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LEGO Reveals “Hidden Side”: New AR Game App with Tie-In Sets, to be Showcased in New York Toy Fair

Fans of LEGO who are also into the digital side of the brand’s many products – from console videogames to mobile apps – know for a fact that the company invests significantly in the development of new uses and applications for augmented reality (AR). They recently collaborated with Shapchat to create an AR online store featuring a new line of LEGO-branded casual street-wear.

And let’s not forget the various AR apps they introduced which sought to seamlessly integrate real built LEGO sets with digital counterparts in an augmented environment. It’s on this vein that the latest AR-using LEGO product line springs from.

The LEGO Group introduced their new augmented reality game app “Hidden Side” on Thursday, February 14. For interested fans who want to try it out, the new app will be showcased in full for the first time at the American International/New York Toy Fair starting this weekend.

Previous LEGO AR game apps carried digital recreations of existing sets that could be “integrated” on the app screen with LEGO constructs in the real world, with added special effects. “Hidden Side” on the other hand works specifically with an entirely new series of LEGO sets themed for the game, with no less than eight Hidden side sets to start off this product line.

“Hidden Side” as Game and Set Line

The LEGO Hidden Side construction sets all depict either vehicles or structures and facilities that figure into the game app’s storyline. All of them can transform via manual brick mechanics from mundane looking constructs to spooky monstrous alternates, as described in the Hidden Side storyline.

As stated in the game’s fact sheet, the app follows the misadventures of two teen bloggers attending Newbury High School, who get strange app on their smartphones that show the secret haunted nature of their place of learning. With players assuming the role of the characters, they must investigate Newbury’s mysteries to un-haunt the place.

With the AR component, players of “LEGO Hidden Side” put themselves in the heroes’ shoes. They would look at their environment (the app’s AR display) from a first-person view. The phones function as “ghost detectors” when focused on the Hidden Side tie-in sets. This enables players to see supernatural spooks. They must capture or drive them off by twiddling with the sets’ various play points. Doing so generates the appropriate AR effects on screen.

Deeper “Fluid Play”

Senior VP Tom Donaldson of LEGO’s Creative Play Lab says “Hidden Side” pushes the concept of “fluid play” to further levels than before. This is the interaction between physical surroundings with the augmented-reality effects in a game app.

“At our core we focus on tactile building, but AR presents opportunities to enhance physical LEGO play with new action and mastery elements,” says Donaldson. “As we have designed LEGO Hidden Side, physical manipulation of the LEGO models alters the AR experience, and the AR experience prompts new things to discover in the physical models, creating a deeply engaging reciprocal play experience in two worlds that has never been seen before.”

There’s also an option for “LEGO Hidden Side” that can be played fully digital. That’s a bonus those who have downloaded the app but don’t have any of the actual sets.

While New York Toy Fair attendees can get first crack on “Hidden Side,” the app and the sets themselves will become generally available by summer. All related sets will range in price from $19.99-$129.99 while the app will be on both iOS and Google Play.

LEGO Hidden Side – A New Theme! (Fact Sheet)

LEGO® Hidden Side™ is an augmented reality-enhanced LEGO play theme where kids must turn a haunted world back to normal–one ghost at a time. It is the only play experience available today that fully and seamlessly integrates augmented reality (AR) with physical construction to reveal a hidden world of interactive play. Activating the bespoke AR app brings LEGO 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 Story
Jack and Parker are teenage bloggers who attend Newbury High School. Through an app on their mobile phones, they can see the unseen–and in this case, Newbury is overrun with ghosts!

The Building Sets
LEGO Hidden Side offers 8 building sets full of awesome functionality and secret surprises that offer the build and roleplay fun of any LEGO play theme. Each model can be built as it appears by day and has transforming functionality to become the haunted version of itself.

70418 Lab 174 pieces, $19.99 (USD)
70419 Boat 310 pieces, $29.99 (USD)
70420 Graveyard 335 pieces, $29.99 (USD)
70421 Truck 428 pieces, $39.99 (USD)
70422 Diner 579 pieces, $49.99 (USD)
70423 Bus 689 pieces, $59.99 (USD)
70424 Train 698 pieces, $89.99 (USD)
70425 School 1,474 pieces, $129.99 (USD)

The AR App
Kids assume a first-person perspective to join the lead characters, using their mobile phones to see and solve paranormal mysteries beneath the surface of their town. By holding their phones up to a physical LEGO model, “points of possession”are activated, releasing virtual ghosts that kids must then capture to stop the haunting. Kids must keep one hand in each world–physical and digital –to progress the play.A short digital game can be played independent of the building sets. The app will add new ghosts, game challenges, and randomization of gameplay to keep kids coming back to their models.

Specs: free download from the App Store and Google Playfor iOS6S and up and Android phones on the ARCore supported list.App works on tablets, however, the play experience is designed with phones in mind to facilitate kids’ ability to play with one hand in each world, which is easier to do with a phone. Ages 7 and up.

Available globally in late summer 2019.

For more information, visit www.lego.com/hiddenside

Art Teacher Whose LEGO Star Wars Set Collection at Her School Got Vandalized, Now Has Her Exhibits Nearly Restored

Art instructor Jeanna Bassett from Concordia Elementary School in San Clemente, Orange County might fit the bill for cool teacher. She had amassed three decades’ worth of LEGO Star Wars sets, many of which were assembled by her sons. In a generous gesture she had donated some sets to her school’s library as exhibits over the years, becoming its own little attraction there.

Then on November last year she experienced a LEGO collector’s worst nightmare: vandalism of the sets on display. The destruction was so significant that Basset lost all hope of seeing her collection put together again. Thank goodness for her local building community, not to mention LEGO itself.

As told by the Orange County Register, over two months since Jeanna Bassett’s LEGO Star Wars set exhibit in the Concordia School in San Clemente was wrecked by still-unidentified suspects, some 90% of the total collection that had been on display has since been either repaired or given newly-built replacements.

With 125 individual LEGO Star Wars sets that were damaged in last year’s vandalism attack on Concordia, repair and replacement of them would have been too daunting. But the local community readily answered the call. Orange County’s Goodwill actually sprung for the fixit job on one of Bassett’s biggest ruined LEGO Star Wars sets, the UCS Millennium Falcon (75192) itself, which they then presented to her at school last December.

Other salvage work on the collection was performed by various LEGO Users Groups from Orange, Los Angeles and San Diego Counties, totaling 40 individual builders that joined hands to restore Bassett’s precious Star Wars sets.

Paul Lee of the LA LEGO User Group put it best for his fellows when he remarked, “To paraphrase Liam Neeson, as AFOLS we ‘do have a very particular set of skills’ that were perfectly suited for solving this problem. We have the building experience and expertise, and we have the resources in terms of replacing damaged or missing pieces.”

The LEGO Group itself also donated more Star Wars sets for assembly worth $2,000. Lastly, “The Last Jedi” director Rian Johnson presented Jeanna Bassett with a signed “Star Wars” poster to go with her mostly-restored library exhibit, as he himself lives in San Clemente and has nephews attending in Concordia.

While she and her husband Donald were reinstalling her LEGO collection in the library Sunday, February 10, Bassett said of her fortune, “It’s really the story of how the community came together. It’s sad it had to happen in the first place but it shows you people really do care.”

Amazon Italy Does Unplanned Reveal of LEGO Star Wars Set – “Duel on Starkiller Base” (75236)

When Disney and Lucasfilm released “Star Wars: The Force Awakens” way back in 2015, it signaled to all fans of the space opera franchise set in the Galaxy Far, Far Away that the grand saga was really back on the big screen.

Many were intrigued and hyped when they saw what appeared to be a duel between First Order Trooper Finn and the constantly angry Kylo Ren from the trailers, only to be surprised when it was actually Rey who carried the day in that fight. This particular encounter on snow-covered Starkiller Base is being immortalized in a new, recently leaked, LEGO Star Wars set.

For a brief moment, before they quickly closed it down, Amazon Italy showed a listing for the already-announced LEGO Star Wars “Duel on Starkiller Base” action set 75236. It’s perhaps one of the most busy and mechanically ingenious sets to come out of that line.

The one photo that got out from the early Amazon.it reveal showed minifigure Kylo Ren facing off against Rey in the snowy forest terrain of the planet converted by the First Order into Starkiller Base. Both have lightsabers in hand (plus an optional stud-launching blaster). But the kicker is that their battleground is remarkably interactive.

As seen above courtesy of “Star Wars” news site Rebelscum, Kylo and Ren are standing on two terrain platforms. They are connected to each other by a hinge. Also, one of the tree props can collapse. All these depict the ongoing collapse of the planet following the Resistance airstrike on Starkiller Base, with the combatants trying to kill each other and have time to escape.

The LEGO Star Wars Duel on Starkiller Base (75236) has been stated on the brief Amazon listing to have 191 parts, and likely to be priced at $19.99 when it is released on April 1. Hopefully that date doesn’t have the expected connotations where this action set is concerned. It’s a nice present while waiting for December and “Episode IX.”

Next DLC for “LEGO DC Super-Villains” Out Now: “DC Movie Character Pack”

It would be about four months now since LEGO, Traveller’s Tales and WB Interactive released their latest major videogame foray into the DC Universe, from the viewpoint of its baddies. “LEGO DC Super-Villains” was a hit among more recent WBI-TT LEGO games thanks to its antagonist-protagonist perspective shift, a customizable player avatar and more wacky features.

Like all major LEGO videogames before it, “LDCSV” also has its fair share of DLC stuff to further extend the gameplay experience, like the pack honoring the December release of the DCEU film “Aquaman.” Roughly two months after that, we get more downloadable content.

In the same vein as the aforementioned “Aquaman” costume and level packs that arrived this December and January, “LEGO DC Super-Villains” will next be getting a general makeover in terms of character looks with the DC Movie Character Pack.

As it most obviously implies, the DLC gives the relevant game characters, heroes and villains, new costumes based on their live-action appearances, primarily as they were interpreted in the DC Extended Universe like 2017’s “Justice League.” The characters announced by WB Interactive to get new costumes on their official press release regarding this pack are these characters from the “JL” movie:

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Time to get EPIC! Play as your favorite DC characters from the exciting cinematic universe in LEGO DC Super-Villains! #LEGODCGame #LEGODCSuperVillains

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Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman (all shown), Flash, Cyborg and Deathstroke (We can’t just forget the post-credits scene now, can we?)

Going into more detail, the “LDCSV” DC Movie Character Pack DLC will be available in two ways. Happy owners of the game can buy it as is for $1.99; alternatively, those who have the “LEGO DC Super-Villains Deluxe Edition” with find this character costume pack to be part and parcel of this version’s Season Pass.

“LEGO DC Super-Villains” and its Deluxe Edition are still available now on multiple platforms, from Windows to Xbox One to PS4 and the Nintendo Switch.

LEGO Launches Adult Street-Wear Clothing Line that can Only be Purchased Via Snapchat AR

In the latter half of 2018, LEGO made quite the splash for Halloween with a lineup of brick and minifigure-themed costumes for children and adults. That was the most prominent push by LEGO into wearable apparel that we have recently covered here in The Brick Show.

But it looks like our favorite toy brand giant has even more in store where it comes to clothing, one that they are combining with, of all things, augmented reality tech with help from social media platform Snapchat. The result is a most unusual clothes store that opened in London before London Fashion Week.

As reported by CNBC, the strange LEGO pop-up shop that was launched this Wednesday, February 13, is actually an empty white room in London. The only feature is a pedestal with a physical icon familiar to Snapchat users: a Snapcode. Scanning that code takes users to an AR platform on their devices where they can buy online a selection of LEGO-themed street wear by the company’s latest garments partner, KABOOKI.

Here we have a sample of the new LEGO casual fashion line from KABOOKI, designed as scaled-up versions of LEGO Wear clothes for kids. This was confirmed by KABOOKI’s Birgitte Holgaard Langer, who added that they also wanted to experiment with an AR platform provided by Snapchat to make their clothing available for purchase online.

Why have Snapchat as a partner for hosting the digital AR LEGO Store? Snap Inc. Director EMEA Creative Strategy Will Scougal says that it’s because the users of their social media platform are among the most frequent users of augmented reality around.

“Snapchatters engage with AR naturally, on average 70% of them play with an AR lens every day,” Scougal explains. Adding an e-commerce element to create the LEGO-KABOOKI online store seems the logical conclusion.

The best part about this LEGO clothing store on Snapchat is that prospective customers don’t even need to go to that empty shop in London. Snap Inc. has saved us the trouble with this photo of the AR store’s Snapcode. Snapchat-using LEGO fans have nothing to lose and perhaps some sweet new LEGO-wear to gain just by checking this out.

First DLC Pack for Soon-to-Release “The LEGO Movie 2 Videogame” to Bring Back “LEGO Movie” Characters

Much like its predecessor, and every major LEGO product line (and really, a lot of its licensed franchises too), the currently-showing “LEGO Movie 2: The Second Part” is also getting a videogame version from the brand’s longtime game development partner TT Games.

Okay, so “The LEGO Movie 2 Videogame” is actually being developed under the British developer’s B-team, TT Fusion. But it still promises plenty of action and wacky digital building fun that might hopefully make up for the lower enthusiasm of the “LEGO Movie” sequel in cinemas. Seeing as it will be released two weeks from now, fans won’t have long to wait either.

And in the grand tradition of most console game developers in this day and age, the initial release of “The LEGO Movie 2 Videogame” will also come with a first batch of post-release downloadable content. What’s interesting however about this DLC is that rather than adding new characters and stuff, it brings back elements from the previous “LEGO Movie” instead.

Steam notes in its “LEGO Movie 2 Videogame” page that the DLC, titled as the “Prophecy” pack, can be had as part of a pre-purchase offer. This pack will include prominent characters from the 2014 “LEGO Movie” like big bad Lord Business and past versions of Vitruvious and Metalbeard. The description goes:

Play as your favorite film characters from the first LEGO Movie. The character pack includes Young Vitruvius and the unsuspecting Emmet in his pyjamas. Kragle-loving Lord Business is also in the pack along with other memorable characters Shakespeare, Cleopatra, and Classic Metal Beard.

There is however no further details if along with the added characters there will also be more levels or story to the DLC pack. Still, if one hasn’t picked up the “LEGO Movie Videogame” and is interested in “LEGO Movie 2” then maybe getting this DLC will bring the best of both titles for them.

“The LEGOV Movie 2 Videogame” will be released by TT Games and WB Interactive this coming February 26 on the usual LEGO game consoles and platforms: Microsoft Windows, Xbox One, Sony PS4 and Nintendo Switch.

2017-Built LEGO Renault F1 Racecar Sold at Charity Auction for $105,000

Before LEGO fired up the global building community with their life-sized fully-functional replica of the Bugatti Chiron using, Technic pieces akin to their official LEGO Technic set version (42083), the one prominent case of a life-sized car made out of LEGO bricks was a (non-running) Renault R.S.17 racecar.

This one was created in 2017 as part of promotion for both that year’s F1 season and Renault Sport’s 40^th anniversary event. After over a year from its time in the spotlight, this full-scale LEGO Renault F1 racecar found itself in the news again, after it was sold in auction for charity.

Said auction took place just this past Sunday, February 10, and it was part of a larger selection of motorsports memorabilia that went under the hammer that day on behalf of UNICEF. Made by a LEGO Certified Pro from some 300,000 LEGO pieces, its estimated sale price was around $35,000-$55,000.

Nobody could have imagined, according to NBC affiliate WTHR 13, that the 1:1 LEGO Renault R.S.17 would go for $108,000 which was almost double its maximum ESP. That is indeed remarkable considering its being a static model compared to the “new hotness” that is the working life-sized Technic Bugatti Chiron.

With that, one piece of LEGO cross-promotion history now belongs to a well-off motorsports aficionado, with the proceeds going to UNICEF charities. The LEGO Renault is a hybrid build like the later Bugatti Chiron: LEGO bricks over a metal frame, with genuine Pirelli racing tires and a movable steering wheel.

2019 Summer LEGO Movie 2 Set Images Revealed

So we’ve already gone over how LEGO Movie 2: The Second Part while debuting at #1 in the box office on its premiere last weekend, was markedly not as heavy a box-office breaker as the 2014 original film. But that’s far from the minds of LEGO’s primary toy manufacturing business, which is still cranking out new tie-in sets for the movie. In fact, a number of these new LEGO Movie 2 sets were announced towards the end of last month. Quite recently, we got a heads up on three tie-ins, two that were mentioned previously and one new addition. These 2019 summer LEGO Movie 2 set images were revealed February 12, ahead of the 2019 New York Toy Fair. They are the Shimmer & Shine Sparkle Spa! (70837), Queen Whatevra’s “So-Not-Evil” Space Palace (70838) and the Emmet’s Triple-Decker Couch Mech (70842) which is the all-new set that wasn’t part of the advance notice from January.

Shimmer & Shine Sparkle Spa! (70837)

691 pieces; $69.99 USD; characters include: Benny and Washed-out Wyldstyle minifigures, Balthazar mini-doll figure, plus brick-built LEGO Unikitty as Calm-Down Kitty, Flaminga, Eight, Archimedes and Balthazar vampire bat.

Queen Watevra’s ‘So-Not-Evil’ Space Palace (70838)

995 pieces; $99.99 USD; characters include: a Bachelor Batman minifigure and Celeste mini-doll figure, plus Queen Watevra Wa’Nabi, Ice Cream Cone, Star, Royal Guard and 2 Heart brick-built figures.

Emmet’s Triple-Decker Couch Mech (70842)

312 pieces; $23.99 USD; characters include: Emmet toy minifigure, Sweet Mayhem mini-doll figure and new-for-May-2019 brick-built LEGO Unikitty as Rampage Kitty figure with a bushy tail.

The LEGO Movie 2 is now showing in cinemas, while a videogame adaptation from TT Fusion is coming to Windows, Xbox One, PlayStation 4 and Switch on February 26. While waiting for the eventual of these 2019 summer LEGO Movie 2 sets, be sure to check out the rest of the sets in this theme right here.

Initial Saga of “Ninjago” Season 10 – “March of the Oni” Teased in Foreboding Images

The greater LEGO franchise seems to be awash in teasers lately. This week we got a first peek at the LEGO Ideas Flintstones set (in shadow) ahead of a yet-unannounced official reveal. Now, we go to the TV media realm with a milestone celebration. The long-running “LEGO Ninjago: Masters of Spinjitzu” animated series based on the same-named LEGO line has already released its 10^th season early for New Zealand viewers.

While spoilers are already available where they can be found, this has yet to arrive in North America, where promotion has gone overboard in hyping what feels like a grand end to a saga that began with the 2011 premiere.

When you look at the poster images for “LEGO Ninjago” Season 10 you’d think they were for the release of a feature-length film. That’s because the first four episodes of a promised 6-plus hours of seasonal content for 2019 form a continuous storyline, “March of the Oni.”

The subtitle alone really sells that some sort of conclusion in the adventures of the Ninjago ninjas is in store when it plays out. Individual character posters also grimly hint at what fates are in store for these persons whom we’ve followed over multiple seasons in past years.

So much has indeed changed in the cast and setting of “LEGO Ninjago” that despite accommodating new fans from the 2017 movie spinoff starting in Season 8, it can be hard to keep up with the multiple running plot threads. The idea of having a four-episode mini-arc to resolve the issue of the Oni like Lord Garmadon that hung over the most recent seasons is great.

This is arguably the last few bits of the “Ninjago” series that outgoing writers the Hageman brothers are involved in, though lead writing duties now belong to Bragi Schut, who penned Season 8’s “Sons of Garmadon” and 9’s “Hunted”.

And we can’t forget that, despite the trappings of a series finale in “March of the Oni”, there are still some more episodes of “Ninjago” Season 10 coming this year according to producer Tommy Andreasen.