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A few days ago, the LEGO Group announced a new partnership with Nintendo. Designers from both companies joined forces to create a new physical play experience that brings Super Mario to life in the world of LEGO bricks, launching later this year. Below is the press-release and intro video with all the details that we know so far. Check them out, and let’s discuss.

BILLUND, March 12, 2020: The LEGO Group announced a partnership with Nintendo that will change the way people interact with Super Mario in the physical world and engage in LEGO experiences.

Both companies share a passion for innovation and play and their collaboration has led to a re-imagination of the LEGO building experience, enabling an entirely new way to play inspired by the beloved video game icon, Super Mario.

Neither a video game nor a traditional LEGO brick-based set, LEGO Super Mario is a new product line that features an interactive LEGO Mario figure who collects coins in real-life game levels created with LEGO bricks. The new line will let kids experience the playful world of Super Mario like never before. Super Mario will be brought to life in the physical LEGO world and new levels of challenge and styles of play will be part of the iconic LEGO experience enjoyed by generations.

The news was also shared in a video posted by the LEGO Group and Nintendo (watch below), which hints at what fans can expect when LEGO Super Mario launches later this year. The video shows players using an interactive Mario figure to collect coins in a real-life game level that has been created with LEGO bricks.

“We are very excited to bring Mario into the physical world through interactive and social LEGO play”, said Julia Goldin, Chief Marketing Officer, EVP of the LEGO Group. “With this experience we will help millions of kids with love for Mario to engage and play in a completely new way, where they are in control of creating and playing games with their favorite character. By seamlessly incorporating the latest digital technology, LEGO Super Mario is a highly social, interactive, and collaborative experience for kids.”

“I have always liked LEGO products and how they help children use their imagination to play”, said Takashi Tezuka, Executive Officer and Game Producer of Nintendo Co., Ltd. “The new product we created together with the LEGO Group seeks to combine two different styles of play – one where you freely build the world of Mario, and the other where you play with Mario in the very world that you have created.”

LEGO Mario seems to be a very interesting and innovative product that incorporates both physical and digital play. My guess is that it will be received well by kids, and perhaps even older LEGO and Mario fans. And the collaboration with Nintendo is interesting in itself. Nintendo owns several other industry icons besides Mario, such as Donkey Kong, Metroid, Zelda, and Pokémon. Mega Construx is doing very well with their Pokémon sets, and LEGO fans have been asking for Zelda sets for several years now.

What do you think? How do you like LEGO Mario so far? Is this a theme you’re interested in? And what do you think of the demo video? Feel free to share your thoughts and discuss in the comment section below!

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Ever since LEGO DOTS was first announced (see links at the end of this post, I was super excited about this new art and craft system. All the small tiles in pretty colors and with beautiful prints are a dream come true for people who like to work on artsy LEGO projects, mosaics, and the like. And I know I’m not the only one who is enthusiastic about LEGO DOTS, as the sets have been perpetually on backorder since they were first released.

Just to recap, there are three LEGO DOTS sets; the #41904 LEGO DOTS Animal Picture Holders, the #41905 LEGO DOTS Rainbow Jewelry Stand, and the #41906 LEGO DOTS Pineapple Pencil Holder. As the names imply, these are all functional desk accessories that can be decorated with the included small tiles.

Then, we also got five LEGO DOTS bracelets, which can be customized with the included small colored and printed tiles. The final currently available item is the #41908 LEGO Extra DOTS – Series 1 packet with more colored and printed tiles that can be used for both the LEGO DOTS desk accessories and the bracelets. I really like the bracelets, so I ordered all five of them, along with the LEGO Extra DOTS packet. Even though all the items were on backorder, I received the bracelets in five days, and the LEGO Extra DOTS are on their way.

The LEGO DOTS Bracelet packs come in long sleeves that include the bracelet and a packet of tiles. The bracelets are thick, strong, but flexible plastic, similar to a watchband. They are 7 3/4 inch long from tip to tip with a knob on one end and five holes on the other end to adjust for different wrist sizes. The bracelets are advertised for kids, but they can also fit adult wrists up to 6 3/4 inches. The bracelets feature 14 rows of 2 studs, which are for attaching the tiles. The clutch-power of the studs is very good, with the tiles attaching and staying on securely. The bracelets come in five colors; medium-azure, dark-pink, light-purple, black, and teal.

All five LEGO DOTS Bracelets state that they include 33 pieces, which accounts for the bracelet itself and 32 tiles (28 to fill all the studs on the bracelets, plus 4 extras). However since LEGO always includes one extra 1×1 small piece for each color and print in case they get lost, the bracelet packs end up with quite a few additional tiles. Here is the breakdown of what’s included in each pack:

The colors and prints of the tiles are so delightful and pretty! The #41900 LEGO DOTS Rainbow Bracelet includes white, yellow, red, light-aqua, and trans-light-blue tiles, and three different types of rainbow printed tiles. The #41901 LEGO DOTS Funky Animals Bracelet includes white, black, light-pink, magenta, and trans-pink tiles, paw prints, and kitten and bunny prints. The #41902 LEGO DOTS Sparkly Unicorn Bracelet includes lavender, dark-purple, coral, black, and metallic-silver tiles (yes, they are metallic, not pearl!), and three different really pretty star and unicorn prints with a metallic shine. The #41903 LEGO DOTS Cosmic Wonder Bracelet includes lavender, light-pink, light-yellow, and light-aqua tiles, some pearly faceted gem pieces, and three different star and planet prints with a metallic shine. The #41912 LEGO DOTS Love Birds Bracelet includes light-yellow, light-orange, orange, light-pink, coral, and lime-green tiles, and three different prints.

I honestly can’t say which one is my favorite bracelet. They are all so pretty! The printed pieces are exquisitely beautiful, and it’s so nice to have so many tiles in less common colors. I also like that you can customize your bracelets any way you like, and thus keeping them creative and interactive to match your mood and style. I feel that the $4.99 price tag is very reasonable, and even cheap for what you get.

While most adult LEGO fans will focus on the usability of the colorful and printed tiles in the LEGO DOTS sets, the bracelets can also have multiple uses. For example, I have seen someone use them as wall hangers by attaching the studs of the bracelets to the back of standard LEGO plates.

In summary, LEGO DOTS is awesome, and I hope LEGO will continue to add more creative and crafty sets to the collection. If you would like to check the currently available sets, visit the LEGO DOTS section of the Online LEGO Shop. Also, remember that until March 22nd, you can get a free LEGO DOTS Mini Picture Frame with purchases of $35 or more, so this could be an extra set you can add to your collection. This offer is valid at official LEGO stores and the Online LEGO Shop.

What do you think? Do you have any of the LEGO DOTS desk accessories or bracelets? How do you like them? Do you have a favorite bracelet design? Feel free to share your thoughts and discuss in the comment section below!

And you might also like to check out the following related posts:

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