It’s no secret that we are massive LEGO fans at Nerdist. Those colorful bricks were a major part of our childhoods that we carried into our nerdy adult years. Over those years, LEGO has increasingly intersected with a few of our favorite fandom-driven franchises like Star Wars, Marvel, DC, and Sonic the Hedgehog. Now, its latest innovation and fandom collaboration is making us fall even deeper in love with LEGO. We were among a few lucky media attendees at a demo event and showcase in London, England for LEGO Pokémon’s upcoming SMART Play sets that allow kids and kids-at-heart to become real-life trainers. Here’s what we learned there that we want to share with you.
Why LEGO and Pokémon Are Joining Forces
Unsurprisingly to us, there’s a huge crossover between LEGO and Pokémon fans. In fact, LEGO Chief Product & Marketing Officer Julia Goldin confirmed during the opening presentation that 80% of LEGO fans also love Pokémon. They both have the same multi-generational impact and appeal. Many Pokémon fans have played games, watched shows, traded cards, and much more to feel immersed in that world. But, what would it be like to actually have Pokémon in your possession and be able to catch ‘em, train ‘em, and take ‘em to epic battles? That’s where the LEGO Pokémon SMART play sets come into play.
We will get more into the specific sets later, but for now, let’s go into exactly what SMART play technology is and what it allows you to do.
How SMART Play Brings Pokémon’s Famed Characters to Life
The interactive elements of LEGO’s Pokémon sets are driven by SMART bricks, which are chargeable bricks that you can snap onto characters or other parts of a set, like a car. There are designated SMART tags that the brick reads information from and then brings it to life in a universe accurate sense. For example, when you attach a SMART brick to Pikachu, we hear him make his signature sounds and even an electric charging sound when you move him around during play.
The SMART brick allows you to train a character by striking targets, whether those in a set or pretty much anything, like a wall, to make them more powerful. Of course, there are Pokémon who are naturally stronger than others but we all know that training truly makes the difference! And, when it is time for battle, all you have to do is bring your Pokémon close to another one, give it a shake, and music will play to get things going. Then, you can fast strike each other or perhaps power up for a stronger move.
Battling aside, SMART play tech allows you to have some adorable fun with your LEGO Pokémon. You can feed it and even give it a little tickle, which leads to some truly adorable and funny results. It is truly as close to having your own Pokémon as you can possibly get. We learned that you can get up to 45 minutes of vigorous and continuous play from a SMART brick. And, you’ll be able to use that brick with any future sets that are designed for SMART play technology, so it is a supreme investment for LEGO lovers.
What Kinds of LEGO Pokémon Sets Are Coming Soon
There will be twelve SMART play sets in total featuring a wide variety of beloved figures like Pikachu, Jigglypuff, Eevee, Squirtle, and more. Two of them are All-in-One sets that include the SMART brick, a SMART charger, and four SMART tags.
The first one features Pikachu with a very cool training house, a Poké ball, and even a sandwich to feed your friend. Here are all the details about this set, which retails for $69.99 with 400 pieces:
- LEGO® Pokémon™ SMART Play: Training House with Pikachu (72164) All-in-One set for ages 6+. This set includes a Pikachu-inspired tree house, training items, a Poké Ball, buildable sandwich, and more. Fans can get the chance to become a Pokémon Trainer as they nurture, feed, play, train and battle LEGO Pikachu. Includes 1 SMART Brick, 4 Tags, Figure and Charger.
The other set features Charizard and Jolteon, who are primed for an all-out battle, and it includes the same extras as the Pika set. This one retails a little higher at $119.99 but it has 751 pieces.
- LEGO® Pokémon™ SMART Play: Charizard vs. Jolteon Ultimate Battle (72167) All-in-One set for ages 8+ features Charizard and Jolteon in a fierce battle between the two iconic LEGO Pokémon. Look around and use the healing spray for support in the battle or have the Pokémon jump into a friendly training session together on the training grounds. Includes 2 SMART Bricks, 4 Tags, 2 Figures and Charger.
The other ten sets do not come with a SMART brick, but they are all compatible to use one. So, in true Pokémon fashion, you just might wanna catch ‘em all to have the full experience. We have more details about those sets here, which range from $19.99 to $89.99 to fit virtually any fan’s budget.
For more details about each set, head over to our previous post. All of these Pokémon LEGO SMART Play sets will release on August 1, but you are able to pre-order them right now.
Three Exclusive LEGO Pokémon Sets Are Available: Pikachu, Eevee, and Charizard/Venusaur/Blastoise
In addition to the SMART play sets, LEGO has three exclusive builds available right now. There’s an adorable Eevee set, which just includes the character and boasts 587 pieces at a $59.99 price point. Then there’s Pikachu leaping into action with a Poké ball. It is over 2,000 pieces and is $199.99 and boy does it look like a perfect one to have on display.
The big boy of these sets features Venusaur, Charizard and Blastoise, which has 6,838 bricks and retails for $649.99. We got to see all three of them fully built at the LEGO event and they are glorious to behold. If you haven’t already gotten them, now feels like the right time to tide you over until the SMART play sets arrive later this year.
There Are Fun Easter Eggs Hidden in the LEGO Pokémon SMART Play Sets
We spoke with LEGO Group Designers Siddharth Muthyala and Mike Anderson about the process of bringing these sets to life. Both Pokémon lovers, they put years of hard work, testing with kids, and collaborating with sound designers and more to craft sets that would thrill their fellow fans. When we asked about any potential Easter Eggs that fans could find in sets, they didn’t give away too much, but did drop some hints, including information on the SMART tags.
“The biggest one for me is the SMART tags,” said Anderson. “Internally we call them the heart, the soul of the Pokémon. So each Pokémon has a unique SMART tag. Originally they were just a tag with Squirtle’s face as an icon, but then we added the type icons, like a little water logo in there. And then we said ‘Let’s add the Pokédex number because that’s important.’ Every design is unique to that Pokémon and they all have a little type icon and their unique Pokédex number in there. That’s sort of Easter egg-like for me.”
“You should go and try and put a smart ring into Jigglypuff, who wakes up slightly differently than the others,” Muthyala teased. “The same with Mewtwo If you try to feed Mewtwo, just see what happens!”
Are there others? Well, you’ll just have to wait and see.
In addition to watching demos and participating in training and battling on our own, we had the gift of seeing Pikachu in many forms, including an adorable furry with Eevee by his side. And, of course, he was in SMART play LEGO brick form as well, complete with a sandwich to feed him. LEGO and Pokémon are the perfect collaboration to take builds to a completely new level.
The post LEGO Pokémon Sets Breakdown: Training Tech, Easter Eggs, and More appeared first on Nerdist.
This articles is written by : Nermeen Nabil Khear Abdelmalak
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