Lego Smart Play: Encouraging Collaborative Fun Through Tech

Unveiling at CES: Transforming Play with Smart Brick Technology

Lego has stepped into new technological terrain with its Smart Play system, a move that's unprecedented for the company. During a demo on Monday, Lego showcased some of the potential of its innovative Smart Brick. However, appreciating this tech's potential truly requires a firsthand experience. Luckily, an extended presentation answered many questions about what to anticipate when children and adults first use the upcoming Smart Play sets.

The Smart Play system hinges on three key components. The Smart Brick is equipped with proximity sensors, an accelerometer, color detectors, and a miniature speaker, all managed by a small chip. At this stage, all Smart Bricks are identical; realizing their full potential involves pairing them with Smart Tags or Smart Minifigures. These items convey context-specific instructions to the Brick.

Exploring Star Wars with Lego's Smart Play

The display commenced with three modest Lego constructions: a vehicle, a helicopter, and a duck. Each had a proprietary Smart Tag that the Smart Brick uses to process environmental stimuli. For instance, the car's engine sounds rev up as it’s played with more vigorously. Tilting the vehicle causes screeching, while flipping it produces crash noises.

Smart Bricks can detect nearby Smart Minifigures and react aptly. The initial Smart Play collections, themed around Star Wars, offer a great way to illustrate this interaction. The Throne Room Duel & A-Wing collection includes Smart Minifigs of Darth Vader, Luke Skywalker, and Emperor Palpatine. Smart Tags specify possible character actions. Position a Smart Brick near Palpatine's throne, and the iconic "Imperial March" plays, accompanied by Palpatine's characteristic chatter. Although Minifigs don’t articulate real words, they capture their personalities through sound. Vader’s distinguished breathing and his reaction to losing a duel are notable examples.

The dueling feature is a standout. Moveable mounts are available for placing Luke and Vader alongside a Smart Brick. A Smart Tag activates sound effects suitable for a lightsaber duel. When Minifigures are in place, light saber ignition sounds are heard. Moving them initiates battle sounds, and dislodging a figure prompts that character's unique defeat noise — notably, Vader's disheartened "noooooooo."

Star Wars Flights: More Sets Enhance Play

Further additions to Smart Play include Darth Vader’s TIE Fighter and Luke's Red Five X-Wing, perfect for simulated space skirmishes. The X-Wing demonstrates the Smart Brick's capacity for managing numerous inputs. Integrating it results in authentic engine sounds. Seating Luke in the cockpit activates his theme, while R2-D2 in the rear adds familiar Droid chatter.

Engaging the X-Wing against the TIE Fighter highlights the Smart Brick's finesse. As the ships soar through air, distinct sound profiles distinguish the two. Each vehicle features lasers for activation, and when fired in proximity, the Smart Brick relays impact and explosion sounds. Continual firing simulates a ship-on-fire scenario, with matching Minifigure reactions.

While these sets resemble other modest Star Wars kits, Lego emphasizes the resilience and user-friendliness of the TIE fighter and X-Wing. Engineered for robust play, these sets fit comfortably in children’s hands to encourage imaginative adventures. The Throne Room set provides a detachable area for Luke and Vader's duels, allowing for more dynamic play.

Future Prospects for Lego's Smart Play

The excitement around Lego's Smart Play is palpable. Starting with easy Star Wars sets is a strategic approach to introduce the Smart Brick. There's hope that Lego will broaden options by offering tiles and Minifigures to enhance set functions, irrespective of licensing. Integrating various franchises (think Jurassic World, DC, or Marvel) could result in endless creative scenarios that appeal to kids.

The core objective of Smart Play is fostering play among children. Though Lego targets adult enthusiasts, Smart Play is undeniably aimed at youngsters. With no screens or complicated setups involved, it’s designed for immediate play. This interactive feature could promote more collective play among children, effectively utilizing the technology embedded in a Smart Brick.