LEGO Haunted House – 10228 review

2nd Jul 2013

Haunted House

Pieces: 2064

Ages: 14+

Mini Figures: 6

Lord Vampyre
Lord Vampyre’s Bride
Zombie Chef
Monster Butler (Frankenstein’s Monster)
2 Glow in the dark ghosts

Price: £149.99

What’s inside

3 instruction manuals

Sticker sheet

Bags of Lego divided into 5 numbered stages

Background

The Haunted House is the show-piece of the 2012 Monster Fighters line of Lego sets. Although the Haunted House is not tied into any film or franchise directly, it is obviously borrowing its inspiration directly from many memorable film and TV characters and locations. The set is part of Lego’s ‘hard to find’ or ‘exclusive’ sets set aside by the serial number starting with 10 which are generally aimed at more experienced builders and adult fans.

Building

Although the Zombie Chef and the Monster Butler are exclusive mini figures to this set, it is clear that the main draw of this set is not the mini figures but the impressive dilapidated building which completed stands at an impressive 15 inches tall. The Haunted House has three floors made to mini figure scale and therefore also fits very well with the Lego’s Modular City sets, although it does not connect to them directly as the other sets do.

No large base plate is included in the set and instead Lego has ensured good playability by making the middle of the building hinged so that it can be opened for the inside to be easily accessible. Building is fairly standard Lego house with a stairs to the first floor but with a clever hidden, foldable ladder going to the attic level. There are a lot of nice little details on the balconies and the roof which of course will add some repetition but never to the point of making the build a chore.

As usual there is also a lot of various furniture to be built for the interior. This gives a great messy feeling for the attic with old chest, boxes and a really nicely designed old gramophone. A small free-standing gate is also included which adds to the look of the finished product.

Luckily all the stickers included in the set are for the furniture, some of the windows and for a few paintings which can be hanged on the walls, and therefore there are no stickers which span more than one Lego piece making the set easy to break and build again if needed.

Finished Product

The Haunted House makes a really impressive Lego show piece for any fan of classic horror films. The look is really well thought of and the set has all the detail of the of the Lego modular buildings but in a detached house style and would also serve well as a base for those who like to modify of build their own creations. Due to the hinged construction it also retains its playability very well which means that it can be enjoyed by kids and adults alike. At £149.99 for over 2000 pieces it also tips to the right side of the good value curve and therefore should certainly be recommended as perhaps a gift that will give hours of enjoyment to both the builder of the family and the children.

http://shop.lego.com/en-GB/Haunted-House-10228

Marko Hyypia