Review: 21305 Maze
Posted by Huw,
21305 Maze is the thirteenth set to come to fruition thanks to LEGO Ideas. The original idea was submitted by Jason Allemann in April 2012 and achieved 10,000 supporters in September 2014. LEGO announced that it had passed review in May 2015.
LEGO has kindly sent out copies to fan sites to review ahead of its release on April 1st. Today the internet is awash with them so you might be fed up reading about it already, but if not, read on to find out what I think of it.
Box and contents
The first thing that strikes you is how big the box is compared to all other Ideas sets: 26 x 38 x 9cm. This is partly due to the 32x32 baseplate but also because there are a lot of large parts inside.
The rear of the box shows how it works, explains that it's a 2-in-1 set inasmuch that you can make two different mazes, and that ideas for other mazes are provided.
There's not a lot of wasted space in the box which, like all Ideas sets boxes, has a top flap so doesn't need to be destroyed to open it.
Here are all the bags laid out. The 32x32 light grey baseplate is not shown.
The instructions are contained within a single perfect bound 138 page manual.
Construction
Unsurprisingly, the mechanism is built first. Parts colour-keying has been used to excellent effect and makes it virtually impossible to built it incorrectly, or inadvertently build onto the wrong side of the baseplate, which, given it's square and the instructions call for it to be rotated several times, would be a possibility otherwise.
Basically, there's a blue side, a red side and a yellow side. As a result it all looks a bit BOLOCs but it matters not once construction is complete.
The mechanism is almost complete here. You can see that twisting the gear on the right moves the yellow lift arm at the front while the one that will be attached to the back will move the blue one.
The 4 x 4 block of black bricks at the bottom corner in the image above and the ball holder box are placed on opposite corners to enable the frames to be attached more easily in the next stage of construction.
The outer frame is built next. Note the blue plates on the bottom of one side which clearly indicate that it goes on the blue side of the mechanism. Those on the opposite side are red.
That is then fixed onto the mechanism and held there with Technic beams. Unfortunately you can't see it too well in this picture, but the connector you can see on the right hand side in the image above is attached to the blue lift arm and that is how the frame is tilted.
The inner frame is then constructed.
The yellow and blue tiles make it clear which way it should be inserted.
This then completes construction of the frame so the black brick block and ball holder can be removed to enable it to be put through its paces. It works well, and moves smoothly.
Now, we move on to the maze itself, which is built on four 8x16 plates and an 8x8 in the centre to give a total area of 24x24 studs.
There's not much to say about building it although you do need to pay attention to the instructions while doing so as it's easy to get lost.
The maze plate fits snugly inside the inner frame and it's now ready for playing with.
Parts are provided to build another maze plate, a Castle maze, but you need to disassemble the one above to do so. However, there isn't a lot of parts duplication so you might choose, as I did, to use parts in your own collection to build it to avoid the need to take the other one apart. The main overlap between the two are the large black plates and the 2x4 tan tiles which I didn't have any of so I used 2x2s instead.
Here it is inside the frame.
Operation
The idea of the maze is, of course, to move the ball from one place to another by tilting it using the gear wheels while avoiding the un-tiled areas in which the ball will get stuck.
For the first maze you need to get it from the green tiles to the red. There's a single pathway through it and it is incredibly difficult. I have not managed it yet!
The castle maze is bit more open-ended in that a start and finish are not indicated so you can make up your own challenge, e.g. to go from the red house in the corner to the castle.
Ideally I'd have made a video to demonstrate how it works but as that's not my area of expertise I'll refer you to Jason's and Andres' one at zusammengebaut.com.
Operating the maze should be entirely down to skill: turning the wheels accurately and precisely enough to move the ball without drifting into a black studded area. However due to the nature of the LEGO parts from which it's constructed there's also an element of luck involved, which is unfortunate.
There are two problems: first, it's possible to get the ball stuck in the cracks between the tiles, particularly when moving it slowly over areas where three or four meet. The section below is particularly bad for this. Once the ball is stuck you can do nothing but tilt the maze a bit more to try and shift it which is likely to result in it moving somewhere you don't want it to.
The second problem concerns the ball: it has a small flat spot on one 'side' and a smaller one opposite. If you're moving it slowly and it happens to roll onto it, again, the ball is stuck and needs a nudge by way of a sharp tilt to move it, which never ends well.
If the flat spot rolls onto the tile cracks, you might as well give up...
These two issues do rather spoil operation. The gaps in the tiles problem could probably be resolved by redesigning areas of it, or using different sized tiles, but the only way to solve the ball problem would be to use a non-LEGO ball of the same size, a glass marble perhaps.
Modification
The instructions provide inspiration for building alternative mazes using the parts included in the set and Jason will be providing more at his website.
However, rather than take the maze plates apart I thought I'd experiment with an online maze generator and build something from my own parts.
On the 24x24 plate you can build an 8x8 maze which leaves a row of unused studs down two sizes. I had the generator produce a few until it made one that used most of the board for the solution. I then converted it to brick form and made a few more tweaks to improve playability. The result is below.
Obviously when you design your own you can make it as easy or difficult as you want to. Having said that, I still haven't managed to complete this one: there's one area in the middle that always catches me out! Perhaps I'll move a few bricks here and there...
Overall verdict
The mechanism is well designed and, thanks to the parts colour-keying, a pleasure to build. The completed model is the sort of thing you could leave on your coffee table for guests to admire and play with: it certainly invites all that see it to do so. However, it does have some flaws as noted above which do spoil operating it somewhat.
A great aspect of it is that it encourages experimentation and play, perhaps more so than most sets as far as adults are concerned. Although the finished model makes a perfectly fine display piece it's far more satisfying trying to complete the mazes, or better still, designing and building your own, rather than staring at it all day.
However, the very best thing about it is that it demonstrates that there is so much more to LEGO than vehicles, minifigs and Hollywood tie-ins. LEGO should be commended for producing it and if you buy it for no other reason than to show your support for such models it will be money well spent.
21305 Maze is released on 1st April, priced at US$69.99. It is not listed at shop.LEGO.com in Europe yet, so UK and Euro prices are not known.
Thanks to LEGO for providing the set for review. The review is an expression of my own opinions.
68 likes
44 comments on this article
A great article! I'm tempted to get one myself now after reading this review! Its a little bit expensive for its price, however the playability and versatile concept would outweigh the cons of this set.
So from the review we can see it isn't overly aMAZE-ing. Jokes aside, it is nice to see something out of the ordinary be released. What is amazing is how long it took from ideas submission to actual release. It takes commitment to submit sets.
I've wanted this set ever since it was first revealed to be the next Ideas set, to when I saw the set, to when I read this article... so in the space of a month, pretty much. :P
Thanks for the review. I guess you're right about this being worth 70$ to spend just for the novelty of it. I can't wait to mod it!
In Romania the price is 84 euro, i found it in some lego stores, usually here the price is 10% more that the lego shop in de
Great review! It's a shame about its faults, but I still think it's a great set.
Great review Huw, I wasn't really interested in this set and was going to let it pass me by, but having seen this I think I'll definitely pick one up - at some kind of discount.
Isn't it a bit strange that we still don't know UK prices only a couple of weeks from release?
Another nice review by Huw!
What I find most interesting is the fact that one can create their own mazes with endless combinations. Also check out the maze the original designer shows on Youtube, he made an underwater maze complete with sunken treasure, shipwreck and giant squid!
Lovely review, a Lego set I might actually 'play' with! Depending on the price I will probably pick this up. I have a horrible feeling that the number 70 in every other currency inexplicably means £70 sterling but hopefully it's more like £50-£55.
I'd also note that it's interesting how TLG are making it 'easier' to build their models over the last few years (such as numbered bags for most sets, and colour coding in this). I'm trying to reconstruct a 8868 Technic Air-Tech Claw Rig from 1992 and it's certainly a challenge!
That's a shame about the ball. Have you tried the old Soccer balls, or possibly basketballs?
This is a basketball and I think soccer ones use the same mould.
@SprinkleOtter
How about those balls from Bionicle? http://brickset.com/parts/4297030
Okay, I checked an old soccer ball, they are the same. But the basketball is slightly different- I don't know if better, though.
^^ Zamors would be worse- they have a giant depression in one side.
have you tried it with a marble? looks like a lot of fun I'm glad a non-licensed set is being produced.
I was originally very jaded about this model, as most of my memories of these types of mazes are pleasant, but really not very exciting or long lived.
However, the model is very charming and I think I may actually grab one once it is released.
Funny enough, although the dips between plates are technically "defects", it just kind of "is what it is" in regard to this particular maze and I might see it as a challenge in using the maze, that issue doesn't bother me much.
What DOES concern me, however, are how long will the technic poles last? Is there anywhere in the mechanism where there is more weight that puts a strain on any part? The classic wooden versions of these mazes will last a very long time, but I wonder if the bendable plastic pieces of Lego might bend just enough that it doesn't quite work well anymore without replacing parts in the future.
Also how well does the set work without the Lego soccer balls? Would a marble work better?
Overall I'm glad this set exists, whether I get one or not. I'm sure Lego would like to see more sets like this in Ideas, but unfortunately this looks like the minority.
How many tan 2x4 tiles there are in this set? I see quite a lot of them...
The Lego ideas Twitter page said it would be £60 in the UK.
The designer has posted a video of it in action (which makes it look easier than I imagine it would be!)
@TransNeonOrangeSpaceman There are 45 2x4 tan tiles.
@DanRSL There actually isn't a lot of stress on the control system, unless you are really aggressive, and 'overturn' the control wheels, in which case you will start twisting axles.
Great review @Huw. Part of the challenge is learning how the ball behaves and accommodating the 'flaws'. You eventually learn to keep the ball moving so that it rarely gets caught up on the seams or the molding holes. The ball is also so light it tends to bounce off the walls, which is something you eventually learn to use to your advantage. Success is very much a learned skill, so the more you practice, the better you become.
I've tried using a marble, but I didn't like it very much. A marble is so heavy you really notice the seams between tiles a lot more. The LEGO ball is so light it tends to glide over the seams.
A bionicle Zamor sphere is too large to fit through a 2 stud gap.
@DanRSL, there is no real stress on any of the elements as the movement is slight and the weights low so I don't think failure of rods etc. is a concern.
I went to my toy shop just now to try and get some marbles but they had none, so I can't answer that question. I suspect the extra weight, as well as the lack of indents, will be an advantage though.
Great review! It's nice to see something quite different coming from the LEGO portfolio and I'm sure this will attract a lot of interest from buyers of all ages. The customisability of this is a real draw too; although I did just lose about 10 minutes of my life repeatedly generating different-sized mazes after following that link!
About the ball: Does anyone know the exact dimensions of it (or what 1.75 studs x 1.75 studs translates to in millimetres)? I wonder if this could easily be replaced by a equal sized ball bearing...
I must get this set!!! Birthday is in 2 months, and its only $90. Defenitley will be picking this up!!
This is such a nice set, 100% creativity (=LEGO)! It's also very nice to read comments here by JK Brickworks himself, the maker of this set.
For a discussion about this set you can have a look in the forum: http://bricksetforum.com/discussion/22651/21305-maze/p1
Is it me, or are these Idea Sets keep going up in price?
^If a LEGO set has more pieces it's gonna cost more, regardless of it's theme. Cost of packaging needs to be taken into consideration too, given this set will have some large parts, e.g. 32x32 base plate.
@JK Brickworks, thank you for your comments. I suspect you are right, practice makes perfect!
Looks awesome. Definitely getting it.
@JKBrickworks Awesome to see one of your projects being produced by TLG. Well done!
Have you tried using some sort of rubber cement to cover up the flat area on the ball? If you want to keep it purely Lego I think it'd be a good fix for it.
@Zeneth I think the ball is 14 millimeters in diameter.
@LegoPegasister2015 I haven't tried filling the molding holes with rubber cement, but I could see that working quite well. Definitely worth a shot!
I was wondering about filling in that indentation on the ball too - I might try that; I'm definitely going to get this at some point as I think it'll be fun to experiment with and customise!
Eh... not really worth it to me.
I really don't think it's worth it due to the fact of the balls getting stuck with the tiles. I know it's just the way it is design wise, but I really don't want to have to modify the ball to get it rolling without a risk of it being stuck.
Great review and a fascinating read! The colour coding is a pleasant surprise but its unfortunate to hear about the flaws of the set too..
This is awesome! When growing up I played a lot with the "original" maze as a kid and I really like the way it now has been reinvented in LEGO! I really need this one!
Perhaps a future Brickset competition could be to design an innovative maze layout?
Has anyone tried it with the metal ball from the EV3 Mindstorms education core set (6079570)? Not sure what size that ball is though.
Wow this looks amazing I can't wait for it too come out!
@Loopycow.. I see what you did there ! a'maz'ing...
I really like the mechanical aspect of this, and the more I see this set, the more I am liking it. Nice review - thank you !
If I got this, there's one major modification I'd make. I'd use part 6079570 Steel Ball and modify the maze as necessary to be able to make use fo the ball.
You could just use a non-Lego ball like a marble. Looks pretty cool.
This is totaly awesome, want this
@jmjt4 same here! ;)
If Lego decides to produce the Ideas project "Rolling BB-8", it could indicate a shift toward more of a physics-style of sets; rather than just catapults and flick-fire missiles.