Super Mario

Nintendo Entertainment System

The grey box that ate your childhood, now in 2,646 bricks with a working screen.

4.6/5

Set 71374 · 2020

Pieces2,646

Minifigsn/a

Year2020

Set number71374

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The verdict

If you grew up feeding cartridges into the real thing, this one is going to hit you right in the nostalgia.

It nails the shape of the console so well that most people won't clock it as LEGO from across the room, and the scrolling TV crank is proper magic. It's pricey and the screen build gets repetitive, so it's really for a patient adult display builder rather than a kid who wants to play. But as a shelf piece with a fun party trick, it's hard to beat.

Best for: Nostalgic gamers who want a display piece with a working gimmick

The full review

What it is

Let me tell you about one of the most nostalgia-soaked LEGO® sets ever put in a box. The 71374 Nintendo Entertainment System is a full-size brick replica of the classic 1985 grey console, and it comes with a matching retro TV that scrolls through a chunk of Super Mario Bros. World 1-1. It's an adult display set through and through, aimed squarely at anyone who spent their childhood blowing into cartridges and praying the game would load. What makes it more than a static model is the functionality. There's a Game Pak that actually slides into the slot, a channel dial that clicks in little increments, and a crank on the side of the telly that makes Mario run across a scrolling screen. It's the kind of set that gets a reaction from people who don't even build LEGO.

The catch

Now for the honest bits, because your mate deserves them before dropping this kind of cash. It launched at 229.99 USD, which was never pocket change, and since it retired the resale prices have climbed well past that, so grabbing one now stings even more. The build itself is genuinely clever in places, but the screen section is where a lot of people hit a wall. You're placing a huge mosaic made of tiny 1x1 tiles, and that stretch gets repetitive and a bit tedious. The TV also isn't the sturdiest thing in the world. A few builders found the stand a little weak and some of the big panels refuse to sit perfectly flush no matter how much you fiddle. The cartridge is slightly undersized too, and the whole model isn't a dead-perfect 1:1 of the real NES if you're the measuring type.

Who it's for

So who should grab this one? If you're a gamer of a certain age who wants a proper conversation piece on the shelf, and you don't mind a slow patch or two in the build, this is an easy yes. It looks the part, the crank gimmick never gets old, and it plays nicely with the electronic LEGO Mario figure from set 71360 if you own him, adding music and sound effects timed to the scrolling screen. If you're after something a kid can actually play with, or you want every brick to click together perfectly and stay rock solid, this probably isn't your set. But as a display piece that makes you grin every time you turn the handle, it's one of the most charming things LEGO has made.

The parts story

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

The build breaks into a few clear chapters. You start with the console body, and this is the clever bit. The designers packed the shape so tightly that the finished box shows only four studs across the entire thing, which is why it reads as a real NES rather than a LEGO model. Then comes the TV, which houses the main mechanism. The scrolling screen sits on roughly sixty large Technic tread links joined into a loop, with the mosaic surface pinned on top. Turn the side crank and the sprockets drive the treads, giving you an endless-runner effect. There's even a pixel Mario tile on a swinging bar that bobs up and down as a small 3x3 dish knocks against the level below him. The screen mosaic is the slog, all those 1x1 tiles, but the mechanical section is packed with satisfying a-ha moments.

On parts, this set brought new molds to the table, most notably the 8-bit Mario tile and a fresh 2x6 tile (element 69729) that debuted here in light grey, dark grey and black. The clicking channel dial is a neat little hack using a 24-tooth Technic gear meshing against a soft axle hose to create resistance and lock the knob into 15-degree steps. For value, 2,646 pieces at 229.99 USD works out to a hair under nine cents a part, which is fair for a licensed set with this much Technic guts and printed detail. The real bonus for parts fans is the pile of tiles in useful greys, plus that hidden microscale World 1-2 Easter egg tucked behind a removable panel inside the console.

Fun facts

01The entire console body is built so cleverly with sideways techniques that only four studs are visible on the finished model.
02There's a hidden Easter egg inside the console, a microscale recreation of Super Mario Bros. World 1-2, revealed by pulling off a secret panel.
03The scrolling screen runs on around sixty large Technic tread links looped like a tank track, driven by a hand crank on the side of the TV.
04Pair it with the separate electronic LEGO Mario from set 71360 and he reads the screen as you crank it, playing the game's music and sound effects.