30 years ago, LEGO took a tentative first step beyond physical toys when it released Fun to Build, a Japan-exclusive game for the largely forgotten Sega Pico console. Three decades later, the mighty LEGO brand’s video game ambitions have now become an empire unto themselves, a set of digital experiences designed to appeal to a variety of tastes.
And with good reason – because as anyone who follows video games knows, the growth of the industry has also come with massive changes, including a constant shift in how gamers access and own games – and generational differences in why they matter so much.
For many, the idea of a LEGO video game is still synonymous with the prolific output of TT Games, the British development studio that has created dozens of licensed titles in hit franchises such as Star Wars, Batman and Harry Potter. But the LEGO brand now adorns many other games from other renowned creators, such as the recently released Annapurna LEGO Voyager and the Nintendo-style LEGO Party. There’s also LEGO Fortnite – but more on that in a moment.
After speaking with the heads of LEGO’s extensive gaming portfolio, novel LEGO Game vice president Fredrik Löving and veteran head of product Kari Vinther Nielsen, it’s clear that the company recognizes that the world of video games has already changed – and will continue to do so, as younger generations raised on games like Minecraft, Roblox and Fortnite – a key demographic of LEGO’s audience – seek connected social experiences across a wider range of platforms. At the same time, however, the brand knows that it must continue to meet the needs of more established gamers.
“Really understanding today’s children is always the most important thing,” Löving says. “There’s been a big change in gaming and we all know it, we’ve all seen it. Games mean something different to the generation growing up today than they do to me. When I was growing up on my Amiga 500, I escaped into the world, escaped into the screen and played these games with a very specific purpose.
“The main goal for adolescent children today is to find an activity that they can do in a social space with their friends. Secondly, it’s about what activity is actually happening around them.” It’s an observation that takes on particular significance after a huge increase in player numbers this summer for games like Grow a Garden and Steal the Brainrot, which helped break engagement records on Roblox, a social gaming platform that LEGO has until now shunned.
“Players are fundamentally different,” Löving continues. So where does LEGO remain?
“I was fortunate to work on LEGO Worlds,” Nielsen recalls, a LEGO-style sandbox game that allowed players to build elaborate models from digital bricks. While it was successful enough, it was a product of its time – and despite the LEGO branding, it never seemed to hinder the already dominant Minecraft, the game to which it was most often compared. Still, his ambitions were clear. “For me, this is proof of what a physical brick is in a digital space,” Nielsen continues. “We had fans creating models, creating worlds, creating stories, and I think that’s really the power of digital play, where you can create and share in different ways compared to what’s possible in the physical world.
After more than a decade at LEGO, Nielsen stated that the conversations she had on the idea for the Worlds were “the same stories and the same things we talk about” today. “We need to mix IPs, we need to figure out what the digital version of physical expression is. What is the real game version of that? I don’t think the conversations have changed much,” she continued. “It’s more about adapting to the way kids play today and being open to how to diversify play, how to become inclusive, to make sure kids have the right kind of play in the world they live in. I think that’s where we’ve actually made a lot of progress over the last few years.
“Kids really use video games as a way to socialize and a place to meet with friends,” Nielsen continues, echoing Löving’s earlier words. “Obviously we want to present ourselves in a secure and positive way, but I think that just speaks to the type of gaming and play that we really need to serve as the LEGO brand. It’s not just about having one version that works for gamers, but having a diverse portfolio to suit different needs and moments of play.”
LEGO has been demonstrating this approach over the past few months by launching a Mario Party-style LEGO Party designed to support cross-generational multiplayer in the same month as the indie puzzle platformer LEGO Voyagers. “The LEGO Party is really where I want to have fun with my friends or family,” notes Nielsen. “Meanwhile, LEGO Voyagers was a test of my relationship, I won’t lie. It was kind of like, ‘Go away, it’s me playing it now.'”
There is also LEGO Fortnite, which evolves from week to week. It’s hard to gauge the current level of overall success versus expectations, especially when compared to something like the viral popularity of Grow a Garden. However, its most notable offering, LEGO Fortnite Odyssey, remains a consistent hit and will soon receive another major update (which fans expect will add characters from the hugely popular Ninjago series). Meanwhile, the LEGO Brick Life role-playing game option has enjoyed a smaller audience, although it is currently hosting a major takeover of The Simpsons. The main attraction of LEGO remains the ability to build and create your own mini-games – something that should become easier and have more potential over time.
While that may not be true – yet – for something that looks as polished as TT Games’ upcoming LEGO Batman: Legacy of the Dark Knight, some of LEGO’s past achievements could certainly be recreated in Fortnite today, such as LEGO Island, the brand’s second video game (and its first true digital hit). “It’s just a different reality where you can gain experience, test new things, and try them out in a much faster engine with the right partner and the right creators,” says Nielsen.
“And back to what I mentioned about truly understanding modern players,” Löving adds. “Co-creation, agency, all the things you just mentioned. Very quickly, if not already, these are becoming table stakes for many experiences, especially on immense platforms.”
That said, more traditional LEGO gaming experiences won’t be completely forgotten either – as evidenced by next year’s release of LEGO Batman: Legacy of the Dark Knight. It was one of the biggest and best-received game launches of the year, and recently received an extremely positive reception at Gamescom 2025. For LEGO, the experiences it aims to deliver also remain a key part of the brand’s offering.
“I passed on Star Wars to my son through the Lego game, The Skywalker Saga,” Löving said. “It’s a huge thing for a dad to have this experience with his son – not only having fun together, but also passing on the fandom, which is possible because it’s a LEGO game. Even before I joined the company, it inspired me to see, ‘How do we even connect this? How can we do this and really make it a cross-generational experience?'”
“Our brand stands for a lot of things, and I think there are certain moments where you really dive into it and become immersed in it, like a six-hour session,” Nielsen confirms. “I play older board games and I know it will take a lot of time. I’m investing, and it’s even better if I can play together or collaborate on the couch with a few friends or family members. It’s fantastic and I think TT Games is doing so well.”
As LEGO enters its fourth decade in the digital space, the company clearly has ambitions beyond simple, static plastic. From dipping its toes into the world of simple robotics with MindStorms to the much newer interactivity embedded in LEGO Super Mario bricks, it’s clear that the company is eager to experiment with play possibilities. Another example is LEGO Dimensions, the brand’s experiment in the “toys for life” category, which, thanks to its focus on IP connections and adventures, can be seen as a precursor to today’s LEGO Fortnite.
But Nielsen says it’s ultimately about finding the right kind of art for the right audience. “Sometimes it’s time to play, and then you can almost take it and bring it into the present or into the future with different flavors and twists,” he says. “It’s no different than our LEGO version of Darth Vader or Batman. I think there’s something generational about it.”
Tom Phillips is IGN’s news editor. You can contact Tom at tom_phillips@ign.com or find him on Bluesky @tomphillipseg.bsky.social
