Everything We Know About the Lego Nintendo That Plays Super Mario
Things don’t make sense but, at the same time, they do. In our topsy-turvy world where toilet paper is actually cake and facts are not facts, interlocking plastic bricks can be formed into a nostalgic gaming console.
Do you get it?
We’re not going to question this pandemic miracle (How does it work? Why does it exist? Why do we exist?) and just accept that Lego and Nintendo, two of the best things from our childhood, made a baby. Here, all the things you should know about the amazing creation.
It's called the LEGO Nintendo Entertainment System Building Kit.
In short, it's is a NES gaming platform made from Legos. The Lego Group and Nintendo describe it as “a brick-built NES model packed with realistic details, including the accompanying 1980’s style LEGO television set.”
Why did the two decide to get together? This year marks the 35th anniversary of a certain plumber whose hobby is saving a princess. As Lego lead designer Jonathan Bennink puts it, "...we're feeling a little nostalgic.”
The Lego NES is for adults.
“Sorry, Junior, but you’re not allowed to touch this grown-up toy for daddy. Please continue to play with your boogers.”
We kid. But really, the little fingers of Junior, Skipper, Timmy, or Tommy will not be equipped to build a mechanically functional Lego NES and its accessories. The Finnish company further qualifies that the set, which has 2,646 pieces, is suited for the 18-and-up age group or hobbyists looking for “their next immersive challenge.”
The Lego NES is like a NES but Lego.
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That means all the parts that make up the dream machine are here—and you have to build them. There’s a Lego cartridge that you pop in the slot of a Lego control deck and a Lego controller with a connecting cable and plug. And because this marriage is thorough, you’re also tasked to put together an old-school TV, the kind with a hump and antenna, so that you can see Mario running on the screen.
Don’t forget to blow on the cartridge before you put it in the machine.
It plays World 1-1 of Super Mario Bros.
We’ll give you a moment to pick up your jaw, which fell to the floor because you were so amazed about the idea of Mario coming to Lego life.
You good? Okay. The Mario in this version is a flat 8-bit Mario, which is what Mario looked like on the original ’80s NES, and he side-scrolls on the screen of the TV, which you operate by turning a crank.
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Okay, it’s not like you’re playing a real game, but it still looks like you’re playing the game. To make the experience more immersive, you can plop a Lego Mario action brick (from an earlier set) on top of the TV, and it will provide various game sounds and reactions.
Lego and Nintendo have been together since the start of the year.
You may not have noticed that Lego and Nintendo have been going steady for a while now—the world has been busy. To catch you up, the partnership, which began early this year, brings to life the full universe of Super Mario Bros, debuting with a Super Mario Starter Course set and continuing with Power-Up Packs, Expansion Sets, and Character Packs. They’re all here. Click the link only if you don’t mind spending two hours drooling over toys.
The Lego NES will require patience.
The Legofied console will be in Lego stores and lego.com starting August 1, but it will only be available around the world in 2021. While you wait, watch the Lego NES in action in the video below:
