Super Mario

Big Spike's Cloudtop Challenge Expansion Set

The biggest, springiest Mario expansion of its year, and the spiked roller is the whole reason to own it.

Brick Rated Score

3.9/5

Set 71409 · 2022

Pieces540

Minifigs3

Year2022

Set number71409

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The verdict

The moment that sold me was the spiked roller flinging itself off Big Spike's arms the first time I hit the lever.

It genuinely made me laugh out loud at my own kitchen table. At 540 pieces this was one of the largest Super Mario expansions of 2022, with three enemy figures and a real physical mechanism you have to build, not just place. The catch is that you need a Starter Course to do anything with it, and at its old $69.99 price a lot of people felt that sting. If you already own a Mario, Luigi or Peach and you want the most interactive add-on, this is the one to hunt down.

Best for: families who already own a Super Mario Starter Course and want the most physical, mechanism-driven expansion

The full review

What it is

Big Spike's Cloudtop Challenge is a Super Mario expansion set, which means it is not a standalone build but a playground for the electronic Mario, Luigi or Peach figures you already own. What makes this one stand out is scale and ambition. At 540 pieces it was among the biggest expansions LEGO put out for the theme in 2022, and instead of a flat little scene it gives you a proper cloudtop level with orange mushroom trampolines, a Super Star Block, a seesaw, and Big Spike himself perched up top with a spiked roller. The first time I set the whole thing off, the roller launched forward and I completely understood why kids play with this one over and over. It has a physical payoff most sets in the line just do not have.

The catch

I will be straight with you about the two real caveats. First, this box does nothing by itself. There is no Mario figure inside, so if you do not already own a Starter Course (71360, 71387 or 71403) you are buying an elaborate paperweight with three enemies on it. Second, the original price. At $69.99 this cost more than a Starter Course did, and plenty of reviewers pointed out that the maths felt off for an add-on. It is a lot of set, but it asks you to already be invested before you get anything out of it. Now that it has retired, the used and open-box prices have dropped hard, which honestly makes it a far easier set to love than it was at launch.

Who it's for

So who should chase this down. If you have a Mario or Luigi or Peach living in a drawer and you want the expansion with the most going on, this is the pick. Three figures, a real mechanism, and enough platforms to keep a seven-year-old busy for a long afternoon. If you are brand new to Super Mario LEGO, start with a Starter Course first and come back for this once the interactive figure has proven itself in your house. And if you are a pure display builder with no interest in the app-connected play, this is not your set, the whole point here is the pressing and flinging and battling, not a shelf piece.

The parts story

What the build is actually like, and the pieces worth knowing about.

Building this one is more involved than the little pouch-sized expansions, and that is a compliment. You are assembling a layered cloud structure with working moving parts, so there is real sub-assembly work rather than clicking a few plates onto a baseplate. The star of the process is getting Big Spike's launcher put together and testing it, because there is a genuine trigger-and-release action you have to build correctly for it to work. Reviewers and buyers noted that kids around seven could handle most of it on their own, which tells you the instructions pace it well without dumbing the mechanism down.

The piece to talk about is the new spring-loaded brick. It is effectively a 2x4 plate base with a spring-mounted 2x2 column, one element built from two sections joined by the springy bit, and pressing the lever compresses it so Big Spike's arms snap forward and throw the roller. That part alone makes this a strong parts pack for anyone into physical LEGO play mechanisms. Add the three character figures, the 3D World-style spiked rollers, and the bright cloud and mushroom-trampoline pieces, and you get a box that is more generous on interesting, uncommon elements than the smaller expansions that sat next to it on the shelf.

Fun facts

01The set includes three enemy figures, Big Spike, a Boomerang Bro and a Piranha Plant, and two of them were brand new to the Super Mario line when it launched in 2022.
02It debuted on August 1, 2022 at $69.99 and retired on July 31, 2023, giving it a retail life of almost exactly one year.
03The spiked rollers are a nod to Super Mario 3D World, where spiked barrels chase you down the level.
04At 540 pieces it was one of the largest Super Mario expansion sets LEGO had released up to that point, yet it still cannot be played with unless you own a separate Starter Course.