Lego Nintendo Entertainment System coming Aug. 1

Lego will release its brick-based version of the Nintendo Entertainment System on Aug. 1, the toymaker announced on Tuesday. The Lego NES set will include a nearly life-size version of the NES, a controller (with cable), a Super Mario Bros. Game Pak, and a retro 1980s-style television, all built from Lego bricks.

The Lego NES, which is composed of 2,646 pieces, will be available exclusively at Lego retail stores and through Lego.com starting in August. In 2021, it will be available at other retailers around the world, according to a news release. The Lego NES is listed at Lego.com for $229.99.

Details on the Lego NES leaked on Monday alongside an official tease from Lego. But our first official look at the Lego NES shows how the scrolling Super Mario Bros. playfield inside the television will function.

Image: Lego/Nintendo

The TV in the Lego NES set is compatible with the Lego Super Mario line, which also launches on Aug. 1. “Fans can scan an included action brick with Lego Mario from the Lego Super Mario Starter Course, so he reacts to on-screen enemies, obstacles and power-ups just as he would have in the iconic Super Mario Bros. game,” Lego said in a news release.

The Lego NES console is also mechanically functional. Builders can insert the included Super Mario Bros. cartridge into the system itself.

Image: Lego

Lego and Nintendo announced the Lego Super Mario line in March, revealing a new physical play experience that is part brick-building, part game. At the center of the new Lego line is an interactive Lego Mario figure that connects to an app for smart devices. Players move Mario around levels that they build themselves, collecting coins and stomping on Goombas, Koopas, and Shy Guys as they try to reach the end-of-level flagpole. Lego Mario’s expression will change as players move through hand-built levels, and his catchphrases (“Wahoo!” and “Here we go!”) will complement the play experience.

In June, Lego revealed the full lineup of 10 expansion sets and four “Power-up Packs” that are compatible with the “Adventures with Mario” starter course.

Photo: Lego

The Lego Nintendo Entertainment System is recommended for builders 18 years or older.

“Super Mario has been a cherished figure in the gaming world for over thirty years now,” said Maarten Simons, creative lead on Lego Nintendo Entertainment System, in a news release. “Many adults still fondly remember that first time they saw Mario leap across the small screen, even if the graphics were a lot simpler than they are today. With the Lego Nintendo Entertainment System, we’re letting them truly indulge in that nostalgia, recreating one of the most-loved consoles of all time so they can see the Super Mario from their childhoods once again – and even to share the experience of gaming in the 1980s with their own children.”

Here are some more photos of the Lego Nintendo Entertainment System:

Image: Lego/Nintendo

Image: Lego/Nintendo

Image: Lego/Nintendo

Image: Lego/Nintendo

Image: Lego/Nintendo

Update: An earlier version of this story listed a price point of $199.99. The Lego website now shows a price of $229.99. The story has been updated to reflect the change.