Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

Lego has changed since we were kids (2014)

todaysparent.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

111–120 of 301 posts

Re: Lego has changed since we were kids (2014)

#111

Post by dfxm12 »

patwolf wrote: post #87
thorin wrote: post #55

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm pleased you said that, because we also have a mixture, but most of the sets that were built were broken up and are now in communal boxes. This seems pretty unusual compared to most parents, I guess it's mostly because the parents don't want things to get mixed up. In theory we could rebuild according to the instructions, but in reality it's never going to happen as it would take so long to find all the pieces. Al…

I wish my kids were more into free play. When their sets inevitably get broken and end up in the communal box, that's usually the last time they play with it. I should stop buying them more sets, but as an avid collector myself I enjoy getting sets as much for my own enjoyment. For them I think Minecraft scratches much that creative itch that Lego used to bring me.

Necessity is the mother of invention. I played with legos a lot to try and build a toy I didn't get. When I didn't get a Megazord action figure one year for Christmas, I tried the best I could to build something like it out of legos.

Re: Lego has changed since we were kids (2014)

#112

Post by johannes1234321 »

altacc wrote: post #39

Most of the now & then examples are both true now. The classic sets still exist and how children play with Lego depends on their personality and what they have available (and how it is stored). Children are individuals and Lego allows a larger variety of play than most other toys on the market. My kids have a mix of classic & branded sets and the play area is a mix of designed builds and improvised creations. The fav…

My childhood memory with Lego was the big box we had where all was mixed together. This ment lomg search firnthe "right" piece in the "right" color and the often resulted in finding some different piece and changing plans.

On the side I had precious models, which were not to touch.

Re: Lego has changed since we were kids (2014)

#113

Post by em-bee »

theshrike79 wrote: post #91
nix23 wrote: post #45

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>That being said when you look out at the competition the bar is low. Bluebrixx, Cobi and Xingbao are probably much better.

Haven't tried those specific brands (and they tend to change brand every time they get sued), but I had a bunch of Lepin and whatever else. You can tell the difference if you start mixing pieces. The official ones SNAP together, the cheapo copies just smush and don't really stick. They tend to get loose way faster too. They're good if you want to get that 5000 piece car, build it and put it on a shelf. But if you're…

quality of alternative bricks has improved remarkably over the last few years. and the reputable importers of chinese brands pay attention to not import cloned sets and make sure that the MOC sets they get are properly licensed from the MOC designers. so what you get is much better than what it used to be.

bluebrixx is a german brand btw. they import many chinese brands but also design and produce their own sets. they recently started producing officially licensed star trek sets.

Re: Lego has changed since we were kids (2014)

#114

Post by iamkroot »

I was a Lego obsessed kid through the 90s and 00s, and now I have a school age son who is similarly devoted to it. Lego today is waaaayyy cooler than it was when I was a kid.

I got the very first Lego Star Wars set, Lukes X-Wing [1], and while I loved it as a kid the newest Xwing that my son just got [2] is so much better on every level. It's bigger, more detailed, looks sleeker, and has this really clever mechanism that opens the wings synchronously when you press down on a piece.

All the new sets are this way. The care and detail that Lego puts into them has dramatically improved in the last 20 years.

He still takes them apart a few months after he gets them and builds something new. I don't think that will ever change, the thrill of making something on your own will never go away. Furthermore, the online community of people making things and sharing their creations has exploded since I was a child. We had a single user forum (LUGnet) where a small handful of people congregated. All images were uploaded to a single, tiny website (brickshelf) to be shared. Now you have youtube channels, instagram pages, tiktok creators, subreddits, you name it. The resources available for creating and sharing your own designs is massive!

1: https://i.ytimg.com/vi/9yXo6HF8hTo/hqdefault.jpg 2: https://www.lego.com/en-us/product/luke-skywalker-s-x-wing-f...

Re: Lego has changed since we were kids (2014)

#115

Post by dirtyid »

I was fortunate enough to have the "right" amount of legos, enough that I could mostly build what I wanted but not enough that I was always missing pieces / colours and pushed to engineer around limitations. I credit legos to developing my mechanical and spatial aptitude. I remember playing with less fortunate collections and wonder if these qualities would have been stunted if I had less, or if I could have been spoiled if given too much. I do know I'm very envious of not growing up with minecraft where having unlimited resources or being forced to manage resource seem to develop more skills. What's the situation with building legos in VR?

Re: Lego has changed since we were kids (2014)

#117

Post by cardanome »

nix23 wrote: post #85
thot_experiment wrote: post #49

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I would be absolutely floored if any of those other toy brick manufacturer had the quality of LEGO, they are injection molding wizards.

Ah yes checkout Bluebrixx, they are German...the quality...not where it's produced of curse.

I am a big Bluebrixx fan but the quality is a bit shite at the moment.

Their medieval sets are stunningly beautiful. Probably the best looking set on the market.

They are great for experts but definitely not great as a casual first buy for people that try Lego alternatives. They love to use insane build techniques that are fun for experts but not really suited for beginners.

The Star Trek series has been a huge disaster for both design issues but also quality of pieces. They have serious stability issues and barely hold together. I am unironically considering plastic glue for my models.

They are constantly improving and I am sure the kinks will get worked out but currently I can only recommend them for people that like a challenge. Again, they have some stunningly beautiful sets and are worth keeping an eye on but do not buy them for children or inexperienced people.

Re: Lego has changed since we were kids (2014)

#118

Post by bluefirebrand »

All I want from Lego these days is a reintroduction of a full medieval Castle style lineup again.

If they did I think I would collect and build the entire lineup. I see things like the Medieval Blacksmith set and I want an entire village and castle like that theme.

Re: Lego has changed since we were kids (2014)

#119

Post by enriquto »

gilbetron wrote: post #101

I really dislike all the bizarre "lego ain't what they used to be!" comments - they honestly come from people who haven't spent time with modern legos. For reference I was born in 1970 and played with legos probably from 1975-1985, and then seriously picked it up again in 2012 or so when my son was old enough to play with them. People paint this picture of these new legos that are made up of like 5 parts that you jus…

> Modern legos are awesome.

Indeed they are!

But, as much as I also dislike, like you, these bizarre comments; there's one place where I drew a red line and lego has sadly crossed it recently: lego sets that become obsoleted because lego removes some software from the app store. Previously, sets were standalone and eternal. But today you can buy an awesome technic set that will become "bricked" in a few years when they remove the controller software from the play store.

This is not a theoretical concern. It has already happened (even for sets that were still on sale!). It sucks big time and it is really sad.

If at least the apps were free software, we would have something to hang on to defend lego. But their current stance is indefensible.

Re: Lego has changed since we were kids (2014)

#120

Post by ballenf »

gilbetron wrote: post #101

I really dislike all the bizarre "lego ain't what they used to be!" comments - they honestly come from people who haven't spent time with modern legos. For reference I was born in 1970 and played with legos probably from 1975-1985, and then seriously picked it up again in 2012 or so when my son was old enough to play with them. People paint this picture of these new legos that are made up of like 5 parts that you jus…

What I've seen is that kids get that dopamine rush from putting together everything exactly according to instructions. From opening the numbered bags and methodically working through thick instruction booklets.

The problem now is that they have this expectation of gratification from making something kind of perfect and their own creations are less interesting and fulfilling.

I don't know what the name is for the idea that offering an "extra" optional path can detrimentally affect the other path. (I'd posit the same theory softly applies to Minecraft's creative mode.)

But might just be my experience.

Post reply on HN