LEGO and Sony have finally built the console that started it all. The first-ever LEGO PlayStation set is a 1,911-piece recreation of the original 1994 PS1, complete with a working disc lid, a brick-built controller that actually plugs into the console, and two hidden dioramas tucked inside the shell. It goes on general sale October 4 at $179.99, with LEGO Insiders getting early access on October 1. Here is what is in the box and why the piece count is not an accident.
What You Get
The set is built as a display piece first, but it is not a static shell.
- Piece count: 1,911
- Price: $179.99 USD, 139.99 GBP, 159.99 EUR
- Scale: Roughly 26cm wide, close to a one-to-one match for the real console
- Working disc lid that opens
- Brick-built original PlayStation controller that plugs into the front of the console
- Functional-looking Open and Power buttons
The 1,911 piece count is the kind of detail LEGO designers enjoy. The original PlayStation’s model number was SCPH-1000, and the set’s number is 72306, so the 1,911 is not a direct reference to either. What it does do is put the set squarely in the same tier as LEGO’s other console tributes without pushing it into four-figure Icons territory.
The Hidden Dioramas
The best part of the set is what you cannot see from the outside. Two small dioramas are built into the console, each celebrating a PS1-era classic.
- Gran Turismo – the racing sim that sold 10.85 million copies and more or less defined what a driving game could be on the hardware
- Ape Escape – the platformer built around the DualShock’s dual analog sticks, which is a neat thing to memorialize in a set about the controller
Picking those two over, say, Final Fantasy VII or Metal Gear Solid is a licensing decision as much as a creative one, but it is also a reasonable pair. Both are Sony-owned, both are genuinely tied to hardware innovations, and neither is the obvious choice, which makes finding them a better surprise.
How to get one
- October 1: LEGO Insiders early access, plus availability through PlayStation Direct
- October 4: General release at LEGO.com, LEGO Stores and select retailers
The set arrives as PlayStation works through its 30th anniversary victory lap, and a brick version of the grey box is about as direct a nostalgia play as Sony could make. At $179.99 for nearly 2,000 pieces it is priced in line with comparable LEGO Icons builds rather than as a premium collectible, which is a pleasant surprise given how these collaborations usually go. Pre-orders open ahead of the October 1 Insiders window, and sets like this one have a habit of selling out fast.
Which PS1 game would you have put in the hidden dioramas? Come talk about it in the NerdBlocks forum.
