The Terraria set comes through Lego Ideas, a project ran by the Lego Group that allows fans to submit set designs and ideas to the company. Any set that garners 10,000 supporters in the Lego Ideas community gets sent up to a board of Lego designers and employees, who then assess the set’s suitability for a final release. If they decide to pick it up, it’ll later appear as a real-life set, in real-life shops, no longer just a fan creation, but made official. Making it to a final product from Lego Ideas is a particularly long shot, but the Terraria set has cleared the first major hurdle. In the realm of video games, both Lego Minecraft and Lego Sonic the Hedgehog began life as Lego Ideas submissions. In the case of Minecraft, a one-off Ideas set ultimately led to an entire series of Minecraft sets which are still going strong with new releases to this day. Outside of video games, Lego Ideas has given birth to a wide variety of new Lego sets, from all-original designs to takes on beloved franchises including Doctor Who, Tron, Sesame Street, Home Alone, The Flintstones, Voltron, and The Office - to name a few. As part of the review process, Lego will evaluate the set from their perspective, and also liaise with the rights holders of the IP to see if a partnership is possible. The Terraria project features almost 2000 pieces, and builds into a cross-section of a Terraria world, complete with a house, pond, and cave. It’s a pretty neat representation of the game world, and though fairly basic in some areas, if approved full-time Lego designers would redesign and adjust it to better suit the status of an official set. In the review process, a board of Lego employees will build concept models of the set, and take into account its playability, safety, and how well it fits with the Lego brand. This is the same process, essentially, that any internally-pitched set ideas goes through. It has stiff competition, however. It’s part of the second 2022 Lego Ideas review alongside 50 other sets, including some beautiful original and licensed designs. The results won’t be known for months. If the Terraria set isn’t approved, it’ll join a long line of painfully rejected Lego Ideas sets including multiple wonderful Zelda sets. Pain. As Lego turns 90 years old, the company appears to be looking to new horizons with more sets aimed at adults and collectors - and more video game collaborations. Lego Mario is seeing a steady stream of releases, and next month gets a huge brick-built Bowser. There’s now two Lego console models out - an NES and a new Atari 2600. Earlier this year, Lego released its first collaboration with PlayStation in the form of a model of a Tallneck from Horizon Zero Dawn. Even if Terraria doesn’t make it, it’s a good time to be a fan of both Lego and gaming.
