LEGO and Nintendo are officially announcing their partnership. Nintendo is settling for just another simple set of LEGOs, however. No, Nintendo has high expectations for LEGO and, like with its video games, is going to ensure its sets go above and beyond. Today the team revealed its first LEGO set, an impressive set based on Super Mario. As expected, it goes above and beyond your standard LEGO by adding a clever and fun layer of interactivity.
The Super Mario LEGO set is designed to be played as if it was a real-life Super Mario Bros. level. At the start of the level is a green pipe and at the end is Bowser and a flag. In-between are lava, desert, grass, and water areas, as well as some castles. The really interesting parts include Mario, the enemies, and certain interactive parts of the set.
Befitting a LEGO set about video games, Mario and lots of other parts of the set aren't just standard LEGO parts. They're digitally enabled. Mario himself has a screen on his front that shows how many coins he's earned and will react to different hazards like lava. Players will use the cool Mario figure to jump his way through the level, performing challenges, stomping on goombas, earning coins, defeating Bowser, and ultimately winning the level at the flag.
The set still fits with LEGO's creative values. While there is a fun coin collecting game, it only works if players use their imagination. First, they have to build the level itself, which can be arranged in a ton of different ways. Then they have to jump Mario through the level with their own hands, making him interact with the various obstacles as they please. It's a little more structured than a standard LEGO set, but it's still basically the same idea.
An especially interesting aspect of the Super Mario LEGO set is that it genuinely looks like a 2D Mario level if looking at it from the side. There are even LEGO pieces for background clouds, just like in the video game. There's an opportunity there to create some fun Youtube videos if kids place the camera as if they were seeing the LEGO set from the perspective of the video game.
LEGO and Nintendo have yet to announce any official release information, including price and release date, for the new Super Mario LEGO set.