LEGO® Minecraft: "Crafting Box" Review

The LEGO® Minecraft Crafting Box was my very first set of the series. I was drawn to the interesting packaging and the encouragement to build anything you want! Plus, as I said in the First Night Review, I really love the unique colors you get and the transparent bricks.

To me, the Crafting Box reminded me more of the basic (basic being a positive here) sets I had when I was a kid. It includes a lot of basic 2x and 4x bricks and very few specific ones that have limited use. The official piece count is 518, but it really feels like you get more than that once you start building.

And, that's what this set is really about: building, taking apart, and building again. There's not really a "correct" model to make, or even a best one. Much like the game, I have built something and then went back and modified it over and over until I was happy. Then I took it apart and started all over!

What I really dislike about this set are the instructions. There are eight official builds included in the two booklets. However, the instructions are split between the two books.

So, for example, to build a waterfall piece in a desert biome, you would refer to one book. For the larger part of the set, you would refer to the second book. It wasn't hard, but it certainly wasn't fun.

After we built several of the official builds, I decided to dismantle it all and start fresh. This was much more satisfying than anything the instructions provided, and I think that's the real value of the set.


For my own creations (MOC), I opted to build as vertical as I could, while still having a large "land" base. That's just what I enjoyed making.

You get two mini figures with the set: a Steve with diamond pickaxe, and a skeleton with bow and arrow. You get one exclusive (so far) with this set, a Mooshroom. One odd thing to me though is why they decided to make the weapons and tools jagged and pixelated looking. I understand this is to match the game, but it just doesn't look right.


Value

The US price of this set is currently $49.99, which is not bad considering what you get. There are lots of great bricks here, 518 to be exact, and lots of rebuild value. I would have liked to have another mini-figure included at this price point; perhaps a zombie.

The instructions can be a little messy, so I say just look at the inspiration pages and pick some elements you like. Then build! That's why you would buy this anyway!