“Star Wars” being an “active” franchise thanks to its Disney+ spinoffs, it’s no surprise LEGO Star Wars is similarly busy. From new sets and minifigs to videogames, the Force is strong with this one. Warner Bros. Games has “LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga” lined up for a multi-platform launch next year. But if you think that’s all the videogames this LEGO line is getting for some time, think again.
Okay, so this one isn’t actually new. “LEGO Star Wars Battles” actually launched in beta for iOS back in 2019. That beta period lasted two years. It shut down this past July however. Then there came this new announcement.
“LEGO Star Wars Battles,” a mobile real-time strategy game, is coming exclusively to Apple Arcade according to StarWars.com. This was revealed by WB Games, Lucasfilm Games, and the LEGO Group on August 30. Rather than a standalone, “LEGO Star Wars Battles” becomes part of the Apple Arcade service. This means one must subscribe to it ($14.95-$29.95, plan-wise). Then they must subscribe to the game at $4.99/month, with one-month free trial.
Is the game worth it, though? One could look for those who played the beta version on iOS before its recent closure. But if you already like the PvP RTS genre and “Star Wars” as a franchise, this mash-up might do. The official “LEGO Star Wars Battles” blurb talks of buying characters, from faction troops to named characters. That’s pure mobile RTS already. Rather than Sentinel/Scourge or Legion/Hellbourne, we have Light/Dark sides fighting it out.
Aside from just managing troops on the move, the game also allows players to build LEGO-tower defense. They can also put their characters into brick-vehicles, and uses abilities from heavier weaponry to Force powers. Attack, defend, capturing territory…pure mobile RTS mechanics. The fact that you do this in control of Luke Skywalker, Darth Vader, Rey and more is geek-out bliss.
For now, “LEGO Star Wars Battles” is expected to come to iPhones, iPads, Macs and Apple TV via Apple Arcade. If it becomes popular enough however, there’s a chance of full ports to PC and even videogame consoles. We still have to wait until the game comes out (once more).
They just keep on coming, and I love it! The LEGO Ideas fan submission platform has just concluded with another record-breaking high, with a total of 57 product ideas qualifying for the First 2021 LEGO Ideas Review stage, as announced over their blogsite. These 57 submissions managed to get the necessary 10,000 fan votes needed to progress for this year’s first LEGO Ideas review.
Since the start of the pandemic, the LEGO Ideas platform saw a steady increase of fan submissions, largely as a result of increased LEGO building at home. As I’ve mentioned before in a previous related article, this is a testament to how LEGO building as a hobby, turned out to be a positive outlet for most LEGO fans as we strive to cope with the series of lockdowns and stay-at-home orders.
I’ve always been a fan of LEGO Ideas, and I’ve covered and supported some of its fan submissions that eventually found their way to becoming official LEGO Ideas sets. And I also intend to continuously cover every LEGO Ideas fan submission that reaches that 10K support milestone. However, the recent influx of review stage qualifiers is just kind of hard to keep track of! I guess I just have to double down on keeping them on my radar. It will always be a pleasure to see the creativity of the LEGO fan community spring into life, so be ready with the scroll wheel because this will be a very lengthy list.
Additionally, it should be mentioned that there was a particular fan submission that didn’t make the cut even though it managed to reach 10,000 supporters. The Stadium Tour did not eventually qualify for the First 2021 LEGO Ideas Review because it failed to follow the platform’s stipulated guidelines, particularly on “intellectual properties”.
As a last note, the Third 2020 LEGO Ideas Review Stage is about to be concluded, with the announcement of the winner slated to happen sometime this summer. We have to wait a lit bit more to see which among the 25 qualifiers in this particular review stage will go on to become an official LEGO Ideas set. For now, let’s take a look at what these new 57 product qualifiers for the First 2021 LEGO Ideas Review Stage has to offer. Which is your personal favorite? Let us know in the comments below.
Earlier today, the LEGO Group has announced a renewed partnership with China’s and the world’s biggest game company. In a recent press release, this renewed LEGO-Tencent partnership extends the Memorandum of Understanding with the two companies, “further strengthening and expanding their strategic partnership in digital play experience for Chinese children”.
If you recall, LEGO and Tencent first entered into this working partnership back in 2018 to empower Chinese children to be prepared for a mostly digital future. This partnership saw the birth of the LEGO Video Zone with more than 800 LEGO-themed videos released in Tencent’s video channels, consequently being awarded with the distinction of being one of the top-10 most-viewed toy-branded video platforms in Tencent.
LEGO and Tencent’s LEGO Video Zone
Last year also saw the launch of Tencent’s LEGO Cube Mobile Game – a sandbox video game where kids can explore vast, seemingly never-ending lands made of LEGO bricks populated by LEGO minifigure characters. Aside from being an open-ended play experience, it also provided Chinese children with socialization opportunities with other children in a safe and friendly environment while teaching them the rudiments of 3D design, construction, and coding.
Tencent’s LEGO Cube Mobile Game.
For the next two years, LEGO and Tencent will continue to work together to bring more high-quality digital content, with particular emphasis and investment in creating a more robust digital social community akin to LEGO Life. Think of it as China’s version of LEGO Life that is not just for children but also for teenagers and younger LEGO fans as well. Additionally, the two child-centered companies will continue to develop software applications that will further fuse both physical and digital play in new ways that we haven’t seen before. As you may know already, LEGO has already placed considerable investment in adding an augmented reality component on its LEGO sets particularly with the introduction of the LEGO Hidden Side theme. Lastly, helping children learn the rudiments of robotics is still very much at the heart of the LEGO education system with the introduction of the LEGO Boost theme.
Personally, I’m excited to see what is in the works between LEGO and Tencent for the next two years. LEGO has continually pushed the boundaries of conventional play ever since it came out with its very first wooden toy back in the early days of the company. Any new technology that will enhance the LEGO play experience will be something that I will keep an eye on.
So what do you think of this renewed LEGO-Tencent partnership? What new play technologies do you think we will see in the next couple of years? Let me know what you think in the comments below.
Apple is revving things up in the video games industry with the introduction of Apple Arcade earlier this year. And with LEGO working partnership with the most valuable tech company on the planet, we can be sure that LEGO has plenty in store for Apple users and mobile gamers. In fact, its quite a busy year for LEGO as far as mobile gaming is concerned. We have the upcoming launch of LEGO Legacy: Heroes Unboxed this fall, and LEGO Star Wars Battles which is scheduled for release next year. Plus with the upcoming launch of LEGO Brawls for the Apple Arcade this month, the mobile gaming landscape couldn’t be more exciting.
From what he heard from Bricks Fanz, LEGO Brawls combines the fast-paced action of a 4v4 multiplayer setup, set in an expansive LEGO brick universe. Developed by Red Games Co., LEGO Brawls allows you to build and customize your very own LEGO minifigure character avatar that will battle it out against other contenders across iconic LEGO themes. Whether be it in Ninjago City, in outer space or the vast desert wasteland, LEGO Brawls offers a challenging and yet fun environment where you can battle it out with friends or cooperatively play with them.
Each particular stage in LEGO Brawls also offers the chance of achieving certain hilarious power-ups and vehicles with that signature brand of LEGO humor. You can choose from an array of pie launchers, money guns, jet packs, and even a silly old hotdog stand. Here’s some in-game footage courtesy of Apple Arcade.
LEGO Brawls
LEGO | RED Games
The bricks will fly in this multiplayer brawler set in the LEGO universe. Players create their own characters, collaborate with teammates to build and control machines, and battle to win.
LEGO Brawls will launch alongside Apple Arcade this week, on September 19. Apple Arcade is Apple’s new subscription-based gaming service that gives its users unlimited access to more than a hundred mobile games exclusive to the Apple platform, with more rolling out throughout the rest of the year. Up to six people can share on a subscription where each of them can pick-up and play across multiple devices. To know more about this latest offering from Apple be sure to stay tuned via their Apple Arcade website.
Our followers in the UK and the rest of Europe may be glad to know that the complete line of the LEGO Hidden Side building sets (all eight of them) is now available for pre-order at the UK portal of LEGO Shop@Home, and are slated to be released on August 1st.
These latest augmented reality sets are still not available in the US as of this posting, so we have to a bit patient before we see these sets arrive at our doorsteps. For the meantime, be sure to bookmark this page and check on the following links to know more about this latest fun and spooky theme from LEGO.
The LEGO Hidden Side invites kids to join a fearless team of ghost hunters, who dare see the unseen and help turn a haunted world back to normal, one ghost at a time. This new theme includes a series of “haunted” building sets full of awesome functionality and secret surprises that, on their own, provide the build and roleplay fun of any LEGO® theme. Activating the free augmented reality app brings the models to life, revealing a hidden world of interactive mysteries and challenges to solve. When combined, the two worlds make each other even more compelling and fun. The app also consists of a digital game that kids can play independent of the building set.
LEGO seems to be investing a lot in mobile games recently. Following the announcement and promotions surrounding the LEGO Tower mobile game which will launch this summer, LEGO has officially announced another upcoming mobile game that will cater to LEGO fans of all ages. Developed in partnership with Gameloft, LEGO Legacy: Heroes Unboxed features a team-battle, role-playing game where the player controls any of LEGO’s iconic and more recent minifigure characters in an expansive universe of LEGO’s original creations and 40 years of minifig history. The LEGO Group and Gameloft promise to deliver a one of a kind gaming experience where players get to be immersed in a vast world of LEGO characters and environments representing past and present favorites.
Check out the teaser trailer for the LEGO Legacy: Heroes Unboxed as introduced by the legendary minifigure Captain Redbeard from 1989’s LEGO Pirates Forbidden Island (6270) set. Read on for the full press release courtesy of Gamespress.
Gameloft and the LEGO Group Unveil “LEGO Legacy: Heroes Unboxed”
LEGO minifigure history at your fingertips: The first bricks of the upcoming LEGO mobile game are out of the box
Paris, May 23rd, 2019 – Gameloft, one of the world’s leading publishers of mobile games, and the LEGO Group today revealed the title of their upcoming game: LEGO® Legacy: Heroes Unboxed. This Team-Battle RPG, the first ever LEGO game of this genre, will bring to life 40 years of LEGO minifigure history and universes in a fun and epic way.
LEGO® Legacy: Heroes Unboxed is set in a whole new LEGO world where players will collect classic and modern LEGO minifigures and sets, form a party and engage in epic and fun team battles and adventures. The game will feature iconic, fan favorite universes from yesterday and today, recreated with incredible detail to please players of all ages, from the passionate collectors to those who want to bring back childhood memories.
A first glimpse of how the signature humor of the LEGO brand has been built into the game can be found in the teaser trailer, also revealed today. The beloved Captain Redbeard from Set 6270 (1989) emerges from his dusty box in the attic and sets sail for adventure after all these years… he may not be ready yet! Indeed, LEGO® Legacy: Heroes Unboxed is set to be released this Fall, but until then Gameloft Toronto will be adding content and completing features.
The studio has been working closely with the LEGO Group for several years, including visits to the LEGO Vault in Billund, Denmark where all the sets and minifigures ever created are archived. The team has been studying vintage instruction manuals and focusing all its skills to perfectly recreate every tiny detail that makes the LEGO experience so enjoyable and memorable. LEGO® Legacy: Heroes Unboxed will be faithful to the fun and creativity that make the LEGO brand one of the most beloved brands on Earth.
“LEGO® Legacy: Heroes Unboxed is built to bring the enjoyment and fun that you once had, or still have, with LEGO toys,” stated Baudouin Corman, Chief Operating Officer at Gameloft. “We are excited to see these authentic and original LEGO characters from all eras come to life. We have been putting all our efforts, art and craft into this game as we want to delight all LEGO fans, whether their minifigures are tucked away in the attic or proudly shown in the living room.”
Sean McEvoy, Vice President of LEGO Games at the LEGO Group said: “LEGO Games have reached millions of LEGO fans of all ages for over 20 years, extending and amplifying the LEGO play universe. Enabling our fans to play epic battles with minifigures from our history is a great play promise we are delighted to offer. Gameloft has done fabulous work, maintaining every character’s unique personality and reflecting all the fun, creativity and humor of the LEGO brand in a mobile game.”
LEGO® Legacy: Heroes Unboxed is set to be released in Fall 2019 and will be regularly showcased to fans until then, beginning at Brickworld Chicago on June, 15th and 16th. Be sure to visit http://www.LEGOLEGACY.com to get the latest news on the game.
These final six winners will also get the bragging rights of having their original creations converted digitally and to be integrated as an actual floor in the LEGO Tower game. Each MOC entry is specifically measured at 32 studs wide, 12 studs deep and 9 bricks tall. It should also have a door wide and tall enough to accommodate a minifigure. Each floor build must only comprise of the room itself without any minifigs included. For the rest, its all up to the builder’s imagination.
Check out these awesome LEGO Ideas Design a Virtual Floor winning entries, and be sure to spot them once LEGO’s most recent mobile app game launches this summer.
Though the following LEGO Ideas Design A Virtual Floor contest entries did not make the winning circle, they were build-worthy enough to deserve a special mention by the contest judges.
As a final note, you may also pre-register for Nimblebit’s the LEGO Tower game by keeping tabs with Google Android or iOS. Take a look at this short video, followed by a brief description of the game.
Build and operate your own LEGOⓇ Tower! Construct a wide range of apartments and businesses for your Minifigure residents to live, work and play in. Visit your friends’ towers and trade items to help them build. Collect hundreds of unique Minifigure pieces and discover hidden characters. Build your dream LEGOⓇ Tower to new heights, the sky’s the limit!
