MOC: Lego Island

[strangely]

Over the last few weeks, I kept finding myself watching playthroughs of Lego Island on YouTube. It's a nostalgic favorite of mine, one of the first PC games I ever owned. My nostalgia rabbit hole got me thinking about what the Island would look like today in the style of current Lego, so I decided to start building it in Stud.io.

 

Of course, I needed to pick a starting point for this project and decided, to begin with the Pizzeria:

I started with the original model and kind of just tinkered with different parts until I felt satisfied with the results.

Here's the interior:

The updated Brickolini family:

 

The Pizzeria is one of my favorite buildings on the island and it was a lot of fun revamping it for the modern age. In fact, I was so happy with the results, I decided to submit it to Lego Ideas:https://ideas.lego.com/projects/fda5bce0-ad10-46db-80ef-fceccba6577d

 

And here it is in it's new home on my Lego Island layout:

 

Eventually I plan on redoing the entirety of the island, but it's a pretty big island, so who knows how long it will take. In fact, here's my progress so far:

I've worked a lot on the gas station and super store, but I'm not satisfied with them yet, so I won't post any closeups yet. More updates to come, eventually.

 

[The Island Chronicles]

Lego Island was an amazing video game saga as it was the main influence behind me becoming a Lego town builder. In fact, my Lego town is based off of the game. Its toy line (Island Xtreme Stunts) may not have been very popular, but its clearly had an influence on City sets before Lego City Adventures became a thing. A criminal similar to The Brickster is seen in the police sets from 2013 and 2014, along with an officer similar to Nick Brick in the 60047 Police Station. Characters similar to Mama and Papa Brickolini are shown in the pizzeria builds in sets 7641 and 60026 along with 60150. The Hidden Side line features a character named Ronny, who wears attire similar to Pepper's. Even supporting characters like Nubby Stevens, Red Greenbase and Ed Mail show up in various sets such as 7638, 7731, 60132 and 60223. Lego Island has done a number on the minds of the people at Lego. 

All the same, that's an awesome MOC of the pizzeria. I actually admire how you made it there, especially the added details in the kitchen area - which you didn't see much of in the game. Please mention me when you post about the gas station. That one was my favorite place and Nubby was my favorite character. 

Edited January 19, 2024 by The Brick Boss

[novareb]

This looks great! I'm very excited to see how much you get done! Classic LEGO games mean a lot to me so it's awesome to see builds from them.

[Slegengr]

Very interesting project!  I also have a deeply seated nostalgia with LEGO Island and have been recently listening to the original soundtracks (along with LEGO Racers 1&2 soundtracks) while building and sorting my bricks.

The Pizzeria is an excellent starting point, and I like your updates (except maybe not the new tree style; I will probably forever be a fan of the original palm trees!).
I do wish there were a better head for Mama, though, as the one you chose seems too youthful and a bit snarky (though it does have the appropriate beauty mark), at least if you want the original LEGO Island look.  I had forgotten how much the appearance of Mama and Papa changed in LEGO Island 2.  The chef's toque with brown hair matches quite closely to the LEGO Island 2 version of Mama, but Mama had black hair in the original LEGO Island.
I'm looking forward to some "hot-a pizza and cool-a music!"

As Papa says:
"Thatsa right, we make a pizza, we make a pasta, we make a lotsa money.  Why?  We're the only place to eat on the Island!  Just remember our motto: 'Brickolini's: Where else you gonna eat?'"

[strangely]

2 hours ago, Slegengr said:

(except maybe not the new tree style; I will probably forever be a fan of the original palm trees!).

Me too. I'm really hoping Lego introduces something that properly replaces the original palm tree pieces. I just miss how it could be posed.

I do like the new leaf they introduced last year though, I like how full I was able to make it look.

2 hours ago, Slegengr said:

I do wish there were a better head for Mama, though, as the one you chose seems too youthful and a bit snarky (though it does have the appropriate beauty mark), at least if you want the original LEGO Island look.  I had forgotten how much the appearance of Mama and Papa changed in LEGO Island 2.  The chef's toque with brown hair matches quite closely to the LEGO Island 2 version of Mama, but Mama had black hair in the original LEGO Island.

I probably will mess around with her design a little more, and I'd like to create a new design for Papa's torso too. I had forgotten about Mama's black hair, I think my Lego Island 2 nostalgia subconsciously won out.

Thanks for the kind words everyone! I'm glad you all like it!

[strangely]

On 1/18/2024 at 10:50 PM, The Brick Boss said:

Please mention me when you post about the gas station.

It's not completely finished yet, but I think the exterior is close to final.

I decided to forgo the more modern looking gas pumps and use the more retro inspired design from the Corner Garage set. The rest of the building I kept pretty similar to the original design.

I'm going to work on the garage interior next (I have a decent idea of what I want it to look like), but I'm unsure about what I want to put in the store part of the gas station. I originally thought about making it more of a convenience store, but I think that clashes with the Super Store too much (for so few residents it doesn't make sense to have so many food options). So I'm thinking about making it into an automotive supply shop.

 

Since my first post I've been working a bit more on the landscaping rather than the buildings. Nubby's is about 60-70% done and the Information Center is about 50% there (I keep going back and forth on how to do the tower, with the new elevator system introduced last year I tried to incorporate it into the build, but it pretty much ate up most of the floor space so I think I'm going to go back to the drawing board on that). I've been busy with work, so progress is slow, but I think the East side of the island is coming along nicely. I've hit 10K on pieces and Stud.io is still chugging along.

Edited February 6, 2024 by strangely

[The Island Chronicles]

13 hours ago, strangely said:

It's not completely finished yet, but I think the exterior is close to final.

I decided to forgo the more modern looking gas pumps and use the more retro inspired design from the Corner Garage set. The rest of the building I kept pretty similar to the original design.

I'm going to work on the garage interior next (I have a decent idea of what I want it to look like), but I'm unsure about what I want to put in the store part of the gas station. I originally thought about making it more of a convenience store, but I think that clashes with the Super Store too much (for so few residents it doesn't make sense to have so many food options). So I'm thinking about making it into an automotive supply shop.

 

Since my first post I've been working a bit more on the landscaping rather than the buildings. Nubby's is about 60-70% done and the Information Center is about 50% there (I keep going back and forth on how to do the tower, with the new elevator system introduced last year I tried to incorporate it into the build, but it pretty much ate up most of the floor space so I think I'm going to go back to the drawing board on that). I've been busy with work, so progress is slow, but I think the East side of the island is coming along nicely. I've hit 10K on pieces and Stud.io is still chugging along.

That gas station is righteous dude. I actually admire the retro look of the pumps, but I also love how you utilized the new double door piece for the entrance. Assuming that's what it is, I also love how you put the garage door from the tuning workshop to indicate a workspace for Nubby. Personaly, I think a small convenience store is good for citizens who are on the go and don't have time to stop for groceries. Like the police or paramedics. 

Edited February 6, 2024 by The Brick Boss