LEGO® Minecraft: how the sets fit together and what you choose
A game in which you build with blocks, turned into a building system made of blocks. LEGO® Minecraft may well be the most obvious collaboration LEGO® has ever entered into, and you can see that in the sets: square heads, recognizable textures, and landscapes that look exactly like they do in the game. Yet the sets differ considerably, from small scenes to extensive multi-level builds. In this article, you’ll read what the range is, how the sets relate to the game, and what to look for when choosing one.
What the LEGO® Minecraft range is
The range exists because players asked for it. LEGO® Minecraft did not begin as a business plan, but as a proposal on LEGO®’s ideas platform, where fans submit designs and others can vote for them. The idea reached the threshold and became a real product. That has happened before, but rarely with a range that has continued for so long afterward.
The first sets were microscale: small, square pieces of a world in which one block in the set corresponded to one block in the game, and the characters were no more than a few pieces in size. Later, the focus shifted toward the familiar minifigure scale, with characters you can hold in your hand and buildings they can actually fit inside. With older and second-hand sets, you may encounter these different scales. So check the scale when you want to combine sets.
How the sets relate to the game
Anyone familiar with the game will recognize the sets immediately. The designers work with the same building blocks as the game itself: grass with dirt underneath, rough stone, wooden planks, sand, and the glowing red of lava. These textures are recreated with printed and molded parts, so a wall in the set looks the same at arm’s length as it does on the screen.
The inhabitants also return. Hostile creatures and animals from the game appear as figures in the sets, and the play functions refer to what you do in the game: mining something, blowing something up, and building a shelter before it gets dark. This makes the sets recognizable to players while also making them easy to understand for someone who has never played the game.
The square heads
The clearest difference from the rest of the range is found above the shoulders. Whereas a standard minifigure has a round head, Minecraft figures have a block-shaped head with a printed face: Steve, Alex, a Creeper, a skeleton. These are unique parts that you encounter within this range and hardly anywhere else. For collectors of minifigures, that is immediately part of the appeal: they stand out among the rest. You can learn how to distinguish genuine parts from imitations in our article about identifying LEGO® minifigures.
Large building sets versus small sets
There is a clear division within the range, and it largely determines whether a set is a good fit. Small sets focus on one scene or one function: a cave, a shed, an animal, or a brief confrontation. Large sets build a world with multiple zones, passages, and levels, often using a biome as their starting point.
| Feature | Smaller sets | Large building sets |
|---|---|---|
| What you build | One scene or one function | A landscape with multiple zones |
| Building time | Short, suitable for one sitting | Longer, often spread over several sessions |
| Figures | A single character or animal | Multiple characters and creatures |
| After building | Play with it, easy to move | Stays assembled, greater display value |
| Suitable as | Introduction or addition | Main gift or permanent display |
A practical tip: the smaller sets combine surprisingly well. Because they all use the same building language, you can place separate scenes next to one another and turn them into one continuous landscape. Once you have a few sets, you naturally start building connecting sections between them.
What to look for when choosing
- Does the recipient play the game? If so, ask which part of the game they enjoy most. Someone who likes mining underground will want something different from someone who mainly builds.
- Scale. Choose consciously between microscale and minifigure scale. They do not look right next to each other, and a second set in the same scale is usually a better idea.
- Building or playing. Consider both the building experience and the play functions. Larger sets can also be intended for play; size alone does not tell you whether a set suits the recipient.
- Which creatures are included. For many children, that is the deciding factor. A set containing a Creeper or an Enderman beats a set that is larger on paper.
- Age. The range extends from simple sets for young builders to builds that require serious patience. Check the recommended age on the box and the recipient’s building experience.
At De BrickPlaats, you’ll find a changing selection of new LEGO® and used sets from many different themes. The full overview can be found under LEGO® sets; the current selection of LEGO® Minecraft sets changes with the stock.
Second-hand Minecraft sets: what to look for
Minecraft sets are common on the second-hand market, simply because many were sold and because children who played with them eventually outgrow them. This makes second-hand LEGO® an attractive option for this range, provided you check a few things.
- The figures. Check whether the block-shaped heads and corresponding bodies are complete; the availability of loose replacement parts varies. If they are missing, the set lacks the part that makes it recognizable.
- Printed parts. Check the printed parts that belong to the set in question. Wear on the printing is noticeable, especially on large surfaces.
- Small loose parts. Tools, weapons, and small plants are the easiest to lose. They can often be replaced individually from a bin of loose LEGO® parts.
- Building instructions. Nice to have, but not essential: instructions for most sets can be found online.
Our detailed article about buying used LEGO® sets goes through what to check step by step before taking a used set home. If something does turn out to be missing, ordering loose LEGO® parts explains how to complete the set efficiently.
From set to original build
There is another reason why this range is a good fit for anyone who builds regularly: the parts are excellent for original designs. Block-shaped textures, plenty of green and brown, and a block-style building approach make it easy to add your own piece of landscape. Just as in the game, you start with what you have and expand. Anyone who wants to keep their stock useful for this purpose will benefit from sorting and storing LEGO®, because unsorted parts are practically impossible to find.
