GeraldWith LEGO Nexo Knights entering its second wave of products, we’re essentially witnessing how a brand launches and maintains a brand new IP.
Fitting itself into the LEGO’s scheduled release calendar, things look to be riding high for Nexo Knights to displace or rival the Ninjago series. After all, the kids that might have grown up in Ninjago would have graduated to other product ranges such as Marvel/DC or Star Wars.
If you’re in Singapore and a big Nexo Knights fan, do pop by Vivo City from 1 – 19 June 2016 with your Junior Geek to see what LEGO has done to keep the hype going and maybe pick up a few sets for yourself the family.
We all love an underdog story and starting off as a humble apprentice, it’s up to you to gather the requisite skills needed to bring down Jestro and his nefarious schemes! Entering the event area, you’d be given a badge which serves as a record of all the various tasks that you have accomplished.
The starting sequence is easy. Nexo Knights Virtual Training 101, gives you the lowdown of all the various weapons available in the universe. As with Google Cardboard-esque experiences, you can move on from this quickly! Remember to grab a sticker as you move on from location to location.
Battling the Lava Monsters was probably my favourite station and it’ll probably be a hit with the kids as well. Arming yourself with a shield and sword, you would be repelling Jestro’s minions and it all culminates in a boss fight battle as well.
At this point of time, I’m assuming that we have entered the lair of Jestro and navigating through the maze is only way to reach the villain. If you, incidentally, own the LEGO Ideas Labyrinth Marble Maze, junior geek might have no issues overcoming this obstacle.
As we reach the apex of the journey, this is where our hero gains new powers to defeat his opponents. We’re given a preview of Aaron’s Broccoli Tornado and Clay’s Raptor Bite, essentially AOE attacks that can easily clear a group of enemies. If you’ve been a fan of the Nexo Knights Merlock App, here’s a chance to get their shield at a community event as opposed to searching the Internet.
Finally, it all ends at Jestro’s volcano that actually spews smoke at regular intervals! The mechanics here are familiar, if you’ve ever been to an old school arcade where you get the chance to gain more coins by inserting your token and watch it run the gauntlet, this “brickball” machine is for you.
What would be a LEGO event if there wasn’t a chance for you to build anything? At the end of the journey you would be awarded with a shield to call your own and a spiffy achievement certificate that includes the Broccoli Tornado and Raptor Bite to share.
The real highlight of the event would be exclusive builds that you can grab with a minimum purchase of S$30 to get a Nexo Knights Shield Dock. The fine print is that junior needs to build it. Considering that you’ve already made it this far and went through all the steps, you’re definitely here with a kid.
If you’re looking to grab the new Nexo Knights releases, a $50 spend nets you both the Shield Dock and a Battle Station. The Battle Station comes with cards and look to be additions to play. Likely a quick and simple way to get some basic terrain up for the immersion factor.
The entire experience is but just the main meat of the entire event. There are plenty more fringe activities on site for the kids to enjoy. With appearances by Clay and Lance, this is probably the most well rounded and activity filled event by LEGO thus far.
Meet and Greet with Clay and Lance at the following showtimes –
Weekdays from 5pm -7pm
Weekends from 12pm – 2pm and 5pm – 7pm
The tricky thing is that as with all epic journeys, the scale at which the event is able to accommodate everyone will be a challenge. The best thing to do would be to grab a entry ticket early (at no cost), shop around the mall and return during your time slot. As mentioned, it takes about 30 minutes or less to complete the entire route so it pays to hit the small early in the day.
With plenty more to see around the event, it would be worthwhile to hang around to check out the fringe exhibits as well.
Beware though, those barriers are nothing when a child is determined to reach out and touch their heroes!
The LEGO Nexo Knights Event runs from 1 – 19 June 2016, 12pm onwards daily at VivoCity Court B.
Gerald currently straddles between his love of video games and board gaming. There’s nothing that interests him more than trying out the newest and fanciest gadget in town as well. He dreams of publishing a board game sometime in the future!
Yonk
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