Lego Brick Like This reviewed: fun and competitive

Love Lego and party games? The two come together in a clever way with Lego Brick Like This, a game that’s really all about giving the right instructions in a timely manner.

It’s been a long time since the classic charades became a sort of instructional game families and friends had been playing at a dinner party, but if you can believe it, the acted medium has been a thing for nearly 200 years.

In that time, we’ve seen variations on the theme. Drawing things and getting team members to work it out in Pictionary isn’t meant to cause divorce, but it’s a variation on charades. Who Am I is a guessing game where everyone else knows a, but the person wearing the name. Even Codenames is a variation on that.

All are a variation on a guessing game of sorts, and all are intended to be fun and creative. It’s a concept perfectly suited for Lego, which now has its own guessing game of sorts.

What is Brick Like This?

Lego Brick Like This feels very much like this generation’s guessing game, where players will be asked to build without being told what it is they’re doing. And may even be given more fun challenges throughout.

One of the rare products were reviewing that lacks technology of any kind, Brick Like Me is a game to be played in real life with real people. Possibly friends, but in this reviewer’s case, family, because this game is about building things.

Kind of.

Like all things Lego, the idea of Brick Like This is to build Lego. But unlike most Lego packs, the person building has no idea what they’re building. They’re going to be told what to build.

That’s where the instructor comes in. Another player holds a card of a shape, and instructs the builder what shapes to use and where, all without pointing.

It could be a triangular shape and the block with the hole in it and maybe the arch or bridge, and you get the point. The instructor can’t point to the shape, but they can describe it.

Do that in as quick a time as you can, and you’ll score points. The person with the most points or to hit a certain number wins, and there’s an hour glass timer in the box for you to use (with much less time than an hour).

How does it play?

Perhaps crazily, the crux of the game isn’t just getting the player to build, but to get the instructor to work out the shapes that are needed, a factor that gets more complex depending on the amount of points being given.

Cards with 5 and 6 points are easy, and anyone can work out quickly what they need. Cards with 7 and 8 points require more skill, and it won’t just be the builder being quizzed, but also the instructor, breaking down the shape in their mind and working out which shape goes with what.

You’ll find 48 pieces in the box of parts that seem like a random grab bag of Lego pieces, but are, in fact, entirely intentional. They’re specifically packaged for Brick Like This, and make sense for use with the game not just because they match what’s on the cards, but also the challenge cards, which make the game more interesting.

Challenge cards basically add to the gameplay to make it more interesting, suggesting game play like using a minimum of four colours, only building while your hands touch a surface, not using your thumbs at all, or building only by touch and without sight.

By itself, Brick Like This is a bit of fun that anyone can get stuck into. Explaining the rules takes practically no time, while the game takes about a minute per round, and you can always let go of the timer and just go for it if you want.

But the idea of challenges throws more fun into the game, with approaches that make the game hilarious chaos.

Can kids play Brick Like This?

Perhaps the best part is that kids can really get into the game.

It will depend on the age of kids, but if they’re comfortable sitting and playing in a team, Brick Like This is a fun jaunt for family and friends. The game takes about 10 to 15 minutes to play, and Ms 8 really got into it, even taking the game into school to play against friends.

There’s nothing technological about Brick Like This, either, so it’s not like Lego Mario or even Lego’s AR efforts. It’s just a fun little party game that’s all about giving the best directions and understanding them.

Is it worth your money?

For $30, it’s difficult to argue with, as well.

Most games typically sit around the $25 to $30 mark, and the street price of Brick Like This tends to be closer to the $25 mark if you look around, making it an easy pickup.

Yay or nay?

Competitive Lego may not have been a thing before this, but Brick Like This is fun and competitive Lego, and a great game for a party or family gathering.

Like other guessing games and parties, it’s easy to get into and kids and adults will love it collectively. The only downside is potentially losing the pieces to kids who think that every Lego piece should be added to their collection, and for that you just might need to keep the box separated. Highly recommended.