Assessment: LEGO Animal Crossing – Nook’s Cranny & Rosie’s Home – Is It Any Good?

The LEGO Animal Crossing vary brings quite a lot of Animal Crossing: New Horizons characters to blocky life throughout 5 units (initially, a minimum of) that allow you to attach them and create your individual Animal Crossing island in Lego type.

Eager Lego followers will spy a similarity to the defunct Fabuland theme, now with a Nintendo flavour, and we have been taking a look at the entire launch kits to see how they price towards different Nintendo X Lego choices.

Right here, we’re taking a look at Nook’s Cranny & Rosie’s Home — the biggest set within the launch lineup. Let’s have a look at if Animal Crossing’s mild-mannered loanshark can nook the market in Danish plastic…

What’s within the field?

You get seven baggage within the field, clear ones this time, with Rosie’s Home and Nook’s Cranny break up throughout baggage one to 4 and 5 to seven respectively.

Importantly, you additionally get two separate instruction manuals, which signifies that two folks can construct the set concurrently — a pleasant possibility for those who’ve obtained one other member of the family desperate to become involved semi-autonomously. In case you’re constructing solo, it makes no distinction, but it surely’s nice to see this stage of thought going into the constructing expertise.

That is an ages 7+ construct in comparison with the 6+ categorisation of different units within the vary, and there are many small items. This set additionally reaches Lego’s unknown piece-number threshold to warrant the inclusion of a Brick Separator. Get in.

We’ll be taking issues within the order prompt and beginning with Rosie’s Home.

Rosie’s Home construct

First up, Rosie herself seems to be nice, with an non-obligatory bow and a tail component we have not encountered earlier than. The tail does current issues with regards to sitting in her armchair or using her bike, but it surely’s a cute element nonetheless. Hey, you possibly can’t journey the bike in-game, proper?

The remainder of the primary bag is the outside components, together with an orange tree, a tea set and parasol, and a blue bicycle. We particularly loved the little toadstool element below the tree. From the off, there are many further items left over — by our rely, there are 10 further items within the first bag alone.

Then it is time to begin housebuilding with the remaining baggage. In case you’ve constructed Fauna’s home within the Isabelle’s Home Go to set, this follows the identical template, with interchangeable home windows relying in your style (of the rounded brown and sq. pink right here, we personally desire the pink) and a few good particulars just like the lantern hanging beside the window and a fetching streetlamp outdoors.

It isn’t an extended or difficult construct, however the small parts and complicated particulars hold issues attention-grabbing.

On we go to baggage 5, six, and 7, and Tom Nook’s retailer…

Nook’s Cranny construct

First out of the bag is Tom Nook himself, and he seems to be spiffing in minifig type. He is sporting a short-sleeved island shirt and likewise has a bushy tail component. We’re not about to recommend it is price shopping for the set only for him, however for those who’re a sucker for minifigures, this one is a winner.

The shop itself follows the identical template, though with this explicit constructing, there is a tinge of disappointment. It is high quality, but it surely’s additionally troublesome to shake the impression that this iconic store deserved extra consideration than the villager homes. At the back of our minds was that beautiful fan-made construct submitted to Lego Concepts — that is the form of lavish element we might have appreciated to have seen right here.

Once more, what’s right here is sweet sufficient. You have got the lovable little canopies over the home windows with alternating colors, the wealthy blue roof, and printed signage — no cheapo stickers round right here thank-you-very-much. The Bell bag is improbable, as are the seeds and fish meals within the cupboard. It is all vibrant and enjoyable to construct and sufficiently charming.

For all of the element of the set, although, issues are lacking and, not like the homes the place the small dimension feels cosy, the shop feels excessively cramped. Just a little extra stud-based actual property would have given area for Timmy and Tommy, for instance, whose presence is keenly missed by anybody who’s performed New Horizons.

That is already the priciest set within the present Lego Animal Crossing vary, however we surprise what may have been included had one other 10 or 20 of your native forex models been added to the RRP. Would possibly now we have gotten a much bigger roof, area for extra objects on sale, or a recycling field lid with hinges?

Nook’s Cranny & Rosie’s Home price

Nook’s Cranny & Rosie’s Home is the most costly of the Animal Crossing Lego units, going for $64.99 / £64.99 / €74.99.

That price ticket will get you 535 items, which works out at simply over 14 cents per piece — which is on the pricier aspect, even for licensed units.

In fact, you are getting brand-new minifigures and parts, plus fully-printed items, so it is not stunning that the cost-to-piece ratio is not as beneficial right here as with different units. Nook’s gotta get his Bells.

Personally, splitting these units into separate choices might need been preferable — making Rosie’s Home a less expensive proposition alongside Fauna’s home, whereas giving Nook some room to develop his retailer right into a extra luxurious procuring expertise together with his younger staff readily available.

Conclusion

Nook’s Cranny & Rosie’s Home is an efficient Lego set, but it surely may have been extra. It is the most costly of the present Animal Crossing crop, however we might have appreciated to see a extra formidable, expansive tackle Nook’s Cranny than what’s on supply on this twin set. The power for 2 folks to work on every constructing on the similar time is nice, and the result’s charming sufficient, with good choices for play and show. Nonetheless, given the significance of Nook and his retailer within the sport, and within the hearts of players who’ve labored for days on finish to pay again this most understanding of loansharks, it is exhausting to not really feel some disappointment at this restricted rendition of the tanuki’s emporium.

Tom Nook minifig is nice – Rosie, too, however we’re right here for TN
A superb package for 2 builders to sort out concurrently
A great deal of good little particulars, and brilliantly vibrant
Not a sticker in sight

Nook’s Cranny actually deserved extra space and a grander scale
Timmy and Tommy, MIA
C’mon, the place are the recycling lid hinges?

Good 7/10

Purchase LEGO Animal Crossing

77046 Julian’s Birthday Party77047 Bunnie’s Out of doors Activities77048 Kapp’n’s Island Boat Tour77049 Isabelle’s Home Visit77050 Nook’s Cranny & Rosie’s Home

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