I’m old. Well, old enough to at least remember the Game Boy. Remember its darkened green screen. Remember its two pink buttons contrasting the lighter greys of the device’s casing. Even talking about the console now, I can picture exactly where every button, slot and switch would reside. Moreover, I also remember its excellent library of games from the Donkey Kong Country series, miniaturised from the big screen, using what I thought at the time was some sort of developer magic trick, to Mario’s first portable adventure through the four kingdoms of Sarasaland.
So, you can imagine my excitement upon hearing LEGO would be taking a stab at a brick-built take on the famed handheld…
I’ll admit that the fact that this set was a rather restrained 421 pieces was initially a cause for concern. After all, the LEGO Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) set wound up consisting of far more pieces. However, that worry quickly disappeared as I started to work my way through the first bag. While yes, this is one of the relatively smaller sets focused on a Nintendo product or IP, it certainly makes every piece count, using a range of unique techniques, not to mention unique pieces that I’d never seen in any previous set.
Building the Game Boy proved to be highly enjoyable, not just in the expected manner when getting to piece together the awesome-looking exterior, but just as much so when handling the inside of the piece. The buttons, for example, something that could just have easily been static, actually function just as you’d expect a Game Boy’s to, with a clever mechanism involving a rubber band making it all possible. Likewise, the directional pad, too, would put certain LEGO pieces to use, so once again, you’re able to push it in and out like an actual button.
In fact, it’s truly amazing just how closely the LEGO version mirrors the actual real Game Boy. Everything is where it should be, even down to the audio jack and volume and contrast sliders. The sizing is a little smaller overall, but holding the finished product in your hands definitely sent me back to my childhood, many an evening spent under the duvet with a flashlight, playing far too much Pokémon Blue when I should have been sleeping.
As for the cartridges, these are the only parts of the Game Boy set that required the use of stickers, something that normally I’d roll my eyes at, but here makes total sense. After all, the original cartridges themselves would use stickers to display what game was on them, so if anything, it’s one of those rare occasions where stickers on LEGO were the right decision. Who knew!? Interestingly, the actual screen itself, while plastic, doesn’t simply have a sticker placed over the top but instead uses a lenticular piece of card displaying one of three scenes – the Game Boy logo, Super Mario Land and Link’s Awakening. Tilting them creates the illusion of movement, and you’re free to switch them in and out whenever you like.
I think what makes this set so enjoyable to build is how you’re constantly building smaller sections and then inserting or sliding them into the main Game Boy structure, creating plenty of intrigue as you watch things slowly form together. Starting with the back and its grill effect, and then moving onto the insides, before addressing some of the edges, then onto the buttons and so on. Where other bigger sets can tend to lack that constant thrill as you build, since the process is slow going, with the Game Boy, that’s never a problem.
To my surprise, the set also included a stand for the Game Boy itself, as well as another to display your cartridge and extra lenticular game screens.
There are plenty of amazing Easter Eggs tucked away inside the box that, as a fan, brought a truly wide smile to my nostalgia-filled face. Upon opening the set’s manual, for instance, I would immediately recognise the ’80s-style design, a near-perfect replication of the system’s original box art. The actual building process, meanwhile, would unearth a few secrets too, including a serial number on one piece referencing the original Japanese release date of 21 April 1989. Perhaps the best of the bunch, though, lay within the cartridges, Super Mario Land and The Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening differing with the latter including a battery inside, much like the real deal (this was so players could save their progress in Link’s Awakening, whereas Super Mario Land was short enough it needn’t include a save option). It’s this attention to detail that shows the care and love that has been put into this set and the sort of thing fans will appreciate.
I absolutely love LEGO’s Game Boy set. Not only has it been a particularly fun build, but it’s truly impressive just how closely it resembles the real thing. Of LEGO’s more recent Nintendo efforts, it sits on the lower end of the price spectrum, which is a nice bonus, making it an especially attractive piece for fans of the gaming company and its prestigious legacy. I, for one, hope we see LEGO take on further Nintendo consoles to add to my slowly growing collection alongside the NES and Mega Drive controller.
The LEGO Game Boy set is now available at retailers around the world.
Review copy provided by The LEGO Group
