LEGO PlayStation Review: A Brilliant Brick-Built Tribute to the Original PS1
The original PlayStation has finally been given the LEGO treatment, transforming Sony’s iconic grey console into a surprisingly detailed 1,911-piece display set. But at £139.99, is the LEGO PlayStation worth adding to your gaming collection?
There are few consoles quite as instantly recognisable as the original PlayStation. Its chunky grey shell, enormous circular disc lid and wonderfully simple controller became part of gaming history during the 1990s, and now LEGO has recreated the machine almost brick-for-brick.
The LEGO PlayStation (72306) is the first official LEGO set based on Sony’s PlayStation hardware. Released in October 2026, it is aimed firmly at adult builders and retro gaming fans rather than children looking for their next playset.
And while £139.99 isn't exactly impulse-purchase territory, LEGO has done considerably more here than simply build a large grey box.
LEGO PlayStation at a glance
The set contains 1,911 pieces and costs £139.99 in the UK, with an 18+ age recommendation. The finished console measures more than 6cm high, 26cm wide and 19cm deep, putting it surprisingly close to the dimensions of the real machine.
You also build the original PlayStation controller, complete with its familiar directional pad and Circle, Cross, Square and Triangle buttons.
The result is unmistakably a PS1.
LEGO has captured the slightly industrial-looking design of Sony's first console remarkably well. Even the mixture of different shades and shapes created by the bricks works in its favour, giving the model enough texture to remain interesting without losing the simplicity of the original hardware.
It's almost life-sized
One of the best decisions LEGO made was to build the console at near 1:1 scale.
That makes a much bigger difference than you might expect.
Place the finished LEGO model on a desk or entertainment unit and, from a distance, you could quite easily mistake its silhouette for the real thing. It's considerably more convincing as a display piece than it would have been at half the size.
The controller helps complete the illusion.
Rather than including a modern DualSense or even the later DualShock controller, LEGO has recreated the original PlayStation controller without analogue sticks. It even plugs into the front of the brick-built console.
It's a lovely detail, although there is a slightly strange historical contradiction hiding here which we'll come back to.
LEGO didn't forget the buttons
Thankfully, this isn't simply a static model.
Press the Open button and the disc lid can actually open, mimicking one of the most memorable features of the original console. The Power button also incorporates a mechanism that reveals a green element representing the PS1's power indicator.
They're small features, but they're exactly the sort of details that elevate LEGO's best display models.
Anyone who owned an original PlayStation will remember pressing that chunky power button and waiting for the famous startup screen to appear.
Obviously, the LEGO version isn't about to start loading Crash Bandicoot, but physically interacting with those buttons adds another little hit of nostalgia.
There's a surprise hiding inside
The cleverest part of the LEGO PlayStation isn't actually visible when you've finished building it.
Hidden inside the console are two miniature game dioramas celebrating Gran Turismo and Ape Escape.
The Gran Turismo scene contains a tiny racing circuit complete with miniature cars, while the Ape Escape build recreates a colourful island scene and includes the game's distinctive monkey helmet, which can be configured with either a red or blue light.
Both dioramas can be removed from the console and displayed separately.
It's a fantastic idea because it breaks up what could otherwise have become a fairly repetitive grey build. It also gives the set some personality beyond simply recreating a piece of hardware.
There will inevitably be arguments about the games LEGO chose.
Where's Metal Gear Solid? Final Fantasy VII? Tekken 3? Resident Evil? Or even PlayStation's once unofficial mascot, Crash Bandicoot?
Licensing undoubtedly makes some of those choices considerably more complicated. Gran Turismo and Ape Escape nevertheless represent two important parts of PlayStation's early history.
There's one wonderfully nerdy problem
Here's something hardcore PlayStation fans will probably spot immediately.
The included controller is the original digital PlayStation controller, rather than the later DualShock.
Yet Ape Escape was famously designed around Sony's DualShock controller and required its analogue sticks.
It's hardly enough to spoil the set, and using the original controller makes sense when you're recreating the launch-era PlayStation.
But a brick-built DualShock would have been a fantastic additional model – particularly given the inclusion of Ape Escape.
We wouldn't have complained about getting a second controller either.
What is the LEGO PlayStation like to build?
A predominantly grey rectangular console doesn't immediately sound like the most exciting LEGO construction project imaginable.
Fortunately, the internal mechanisms and hidden game scenes help prevent the build from becoming overly repetitive.
The miniature Gran Turismo diorama is also likely to be one of the fiddlier sections thanks to its extremely small trackside details and vehicles.
The set supports the LEGO Builder app too, allowing builders to rotate the model and follow the construction using interactive 3D instructions.
There's even some extra PlayStation history in the instruction manual, including a contribution from Ken Kutaragi, widely regarded as the father of PlayStation.
For a set designed primarily around nostalgia, that's exactly the sort of detail we like to see.
Is the LEGO PlayStation worth £139.99?
At £139.99, the LEGO PlayStation isn't cheap.
But with 1,911 pieces, a large near-life-size finished model, a separate controller, moving mechanisms and two removable dioramas, it doesn't feel particularly unreasonable by modern LEGO standards.
More importantly, it actually looks like something you'd want to keep on display.
That's arguably the biggest test for LEGO's growing range of adult-focused gaming sets. Once you've enjoyed the building process, does the finished model deserve permanent shelf space?
For PlayStation fans, we'd say this one absolutely does.
Its relatively neutral grey colour scheme also means it doesn't scream "LEGO" from across the room. Put it alongside a gaming collection, old consoles or boxed PlayStation games and it should fit in beautifully.
Who should buy the LEGO PlayStation?
This is clearly aimed at people who have some emotional attachment to the original machine.
If your PlayStation memories involve swapping memory cards, discovering 3D gaming for the first time and hearing that unmistakable startup sound before loading a game from CD, LEGO knows exactly what it's doing here.
Younger PlayStation fans may still appreciate the model as a piece of gaming history, but the strongest appeal is unquestionably to players who remember the PS1 era.
And that makes the 18+ branding feel particularly appropriate.
This isn't really a LEGO set designed for playing with once it's finished. It's a nostalgic construction project that happens to leave you with an excellent display model at the end.
LEGO PlayStation review: Verdict
The LEGO PlayStation is one of those collaborations that feels almost inevitable in hindsight.
Sony's original console has a simple, distinctive design that translates remarkably well into LEGO, but it's the smaller touches that stop this becoming an expensive grey rectangle.
The working Open button, interactive Power button, plug-in controller and hidden Gran Turismo and Ape Escape scenes demonstrate that LEGO's designers understood that recreating the experience of the original PlayStation was just as important as recreating its shape.
We'd have loved to see a DualShock included, and £139.99 is still a significant amount of money for what is ultimately a display model.
But for anyone who grew up with Sony's original console, this is an exceptionally tempting piece of nostalgia.
ToyScout rating: 9/10
Pros and cons
Pros
- Excellent near-1:1 recreation of the original PlayStation
- 1,911 pieces makes for a substantial build
- Working Open and Power mechanisms
- Brick-built controller plugs into the console
- Brilliant hidden Gran Turismo and Ape Escape dioramas
- Strong display potential
- Packed with nostalgic details
Cons
- £139.99 is still a substantial purchase
- Only one controller is included
- A DualShock controller would have complemented Ape Escape perfectly
- Some fans will inevitably wish different PS1 games had been represented
LEGO PlayStation specifications
| Set | LEGO PlayStation |
|---|---|
| Set number | 72306 |
| Pieces | 1,911 |
| Age | 18+ |
| UK RRP | £139.99 |
| Release date | 4 October 2026 |
| LEGO Insiders early access | 1 October 2026 |
| Dimensions | Over 6cm high × 26cm wide × 19cm deep |
Should you buy it?
Yes – particularly if you grew up with the original PlayStation. The £139.99 price means it's certainly not an impulse buy, but the combination of its near-life-size design, interactive features, hidden gaming references and sheer nostalgia makes the LEGO PlayStation one of the more convincing gaming-themed LEGO display sets we've seen.
ToyScout verdict: 9/10 – an excellent tribute to the console that helped change gaming forever.