and fell onto the hands of Tigers Captain/cornerback Chris Davis, who did an epic run, end zone to end zone, that resulted in a spectacular Auburn win with memorable reaction shots in the stadium caught on TV. It was since then burned into the memories of fans and was dubbed eventually as the legendary Kick Six moment.
You can see above, not only did Jared Jacobs make a detailed set of Jordan-Hare Stadium – complete with teams, officials, coaches and audience – he also rendered the whole Kick Six event in stop-motion animation, capturing every iconic scene from the televised footage.
This is the kind of commemoration that’ll be just right to welcome another season of College Football, and another feather in the cap of his various LEGO recreations of various sporting events shown on Twitter.
Last week, LEGO teased a project that they deemed worthy of tagging as building the impossible, with the #BuildForReal attached to it. One can easily recognize that LEGO is hinting at something big in the likeness of its recently released LEGO Techic Bugatti Chiron (42083), but was particularly mum on the details of how it will be done. More so, LEGO claims to build this MOC as close to the real thing, which looks and drives exactly the same as the real Bugatti Chiron. It might sound impossible, but LEGO has proven once again that “impossible” is just a word. A few minutes ago at the Grand Prix Formula 1 racing tournament in Monza Italy, LEGO has now unveiled it’s first ever, life-size and drivable custom LEGO Technic Bugatti Chiron made entirely of LEGO bricks. In fact, more than a million Technic pieces were used to build this MOC, powered by 2,304 LEGO Power Function motors.
This amazing feat of LEGO building and engineering weighs in at 1.5 tonnes and can generate up to 5.3 horsepower to make it run at a speed of 20 kph – yes, you read it right, it actually runs in spite of its massive weight. Read on for The LEGO Group’s official press release followed by an image gallery on how the project began.
First Ever Life-Size and Drivable LEGO Technic Bugatti Chiron Is a Pioneering Piece of Engineering and Design
Testament that with LEGO Technic you can build for real, this non-glued, fully-functional and self-propelled LEGOTechnicmodel can fit two passengers inside and accelerate to over 20km/h
Perfectly recreating the organic design lines of the world’s fastest production car – the iconic Bugatti Chiron – the LEGO Technic life-size model pushes the boundaries of what LEGO builders imagined was possible to build in LEGO elements.
The model is the first large scale movable construction developed using over 1,000,000 LEGO Technic elements and powered exclusively using motors from the LEGO Power Function platform. Packed with 2,304 motors and 4,032 LEGO Technic gear wheels, the engine of this 1.5 tonnes car is generating 5.3 horse power and an estimated torque of 92 Nm.
Lena Dixen, Senior Vice President of Product and Marketing at the LEGO Group said:
“This life-size model is a first of its kind in so many ways and with it, we wanted to push the boundaries of our own imagination. For over 40 years, LEGO Technic has allowed fans of all ages to test their creativity with a building system that challenges them to go beyond just creating new designs, to also engineering new functions. Our Technic designers and the engineers from the Kladno factory in the Czech Republic, the place which also builds the impressive models for LEGO Stores and LEGOLAND parks, have done an amazing job both at recreating the Chiron’s iconic shapes and making it possible to drive this model. It’s a fascinating example of the LEGO Technic building system in action and its potential for creative reinvention.”
A fascinating feat of design and engineering
Seen from a distance side by side, the resemblance of the two cars is striking. Get closer and you will find a fascinating and complex outer ‘skin’ structure, built of interconnected triangular segments made into a LEGO Technic ‘fabric’ designed to mimic the iconic shapes of the original Chiron. Peek inside and discover that every single detail of the original car has been carefully and precisely recreated in LEGO Technic elements – from seats, to dashboard and the steering wheel.
Equipped with a rear spoiler, speedometer, front and back-lights, detachable steering wheel and brake pedal, all fully functional and built of LEGO Technic elements, the model is a dream come true for any LEGO fan. Building it required the use of 339 types of LEGO Technic elements, and over 13,000 work hours of development and construction.
The Making of a Life-Sized and Drivable Custom LEGO Technic Bugatti Chiron
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A test drive like no other
Building a one of a kind LEGO Technic life-size car is one part of the task. Testing if it can drive is another. And what better location than the same place where the real Chiron was first tested – EhraLessien proving ground in Germany – a unique facility built to handle speed.
One weekend afternoon, the LEGO model took off and accelerated to everyone’s joy and amazement. And while it may not match the original Bugatti Chiron’s mindboggling 420 km/h speed, the LEGO Technic’s power function motors have managed the impressive performance to propel it to a little over 20km/h – ultimately making the ‘Build for Real’ idea truly complete.
#BuildForReal
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Andy Wallace – the driver behind the LEGO Technic Chiron – former racing driver with multiple wins of the 24 Hours of Le Mans and Daytona, as well as many other races, and today official Bugatti pilot, said:
“When I first saw the LEGO Chiron, I was immediately impressed by the accuracy of the model and the minute attention to detail. In fact, from about 20 metres away it’s not obvious that you are looking at a LEGO car. I can only imagine how much time and effort went into making this model.”
“Driving the LEGO Chiron was a great experience, which I thoroughly enjoyed. All those years ago I could never have imagined that one day I would actually drive a LEGO car!”
The Chiron is the ultimate super sports car and the latest interpretation of Bugatti’s brand values ‚Art Forme Technique‘. With a power output of 1,500 HP, unprecedented for production vehicles, an exceptionally high torque value of 1,600 Nm between 2,000 and 6,000 rpm and a wide variety of technical innovations, the Chiron sets new standards in every respect. The Chiron is not only designed for maximum speed, but also meets the highest possible demands in terms of luxury, comfort, everyday drivability and durability. The Chiron combines the best in all these areas which makes it the world’s most complete super sports car.
Today marks the 40th birthday of the iconic LEGO minifigure and to mark this special occasion, The LEGO Group has shared several images and videos that traces the history of one of the world’s most recognizable toy element. To be exact, it was in 1977 that LEGO patented its unique yellow, plastic minifigure with the first minifigures rolling out in to the market a year after. Since then, LEGO’s minifigures have evolved from being single modular-like accessories to a full range of articulated figures that unmistakably give life to any LEGO set.
Read on for LEGO’s full press release and a video snippet highlighting the LEGO minifigure’s journey throughout the years. While you’re at it, and in case you have not gathered all 17 minifigs yet, be sure to check out the special 40th anniversary LEGO Collectible Minifigures Series 18 (71021) blind bags over at Amazon.
LITTLE FIGURE, BIG STORY – CELEBRATING THE 40TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE LEGO® MINIFIGURE
In 1978, Disco was dominating the charts, mobile phones were non-existent and the Internet was still more than a decade away. It was also the year the very first LEGO® minifigures went into production. Fast forward to today and those inaugural characters have evolved nearly as much as the world around them, offering endless roleplay possibilities. So, as one of the planet’s tiniest icons celebrates its big 4…0, here are some milestone moments from its very big story.
The evolution of the LEGO minifigure
It all started in 1974 when the LEGO building figure was launched, made mostly of large square LEGO bricks with moveable arms but immoveable legs. This was followed in 1975 by LEGO stage extra figures with solid torsos, immoveable arms and legs, and no printed features. Basically, very different to the LEGO minifigures we know and love today! Not that we had to wait too long for them to arrive, with 1978 ushering in a new era of LEGO minifigures equipped with moveable limbs and simple facial expressions comprising two solid black eye dots and black painted smile. Fast forward to 2018 and there are now more than 650 unique faces in the collection, meaning children can have fun roleplaying different characters and personalities – anytime, anywhere.
2018 marks the 40th anniversary of the LEGO® minifigure: here are some of the many prototypes tested between 1975 and 1978 before the final decision was made to go for the iconic minifigure we know today – first launched in 1978.2018 marks the 40th anniversary of the LEGO® minifigure. From left to right we see first three prototypes, then the very first LEGO minifigure space character launched in 1978, and finally the two on the end more recent space characters.2018 marks the 40th anniversary of the LEGO® minifigure. From left to right we see first three prototypes, then the very first LEGO minifigure police character launched in 1978, and finally the two on the end 2018 models.2018 marks the 40th anniversary of the LEGO® minifigure. From left to right we see first two prototypes, in the middle the very first LEGO minifigure doctor character launched in 1978, and finally the two on the end are 2018 models.
From 20 to 8,000
To begin with, there were around 20 different LEGO minifigure characters, including a police officer, doctor, firefighter, knight and astronaut. But in the four decades since, the number of minifigures available has risen to more than 8,000. To put that into context, if the global population had grown at the same rate, there would now be nearly 144 trillion of us living on Earth!
2018 marks the 40th anniversary of the LEGO® minifigure. From left to right we see first two prototypes, in the middle the very first LEGO minifigure doctor character launched in 1978, and finally the two on the end are 2018 models.
The perfect height Take away the hair or any other headpiece and LEGO minifigures are exactly the same height as four LEGO bricks fitted together. This means they fit perfectly into the LEGO System in Play. Oh, and if you stacked them head to toe, you would need 20,750 to reach the height of the world’s tallest building, Dubai’s Burj Khalifa.
Jack of all trades
Over the years, LEGO minifigures have shown they can turn their hand to pretty much anything. From pirates to paramedics, engineers to elephant keepers, veterinarians to Vikings, there have been thousands of different minifigure characters. Three LEGO minifigures even blasted into space onboard NASA’s Juno spacecraft in 2011. But one thing has remained consistent throughout: whatever role, character or personality children fancy playing, there’s sure to be a minifigure to match.
Diversity Champion
Did you know the traditional yellow colour of the LEGO minifigure’s head was chosen based on focus group feedback in the early and mid-1970s saying this was preferable to white ones? Since then, minifigures have become increasingly diverse – from the first figures with natural skin tone in 2003 (Lando Calrissian from Star Wars and NBA basketball players) to 2016’s inaugural wheelchair. LEGO minifigures have also done their bit for unstereotyping gender roles with the likes of female firefighters and ninjas, through to fathers equipped with baby carriers. In fact, the whole point of minifigures is they let children create and be anyone they want – male or female, helmet or hair, freckles or glasses, anything. And if you’re worried about our robotic friends, don’t be. There have been plenty of C-3POs and R2D2s (not to mention other robots) too.
Ca. 20 LEGO® minifigures were launched in 1978, here are three of the first with transportation. 2018 marks the 40th anniversary of the LEGO minifigure.
Hollywood Star
The LEGO minifigure has starred in a number of Hollywood blockbusters, including THE LEGO® MOVIE™, THE LEGO® BATMAN MOVIE™ and THE LEGO® NINJAGO MOVIE™. In 2007, LEGO Group even created 10,000 gold chrome C-3PO minifigures packed in random sets to mark the 30th anniversary of Star Wars.
1978-2018 precision mates
Did you know that eight different moulds are used for the production of every minifigure? Two sets of these moulds are the same in design but reversed to mould the right and left minifigure arms and legs! The precision that goes into these moulds is exceptional, and because the original moulds are almost identical to the ones we use today, minifigures from 1978 can be mixed and matched with the more modern characters from today! However, one thing that has changed is the number of elements each mould can produce and the speed scale of this – for example, the minifigure head mould construction has improved from an initial eight elements per 9,8 sec. to 128 elements per 14.7 sec. today!
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More than just a figure
LEGO minifigures may be made for fun but there’s a serious side to them as well. By offering an endless choice of roleplay possibilities, they’re designed to let children play inventively, engage with different emotions and tell their own stories. First and foremost, that means a whole lot of enjoyment. But, crucially, it also allows young people to develop key life skills like emotional intelligence, creativity and communication – skills that, according to new research for the LEGO Play Well Report, parents believe will be vital to helping their children build their own bright future.
It’s that time of the year again when we excitedly count the days leading to Christmas, and what better way for LEGO fans to celebrate the occasion than to have our hands busy once more with LEGO’s next Winter Village offering. This particular LEGO Creator Expert holiday subtheme began in 2009 and has been growing steadily ever since, with each set adding seamlessly to the previous one. In fact, for two consecutive years, this particular subtheme saw a Winter Village Station (10259) and a Winter Holiday Train (10254)set that animated this humble winter village. This time, thanks to a teaser released by LEGO News, we now have a glimpse of what the next LEGO Winter Village D2C set will be. There was no specific mention of what this is, except for some close up shots of particular sections of the set.
The teaser featured some of the most common elements in a LEGO Winter Village set such as a Christmas Tree, a micro-scaled snowman, and a lamp-post. However, what is most interesting is the last teaser image that LEGO News has shared. The red telephone is quite telling, hinting on the fact that this could be part of any particular office or establishment that respond to emergency situations. Some LEGO fans even suggest that it may even be a fire station of some sorts inside the winter village. The good thing though is that this year’s LEGO Winter Village D2C set is slated to be revealed on September 9, so we’ll keep our eyes and radars open for that. Be sure to stay tuned here in our blog site for more LEGO updates.
Just two weeks ago, we reported on a rumor that the Simpsons might make a comeback in LEGO brick form which points to the fact that the licensed theme is not over yet, even after the demise of the now discontinued LEGO Dimensions. This rumor has now been put to rest with LEGO finally revealing and confirming that the Simpsons patriarch and the mischievous clown of Springfield now have their official LEGO BrickHeadz version. In a tweet sent out by the LEGO Group just a few minutes ago, we now have our first look at the LEGO BrickHeadz Homer Simpson and Krusty the Clown (41632) dual-pack set.
The tweet mentioned no specific date of release but our best bet will be sometime in January, as this is expected to be part of LEGO’s 2019 wave of BrickHeadz sets. This BrickHeadz version of Homer and Krusty the Clown is numbered #78 and #79 respectively, and is expected to retail like its other dual-pack predecessors for $20 USD. I like how Homer turned out with his signature donut and bulging tummy. His LEGO designers even went far in adding the usual antenna pieces to re-create those lone strands of hair on his head. Krusty’s brick-built hair on the other hand, is superbly designed with those teal pieces ingeniously stacked to recreate his iconic clown wig. Needless to say, this is another LEGO BrickHeadz set that I’m looking forward to have.
The LEGO BrickHeadz Homer Simpson and Krusty the Clown (41632) set is slated to arrive in early 2019 and is expected to be joined by the another dual-pack set, which is the LEGO BrickHeadz Gellert Grindelwald and Newt Scamander (41631).
Earlier this month, we reported on a LEGO BrickHeadz set that we never had in the form of the LEGO BrickHeadz Geoffrey (40316). Since Toys R Us’ bankruptcy a few months ago, it seems that there were some LEGO and TRU promotional tie-in sets that never saw their day on store shelves. In particular, the LEGO BrickHeadz Geoffrey (40316) set never came to be and was only made known to the public when its building instructions appeared on LEGO.com’s building instructions service. From the looks of it, LEGO already has another set in the works to celebrate its partnership with TRU, but unfortunately, because of the latter’s demise, we’ll never be able to have our hands on it.
Moreover, as of this writing, the link for the LEGO BrickHeadz Geoffrey (40316) building instructions was already removed from LEGO servers. So if you didn’t download these instructions back then such as myself (I only downloaded its parts list), well, here’s some piece of good news. Our friends over at The Brick Blogger managed to download the building instructions before it was taken down by LEGO. You can view the pages individually as you can see from the gallery below, or you may also opt to download the entire building instructions in PDF format.
Save for the unique printed pieces such as the 1×1 and 1×2 bricks with star pattern, and Geoffrey’s printed eyes, the rest of the pieces may easily be located in your existing LEGO sets. You may also try using Bricklink’s services referring to the parts list below to recreate this piece of childhood nostalgia.
I’m not really sure if LEGO was able to actually roll out some LEGO BrickHeadz Geoffrey (40316) sets out in the market, given that the building instructions were once uploaded in LEGO servers. Perhaps only time can tell if we will eventually spot this set on eBay or anywhere in the web.
You have probably heard already how Nintendo may have unofficially “ended” the careers of brothers Mario and Luigi when they made a brief appearance for this year’s Nintendo Switch Super Smash Bros. Ultimate promotional videos. However, it is still open to debate whether or not this will be a part of Nintendo’s canon, or they are just there floating around somewhere across the Nintendo universe. Though these turn of events may leave Nintendo fans scratching their heads in bewilderment, I really hope that this plot twist is not for keeps – after all, Mario and Luigi is has been an integral part of Nintendo for decades, that its quite difficult to imagine the Nintendo world without them. So while hopefully waiting for their return, let’s gather our LEGO bricks shall we, and recreate some of the most memorable and nostalgic blocks that Mario and Luigi have ever stepped or smashed on. Inspired by Nintendo’s classic Super Mario Bros. video game, Tyler and Sean over at Build Better Bricks have come up with the coolest, custom LEGO Nintendo Super Mario Boxes that I’ve ever seen so far. Check out Sean’s video below for a better look.
What I like about these custom LEGO Nintendo Super Mario Boxes is the fact that they are functional to even carry small items. The Question Box for example, comes with a red, power-up mushroom and a green, 1-UP mushroom – both of them fitting snugly inside the box. The POW and Music Box are sizeable enough to become mini utility boxes, while the Brick box serves as cool (though less secure) way of keeping those extra change.
They’re not too difficult to build as well since it seems that these custom LEGO Nintendo Super Mario Boxes does not come with any ultra rare or unique parts to be built. If you want to give these custom brick-built boxes a try, then be sure to visit Build Better Bricks for their respective building instructions and parts inventory to see if you have the necessary parts to build them. Alternately, you can also click on the links below. Be sure to check out the rest of B3’s Nintendo-inspired, LEGO custom sets and be on the lookout for more awesome custom LEGO Super Mario mocs from B3. Happy building!
In October of last year, the good news was released that the US LEGOLAND theme parks in California and Florida was going to get a sibling in New York, located at the town of Goshen. Construction has only started at that point, and we won’t get to come in until 2020. But that won’t stop us getting a preview of it, even if that happens to be rendered in LEGO. This Thursday, August 16, LEGOLAND parks majority owner and operator Merlin Entertainments unveiled a sneak peek of their LEGOLAND New York theme park by means of a scale brick-built model. Engaging the help of 20 LEGO Master Builders working 1,300 hours total using 135,000 bricks, the company has created a neat representation of what the project will look like upon completion.
Curious guests can already view the LEGOLAND New York model on its display area right next to the construction site of the real thing in Goshen, just 60 miles to the northwest of NYC. This new park will cost Merlin Entertainments $350 million to realize, but finally having a LEGOLAND in the Northeast, the first such to be built in years, is a sure bet to attract lots of guests.
LEGOLAND New York will boast these themed lands, all taken from its brother parks in the US and around the world:
The Factory – the entry area; will have the New York-exclusive Great LEGO Adventure ride
Bricktopia – where Master Builders are to teach young builders the ropes of advanced LEGO building
Miniland – the LEGOLAND miniature zone featuring brick replicas of famous landmarks
Pirate Shores – pirate-themed watery zone
Knights’ Kingdom – site of the park’s central structure, LEGO Castle
LEGO Ninjago World – stomping grounds of the Masters of Spinjitzu, and their aspiring students
Heartlake City – where you can have fun hanging out with the gang of LEGO Friends
LEGO City – the pure urban zone of LEGOLAND; you might stumble into superheroes around there
LEGOLAND New York will be within easy reach of the country and the world, accessible from New York Stewart International Airport. Arrangements with ShortLine Coach USA mean that in 2020, visitors can catch buses from the Port Authority Terminal in New York City that will take them to the park. They’ll even have a sweet LEGO Hotel with 250 rooms. We can hardly wait for that time to finally come.
It looks like some folks are fortunate to have their hands have an early try on some of the anticipated LEGO BrickHeadz sets for the latter of part of the year. Our friends over at Promobricks, for example, had their LEGO BrickHeadz Witch (40272) delivered early at their footsteps. And like any other super excited LEGO fan, they delved right away in building this year’s BrickHeadz Halloween set. As it turned out, other than the much welcomed surprise of building the LEGO BrickHeadz Witch, the building instructions for this set also offers another surprise: our first image of the next seasonal set, the LEGO BrickHeadz Turkey (40273).
Image credits to Promobricks.
The above image was shared by Promobricks, and features the LEGO BrickHeadz Turkey (40273) slated to be available in October. Similar to previously released seasonal LEGO BrickHeadz, this brick-built Turkey comes with attachments that mimics a carrot patch, pumpkin and other garden vegetation. I’m not really sure what that yellow piece that the turkey is holding represents (and I am not inclined to think that it is a piece of turkey bone), but the way the Turkey’s wattle was recreated, even its rear feathers, are really spot on even at such a small, cute scale. The gray and brown color scheme also adds up to that Thanksgiving vibe.
Image courtesy of Brickset.
There is no piece count yet for the LEGO BrickHeadz Turkey (40273), but as with other LEGO BrickHeadz sets we can expect this next seasonal set to retail for $9.99 just in time for Thanksgiving. On a similar note, we are still waiting to have our first look at this year’s final LEGO seasonal sets to celebrate the Christmas season: the LEGO BrickHeadz Mr. and Mrs. Claus. Thanks once again to Promobricks for sharing this image.
Update: I’ve opted to include the above image from Brickset which offers a better look the details of the LEGO BrickHeadz Turkey (40273).
