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Cool LEGO Ideas Submission: “Sonic Mania” Green Hill Zone by toastergrl Needs Support

When it comes to licensed sets based on videogames, LEGO is no slouch. The latest proof of their mastery in that genre can be seen in the LEGO Overwatch series. But they’ve also dipped into the retro classics, such as Sega’s face character Sonic the Hedgehog. Surely you remember the old “LEGO Dimensions” level pack?

Aside from the official LEGO Sonic products, aspiring builders have also submitted several “Sonic” themed builds to LEGO Ideas over the years. One new product idea in that vein is getting plenty of attention. It’s based on the retro-inspired “Sonic Mania” multi-platform title from 2017-18.

For those who probably missed it, “Sonic Mania” was a 2D game that flashed back to the early installments of the franchise. It remixed stages from the classic games to create a nostalgia adventure worthy of the 25^th anniversary of “Sonic.” This product idea by “toastergrl” replicates the “Mania” reimagining of the Green Hill Zone.

I’m sure “Sonic” fans must be hearing that ear-worm ditty stage them in their heads right now. Anyway, the “Mania”-version Green Hill Zone stages sees the familiar hilly riverside terrain with ramps and loops and palm-like trees. And it also has a giant Dr. Eggman (Robotnik) Robot on Sonic’s tail.

The Ideas submission by toastergrl features two standard features of Green Hill Zone – a hilly slope (with tree and spring) and a single loop (with 1-Up container and power ring). It has one Sonic minifigure (classic design), and five brick-built figures for Doc Eggman, a motorbug and three Flickies. And let’s not forget the robot.

The hill and loop modules can be connected in several ways, while the trampoline spring is powered by Technic mechanism. Eggman’s brick figure has some degree of poseability, magnified several times with his robot ride.

At present, the “Sonic Mania” Green Hill Zone build by toastergrl has over 2,000 supporters with 602 days to reach 10-K. “Sonic” fans in the LEGO community should need no prodding to help this succeed.

LEGO Ninjago Will Be Global Sponsor to 2019 Nickelodeon Kids’ Choice Awards Shows Around the World

There are two ways to enjoy the LEGO Ninjago theme. One is to collect and build their massive selection of sets and minifigures. The other is to watch their 3D-animated adventures on TV. For most territories “Ninjago: Masters of Spinjitzu” is part of the regular lineup on Cartoon Network; but for Denmark, LEGO’s home country, it is aired on Nickelodeon.

It is this connection with the other pillar of international children’s entertainment on TV that has led to a new campaign to have “LEGO Ninjago” sponsor a major Nickelodeon event. Said event is none other than the Kids’ Choice Awards.

Of course, Nickelodeon has such a big international presence that their KCA ceremony has several international versions that honor celebrities from their respective countries too. The LEGO Group however is making sure that their Ninjago line will be acknowledged as the global sponsor for the 32^nd KCA later this March.

According to The Drum, there will also be an animated short that will serve as “custom branded programming” to show LEGO Ninjago’s Nickelodeon Kids’ Choice Awards global sponsorship. Its short story will see evil Lord Garmadon steal the KCA’s iconic slime cannon, with the Ninjas having to foil his plot.

The animated spot will launch on Nickelodeon March 7, and will also be made available on the network’s YouTube channels. LEGO Group VP and marketing head for the Americas, Amy Pascal, says that their company is excited to be a global sponsor of the KCA, describing it as “a truly global celebration of kids and creativity across the entertainment industry.”

LEGO Ninjago will be acknowledged as sponsor for the 2019 Nickelodeon KCA in the US, and its international versions in the UK, Netherlands (and Flanders, Belgium), Germany, Argentina, Colombia, Mexico, Australia, Indonesia and the Philippines.

First LEGO Marvel Superheroes Avengers: Endgame Official Images Released

I guess LEGO sets with titles such as this is quite hard to contain. To begin with, this is not a leak, but an official listing coming from, and thanks to, Amazon France. We’re just counting the weeks before we see Avengers: Endgame in theaters and now, thanks to Amazon’s regional portal in France, we now have our first official look at the LEGO Marvel Superheroes Avengers: Endgame tie-in sets. Minor spoilers ahead so view them at your own discretion.

We only have two sets listed for this matter, the first being the War Machine Buster (76124) coming in at 362 pieces which also includes four minifigures: 2 Outriders and Quantum Suit War Machine and Quantum Suit Ant-Man.

The second set to be revealed and listed by Amazon France is the Ultimate Quinjet (76126). It has 838 pieces, with 6 minifigures: Quantum Suit Hawkeye/Ronin, Thor wielding his Stormbreaker, Rocket Racoon, and Black Widow. Interestingly, we also see what seems to be 2 Chitauri minifigures which looks to me like a more faithful rendition to their MCU counterparts – a marked improvement from how they look like in Captain America’s Avenging Motorcycle (6865) and Quinjet Aerial Battle (6869). It’s already a sort of open secret that Avengers: Endgame will rely on a time travel plot so it will not come as a surprise if we’ll see these MCU bad guys in this culminating film.

Amazon France has not indicated any release date, but we can speculate that more images of additional LEGO Marvel Superheroes Avengers: Endgame sets will be released anytime soon within, perhaps within the next few weeks so stay tuned.

Thanks to Brick Heroes for the heads up.

LEGO Bounces Back from Dull 2017 with Positive Growths in 2018 Annual Results

It’s around this time of the (relatively) new year that major corporations around the world begin to publicize their annual financial reports from the year before. The LEGO Group is no exception, and interested parties have been looking forward to learning what their status is into the new fiscal year.

After all, despite the continuing release of new products and a healthy amount of activity back in 2017, there have been noted shortfalls in their results when The LEGO Group made its annual report then in early 2018. Thankfully, the following financial year seems to have been very good for the company, if their reported revenue growth is any indication.

In a press statement they released after making their annual report for 2018 last Wednesday, February 27, The LEGO Group was proud to announce good growth in revenue, sales and profits; in addition, these positive gains are uniform across three major regional markets: the Americas; Europe, Africa and the Middle East; and the Asia Pacific.

Speaking of the latter, LEGO was also proud to report that their growth in China, one of their most recent marketing frontiers, has reached “double digits,” better than the already-good increases in other well-established locales.

Translated into hard figures, from the 2017 to 2018 reports, The LEGO Group achieved: 4% revenue growth (DKK 36.4 billion), 3% global consumer sales, a strong cash flow (DKK 9.8 billion), and a 4% increase in profit (DKK 10.4 billion).

Niels Christiansen, CEO of The LEGO Group, noted that the company was determined to improve their financial situation for 2018 after reeling from the figures of year 2017. “We are pleased to have achieved this, and to have delivered modest top and bottom-line growth,” he said. “We’d like to thank our talented colleagues who did an outstanding job executing plans during the peak holiday season.”

For a full accounting of the annual financial report from The LEGO Group, you may check out their official press release about the event here.

LEGOLAND Windsor Season Reopening to Feature “LEGO Movie 2” Experience with Apocalypseburg Replica Display

LEGOLAND Windsor Resort in the UK has been closed to guests for its seasonal break over the past several weeks. However, it will soon be opening its doors again in the middle of March. The staff is looking forward to a surge of visitors who may have been inspired to drop by because of the recently released “LEGO Movie 2.”

And what a treat LEGOLAND Windsor will have in store for them at the start of the new season! On their official website they have announced that they will be offering a “LEGO Movie 2” experience in line with their special “LEGO Movie Days” event during the latter half of March after their post-break reopening.

One major attraction during this period will be a brick-perfect recreation of the locations from “LEGO Movie 2.” As spoiled in the first film, the 3D-animated setting of Bricksburg/Apocalypseburg is actually a real-world LEGO diorama worked on by a family portrayed by several real actors. Therefore, LEGOLAND Windsor guests will be treated to accurate replicas of Apocalypseburg and its environs, done in the same exact scale as how the real-world movie characters might view it.

The Apocalypseburg diorama was realized by LEGOLAND Windsor model-makers with input from Warner Bros. Consumer Products and “LEGO Movie 2” set designers to get every detail right. The whole setup boasts being made up of 62,254 individual LEGO pieces in 31 colors and 628 shapes.

While guests ooh and ah at the display, LEGOLAND Windsor will also have minifigure mascots of Emmet, Wyldstyle and Sweet Mayhem ready for meet and greets. The Miniland area will host a scavenger hunt event; a “LEGO Movie” mosaic build will also be open for participant builders to help complete the project. It’s shaping up to be plenty of fun weekends at LEGOLAND Windsor Resort.

The LEGO Movie 2 experience, which has already opened in other LEGOLAND resorts such as California, will be around throughout this new season in Windsor. LEGO Movie Days in the meantime will take place across the third, fourth and fifth weekends of March (16-17, 23-24 and 30-31) in LEGOLAND Windsor.

LEGO fans in the UK and tourists travelling there by next month can book their theme park tickets and hotel stays at their official website here.

New LEGO Survey for AFOLs Wants to Know their Leisure Pastimes, Hobbies and Interests

It seemed like out of the blue late last week when LEGO suddenly put out a survey for its customers. And the target market for the questionnaire was a surprise too, as it asked adults about their LEGO shopping experience. The said survey is still on, lasting until March 22.

But The LEGO Group appears to be in a surveying mood lately. Once again, they need input from AFOLs regarding their personal habits. This time however, their new survey is going to be quite substantial in terms of queries, and answering them truthfully (by reading the items carefully) could take about 30 minutes on average.

The general theme of this survey also touches closer to home than the previous one with its inquiries on shopping habits. Now The LEGO Group is asking stuff about AFOLs’ personal habits: what they do to spend leisure time, what subjects interest them and what hobbies they like to pursue.

Interestingly, this survey has several restrictions. For one thing it has a short shelf life, closing on Sunday, March 3. Next, only survey takers from three countries – the US, Germany, and China – will be accommodated by it. Results of the inquiry will apparently be shared by the LEGO Ambassador Network in April. Meanwhile, here are the links for the survey if you’re interested and live in the three aforementioned markets.

US / Germany / China

“The LEGO Movie 2 Videogame” Out Now for PS4 and Xbox One

In terms of cinematic adaptations the adage goes, “You’ve seen the movie, now read the book.” That can refer either to the original book/s the film is based on, or promotional novelizations of major films coming out during the release period. LEGO has that too for its recent movies, but they also have other adaptations.

So the catchphrase can also go, “You’ve seen ‘The LEGO Movie 2: The Second Part,’ now play the game.” That’s because the videogame version has finally come out. “The LEGO Movie 2 Videogame” is developed by TT Fusion, which also handled “The LEGO Movie Videogame.”

As with its predecessor, the new game is pretty much like any LEGO videogame based on a film narrative. The player characters, particularly Emmet, Wyldstyle and their friends, must fight enemies and navigate environments based on scenes from the films, building stuff to progress. In between stages and areas, scenes from “LEGO Movie 2” play out to move the storyline.

TT Fusion is a division of TT Games, similar to Traveller’s Tales which primarily develops the major new LEGO videogames such as “LEGO DC Super Villains” from last year. These LEGO game titles are primarily published by TT Games’ parent company, Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment.

“The LEGO Movie 2 Videogame” has now been released for PlayStation 4 and Xbox One, available through gaming stores and online sources like Ama zon. As we already know, there’s already DLC following on the heels of the main game itself. Meanwhile, the Nintendo Switch version will arrive on March 18.

New LEGO Greeting Card (853906): Bricks and Minifigure Ensure this Correspondence Will See More Use and Play

From a certain point of view, when one thinks of a greeting card, especially in the US, the mental image of the card will likely carry “Hallmark” as its brand. LEGO probably won’t supplant established greeting card labels like Hallmark with this quirky new product they’ll introduce soon, but brick-buildings fans will surely love it.

Newly revealed by LEGO this week according to German news source Promo Bricks, the LEGO Greeting Card (853906) is exactly what its name entails, and more. Being a LEGO product it has bricks and a minifigure, all part of an interactive greeting that goes beyond mere written words from you.

The set’s package viewed from the front is half box and half card. You can write your dedications on the left-hand side then unfold it to reveal a background for the LEGO pieces stored at right. These 40 elements assemble to form a stud launcher platform, to shoot the scoring balloons on the provided background.

LEGO Greeting Card (853906) also includes a minifigure with alternate head and hair-pieces to change between male or female characters, and roller skate elements that can attach to the feet. For the most part the carnival theme of the card and set can make it all-purpose for most general occasions.

If you fancy sending a greeting to a LEGO fan later this year, then you can wait for the LEGO Greeting Card set (853906), priced at $4.99 on Shop@Home to arrive with many other new LEGO products on March 1.

Build Your Own LEGO Mustang Model to Win the Creator Mustang (10265) Set in this LEGO Ideas Contest

This week we waxed admiration for the recently revealed new upcoming LEGO Creator set, a beautiful brick construct of the iconic Ford Mustang (10265). No doubt LEGO is going all-out in hyping this set to fans of LEGO, cars, and both, if the promotional keychain to be simultaneously given out during the first ten days of the Creator Mustang (10265) set’s release is any indication.

In fact, even LEGO Ideas is getting in on the LEGO Ford Mustang bandwagon with their new contest. The prize is, of course, the LEGO Creator set (10265), an earlier Mustang set from Speed Champions, and a Shop@Home shopping spree.

The contest mechanics are simple: using real LEGO bricks (including variants like Duplo and Technic) or a digital LEGO building tool, contestants need to assemble a model of their favorite model of the Ford Mustang. Bear in mind, the Ford Mustang models have been around from 1965 to this day.

Once a contestant’s entry Mustang model is finished, they must take up to five photos of it to showcase its contours and features. Background is also encouraged, whether similarly LEGO-built or a real setting, a place “where you’d want to take your Mustang for a ride” according to contest rules.

After the pictorial, the submission only needs a title and description before it gets sent on to LEGO Ideas. The entry deadline is on April 3, and the winner plus two runner-ups will get a LEGO Creator Ford Mustang (10265) as well as the Speed Champions 1968 Mustang Fastback (75884). The Shop@Home shopping sprees are worth $500 for the winner and $300 for the runners-up.

For more details on this prime opportunity to get the LEGO Creator Mustang (10265), please check their official LEGO Ideas Contest page here. Do remember the “Acceptable Entry Content” to ensure your build gets accepted.

LEGOLAND Resorts Expect Greater Ticket Sales Due to “LEGO Movie 2” and Opening of LEGO Movie World in Florida

For LEGO fans, the various LEGOLAND Resort theme parks are already places where everything is great. But in LEGOLAND Florida in particular, it’ll soon be getting an expansion section where, like the movies it is based on, “Everything is Awesome.”

Just to remind everyone, the LEGO Movie World area in LEGOLAND Florida is opening next month on March 27, as revealed by their sneak peek announcement last January. Fans will get to explore and have fun on this park section, based on the “LEGO Movie” city of Bricksburg, where they can go on new rides and eat at new restaurants.

While the expansion is only for the Florida resort, all LEGOLAND theme parks are expecting to be making awesome business at this part of the year. As Merlin Entertainments puts it, they certainly have “The LEGO Movie 2: The Second Part” helping to drive ticket sales for all their resorts.

For instance, while LEGOLAND Windsor in the UK has no LEGO Movie World yet, they’ve still got a grand event planned that ties in to the “LEGO Movie” sequel that premiered early this February. LEGO Movie Days will run for two-day periods over three weeks of March in LEGOLAND Windsor.

Back to LEGOLAND Florida, aside from the aforementioned LEGO Movie World itself, the Resort Hotel will also have several of its rooms re-themed after the films, with decorated walls and amenities like a Unikitty shower.

All in all, Merlin Entertainments looks to report strong profits of £271 million (before taxation) when the theme park company makes its latest full-year financial report this Thursday, February 28. And part of it is thanks to the ticket sale boost from “LEGO Movie 2.”