An Expensive Box of Bricks

The new LEGO Ideas X-Files set looks fantastic. It has 1,478 pieces and costs $199.99, which works out to roughly 13.5 cents per piece.

Ten years ago, the licensed LEGO Ideas Yellow Submarine set included 553 pieces for $59.99, or about 10.8 cents per piece.

That is not a perfect comparison. Some pieces cost more to manufacture than others, minifigures and licensing add expense, and general inflation has raised the price of almost everything. LEGO also increased prices across more than 100 North American sets in 2022, with some jumping as much as 25 percent, after citing higher material and operating costs.

Still, it is difficult not to feel that LEGO is becoming less of a casual hobby and more of a luxury collectible market.

The sets aimed at adults are increasingly elaborate, licensed, enormous, and priced around $200, $500, or even $1,000. LEGO is very good at turning the things we loved as children into beautifully designed objects we now have to negotiate with our budgets to own.

I understand that good design, licensing, manufacturing, and thousands of specialized parts cost money. I just wish enjoying LEGO did not increasingly require choosing between one great set and several more practical uses for the same money.

I still want the X-Files set. I just miss when wanting a LEGO set did not immediately become a financial decision.