Can SMART Play bricks and tiles be used to enhance LEGO Robotics?
The SMART bricks and tiles, although designed to be used in conjunction with Star Wars sets, have their uses in other models. Inspired by the dueling in set 75427, I decided to recreate the Rock 'Em Sock 'Em Robots game using both LEGO robots and SMART Play components. In the classic two-player boxing game, two robots (Red Rocker and Blue Bomber) face off against each other. Human players use joysticks to move their robots and punch until the head falls off. To create a reasonable body shape and size, I used two small SPIKE Essential motors for the arms. I used the distance sensor as the head and utilized its lights to indicate emotion (when the head is hit, only the lower lights will be on). The head is on a hinge, allowing it to tilt back. To be true to the game, I created a manual joystick for turning the bodies of the robot. Two SPIKE force sensors trigger the punching arms. The Hub on the SPIKE displays a sad face when the robot is hit and a happy one when it is ready to punch again. SMART Play bricks and lightsaber tiles are added to each robot. They emit a sound and display lights at each hit for some additional fun.
Initially, the SMART Play system seemed restrictive, but I was pleasantly surprised at its versatility. I wanted to see how easy or hard it would be to add these to my original Star Wars sets from the early 2000s (7656 General Grievous Starfighter and 7669 Anakin’s Jedi Starfighter). To my delight, it was very easy to add the bricks in a hidden (yet accessible) spot under my models with no changes to the ships. This allowed me to relive my childhood and have a battle between General Grievous and Anakin Skywalker with lights and sound effects.
Can SMART PLAY bricks be used in a non-Star Wars set?
Although customized for Star Wars sets, I was particularly excited to discover that you can adapt the tiles for use in other sets. My 60321 City Fire Brigade offered a perfect example. I added the SMART Play brick as well as the tile that comes with the repair vehicle in set 75423 to the top of the firetruck. As you ride down the road, the truck makes a nice vehicle noise. In addition, just before you try to shoot some water at a fire, take the blue fire extinguisher on the side of the truck and hold it against the color sensor on the SMART brick. The “fuel” sounds easily becomes water going through the hose.
I also discovered that the SMART brick works even when the tile is 2 studs away. So I took the SMART brick and placed it inside the car in the same set. I placed another tile on the road and now, when you drive over the tile, you have sound effects similar to the Mario Kart sets. I imagine that with the addition of more sounds, you could create a race car game with many “power-ups”.
What are the limitations of SMART Play bricks and tiles?
The new smart bricks are not problem-free. My fully charged brick got stuck in the middle of play, flashing white lights but not reacting to tiles, colors, or minifigures. Placing it back on the charger also had no impact. The brick recovered by itself in 15 minutes, but I imagine that there would be several frustrated children and adults who would abandon their play. Speaking to customer service, the representative told me how to reset the brick: 10 seconds stud down, 10 seconds studs up, 30 seconds stud down. When I asked where this information can be found, he said it is “somewhere on the website.” It is nowhere to be found (at least not easily). I looked at the FAQs for SMART Play in the help section, and this reset procedure was not there. Ideally, it would have been in the Smart Play App that you can install to track your bricks, rename them, and update their firmware.
The biggest disappointment comes from the minifigures. They all sound identical, just with different pitches. The sounds are so odd that they became the source of jokes and laughter in our household. Keep in mind that we play LEGO video games and thoroughly enjoy their wordless communications. It would have been better to just skip these “conversation” sounds entirely, as all they do right now is illustrate how bad the sounds are. The exceptions are the Darth Vader minifig that occasionally makes heavy breathing sounds (more of that and less of the identical “language” would have been appreciated), and the wookie and ewok that have some growling.
I would have liked to hear more of the “theme songs” for each character instead. The Imperial March theme is very nicely done, but it plays from Palpatine’s chair tile no matter who sits in it. For some reason, Luke and Leia minifigures on vehicle tiles play a very short tune (noticeably shorter than the Imperial March theme) that is not either character’s theme. It seems to be the finale theme song from the Empire Strikes Back movie. A different “theme music” for each character (especially since the Star Wars movies have multiple character theme songs) would have been a nice touch instead of being associated with a seat and repeating the theme songs across characters.
The color sensor is nice to have, but I was surprised by its limited actions. Blue only makes a water noise, Green is a hammering noise, and Red is shooting across all models. What would have been nice is some kind of ability to customize based on the set and application. There is already a SMART Play app we had to install. Perhaps LEGO can consider allowing users to customize the sounds we want for each brick to extend the play value.
Final Assessment
Our final assessment is that the Smart Play bricks do add some fun entertainment. The vehicle and ship sound effects are well done (a little on the quiet side even at full volume, though). The best part of SMART Play is the interaction between models; One model can shoot the other and cause a reactionary explosion sound. Sound effects from a crash/flip over are also nice.
As a parent whose children grew up with Star Wars LEGO sets, there is much to be said for a room filled with pew-pew and sounds generated by the children. As a child who created those noises, I also felt a sense of disappointment that the machine made those beloved noises. These new bricks are somewhat fun, but I hope that by guiding the play, they don’t replace the sounds of the children.
We do think there is a place for these Smart Bricks, but only time will tell if they sustain a child’s interests. As we demonstrated above, they can be made use of in LEGO City sets (fire trucks, police cars, helicopters), race cars, and more. Hopefully, LEGO will come up with a line of new tiles to use in other sets and also allow parents to buy just the SMART Play brick or tiles instead of requiring us to buy entire sets. Also, having two SMART bricks is the only way to get to see the best features of the SMART Play system. One brick and having to move it from model to model is very limiting and frustrating. Ideally, LEGO will also give the user the ability to customize the sounds rather than having to acquire new sets and tiles.