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These eight Lego Star Wars Smart Play sets are out now and Marvel needs to be next.
These eight Lego Star Wars Smart Play sets are not to be missed, but we need more. Where's our Lego Marvel Guardians of the Galaxy Smart Play set?
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It's a good time to be a Lego Star Wars fan. Not only are there a bunch of Mandalorian movie tie-in sets to look forward to, but there are eight brand new sets out, as part of Lego's new Smart Play system. Aimed at kids, these new Smart Play sets are designed to make play more interactive than ever before by introducing light and sound effects without the need for app support.
The key element of these Smart Play sets is an interactive, audio- and light-equipped Smart Brick. The Smart Brick responds to printed tags on other bricks and minifigures. If a particular tag is in range, it will interact with it, making the appropriate sounds or light actions that the tag tells it to. So you can have this Lego Smart Play Throne Room Duel & A-Wing set playing the Imperial March.
Sounds cool? It absolutely is, which is why it's frustrating that Lego has yet to give us any Lego Marvel Smart Play sets. Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy alone is packed with quotable lines and effects; who wouldn't want a tiny Lego Groot that spoke with Vin Diesel's voice? You could pitch Captain Marvel against Galactus, with Ralph Ineson's voice booming out of a Smart Brick.
Instead, Lego has pivoted to Pokémon. Where's the Infinity Gauntlet when you need it? The good news is that the eight currently available Lego Star Wars Smart Play sets offer plenty in the way of fun.
Aimed at kids aged six and above, Luke's Red Five X-Wing is pure playset territory. While the X-Wing is the feature here, it also comes with lots of smaller builds, including a command center, a refueling station and an Imperial turret. Along with the Smart Brick and charter, it also comes with five Smart Tags and two Smart Minifigures (Luke Skywalker and Princess Leia). There's also a Stormtrooper minifigure, a Rebel Crew member and R2-D2, although these don't have Smart functionality.
The X-Wing will make sounds and light up when it's flown through the air, and with a Smart Brick in situ, the turret will make appropriate battle sounds. Providing you move the Smart Brick around, the command center and refuel station can make sounds, too.
The Throne Room Duel is the most expensive Smart Play set yet, but that's because it comes with not one, but two Smart Bricks. There are also three Smart Minifigures (Luke Skywalker, Darth Vader and Emperor Palpatine), five Smart Tags and the necessary charging stand and cable combo. At $159.99 / £139.99, it's a little on the pricey side, but I think this offers the best, most comprehensive use of the Smart Brick, with a wealth of interactive features baked into the set.
The Throne Room Duel & A-Wing comes with two battle podiums, where the Luke Skywalker and Darth Vader minifigures can be placed to have an epic lightsaber duel. Thanks to the Smart Brick, you can enjoy realistic battle sounds as they fight. The A-Wing can also make blaster sounds as it attacks, but my favorite feature here is the throne, which will play the Imperial March.