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The first CD-ROM in the LEGO® universe
- a "digital" celebration of LEGO TECHNIC's 20th birthday
Twenty years have now passed since the launch of the LEGO TECHNIC product programme. Then, as now, the target group were superbuilders (mainly boys!) between the ages of seven and 15/16 years of age. There are 39 LEGO TECHNIC sets in the international 1997 range. LEGO TECHNIC's 20th birthday will be celebrated in digital style, as one of this year's 15 new products is accompanied by a CD-ROM - the first in LEGO history. This product is being launched now in Europe, Australia and New Zealand. Marketing in the USA will begin in March.
The specific set is product No. 8299 in the LEGO TECHNIC programme's Starter line for children in the 7-12 age range. The elements it contains can be used to make a big, splendid yellow submarine (which is not, however, intended for operation in water) - and a "Mobile Underwater Base". These models can be made either by following the traditional printed building instructions or on a computer screen, using the set's CD-ROM, which also contains a lot of other interesting information, images and sounds.
In other words, the CD-ROM is not a computer game but a digital extension of the LEGO universe. It adds new exciting dimensions - realism, imagination and new knowledge - to LEGO play.
More details about the CD-ROM:
- high-quality, 3D-animated step-by-step building instructions with sound
- building instructions for two big, challenging models
- building instructions for five smaller models that are just as fascinating
- a Tips & Tricks film with technical building advice
- when builders have completed the models, they can print out a smart diploma showing their names and building times
- there are 27 "pages" of information (text, pictures and sound) about underwater life, diving and submarines
- an amusing animated LEGO TECHNIC diver appears on screen to help children explore the many new interesting features
- the diver speaks English, French and German, while the language options for the screen texts are Danish, Dutch, English, French and German
- there is an interactive LEGO TECHNIC catalogue that displays the various models' functions - as well as TV spots etc.
- lastly, PC (Windows 3.11 and Windows 95) and Macintosh compatible
Synergy between LEGO bricks and computers
"The new LEGO TECHNIC CD-ROM is not a substitute for playing with the real plastic bricks - on the contrary. It will inspire new games and new ways of building. The set will help to develop children's motor skills in a world that is becoming more digital, virtual and simulated. Children will also learn to master the computer in an entirely new way. They will, in short, use it as a tool to combine play in the real world with play on the screen", says Vice President Lars Bo Jensen from the LEGO Group's "Darwin" project.The CD-ROM, developed by the LEGO Group's own staff in Denmark as well as a number of external partners in Holland and Great Britain, is the first of a new type of digital accessory for the LEGO system's many sets. More are on the way, for other ages and target groups.
More information on the CD-ROM - and a digital appetiser - are available from the LEGO Group's Internet address: http://www.LEGO.com/products/8299
The LEGO Group
© 1997 The LEGO Group |
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