Inconspicuous

Ha! I knew it would be something like this. It sounds exciting and challenging. However, I don't understand how the 'windows' work. Are you going to remove the clue after a certain period? Or is it like an advent calendar and a new minifig and clue are revealed every day?

About 15. The pass was the hardest part. There are no specified rules for scoring, but free-throws are kind of out of the question, given that there are only four set spots. However, I could see 2 and 3 pointers, depending on which player you score with, working pretty well. Considering these issues, I feel like Lego did a pretty good job. Oh, and how I wish that hoops were really that big. Passing is much more difficult and is virtually impossible to pull off in a game. It took me a while to get that part correct, but I wanted to make it known that it IS possible. That's why I reviewed this set, or write reviews at all for that matter- to bring sets into the spotlight and open people's eyes. Interesting, I did not know that. Thanks for bringing it up. Another thing I didn't know! That just goes to show how versatile Lego is, even the most specific pieces. Thanks for the link. And thanks to everyone who commented! I really do appreciate your taking the time to add a reply.

Right, the role PM.

Welcome to my special 2nd Reviewers Academy Anniversary review! I've decided to put a rather uncommon set in the spotlight to see if maybe it deserves more attention: 3431 Streetball 2 vs 2. This obscure and small Sports set was the smallest court-game set of the Basketball subtheme yet the most unique in location. The set uses some rare sand-green basplates to create a Street Court with some fantastic details. Let's take a look at this long-forgotten set! BASIC INFORMATION: Set Name: Streetball 2 vs 2 Set Number: 3431 Number of Pieces: 182 Minifigs: 4 Price: $20.00 USD Theme: Sports / Basketball Year Released: 2003 RESOURCES: Brickset Peeron Bricklink Flickr THE REVIEW: INSTRUCTIONS: Front: First up is the instruction booklet that features a large, strange grid pattern partially covering the set. It features a city skyline in the background, emphasizing the 'Street' part of the set name. I've never seen instruction art quite like it before, so it has a sort of special feeling to it. Random Page: The instructions on the inside are very straightforward and feature boxes for small submodels. The background blue seems simple at first, but if you look closely, you can see that there are faded images of NBA players hiding! A subtle yet fantastic touch. Crazy Set-up: One of my favorite parts is the pages of wacky Sport set combinations. Here we see a six-player setup, with four rotating hoops in the center. You gotta love their creativity. Back: The back of the cover features another interesting design, again with the grid. Here you'll find an ugly hockey figure ( ), a basketball player going for a slam dunk, and a soccer (football) player. There are a few real-life images of the sports, and some words to go with them. Instructions:: Thoughts: They have pretty cool designs all throughout which was one of the great things about the Sports line. PIECES: Lighter Pieces: Next we'll examine the pieces. Here are the lighter pieces, including the players' stand, the hoops and nets, and the rest of the sand green. All are fairly interesting pieces. Dark Pieces: And the rest of the regular pieces. They're not as interesting as the contents of the last picture, but the fence pieces are always useful, as are gray and black plates. Baseplates: The most noticeable parts of the set are sand-green basketball plates, which are exclusive to this set. I'm not sure why exactly you'd need them, unless you were building a playable tennis court, but they're still cool. Pieces of interest: Here are the more interesting pieces of the set, several of which I've briefly touched upon. The printed backboard is pretty neat, as is the basketball and the hoop. The sand green slopes are delicious as well. Hoop: The net isn't flexible at all, so there goes the minifigs' chance at swishing. The internal molding is pretty cool though, so I thought I'd give you a closer look. Pieces:: Thoughts: A very satisfactory selection with useful parts from all colors. MINIFIGS: Front: The set features four minifigs, all in the typical Basketball style. For those of you not familiar with the theme, they feature spring-legs (that allow shooting and passing) and have special arms that lock in place at a 90 degree angle to hold the ball (special hands make this easier). More on that later. Two of them have red NBA torsos with numbers 4 and 10 and the other two have t-shirts. I like the torso designs on all of them, but it's a shame they're stuck with basketball arms. I'm pretty sure you can rip them off, but I'm not sure if regular arms will fit back in! Also note the smug facial expressions and hairstyles- all pretty unique! Back: The backs are relatively uninteresting except for the back print on two of them. I don't think back-printing was all that common back then so having the numbers is really nice. Minifigs:: Thoughts: Their printing is pretty sweet but since they're specialized for gameplay, they don't fit in with regular minifigs that well. THE BUILD: Build: Here are in-build shots at Steps 3, 6, 9, and 14 respectively. The only interesting parts about the build are the techniques behind incorporating the large basketball bases and the snap-in hoops. The technique to hold the bases in place is quite effective and sturdy and was quite enjoyable to build. Build:: Thoughts: Fairly simple but much different than the builds of other Lego sets. I enjoyed it considerably. COMPLETED PRODUCT: The Whole Set: And we have our completed set! Let's take a look at some of the details. Bench: On one side of the court, there's a bench. A simple but effective detail. It's good for holding extra players and balls. Gate: On the other side is an entrance. Again, a simple touch that makes this set great for Town layouts. Connection: The hoops are attached to the main base with Technic pins. I believe they did this because it would be too expensive to make the court longer and this way (in theory) it's just as sturdy. In reality, the hoop is a little shaky. Hoop: The hoop looks really cool and official. The net is a little big in comparison to the backboard, but this is to accommodate playability, since if the net was smaller it would be too hard to score. Back: The back is a little ugly because it's two studs thick, but otherwise the hoop and Technic angle couldn't both attach at the same time. Side: From the side, you can catch a glimpse of the inner connecting mechanisms. They look pretty neat from this angle. Demo 1: As I promised earlier, here's a demo of how the game actually works. First, the player must be rotated so that the ball is caught directly in front of him (sometimes the ball rolls around him anyways). Demo 2: Second, you push down and he grabs the ball. Demo 3: Thanks to the springs in his legs, he rises automatically. Thanks to his special hands, he's holding the ball is a grip that makes shooting easy. Demo 4: Last, aim at your target, bend him back, and release! Game Time: Now that you've gotten a little tour, it's game time! Since the players don't have particular jerseys, it's up to you what the teams are. Video: Of course, no set with playability functions would be complete without a video! Here, I've demonstrated passing and shooting between players, which is basically all there is to it. _______________________________________________ Totals: Design: 9/10 The designers managed to create a good-looking and functional model but keep it at a smaller size. It's very pleasing to the eye and is fairly sturdy. It loses a point for the slightly-shaky hoops. Parts: 10/10 A nice selection centering around the exclusive bases. However, there's a good amount of other parts, like the fence pieces and basketball accessories which are useful and exciting. Build:9/10 The build was a little tedious due to a little repetition, but otherwise it was something completely different than other themes and felt special. Minifigs: 7/10 The torsos and heads are nice, but none are that rare. More importantly, the figures can't be mixed with regular minifigs that successfully. Playability: 10/10 For a set of its size, it has great playability, since it is after all a game! Combining a couple of them would make an even cooler streetball game. Price: 8/10 The piece/price ratio isn't perfect, but it's pretty good considering the larger bases, specialized minifigs, and licensing fees. Total: 53/60 Overall a rather splendid set. I'd recommend this to Town collectors looking to spice up their layouts and Basketball fans who want something unique. It's a little simple but it's very satisfying too, and I find it to be a unique idea crossed with impeccable execution. Thanks for reading! I'd love to hear what you think of this set. Inconspicuous

Woohoo! What a stunning conclusion! Beautiful sets and beautiful prose to go with it! It's a shame that a whole bunch of main characters had to die, but oh well. Sandy, your presentation throughout the game was amazing! Thanks for letting me play. I'd like to congratulate my fellow winners, Shadows, WhiteFang, and Lord Arjay. Although I went along with the ride and followed orders from Shadows a lot, I did have to get myself out of trouble a few times, and am surprised I did! Also, congrats Arjay. You really gave us scum a run for our money and you deserve to win. Being Impartial is one of the harder roles. I still can't believe everyone bought my 'Paranoid Protector' lie. My night actions were a one-time-use convert, Expelliarums, and Protego. So yes, I blocked iamded several times and got away with it. I feel lucky to not have been voted out! But in the end, I got my first win. Again, thanks for hosting Sandy, and thanks to everyone for a great game!

Happy birthday def! Enjoy that overnight island BBQ.

Like this? Saesee and Shaak sound promising. I like the ship and the Jedi, so I might have to buy it if it turns out well.

This reminds me of the fictional character named Ambassador Ralf Simnel in a book I read about a different castle. Every time a scum was voted out, he claimed to have been napping because of so called 'time zones'. He turned out to be scum. I agree with everything you've said Jolie. Prof. Longbottom was suspicious of him too, so let's honor his wish. Vote: Loki Malfoy / ILikePi

I've updated the first post with new items including over thirty Classic Castle and Pirates minifigs! See individual and group pricing in my Flickr. Also, I've added a Used, Complete 10123 Cloud City to my Bricklink store. Thanks for looking!

Excellent work, Diidy. The cheese-slope mosaics are pure, sugary eye-candy and the other details in the room are awesome too. One thing: can you explain what the white jar-thing is? I'm not sure what it is. Otherwise, fabulous work!

If it's one versus the other, I prefer the old one. It's much more realistically sized, and less cartoony. The one thing I like about the new one is that it can swallow a minifig, but it still feels too bulky. A larger, updated version of the old one would be great as long as it isn't too huge or cartoony.

While traversing the wide Internet, I came across this. An online game about Lego Games. I haven't played it too much, but it looks like a mediocre platform game. I have no idea why this would be created, other than for publicity, but maybe there's something I'm missing. Anyways, what are your thoughts on this? Seems like an interesting idea that somewhat failed.

Ahhh, that would explain. Cool! I know next to nothing about EU, so I found this quite interesting. I would like to see a set of this much more now.

Nooo! Not Prof. Longbottom! He was such a great man in his youth, and his caring but forgetful ways brought about his death. If only he had remembered Jolie's advice! At least we got rid of our third Death's Hallowed, Crudo. So Miss Bathory, you poisoned Xander? I'm not sure what to think of this move right now, but would you care to explain your motives? Alright... let me explain this. Last night I targeted Madam Hearth with a protection spell, knowing it would block her too, since I was slightly suspicious of her. Apparently Miss Ching targeted her too, and failed. See how this fits together? And what's more, I can conclude that Miss Hearth is not the Hallowed killer, since I blocked her and there were stills kills tonight. Maybe if I knew Miss Ching was targeting her, we could have found out whether she's Hallowed or innocent, but alas, no one tells me anything, and we only know that she's not the killer. I protected her on Night 5 because I thought she would be blocked. Obviously that backfired, so I made sure not to do it again. A few nights later- what do you know? Another unlucky coincidence that's putting me under suspicion! I want to help you get rid of these pesky Hallowed! Please don't let two unfortunate mistakes of mine come in between us. Jolie, your suspicions have been impeccably accurate- you've led us to three in a row! I'm willing to back you up here, please don't turn on me.

You're talking about sets like these, right? I don't think the sets themselves are actually buildable, but if you're talking about actual instruction for the fake models, then I don't know what to tell you. They should all be fairly easy to figure out.

It's basically what OneSnowTrooper and prateek have already mentioned. It was a rare concept at its time and most likely sold out fast. Nowadays, people desperately want the minifigs, half of which are exclusive to the set! It's very playable and uses some interesting and ingenious mechanisms, and is just an appealing set, at least for me. I've tried to analyze what it is about the set that makes it so popular in my review, which I believe many of you have seen, and this is all I can conclude. [shameless plug]I just listed a used complete copy on Bricklink for $399.95 yesterday![/shameless plug]

Great review, dingmh. Your pictures are quite nice. Even though I don't collect Town sets, I might have to buy this. It seems like a great value, especially with the pig. I wasn't aware that there's a new type of hat, so thanks for pointing that out. I find it odd the farmer's smile isn't correct on the box, since Lego doesn't tend to make that many mistakes with the box art. The catalogs are another story. Thanks for the review!

Agreed! You managed to make him look revolting- in a good way! Oooh that hits the spot.

Danse Espagnole from La Vida Breve It's from an obscure opera, but I absolutely love the guitar duet arrangement. I look forward to playing it some day.

You just can't stop making me laugh, can you? The Stinky-Wan and IC-88 are perfect. I'm not as big of a fan of the Hamm, but the cape over the ears is pretty clever. If there was a minifig of Mr. Potato Head, I'm sure he would be Lando!

Uhhh, they already made one: Did you mean something else? (That Mynock looks pretty cool!) I'd love to see a Kamino set- whether it's Clone Wars (Season 3) or Episode 2, with some Kaminoans and interesting architecture. Who knows? Maybe some new Jedi or the Fetts!

Oh my God that is hilarious!! The parallels you came up with are just SO perfect, and the little techniques are brilliant too. Artoo-Stretchoo and Master Claaawda are probably my two favorites, but Lotso-Huggin' Wookiee and Rex-Rex are awfully funny too. You just made my day (or what's left of it).

Ha. Those are great. Thanks for sharing that. Ben Franklin is hilarious, in addition to the monster ringing the bell.

Twist? It was a joke.

The suspense is killing me! Hopefully not literally, though.