Nintendo And LEGO Teaming Up For Interactive Mario Line

by Donald Theriault - March 12, 2020, 6:13 am EDT
Total comments: 8 Source: LEGO

Neither a video game, nor a traditional LEGO set.

The LEGO tease a couple of days ago was for a new type of figure featuring our beloved plumber.

LEGO and Nintendo officially announced a partnership for the Mario series today, showing off new figures that interact. Launching later this year, Mario will collect coins by interacting with other LEGO playsets themed around the series, while playing several iconic sound effects.

Retail leaks earlier this week suggested the series would have thirteen sets, though more details are expected soon.

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Talkback

ClexYoshiAlex Cooke, Contributing WriterMarch 12, 2020

This is still so bizarre to me considering there was a point in time where LEGO was trying to sue the pants off of Nintendo for N&B Block.

PaleMike Gamin, Contributing EditorMarch 12, 2020

My son already invented this concept. Where do I preorder?

Ian SaneMarch 12, 2020

I'm obviously not the target market here but I would have expected something from Lego that's more builder focused. These don't look like sets that would take very long to build at all. So this is more like a playset, which is fine in itself, but then why team up with Lego?

Mario actually doesn't seem like the ideal Nintendo property to become Lego since you don't really associate Mario with vehicles or locales, which usually make the best Lego sets. A Star Fox Arwing, F-Zero vehicles, Samus' ship - those would make great Lego sets. The problem is that I just listed off lower tier Nintendo franchises that fans like us love, but lack the name value of Mario, Zelda or Pokemon. With Zelda you could probably create sets similar to Castle Lego since it has lots of locales. You could make sets based on the Temple of Time, Hyrule Castle, Lost Woods, Karkariko Village, etc.

Now Super Mario RPG would work really well with Lego. And those sets would be bought by me and other geeks pushing middle age and no one else.

KhushrenadaMarch 12, 2020

Quote from: Ian

you don't really associate Mario with vehicles

Wait... what?

https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-kVZ6fcIbcWk/VsOpwI1umeI/AAAAAAAAar4/dxer376HRbg/s640/66.jpg

Mario Kart games sell more than Mario platformers.

nickmitchMarch 12, 2020

Quote from: Ian

Mario actually doesn't seem like the ideal Nintendo property to become Lego since you don't really associate Mario with vehicles or locales, which usually make the best Lego sets. A Star Fox Arwing, F-Zero vehicles, Samus' ship - those would make great Lego sets. The problem is that I just listed off lower tier Nintendo franchises that fans like us love, but lack the name value of Mario, Zelda or Pokemon. With Zelda you could probably create sets similar to Castle Lego since it has lots of locales. You could make sets based on the Temple of Time, Hyrule Castle, Lost Woods, Karkariko Village, etc.

Now Super Mario RPG would work really well with Lego. And those sets would be bought by me and other geeks pushing middle age and no one else.

They could've done sets of Bowser's or Peach's castle. Those would be fun builds.

Mop it upMarch 12, 2020

This isn't quite what I would have expected. I can't see this appealing to adult Lego collectors as much as large building sets like Bowser's Castle or a Mario Kart track would have. Not that it matters to me personally since I'm not one.

StratosMarch 12, 2020

I was hoping for a Lego Mario game. Maybe that can still happen.

TheXenocideMarch 12, 2020

Anybody else get the vibe this is some sort of bizarre NFC powered board game?

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