Build a gaming-inspired shelter

• Age: 6+
• Time (minutes): 30 min.
• Number of people: 2+ 

One of our favorite ways to to jump-start kids’ creativity is by doing something that taps into something they already love. Like gaming. 

Creator @BrickinNick agrees, and we’ve partnered with him to give you a few helpful tips on how to build a gaming-inspired shelter. Something you can do as a family, and have lots of fun together in the process.

Why a shelter? Well, every epic gamer needs a place of refuge! Lava, lasers, lightning – so many things can come at you in a game. Where are you going to hide? That’s right, in your snazzy brick shelter. 

You don’t need specific bricks to do this – any bricks you already have at home will do. But if you want to build the exact shelter from @BrickinNick video, you can go to LEGO® Pick a Brick and order them online. 

Alright, let’s put that shelter together... together!

Steps to building your gaming-inspired shelter

STEP 1: Foundation, foundation, foundation

As with every build, a good foundation is found...amental. Here’s where your family gets to decide how big a shelter you want to build: is it a single-gamer shelter? Should it fit a whole family, and maybe a dog or two? You could take color and vibe inspiration from your kids’ favorite video games – or you could wing it and come out with a whole new thing. 

STEP 2: Add chunks for texture

Once you’ve built the base (ground, floor, walls, roof), you can add lots of texture to your shelter by clicking chunky bricks of the same color onto the different surfaces. That way, the ground will look like it’s got mounds of grass going on. Straw on the roof. That sort of thing. Also, flowers – why not add some?

STEP 3: Accesorize

Yes, yes, shelters are all about function – where else are you going to protect yourself from whatever is chasing you, falling on you or coming up at you during the game? But this is your LEGO brick shelter, and you should ride out the storm in style. Add a cozy fire, maybe some lounge chairs. Is that an ice cream machine? We love it. Add more. 

STEP 4: Bring on the players

Minifigures, little brick-built animals, inanimate objects that suddenly become animated... Whatever playable characters your family can come up with, bring them on – and bring them into the shelter. Now it’s a shelter party!