Today’s kids will never understand how good the world’s most popular toy is now
Author: Jonathan Klotz | Published
Of all the things older generations say Gen Z doesn’t appreciate, the one that shocks me isn’t smartphones, online games, or the way we used to do math: it’s Lego. The world’s most popular toys are filled with licensed content from Star Wars and The Avengers to Harry Potter and Ghostbusters, But this is not always the case.
In my day we had towns and castles and space and kids today don’t understand how lucky they were to have Luffy’s merry pirate ship One piece.
LEGO has been around in wooden blocks since 1932, then turned into plastic bricks after World War II, and it wasn’t until 1978 that the classic LEGO minifigures first appeared. A few years later, in the early 1980s, the Castle, Town and Space series was relaunched in North America with a large number of sets, including “Knight’s Castle” with 380 pieces and 6 minifigures, “Street” with 548 pieces and 8 minifigures, and “Galaxy Commander” with 412 pieces and 5 minifigures. They may seem quaint today, but these sets were huge when they first came out, and each one included “alternative build” suggestions.
The true meaning of Lego
The original three themes are designed to allow children to use their imaginations to build whatever comes to mind, rather than feeling like they need to follow step-by-step instructions. Not just the plot of 2014 The Lego MovieIt’s a real debate that’s been happening at dinner tables across the country for decades.
You could argue that the loss of creativity with the rise of licensed sets has forever tainted what LEGO once was. On the other hand, how cool is the LEGO Death Star?
How Star Wars Saved Lego
By the mid-1990s, Lego had to make changes as other licensed toys emerged, taking away Lego’s market share and pushing the company to the brink of bankruptcy. The Star Wars licensing deal ultimately spurred the company’s growth, launching in 2005 LEGO Star Wars The video game exploded in popularity and set Lego on the path to becoming the most valuable brand on earth.
There’s no turning back, that’s how we got here, along with a LEGO set for every property you can think of.
It’s clear that most LEGO sets today rely on the nostalgia of an adult audience who grew up playing with castle and town sets, unless Gen Z wants to build Jerry Seinfeld’s apartment. There are playsets from the entire Simpsons series, and Gizmo comes from Gremlinsthe recently released ship great white sharka Game Boy and a Transformers Generation 1 Optimus Prime. Everything a kid in the 1980s could want back then is available today.
The modern argument against Lego
As a kid, I remember being excited when I opened Fortress of Kings Mountain on my birthday, and as an adult, I have Horizon: Zero Dawn Turtleneck On my Amazon wish list. Who hasn’t gazed longingly at the giant Death Star or Barad-dur? As you get older, your love for LEGO doesn’t stop; it just gets more expensive.
The modern argument against LEGO is how expensive these sets have become, with sets approaching a thousand dollars and the standard price for a large licensed playset being $350. Kids are being priced out of some of the coolest sets out there.
Then again, even in the 1980s, large sets cost $80 to $100, which limited most kids to birthdays and holidays. Piecing together colored blocks into the shape of the Infinity Gauntlet has always been an expensive hobby.
They don’t know how good they are
LEGO is one of those compelling hobbies that targets Gen X/Millennial nostalgia, but unfortunately for those who fit this demographic, we’re only a few years away from play sets targeting Gen Z. Get ready for more Fortnite and the inevitable launch Five Nights at Freddy’s Lego sets.
Kids today will never experience the excitement that comes with the arrival of a new series of LEGO sets, like 1993’s Castle series Wolfpack, but they do release a new set for every Marvel movie and season. stranger things.
They don’t know how good they are
